Barcelona chair (Side elevation)
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
American, born Germany. 1886–1969
1931-1932
An ink-on-tracing-paper technical side elevation of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona chair, made to specify the chair’s exact curves, proportions, and construction for precise fabrication.
What first strikes you is the chair’s sweeping S‑curve—drawn in fine, measured ink with dimension lines and arrows—set against translucent, slightly worn tracing paper so the geometry reads like a delicate, engineered diagram.
The drawing crystallizes modernist principles—clarity, structural honesty, and industrial precision—behind one of the 20th century’s iconic chairs and helped define how architects and manufacturers approached elegant, machine-made furniture.
Medium
Ink on tracing paper
Dimensions
41 3/16 x 40 7/16" (104.6 x 102.7 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Mies van der Rohe Archive, gift of the architect
Accession
950.1974
Palette
Art Terms
Exhibitions
![Chair with Arms (Two elevation sketches, numerous detail sketches. [versions of Barcelona Chair].)](https://www.moma.org/media/W1siZiIsIjU2ODUzNSJdLFsicCIsImNvbnZlcnQiLCItcmVzaXplIDEwMjR4MTAyNFx1MDAzZSJdXQ.jpg?sha=c21b7acde6507e04)
