The Wilson Chair

About 1995, after we had been building the rocking chair for a few years, a patron asked for dining chairs and I committed to designing one.  In part, I thought I had a large portion of the work done because I already had found the curve for the back.  I was wrong.  I found that as you sit up straighter, the curve in your back changes.  Moreover, the ideal interplay of muscle and mind is different when dining than when rocking. In the rocker you are relaxed and can sleep if you wish. In a dining chair, the desired state is alert, with effortless good posture.  The Wilson Chair provides these benefits.

Most chair seats are too flat and most chair backs are too straight, and too flat — wood, metal, plastic, or upholstered, no matter.  The curves and contours that fit and support human bodies are difficult to produce in wood or any materials.  But the deep scoop of the solid wood seat of the Wilson chair relieves the pressure on your hipbones and holds your back against the lumbar support.  The curves and contours that fit humans yield a form that we have refined into sculpture.  The Wilson Chair is so comfortable and supportive that it is often used for working long hours at a desk.

See our design criteria on the dining chairs page.

Wilson Side Chairs    Click on cherry, walnut, or maple for a larger view.

Cherry  $825		Walnut  $875		Maple  $875

Wilson Chair dimensions

These chairs will remain sturdy into their heirloom years.  The front legs are mortised through the seat and wedged.  The stretchers truss the frame.  And, very importantly, the back legs meet the floor well behind the balancing point, so leaning back requires work — sparing the joints this rocking force.

Wilson Arm Chairs    Click on cherry, walnut, or maple for a larger view.

				Photo coming
Cherry  $1125		Walnut  $1175		Maple  $1175

These fine dining chairs are handmade in a small shop by craftsmen working to the highest standards of the field  (See The Art of Making Furniture by Hand).  The cherry, maple, and mahogany lumber used in our furniture is certified to be sustainably harvested by the Forest Stewardship Council  (FSC certified).

Dear Gary,

I first saw your furniture advertisement in the New Yorker magazine in 1998. I marveled then at the beauty of your designs especially your dining room chairs and tables.  And, I could not believe the claim of a wood chair being comfortable for long periods of conversation or extended reading.  Ten years of wishing for a beautiful dining room table and chairs has now become a reality.  My 6 maple Wilson dining room chairs and Paschall table are not only exquisitely crafted but extraordinarily comfortable for dining, conversation, and reading — a reader's favorite chair.

G.F.
Chicago, Illinoistestimonials

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