Ejner Larsen & Aksel Bender Madsen
Elegant and timeless furniture pieces
Ejner Larsen and Aksel Bender Madsen designed approximately 300 furniture pieces, including the iconic Metropolitan Chair
Ejner Larsen (1917-1987) and Aksel Bender Madsen (1916-2000), trained as furniture upholsterer and cabinetmaker, respectively, met while studying under leading Danish designer Kaare Klint at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. Their acquaintance developed into a lifelong friendship, and in 1947 they began designing together in their spare time. They exhibited furniture every year thereafter at the Copenhagen Cabinetmakers’ Guild Exhibition.
While the chair was the duo’s favorite furniture piece, they also designed complete lounge sets, bedroom suites, bookshelves, dining tables and office furniture. The resulting work was always simple and timeless.
The duo’s work has been exhibited within Denmark and internationally, including at La Triennale in Milan, Italy, at the “Design in Scandinavia” and “The Arts of Denmark” exhibits in the USA, and at the Gewerbemuseum (Museum of Applied Arts and Design) in Bern, Switzerland.
Several of their works have also been purchased by museums around the world, including the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Busch-Reisinger Museum of the Harvard Art Museums in Boston, and several museums in Japan. Larsen and Bender Madsen were awarded the Copenhagen Cabinetmakers’ Guild annual prizes in 1956 and 1961, as well as several other awards in furniture and art competitions.
Our designers
When you choose a product from Carl Hansen & Søn, you get more than just a piece of furniture. You will become part of a long and proud tradition of beautiful and distinctive craftsmanship where nothing is left to chance. We are the world’s largest manufacturer of furniture designed by Hans J. Wegner, and we also produce furniture created by renowned furniture designers such as Arne Jacobsen, Børge Mogensen, Ole Wanscher, Kaare Klint, Poul Kjærholm, Bodil Kjær and Tadao Ando. Carl Hansen & Søn represents more than 100 years of Danish design history, and our furniture is sold worldwide.
* Five-year warranty on indoor furniture. Two-year warranty on outdoor furniture