What’s the Most Iconic Piece of Furniture? We Made a Bracket to Decide

It’s Makeover Madness month at Apartment Therapy, and maybe you’ve seen the fruits of our labor—namely our influencer Mystery Makeover series, new DIY how-tos, and a bona fide before and after bonanza. It’s also bracket season, which of course is synonymous with (and a result of) the NCAA tournament, which was set to begin today.

Even though there’s no big dance this year, we were inspired. We planned this content out back in January, but decided it was still worth releasing. After all, we’re spending a lot more time looking at our own furniture right now—and given how often you have to deciding on “this chair, not that chair” when picking pieces, we decided to fill out a bracket with some iconic home items.

For this inaugural year, we decided to pit classic modern designs against more contemporary staples. Here’s how we picked what to include: We made a big old list, and then narrowed it down based on how revolutionary a given item is (or was when it first came out), its prevalence in the market, and the amount of knock-off products it spawned. We also took the general longevity of each item into consideration—both in terms of how long the product has been in production, the quality of its material and construction, and whether its silhouette and style still feel at home in today’s interiors.

Instead of using regions to divide our bracket and seeding to place individual furniture pieces within it, we kept it simple, splitting the bracket into two sides, “Classic” versus “Contemporary,” and two over-arching categories, “Seating” and “Tables,” then randomly placing items within it. That way, the Final Four would be a showdown between the victors in each of those time periods and categories.

On the “Classic” side, we started with:

• the Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman
• the Wegner Wishbone Chair
• the Bertoia Diamond Chair
• the Panton Chair
• the Saarinen Dining Table
• the Noguchi Coffee Table
• the Albers Bauhaus Nesting Tables
• the Paul McCobb Planner Desk

On the “Contemporary” side, we started with:

• Anthropologie’s Rhys Chair
• Starck’s Ghost Chair
• the IKEA KLIPPAN Loveseat
• West Elm’s Henry Sofa
• the IKEA LACK Side Table
• CB2 Peekaboo Acrylic Coffee Table
• IKEA DOCKSTA Table
• the marble coffee table that pretty much every company today sells. You know you’ve seen it.

Of course, narrowing potentially hundreds of items down to the above list is totally subjective and no easy feat. And without further ado, here’s how the matchups in our 2020 Icons of Design bracket shaped up and shook out.

In the “Classic Seating” section, the Eames Lounge and Ottoman went head to head with Wegner’s Wishbone, and it was a knock-down, drag-out war. Both designs went into production in the 1950s and are still made today. Designed by American husband-and-wife team Charles and Ray Eames to be an updated version of the traditional English club chair, the Eames Chair and Ottoman utilized new materials and technologies to create a seating option with a slightly flexible headrest and backrest, both covered by a slick veneer shell that’s free of visible bolts and screws. Danish designer Hans Wegner, on the other hand, was an early champion of natural materials, using woven paper cord for the Wishbone’s seat and a steam-bent method to create its elegantly curved back. I’ve sat on both of these chairs before (Spoiler alert: They’re both pretty comfortable). But to make a decision, I really had to think to myself, “If I could only sit on one of these chairs for the rest of my life, which would I choose?” I’m a kick your feet up kinda gal, and for that reason, the Eames Lounger advanced.

The Bertoia–Panton match up was equally contentious. Within just a few years of one another, design heavyweights Harry Bertoia and Vernon Panton essentially created chairs that were functional pieces of sculptural art, both made from modest utilitarian materials—metal and polypropylene, respectively. Panton certainly was a trailblazer, since his eponymous chair was the first single-formed injection-molded plastic seat. But even with that innovation, the “W” went to Bertoia, since his iconic Diamond spawned so many different iterations, from bar stools to side chairs. Moreover, the fact that the Diamond’s grid-like seat can be made with a fully upholstered cover gives it a small design edge—the ability to quickly change or update a piece of furniture’s look is a big advantage, even if the price tag is steep.

On the “Classic Table” front, Eero Saarinen’s Dining Table edged out the Noguchi Coffee Table for similar reasons Bertoia beat Panton. Saarinen’s tulip-style, pedestal base really did eliminate the so-called “the slum of legs” the designer felt tables suffered from. Think of all of the direct copies and other designers that have utilized pedestal bases, which, in combination with a round top, are especially clutch for small spaces. The effects of this particular Noguchi, while breathtakingly beautiful in its simplicity and organic shape, aren’t quite as pervasive in the design world (though let it be known that I would happily swap my cheap wooden and fake marble coffee table for one in a heartbeat).

And when it came to the Albers Bauhaus Nesting Tables and the Paul McCobb Planner Desk, well, we had to go Albers. Even though McCobb’s tapered legs have become a hallmark of authentic (and repro) mid-century modern style, Albers’ occasional tables, designed while he was the artistic director of the furniture workshop at the Bauhaus, are in the permanent collection at MoMA. ‘Nuff said. With their innovative use of color—and independent and interdependent functionality, these tables were truly ahead of their time when they first came out in the late 1920s.

In the “Contemporary Seating” section, Instagram darling, Anthropologie’s Rhys Safari Chair, faced off against the now ubiquitous Philippe Starck for Kartell Ghost Chair, which was designed as a re-imagination of the classic Louis XVI armchair in 2002. You probably recognize Rhys’ buttery caramel leather, exquisite joinery, and those safari-style straps, all things borrowed from earlier vintage designs. Yes, if budget weren’t an issue, these probably are the perfect living room side chairs, since it’s rare for an item to look as good as it feels. But Starck’s postmodern design, which follows in the footsteps of the Panton Chair’s single form, injection-molded construction, is the closest thing to an iconic chair we’ve seen in the 21st century, and that’s the decider for me. Like the Bertoia Diamond, the Ghost, too, has spawned a sister chair—the armless, Victoria—and is now produced in several color ways beyond the original lucite. Game, set, match. Yeah, that’s a tennis reference, but you get the point.

In what could be called the battle of non-sectional sofas, IKEA’s KLIPPAN went up against West Elm’s Henry Sofa, and it was a very close call. With its clean, strong lines and multiple upholstery fabric options, Henry certainly feels like the more grown up, magazine ready choice. But when you need to furnish a space for a song, can anything really compete with the sub-$250 KLIPPAN? Interchangeable machine-washable slipcovers—plus, the option to customize with Apartment Therapy’s own collection of furniture legs with Bemz? We had to make the homer call on this one and go Team KLIPPAN.

In terms of “Contemporary Tables,” another ubiquitous IKEA item, the LACK Side Table, squared off with the CB2 Peekaboo Acrylic Coffee Table. Having owned both items at some point in my life, I think the Peekaboo’s visual lightness packs more style and function in a living room than a pair of LACKS any day. You could argue LACK is maybe more versatile, since you could use it as a nightstand or as a side table in any room really. But the Peekaboo still ekes out the win in my book. Plus, there’s more IKEA to come in this round’s other match up—the IKEA DOCKSTA Table versus the marble coffee table, which really could be from any brand or company. Because it seems like cheap marble was the biggest trend of the past decade, and now everyone sells a stone-topped wood (or metal) legged coffee table that a fabricator would have had to make custom years ago. So the DOCKSTA advances here, even if it is very influenced by Saarinen. The number of times it was featured in “Lonny” and “Domino” magazine alone, circa 2006 to about 2012, has solidified its advancement to the next round.

If you thought the “Classic” seating match ups in the last round were nail-bitters, you ain’t seen nothing yet. The Eames Lounge and Ottoman met a worthy opponent in Bertoia’s Diamond Chair, and it could have gone either way really. If the Diamond were facing off with an Eames shell chair, rocker, or the couple’s molded plywood chair, the geometric beauty of the Bertoia would have maybe persuaded me otherwise—I do love shiny gold things! But I can’t help but think of how many offices and homes were forever changed, over the past 64 years, because of the Eames Lounger’s revolutionary molded plywood form, including knock-offs.

Things were kind of the same on the other court, where Saarinen’s Dining Table met the Albers Bauhaus Nesting Tables. The art history nerd in me wants Albers to advance because I love a good space saver and a pop of color. But Saarinen’s tulip-style tables kind of changed the game for surfaces to come, especially for those of us that hate kneeing table legs when sitting down at a table. The pedestal base pretty much eliminates that inconvenience for good.

Has IKEA’s KLIPPAN finally met its match in the Starck Ghost Chair? For me, this one comes down to, again, what someone would want to sit on for the rest of life. Personally, I’ve left my own KLIPPAN days behind. And the Ghost is surely the higher design option out of the two. But a sofa can fit more people. And I still can’t downplay the fact that the KLIPPAN can be refreshed with a new cover, so you can keep reinventing it year after year.

For the surfaces, the CB2 Peekaboo Acrylic Coffee Table squared off against the IKEA DOCKSTA Table. The Peekaboo emerged the victor. It was a close call, because like the Saarinen table, the DOCKSTA has a nice, sleek shape. But the Peekaboo literally goes with everything, since it takes on whatever colors and textures you surround it with. Plus, its waterfall edge is having a moment again.

Well, this is awkward—the Eameses and Eero Saarinen were basically besties and collaborated on many designs over the years. So it’s either bittersweet or fitting that they’d face off in the “Classic” match up of the Final Four. If we were judging based on entire oeuvres of work, Saarinen, also a pretty prolific architect, would probably win. I mean, he’s the brains behind the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, the TWA Terminal at JFK Airport, and a bunch of other famous buildings. But if we’re talking strictly the Eames Lounge and Ottoman versus the Saarinen Table, the Eameses take the tile for me. It comes down to comfort. Yeah, I like not kneeing table legs when I sit down for dinner, but according to Herman Miller company, the Eames Lounge and Ottoman were crafted to fit the human body with “the warm receptive look of a well-used first baseman’s mitt.” I personally don’t love a ton about baseball (sorry, more of a hockey fan), but man, sitting in an oversized, broken-in baseball glove of a chair sounds pretty good. Again, realize it’s another slightly misplaced sports metaphor here, but what can I say? Big-time players make big-time plays in big games.

As for the “Contemporary” game, IKEA’s KLIPPAN found a very worthy competitor in the CB2 Peekaboo Coffee Table. Maybe I’m biased, but when chairs go up against tables, it’s hard to see a table taking all. Don’t get me wrong—hard surfaces are great for setting things down, working, and being all civilized about eating and drinking. But sitting on the floor for extended periods of time? Not fun. KLIPPAN hit the buzzer beater, folks.

And the winner is … the Eames Lounge and Ottoman! Yes, IKEA’s KLIPPAN, introduced in 1979 and still one of IKEA’s most popular items, has certainly outsold the Eames. It’s brilliant because it fits through most doorways (not just flat-packed but even fully assembled) and has that chameleon-like ability to transform with slipcovers. The price has actually gone down in recent years. And yet—a sofa is a sofa. Other than the flat-packing, there’s nothing truly groundbreaking about the silhouette or materials IKEA used, and that’s why Charles and Ray Eames have emerged the victors. The couple took work they had been doing for the military developing plywood structures and components, expanded on upon those ideas with bentwood sculptures, and then synthesized all of those learnings into the Lounge and Ottoman (among other things), which truly had an unique curvature and silhouette for its time. Pop culture-wise, we all know IKEA, but the Eames Lounge and Ottoman appeared in multiple vintage ads and on magazine covers and was a fixture on the set of “Gossip Girl” (reupholstered in Missoni fabric, natch) and “Frasier” around half a century later. That’s style longevity, people, and despite its hefty price tag, the Eames Lounge and Ottoman is the winner of the Big (Design) Dance for all of the reasons it clenched a victory in every single round.