Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, and Charlotte Perriand

LE CORBUSIER (La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, 1887– Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France, 1965), PIERRE JEANNERET (Geneva, 1896–1967), and CHARLOTTE PERRIAND (Paris, 1903–1999).
“LC4” chaise longue, designed in 1928.
Produced by Cassina, Italy.
Tilting frame in chrome-plated tubular steel on a black-lacquered steel base, with foal leather upholstery and a black leather headrest.
Marked on the frame “Cassina / LC4 / No. 43558” and bearing a facsimile signature of Le Corbusier.
Shows slight signs of use.
Measurements: 70 x 160 x 53 cm.

Designed in 1928 and presented at the Salon d’Automne in Paris the following year, the LC4 is one of the great icons of modern furniture. Its creators conceived it as a true “resting machine,” adapted to the body’s various positions through a curved stretcher frame that glides freely over the base without the need for articulated mechanisms.

The piece embodies the quest for balance between functionality, ergonomics, and geometric purity that defined the program of home furnishings developed by Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, and Charlotte Perriand. The hallmarks of the chrome-plated steel, the black base, and the organic texture of the suede soften the industrial rigor of the structure and accentuate its sculptural character. Cassina has been the official manufacturer of the model since 1965, contributing decisively to its international popularity.

The LC4 occupies a central place in the history of 20th-century design for having applied the principles of modern functionalism to a piece centered on relaxation and the direct relationship between the furniture and the human body. Examples of the model are part of international collections such as that of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, and Charlotte Perriand collaborated beginning in the late 1920s to create new furniture for modern architecture. Perriand played a fundamental role in the technical and ergonomic development of these pieces, which are now considered landmarks of the Modern Movement.