The chaise longue basculante was conceived in 1927 from a series of drawings by Le Corbusier representing 9 ways to sit. During the same period, and in the same spirit, Charlotte Perriand, who had just graduated from the Ecole de l'Union Centrale des Arts Décoratifs, was working on the totally new concept of metallic furniture design. She exhibited two ensembles: "Le bar sous le toit" and "La salle à manger de Saint-Sulpice" which quickly built her reputation.
Building on this success, she decided to meet The internationally renowned architect Le Corbusier to show him her work. He immediately offered to hire her in order to develop and materialize his seating ideas. He also partnered with his cousin, Pierre Jeanneret.
For the design of the lounge chair, they looked at Dr. Pascaud's Surrepos, a reclined chair with a metallic structure, and Thonet's Rocking chair's swinging system.
The most complex part would be the design of the base, which was to allow multiple positions. It was Charlotte Perriand who found the solution: sectioned lacquered sheet steel which she discovered by chance in an aviation catalogue.
The chaise longue was first showcased in 1928 at Villa Church and then on the stand "Un équipement intérieur d'une habitation" at the Salon d'Automne in 1929. Critics were full of praise. The patent was filed under the names of the three creators. With no experience in series production, they decided to approach La Maison Thonet and as soon as 1930 the company was manufacturing the chaise longue, called B 306.
Far from the expected mass production the high production cost and the innovative nature of the chair resulted in only 172 copies sold between 1930 and 1935.
The "Machine à repos" (resting machine), as the designers used to call it, is one of the icons of the twentieth century decorative arts.
A hymn to streamlined comfort - our chair, covered with leopard fur, was once placed in the Maharaja's bedroom.