Garth Chester : Master of Modernism

Historian and Author Douglas Lloyd-Jenkins recounts that the Curvesse Chair, designed in 1944, was "the first one-piece cantilevered plywood chair to appear anywhere in the world ...a progressive high point in local design" (At Home - A Century of New Zealand Design). It's proof that in the right hands, even a humble sheet of plywood can be elevated into something bold, memorable and timeless.

During the early days, manufacturing technology was a barrier to smooth construction for many of Chester's designs. According to Chester's cousin and business partner A.L. Williams, 1 out of every 4 Curvesse chairs produced, failed, and was thrown away. Also, the Curvesse was unfortunately not a commercial success and only around 500 were ever made. Today the few remaining chairs are closely held and highly coveted by serious collectors, or in the permanent collection of major museums.

One of Chester's employees, Jim Reid recalls working for Garth not long after he left school. He remembers that Garth used native Kaikatia timber and glue imported from Japan to make his chairs and he was very secretive about the production process. When Jim arrived at work he had to knock and wait for Garth to check him out through a peep hole in the door before he let him in.

Unfortunately a mysterious fire burnt down Chester's workshop and destroyed all the presses and production equipment in the process. This lead to a change in direction for Chester who then moved to designing steel-framed furniture. In the 1950s he created another iconic design – the Bikini chair. It was a three legged chair with a Bikini style backrest and was bound to have caused a stir with the ever conservative New Zealand public.