AHREND DE CIRKEL BOOKSHELF
rotating bookshelf by ahrend de cirkel (~1960s).
Ahrend was and continues to be one of the Netherlands's premier DISTRIBUTORS AND MANUFACTURERS OF office furniture IN EUROPE. Their output during the early and mid 20th century endures as exemplary modernist design. It was during this period that Ahrend partnered with De Cirkel, with whom they'd only previously contracted. De Cirkel was a respected furniture firm founded by Jan Schröfer, who was inspired by the Bauhaus and the socialist ideas circulating in Europe after the war. The products manufactured during this era are collectively attributed to as Ahrend de Cirkel. This rotating bookshelf has five grey enameled shelves, each with four dividers, that rotate independent of each other on a stationery base. The shape evokes a pillar or tree, pointing to the manufacturer's desire for a natural utility.
The shelf precedes Ahrend's purchase of a controlling stake in De Cirkel in 1967, but during a time when de cirkel commissioned ahrend for products and when both firms produced some of their most iconic designs, including the Revolt chair, drawn by Friso Kramer and Wim Rietveld. Given the two firms' close cooperation, this shelf is also likely a Kramer and/or Rietveld design, reflecting the companies' commitments to simple, efficient, and utopian design.
it currently showcases our t-shirt collection at our arts district store.