This clean-lined cabinet is a beautiful example of mid-century modern Dutch design. While this high bar cabinet is defined by characteristics of simplicity and functionality, the combination of wood and aluminium and the arrangement of the drawers and shelves are attractive design elements.

The cabinet is made of Brazilian rosewood with an oak interior featuring two shelves and three trays behind two doors. The four bottom drawers of different sizes provide additional storage space. Uniquely, the handles are made of brass and are covered with patinated natural leather. The four slim legs have aluminium profiles and wood detailing. Together with the bottom part of the body, they give a sculptural look the cabinet.

The overall look of the cabinet recalls the Dutch furniture company, Fristho’s aesthetic with its Danish style and modernist appearance. The company’s collaboration with famous designers such as Rudolf Bernd Glatzel and William Watting resulted in many well-known post-war European furniture pieces.

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SOLD

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Condition:

In good vintage condition. Wear consistent with age and use. The veneer has some damages and wear marks. Patina due to age and use, including scratches and marks. Unevenly faded. The leather on handles has some defects.

Dimensions:

43.30 in W x 16.92 cm D x 47.04 in H

110 cm W x 43 cm D x 119,5 cm H

About the manufacturer:

Fristho (Friesche Stoel- en Houtwarenfabriek) was a former Dutch company making furniture from the early 20th century. Fristho started production in Huizum in 1920 and expanded in the Dutch town of Franeker in 1923. The Bergschenhoek furniture factory was taken over in 1954. In 1971 the company moved to a new, modern factory in Heerlen.

Fristho started producing chairs and small furniture in a converted laundry and textile bleaching shop on the Tynjedijk in Huizum (near Leeuwarden). The director was Arnould Jean Baptist Merckx (1884-1962), who had made a career as a furniture maker at the Gebrs. Van Rooijen in IJsselstein. Soon there was a need for expansion and Merckx found it in Franeker in a former vegetable dryer. Chairs and other furniture pieces were made in series and Fristho quickly became one of the most important employers in Franeker.

The excellent quality of the furniture made it possible to expand the sales area to the west of the Netherlands. Important clients such as Metz & Co and De Bijenkorf commissioned furniture designed by designers such as Elmar Berkovitch, Hendrik Wouda and Ida Falkenberg-Liefrink.

During the 1960s, competition from German furniture factories intensified. The margins narrowed and the costs of two production units that were not optimally housed became heavier for Fristho. Due to the mine closure in Limburg, subsidy schemes for business establishments there were more favourable than in the vicinity of the existing factories. In a completely new factory in Heerlen, Fristho was able to organize production according to modern views. Developments in the furniture market forced the company to look for a strong partner. In 1977, it was taken over by the German company Hülsta in Stadtlohn, which ultimately led to the bankruptcy of Fristho in April 1978.~H.