Western Gallery to Host ‘The Art of Seating’ This Fall

The Western Gallery at Western Washington University will display a survey of American chair design featuring 40 examples of iconic seating from the early 19th Century to the present.

The chairs will be on display from Sept. 23 through Dec. 11.

Organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art of Jacksonville, Florida and the Thomas H. and Diane DeMell Jacobsen Ph.D. Foundation, “The Art of Seating” explores chairs not only as a functional item, but also as a sculptural, aesthetic object.

Each chair in the exhibition was chosen for its beauty and historical context – including social, economic, political and cultural influences. Selections from The Thomas H. and Diane DeMell Jacobsen Ph.D. Foundation are displayed alongside contemporary designs offering a stylistic journey in furniture by John Henry Belter, George Hunzinger, Herter Brothers, Stickley Brothers, Frank Lloyd Wright, Charles and Ray Eames, Isamu Noguchi, and Frank Gehry among others.

The Western Gallery is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., except Wednesdays, when the gallery remains open until 8 p.m. The gallery is also open Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. The gallery is closed on Sundays and state and federal holidays. Information about the Western Gallery and the exhibits is available at westerngallery.wwu.edu or by calling (360) 650-2829.