Model 178 Teak Dining Chairs by Johannes Andersen for Bramin, 1960s, Set of 6

While information on designer Johannes Andersen is limited and difficult to verify, it is believed that he was born in 1903 in Aarhus, Denmark, and that he initially apprenticed as a cabinetmaker. He went on to work for many years in a number of workshops before opening his own architectural and furniture workshop in the 1930s.

Andersen’s designs span seating, tables, and storage in well-crafted materials, such as rosewood and teak. His career paralleled the midcentury’s growing appreciation for Danish furniture designs, and he attracted international attention—particularly for coffee tables like the highly sculptural Smile Table.

Andersen worked steadily for his own firm—as well as Swedish, Danish, and Norwegian companies such as Trensum, CFC Silkeborg, Bramin, and Uldum Møbelfabrik—until he closed his shop in his eighties. He passed away in 1991. 

Originally known as N.A. Jørgensen, Danish furniture manufacturer Bramin was founded in Bramming, a region on the west coast of the Jutland peninsula. Throughout the 1950s, '60s, and '70s, the company produced seating, tables, and casegoods in a style representative of the Danish mid-century modern era.

From Bramin’s catalogues and advertisements, we can ascertain that N.A. Jørgensen launched the Bramin brand around 1957 or 1958. In the early 1960s, Bramin's ad campaigns promised "Deres garanti for kvalitet form og function" or “Quality, form, and function: guaranteed,” using strong, modern imagery. From then on, the more traditionally-oriented N.A. Jørgensens Møbelfabrik took a back seat. It was not until the mid-1960s, however, that the striking Bramin logo was created, with the rounded, lowercase central “a” standing out from the remaining block letters.

In its heydey, Bramin collaborated with many well respected Danish designers, such as Johannes Andersen, Hans Olsen, Kurt Østervig, and Frank Reenskaug. However, Bramin’s most successful relationship was undoubtedly with H.W Klein, a Norwegian-born designer who moved to Denmark in 1960 to work for the company. Klein's most notable design is the Ønskestolen (mid-1960s), a padded leather lounge chair on a five-star swivel base, but he was also known for wide range of living room suites, dining suites, and storage options. Other memorable Bramin pieces include the classic Rocking Chair No. 182 by Reenskaug (circa 1958) and the idiosyncratically asymmetrical Chair No. 168 by Olsen (circa 1956).

For decades, the region of Bramming was a major hub for the Danish furniture industry, boasting 20 factories at its peak. Particularly hard hit by the global recession in the early-1980s, many Bramming-based businesses closed, Bramin included. After the closure, Klein moved to San Francisco. Though much of Bramin's history has been lost over time, the company's prolific furniture output has found a vibrant place in today's vintage market.