What is a Parsons Chair?
If you’ve perused the showroom of a furniture retailer, flipped through the pages of a style magazine or eaten at a contemporary restaurant lately, you’ve likely become acquainted with a type of chair called the parsons chair. Due to its enormous popularity in recent years, this distinctive chair appears to be a newcomer to the furniture scene. In actuality, the parsons style chair is an enduring favorite that first emerged at the turn of the 20th century! It is named for the Parsons School of Design in Paris, where it was conceptualized.
Distinguishing features of the parsons chair include full upholstery; a tall, rectangular back; and a very linear overall shape. They are usually armless and sometimes skirted. Their appearance is clean, simple and streamlined, which is why they are most often associated with contemporary-modern style. However, parsons chairs adapt to many other styles as well, including formal, traditional, casual, cottage and even tropical!
Parsons style chairs are generally thought of as dining chairs, but they need not be limited to the dining room! With their many design variations, they can find a home as desk or accent chairs in the living room, den, home office or bedroom. Parsons dining chairs have also become available in bar and counter heights in keeping with today’s dining trends. Due to this versatility, parsons chairs can be used to tie together a design motif throughout the entire home!
