My husband, Graham, and I have always had an affinity for chair collecting.  Over the years we have found and gone through many chairs.  Usually we think we will recover them but often we don’t.  Eventually we give them away or ‘store’ them in friends’ cabins. Graham found this chair at our local ‘Sellution’ consignment store.  He was immediately drawn to its design.  We did some research and found out it had a name and a very interesting history.
The ‘Winnipeg Chair’, also known as, the Canadian Coconut Chair, was designed by an Architect by the name of A.J. Donahue. Â A.J. studied at Harvard with Marcel Breuer in the 1940s and explored techniques of bent wood furniture construction. After Harvard, Donahue settled in Winnipeg to teach architecture. Donahue developed his lounge chair, according to Rachel Gottlieb’s book Design in Canada (Design Exchange, 2001), in the late 1940’s in his basement with the assistance of his students. Donahue only produced about 200 examples of the chairs and we happen to have one of them.
The Winnipeg chair bears some resemblance to George Nelson’s Coconut chair—which actually wasn’t introduced until much later, in 1955.  According to Tim Borys, founder of the new furniture company HutJ, which is reissuing the Winnipeg chair, “That’s a classic Canadian story. Here’s a great design that gets swept under the rug and then it gets knocked off five years later,†Borys says, before remembering his Canadian manners. “I’ll be careful where I push that story. I don’t want to offend anyone.â€
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I have 2 of those chairs.
REally? What colour are they? Have you had them recovered or are they still with their original fabric? Thanks for posting! Tina
I live in Winnipeg. Today my neighbour from across the hall came by and asked if I could help her move a couple things down to the trash for her tomorrow because she is moving out and her husband will be away.
I said sure, and she mumbled something about there being a small couch and I could have sworn she said ‘Winnipeg chair frame’…we could have them if we wanted them.
I’ve long known about the Winnipeg chair, I had a friend long ago with 3 or 4 of them, one of them in mint condition and I always wanted one. I’m hoping she said what I think she said, but I’ll have to wait till tomorrow to find out. I don’t care if it is just the chassis, I will re-upholster. Trying not to get my hopes too far up.
Looks like I misheard her. It was not a Winnipeg chair at all. *sobs*
Darn! Keep looking!!! There is a vintage store here in Vancouver that has a couple of them. Let me know if you are interested in learning more.
Keep me posted on your quest for the Winnipeg Chair!! Good Luck, Tina
Hi there DeeTeeOhBee,
How exciting! Thanks for telling me about your Winnipeg Chair experience! You can find them every now and then, and I believe there are plans to reintroduce the ‘Chair,’ although it is nice to get an original! Keep an eye on your friends collection. Tina
There were thousands of these chairs manufactured. It’s an attractive urban myth that just a couple hundred were made. In fact, the chairs were sold through department stores throughout Canada until the mid-1970s.
There appear to have been five (5) variations of the chair over the 25-30 years they were made.
Hi Tom,
Perhaps the first prototypes were in a 200 unit batch. I didn’t know that Department stores sold them as well as it does make sense that they would need to get the chairs to the market. I will let my source know! Thanks for reaching out! Tina
I agree with Tom. The myth of their rarity looms way too large. I have come across 5 of these chairs in Edmonton over the last 15 years. Two were rescued from a dumpster. Fabulous chair — but more fabulous than rare. Keep looking, folks, they are out there!
You may be right. I like the myth better I must say. Makes the chair feel even more special. Thanks for posting.
How muchnis reasonable to offer for one these? There’s one for sale on my city’s Craigslist and it’s gorgeous. Thanks for your advice.
Hi there,
I am not an expert in pricing these chairs so I called a local shop to seek some advice. Mary has had a number of Donahue chairs go through her shop and is somewhat of an expert. She says it depends on the condition of the chair, what the base is made of, what condition the upholstery is in, whether the rubber balls feet are still in tact, etc. In the end she said she thinks the price range can be between $1000-$2000.
However, in my opinion if you like the chair, and can see yourself loving it for a long time, it is worth what you can afford to pay. Chairs should be comfortable first, beautiful second, and an investment, a distant third. I’d love to see a photo of your prospective chair! Good luck, Tina
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i have one for sale, it is the orange/tan fabric. still great but there is some wear at the front of the fabric due to its age.
Hi, i am interested on your chair , is it still available?
thanks
Hi Bo H.
I personally do not have a chair for sale. However, they do come up once every now and then. I will keep my eyes open for you and will let you know if I come across one! Good Luck! Tina
Hi there
I was wondering if anyone sold their Winnipeg chairs through this website. What do you look for when pricing these chairs and what if it has been refurbished?
Thanks guys!
I have a couple of these chairs, wanted to know what they are worth.. how to?
Hi there Ayisha,
I imagine the value of your chairs will depend on the condition they are in. As you probably know, originally there were only a few hundred made. Has the fabric been updated? Or are they in original condition? I know there was talk of these chairs being reintroduced, but i am assuming you have a couple of originals. I am going to guess that a couple of original chairs are probably worth $2000 or so. They are highly collectable. Send me a photo and I will post it! Thanks for your query! Tina
Hi Tina
Thanks for the reply! I will send you the pictures. The fabric has been updated and the wood has been spray painted in kind of beige, like the car champagne color. And yes they are original, there is a slight difference in height as well. but they absolutely spectacular looking and a treat to sit in.
The fabric is from Knoll studio and beyond durable and cleanable…
I have two that I am thinking of selling. How much do you think they are worth and how do I sell them?
Thank you
I can’t post a pic…
Hi Marcus. As I said to Ayisha below, I imagine the value of your chairs will depend on the condition they are in. As you probably know, originally there were only a few hundred made. Has the fabric been updated? Or are they in original condition? I know there was talk of these chairs being reintroduced, but I am assuming you have a couple of originals. I am going to guess that a couple of original chairs are probably worth $2000 or so. They are highly collectable. Send me a photo and I will post it! Thanks for your query! Tina
Hello Tina, lucky to have picked up a winnipeg chair today and am looking for someone with experience to do the re-upholstery…can you recommend? I visit yvr area fairly regularly,
best regards and much thanks for your time,
L
Hi Laura, I am so sorry! I haven’t checked into this blog in some time so I only just got your message. Did you find someone? If not let me know as I do have a couple of names of upholsters. Tina
I have a Donahue chair in Vancouver. Original, rough condition, needs work. I will be posting it to craigslist. Today December 1 2017.
Hi Chalane,
Thanks for reaching out! I haven’t check this blog in a while so I apologize for the delay in responding. Did you sell your chair? Tina
I have an original coconut chair, that I will most likely be selling. It had some slight modifications to it, but nothing that’s too outrageous.
sorry for the late reply. That’s very cool. Have you sold it yet? Let me know please! Thanks for posting!
Hello! Any suggestions on where to find replacement feet for these chairs? I just purchased one with replacement feet and I’d like to find something similar to the original black ball.
Thanks,
C
Sorry for the late reply. I will find out for you and get back to you! Thanks for posting.
Hi….I have a Donahue chair for sale. Great condition. Asking $3500.00
Hi Dan, Do you still have it? I noticed there was one for sale in Vancouver for around that price too. Let me know if you sold it. Thanks for posting.
I have had owned 6 of these chairs in the past 4 years. They pop up form time to time. I would venture to say that I think there are actually more than the “200” said to have been originally made. They were sold at The Bay retail stores for $30-$40 back in the early-mid 1950s. So I’m thinking that there would actually be more like 2000 of these chairs out there instead of just 200.
I have owned 6 of these chairs in the past 4 years. They pop up from time to time. I would dare venture that there are actually more of these chairs than the “200” said to exist. They were sold at Hudson Bay retail stores for $30-$40 back in the early-mid 1950s…So I’m thinking that there would actually be more like 2000 of these chairs out there instead of just 200.
Hi Tina ,
Thanks for this article. My uncle has recently passed and he was an avid collector of fine arts and anything beautiful. He left us 2 beautiful Winnipeg chairs. One is purple and the other mustard yellow and still in their original upholstery with the metal frame. We are interested in selling them.
I recently found a website inToronto that sold it for $2,500. In comparison, The ones we have are in better condition. We are located in Richmond B.C. Do you have any tips on how we can find the right buyers for the right price? Is Craigslist still a good option these days?
Hi Mo, Please send me an email at tina@studiodo.ca I do have some ideas. Please send some images if you can! Lucky you.
Hey there, I’m the son of A.J. Donahue and I can assure you there were never 2000 of these chairs manufactured. 200 may seem a bit low but quite honestly given how they were manufactured, that number isn’t that far off the mark.
Hi Dan, Thanks for commenting. I had heard 200. I am curious do you have any of the chairs? Also was there a footstool with the chair? Please share any interesting bits of info on the chairs! They have been one of the biggest draws on my blog!