"Butterfly" Stool

Designer Sori Yanagi Japanese

Designed 1954; manufactured 1987

Not on view

Ease of travel in the jet age encouraged a growing fusion of cultural influences after World War II. Although Yanagi's stool was designed and manufactured in Japan, it employs Western form (the stool) and material (bentwood). Its calligraphic elegance, however, suggests a distinctly Asian sensibility despite the rarity of such seating furniture in traditional Japanese culture. The stool is made from two curving and inverted L-shaped rosewood sections, each forming one leg and half of the seat. A metal rod midway between the legs serves as a stretcher and holds the stool together.

Artwork Details

Title: "Butterfly" Stool
Designer: Sori Yanagi (Japanese, Tokyo 1915–2011 Tokyo)
Manufacturer: Tendo Co., Ltd. (Japanese, Tendo, Yamagata, Est. 1940)
Date: Designed 1954; manufactured 1987
Medium: Rosewood, stainless steel, copper alloy
Dimensions: 15 1/2 in. × 16 5/8 in. × 12 in. (39.4 × 42.2 × 30.5 cm)
Classification: Furniture
Credit Line: Gift of Tendo Co., Ltd., 1988
Object Number: 1988.195
Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art

More Artwork

In the same medium

From the same time and place

Shō, Bamboo wood, metal, Japanese — Shō
Japanese
19th century

Beyond the Image 013-01, Byung-Hoon Choi Korean, Stainless steel, stone, white marble — Beyond the Image 013-01
Byung-Hoon Choi
2013

Koto (箏), Various woods, ivory, metal, nylon, tortoiseshell, abalone, lacquerwork, Japanese — Koto (箏)
Japanese
20th century

"PK-91" Folding Stool, Poul Kjaerholm Danish, Stainless steel, canvas — "PK-91" Folding Stool
Designer Poul Kjaerholm
1961

Sword Guard (Tsuba), Ishiguro Masayoshi Japanese, Copper-gold alloy (shakudō), gold, copper-silver alloy (shibuichi), copper, Japanese — Sword Guard (Tsuba)
Fittings maker Inscribed by Ishiguro Masayoshi
19th century

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please contact us using the form below. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.

Send feedback

Content Notice

The Metropolitan Museum of Art presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world, and our online collection reflects ongoing work conducted over the course of our more than 150-year history. You may encounter objects or images that may be inappropriate for some viewers or information that may be outdated.