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When contemplating what the major differences are between contemporary Danish design and that of classic or rather historical Danish design it is easy to become confused. (Or for me at least). Most of the modern, and or typical pieces seen in Danish homes, restaurants and hotels are designed by the front runners in Danish Design, like Arne Jacabson and Verner Panton so on and so forth. These who have created the typical Danish Designs still have their designs in production today, thus they are still appreciated and used as contemporary pieces on a regular basis.

I chose to pick two pieces that while both modern in style represent two very different time periods in Danish Design. The first by Phillip Stark is the Louis Ghost Armchair (2002), a reinvention and ode to the classic Louis XV armchair for Kartell. The Louis Ghost Armchair is said to be a "Postmodern triumph of technical innovation and historical style." Stark translates the formal geometry of its predecessor into a single form of translucent or opaque black molded polycarbonate. It is a robust, generously proportioned chair, without a weak point offering the owner a leisurely seat. Due to the materialality of the chair it is suited for indoor or outdoor spaces.

On the flip side I chose Erik Magnussen's Chairik 101. Erik Magnussen was born in 1940 in Copenhagen. Educated as a ceramist at The School of Applied Arts and Design - graduated with a silver medal in 1960. He has worked for several companies designed a wide range of furniture and accessories.Chairik is a stackable comfort. It is simple and a reassuring seat for the many that chose it. It is designed as a meeting chair for the laid-back, a bar stool for the elevated and a shell chair for those shopping on a budget. It can be made on lets or runners, with or without arm rests, with or without writing tablets for students and is offered Leather-clad, upholstered or in Melamine of many colors. It has been produced to be offered as a flexible piece of furniture that appeals, and is affordable for the masses.

Both chairs are produced with the Danish theory in mind that all should have accessibility to good design, as so both are flexible in aesthetic options and are moderately priced. Ghost Armchair certainly has a more modern feel to it, but is a clear throw back to an original chair design. It has been modernized and redesigned to be a bit more luxurious is shape and size, but it however using a fairly inexpensive looking material. While the polycarbonate material is a sturdy option, it doesn't have the same elegance of the natural woods and steel that many designers limit themselves to as a challenge and also an ode to their predecessors. As well the quality and purpose of the chair seems to malfunction. While being marketed as an indoor/ outdoor stack-able piece, it fails to stack properly in the store. Importantly enough, the Dane's design full functioning, beautiful designed pieces, each phase complete, such as stacking.

On the contrary Magnussen's Chairik 101 is designed to be a stack-able chair as well, and does so with ease. Also Magnussen's approach to material usage was originally wood and steel...overtime the chair has been marketed for a broad range of users at several different price points and materials. Magnussen's chair is simple and beautiful and embodies that of a typical Danish design. While Ghost Armchair is designed by a Danish taught student it does not indirectly pay homage to original Danish designers with the same finesse as Chairik 101. With title and form Ghost Armchair pays direct homage to Louis XV Armchair, however the translation seems lost with the chairs material usage and the functionality of the chair.

Danish designers work very hard to improve on the past and to pay homage to the designers who perfected form before them, while intending to improve function. These two chairs are certainly marketed for different audiences and embody different facets of Danish design. I chose the two pieces because it struck me as odd that the Louis Ghost Armchair was being marketed as a stack-able and was a piled up mess in the store. Whether the chairs size or material does not lend itself to a tidy stack, I'm not sure. I am sure that most Danish designers make sure the shape and size of their chair is perfect before selling it to a certain market. I feel that out of the two the classic/historical piece Chairik 101 pays better  homage to typical Danish Design and style.