Cesca Chair (B32)

Marcel Breuer Cesca Chair

Designed by Marcel Breuer in 1928, the Cesca Chair (formerly known as the "B32" chair), is a defining piece of Bauhaus design - celebrated for its clean lines, cantilevered form, and innovative use of tubular steel. 

Cane with Mod Restoration

At Mod, it’s all about the proper cane work for the Cesca chair. We offer hand-caning, blind caning (for the back panel), machine caning and laced-in hybrid cane, depending on the chair's construction and client's request. We also carefully refinish the wood frame to bring back its original tone and depth. Click below to get an instant quote for your Cesca chair or stool.

Transition to Machine Cane (Mid-20th Century)

During the WWII era, manufacturers began transitioning from hand cane to machine cane, as it was faster, cleaner, and more cost-effective to produce. Machine cane (also known as pressed cane) uses pre-woven cane sheets rather than individually woven strands. The sheet is pressed into a routed groove and secured with a spline, eliminating the need for the traditional seven-step hand-weaving process.

By the early 1960s, Italian manufacturer Gavina acquired the production rights for the Cesca chair. Gavina utilized both the machine-cane method and a hybrid technique, in which the center section used pressed cane while the perimeter was finished with hand-laced binder cane. This approach recreated the visual appearance of traditional hand caning without requiring every strand to be woven individually.

Knoll Production (1968-Current)

​When Knoll began producing the Cesca Chair in 1968, most chairs featured machine-woven cane secured with a spline along the perimeter. More recently, Knoll has reintroduced the laced-in detail, hand-tying the cane along the edges to replicate the look of traditional hand caning. This approach is often referred to as the hybrid cane method, as it combines machine cane sheets with the traditional hand cane edges. The underside of the chair is much neater than the traditional hand cane, as we don't see the messy knots.