Ring chair
(c. 1970)
Medium
stainless steel
Measurements
82.8 × 71.2 × 62.1 cm
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Gift of Krystyna Campbell-Pretty AM and Family through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program, 2024
Gallery location
Contemporary Art gallery
Level 3, NGV International
About this work
Maria Pergay began her career as a designer in the 1950s as a working mother without formal training. She worked independently, designing luxury silver objects and furniture. In 1967 she was approached by France’s leading steel manufacturer to use stainless steel for her furniture. The material quickly became her signature and her Ring chair, designed the following year, is among her most recognised designs. Its spiral-like design, inspired by the peeling of an orange, is indicative of Pergay’s personal approach to design, while the futuristic aesthetic embodies the stylish formalism and utopian spirit of the late 1960s.