WAUSAU, WI.- Exploring chairs as art – functional and sculptural objects – and offering insights into sublime design, “The Art of Seating: 200 Years of American Design,” opened Saturday, June 4, at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum.

Each chair tells a story about national history and the evolution of American design, eloquently told through this ubiquitous, essential piece of furniture. Evolving, aesthetic trends are reflected in lush textures, sleek lines, and striking colors. Social and cultural developments, emerging technology, and ergonomics also are part of the story.

In this survey of exceptional chair design, visitors will experience nineteenth-century to contemporary chairs chosen for their beauty and historical context, as well as social, economic, political, and cultural influences. Including readily recognizable pieces alongside rarely seen antiques, the stylistic journey ranges from designs by John Henry Belter, George Hunzinger, the Herter Brothers, and the Stickley Brothers to Frank Lloyd Wright, Charles and Ray Eames, Eero Saarinen, Isamu Noguchi, and Frank Gehry. The exhibition also features contemporary and historic designs by manufacturers Knoll, Herman Miller, and Steelcase.

The “House of Representatives Chamber Arm Chair,” 1857, designed by Thomas Ustick Walter, an architect of the Capitol, is an example of those created for use in the U.S. Congress and showcased in portraits of political leaders such as Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson.

The “ ‘McKinley’ Arm Chair,” ca. 1894-1896, designed by David Wolcott Kendall, deemed by his peers as “The Dean of American Furniture Design,” was presented to William McKinley during his term in the White House.

“The Art of Seating,” on view through August 28, is organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art, Jacksonville, Florida, in collaboration with the Thomas H. and Diane DeMell Jacobsen Ph.D. Foundation and is toured by International Arts & Artists, Washington D.C.