SOM revives Halston's iconic 1979 office chairs with Ikonstudio

Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM) has revived the cantilevered tubular-steel chair originally designed in 1979 by Charles Pfister for fashion designer Halston's Manhattan office. Now produced as the 'SOM79' chair by Ikonstudio, a Teknion-owned contract furniture company, the piece features a hand-polished chrome frame and dark leather upholstery, updated for contemporary manufacturing, ergonomics, and sustainability. A matching 'SOM79' table with a transparent glass top revealing an 'H' frame pays homage to Halston. The chairs debuted in May 2024 at New York Design Week's Afternoon Light fair and launched in June during Chicago's Design Days; they are available through Ikonstudio for residential, office, and hospitality use. Later this year, SOM will launch another archival collection with Haworth via Form Portfolios. SOM partner Julia Murphy noted the firm's historic engagement with every scale of the built environment.