Freud's Chair

No doubt it was intentional.

The re-constitution of Freud's study was beautifully done.
I think some lingering shots with glancing focus on objects of his collection would have helped the film.

One thing does bother me historical films like this: it's obvious this beautiful re-constitution, beautifully set in place, had never really been used!










Ignis principium omnium rerum

Visitors to Freud's study are intrigued by the armchair behind the desk. Its sculptural curves and rounded headrest are reminiscent of a Henry Moore figure. This curiously-shaped chair was made for Freud in 1930 by the architect Felix Augenfeld, as a gift from Freud's daughter Mathilde. Augenfeld wrote:

'She explained to me that S.F. had the habit of reading in a very peculiar and uncomfortable body position. He was leaning in this chair, in some sort of diagonal position, one of his legs slung over the arm of the chair, the book held high and his head unsupported. The rather bizarre form of the chair I designed is to be explained as an attempt to maintain this habitual posture and to make it more comfortable.'

The armrests doubled as legrests and the high back served Freud the reader, not the writer.