Roche Bobois Reimagines the Ovalia Armchair

Roche Bobois is celebrating a design icon: the OVALIA armchair conceived by Danish designer Henrik Thor-Larsen in 1968. True to the visionary spirit of the original creation, Roche Bobois has produced a modernised reinterpretation of this emblematic piece.

This development is grounded in Roche Bobois’s historic connection to Scandinavian design. During the 1960s, the brand helped introduce France to furniture that embodied a new vision of interior design – more functional, more innovative.

In 2026, Roche Bobois reimagined the OVALIA armchair in a more contemporary iteration aligned with the uses and savoir-faire of the time.

The updated version exemplifies the French Art de Vivre characteristic of Roche Bobois: a balance between legacy and creativity, heritage and innovation.

“The reissue of the Ovalia armchair by Henrik Thor-Larsen perfectly illustrates Roche Bobois’s commitment to creative transmission: preserving the vision and boldness of an iconic design while updating it with our comfort standards and contemporary uses. This effort of respectful reappropriation brings the heritage of design to life and firmly roots it in the present.”

Eric Amourdedieu, Roche Bobois Group Executive Director

“The Ovalia Egg Chair by Henrik Thor-Larsen is one of those objects that encapsulates an era, a vision and an attitude. More than a conventional seat, it creates a bubble, a micro-universe. It evokes both a space capsule and the cosmic egg — a balance between technology and organicity. Roche Bobois currently offers six warm, almost delectable lacquer shades, whether tone-on-tone or contrasting. The choice is yours!”

Grégory Dias Monreal, Head of Trends

Henrik Thor-Larsen, designer

Henrik Thor-Larsen belongs to a generation of Scandinavian designers who, in the 1960s, opened the furniture sector to new areas of industry and innovation. Inspired by industrial design, new materials, and the technological imagination of the time, he considered the seat both an object and an experience. His most iconic work, OVALIA, was presented in 1968: an armchair manifesto with a sculptural, technological approach, deeply anchored in the Space Age aesthetic of the late 1960s.

“Inspired by organic shapes, Ovalia was designed as a protective cocoon. I wanted to create a peaceful sanctuary, where one’s imagination could run wild. Roche Bobois’s reissue of Ovalia today is a source of great satisfaction: this collaboration is giving new impetus to a design that has preserved its modernity and its ability to inspire.”

Henrik Thor-Larsen, designer

A CONTEMPORARY REINTERPRETATION

Roche Bobois has developed a contemporary reinterpretation of the armchair designed by Henrik Thor-Larsen, preserving the spirit of the original design while adapting it to current uses.

This 2026 edition boasts new customisation options with six exclusive colourways for the shell, a wide range of fabrics, a footrest, and a cocktail table, all designed to complement the armchair.

Much work has also been done to ensure Ovalia is comfortable: new backrest inclination, a seat mounted on elastic straps, and an integrated headrest for a more natural, enveloping experience.

Designed as an immersive, protected space, the Roche Bobois Ovalia armchair includes a magnetic system to house a smartphone within the shell in order to enjoy audio or video content in an intimate environment.

An exclusive medal displaying the designer’s name and the date of this edition authenticates each Ovalia.

Contact Roche Bobois for more.