Human articular chondrocytes (HAC) were cultivated as a monolayer in a serum-free medium for primary culture (SFM-P). An optimized SFM-P provides $95\%$ proliferation rate of that obtainable from primary and secondary chondrocyte cultures grown in a control medium with serum. The gradual decrease in the amounts of synthesized glycosaminoglycan and type II collagen was improved by coating the culture dishes with type IV collagen and fibronectin. A significant improvement in the expression of type II collagen and aggrecan mRNA could be achieved. In addition, the monolayer cultures showed better synthesis of the extracellular matrices than alginate-bead cultures in SFM-P.