Decorating
Knoll Furniture: 12 Timeless Signature Pieces of the 20th Century
Innovation and design excellence have kept these iconic pieces in our design vocabulary, homes and offices for more than half a century
With the highly popular revival of Mid-century Modern design, Knoll has remained front and centre in the well-illuminated spotlight over the last two decades. Abiding by the design philosophy that modernist design should complement architectural space, Knoll’s furniture continues to be just as stylish and elegant today as it was in the mid 20th century.
Co-founder Florence Knoll approached furniture design with the larger space in mind, and considered how each piece fit within the greater design scheme – the room, the floor, the house, the building. So, in the spirit of creating beautiful and harmonious spaces, here are signature pieces manufactured and marketed by Knoll on behalf of some of our much-loved 20th-century designers.
Co-founder Florence Knoll approached furniture design with the larger space in mind, and considered how each piece fit within the greater design scheme – the room, the floor, the house, the building. So, in the spirit of creating beautiful and harmonious spaces, here are signature pieces manufactured and marketed by Knoll on behalf of some of our much-loved 20th-century designers.
Lounge Chair, 600 Series, Jens Risom (1943)
Jens Risom’s furniture helped establish Knoll as an innovative maker of modern design in America in the 1940s. He designed a complete line of chairs, tables and storage that could be produced locally and with limited materials available during World War II. Risom’s Lounge Chair was originally constructed of a birch frame and surplus parachute straps, and its gentle curves and geometric angles exhibit the simple and practical beauty of Scandinavian design.
Jens Risom’s furniture helped establish Knoll as an innovative maker of modern design in America in the 1940s. He designed a complete line of chairs, tables and storage that could be produced locally and with limited materials available during World War II. Risom’s Lounge Chair was originally constructed of a birch frame and surplus parachute straps, and its gentle curves and geometric angles exhibit the simple and practical beauty of Scandinavian design.
Womb Chair, Eero Saarinen (1948)
The Womb Chair was, at Florence’s request, “a chair that was like a basket full of pillows … something [to] really curl up in.” Saarinen designed it as a chair that was comfortable because of the biomorphic shape of its shell, not just the depth of its cushioning. And, as the name suggests, it was designed to make those who sat in it, feel as secure and cozy.
The Womb Chair was, at Florence’s request, “a chair that was like a basket full of pillows … something [to] really curl up in.” Saarinen designed it as a chair that was comfortable because of the biomorphic shape of its shell, not just the depth of its cushioning. And, as the name suggests, it was designed to make those who sat in it, feel as secure and cozy.
Saarinen Executive Arm Chair, Eero Saarinen (1950)
Saarinen applied the same organicism and biomorphic design to office furniture with the Saarinen Executive Arm Chair. No longer did office furniture need to be uncomfortable or unstylish with Saarinen’s modern finishing and fluid, sculptural shape that fit the human form.
Florence Knoll Table Desk, Florence Knoll (1961)
Florence designed her line of desks because she “needed the piece of furniture for a job and it wasn’t there.” Yet again, beautifully proportioned, she mixes lines and curves, and woods, metals and laminates to great effect.
Saarinen applied the same organicism and biomorphic design to office furniture with the Saarinen Executive Arm Chair. No longer did office furniture need to be uncomfortable or unstylish with Saarinen’s modern finishing and fluid, sculptural shape that fit the human form.
Florence Knoll Table Desk, Florence Knoll (1961)
Florence designed her line of desks because she “needed the piece of furniture for a job and it wasn’t there.” Yet again, beautifully proportioned, she mixes lines and curves, and woods, metals and laminates to great effect.
Tulip Armless Chair and Round Dining Table, Pedestal Collection, Eero Saarinen (1953-58)
Saarinen’s revolutionary Pedestal Collection was a five-year design investigation intended to “clear up the slum of legs” underneath tables and chairs. He designed each piece in the series with a single pedestal leg, creating a unified environment of chairs, tables and stools. The table and chairs have the smooth, organic lines of modernism and the experimental use of artificial materials.
Saarinen’s revolutionary Pedestal Collection was a five-year design investigation intended to “clear up the slum of legs” underneath tables and chairs. He designed each piece in the series with a single pedestal leg, creating a unified environment of chairs, tables and stools. The table and chairs have the smooth, organic lines of modernism and the experimental use of artificial materials.
Bertoia Barstool, Harry Bertoia (1952)
The Bertoia Barstool is part of Italian sculptor and furniture designer Harry Bertoia’s iconic 1952 wire collection. His sculptural seating is a product of his experiments with bending metal rods into practical art to create delicate yet strong and durable furniture. In Bertoia’s words: “If you look at these chairs, they are mainly made of air, like sculpture. Space passes through them.”
The Bertoia Barstool is part of Italian sculptor and furniture designer Harry Bertoia’s iconic 1952 wire collection. His sculptural seating is a product of his experiments with bending metal rods into practical art to create delicate yet strong and durable furniture. In Bertoia’s words: “If you look at these chairs, they are mainly made of air, like sculpture. Space passes through them.”
Barcelona Chair and Stool, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (designed in 1929; produced by Knoll since 1953)
The Barcelona Chair is one of the most recognised pieces of 20th-century furniture over the last century, and an icon of the modern movement. Mies designed the chair as a resting place for the King and Queen of Spain in the German Pavilion of the International Exposition of 1929 in Spain. In creating a seat suitable for their royalty, Mies was inspired by ancient Roman folding chairs – seen in the Barcelona Chair’s signature crisscross frame.
The Barcelona Chair is one of the most recognised pieces of 20th-century furniture over the last century, and an icon of the modern movement. Mies designed the chair as a resting place for the King and Queen of Spain in the German Pavilion of the International Exposition of 1929 in Spain. In creating a seat suitable for their royalty, Mies was inspired by ancient Roman folding chairs – seen in the Barcelona Chair’s signature crisscross frame.
Brno Flat Bar Chair, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (designed in 1930; produced by Knoll since 1958)
Mies’s Brno Chair is also an icon of 20th-century design. He designed the chair for the residential project Villa Tugendhat in Brno (the former Czech Republic). Its simple profile, clean lines and attention to detail are – like the Villa Tugendhat – an aggregate of his design ideals; each object breathtakingly refined to its essential elements.
In 1958 architect Phillip Johnson requested that Knoll produce the Flat Bar Brno Chair to be used in his design of the Four Seasons restaurant in New York City. Knoll made a few slight adjustments and reintroduced the chair with Mies’s approval.
Mies’s Brno Chair is also an icon of 20th-century design. He designed the chair for the residential project Villa Tugendhat in Brno (the former Czech Republic). Its simple profile, clean lines and attention to detail are – like the Villa Tugendhat – an aggregate of his design ideals; each object breathtakingly refined to its essential elements.
In 1958 architect Phillip Johnson requested that Knoll produce the Flat Bar Brno Chair to be used in his design of the Four Seasons restaurant in New York City. Knoll made a few slight adjustments and reintroduced the chair with Mies’s approval.
Pollock Executive Chair, Charles Pollock (1963)
Charles Pollock’s Executive Chair is one of the bestselling office chairs in history and features what he described as “rim technology" – the use of a single aluminium band around the chair’s perimeter to hold the design together, structurally and visually. This iconic chair is appropriately in the TV series Mad Men, and has also been exhibited at the Louvre in Paris, as well as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York City.
Charles Pollock’s Executive Chair is one of the bestselling office chairs in history and features what he described as “rim technology" – the use of a single aluminium band around the chair’s perimeter to hold the design together, structurally and visually. This iconic chair is appropriately in the TV series Mad Men, and has also been exhibited at the Louvre in Paris, as well as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York City.
Leisure Collection (aka 1966 Collection), Richard Schultz (1966)
When Florence retired to Florida in the mid 1960s, she asked the Knoll design team to develop outdoor furniture that could withstand the salty air. Richard Schultz, who had joined Knoll in 1951, designed the aluminium Leisure Collection, which is today regarded as the first modern outdoor furniture – weatherproof, lightweight, stylish and elegant. Schultz designed the collection with “a deep interest in sculptural form and its relation to nature and man”, and it still looks as fresh and timely as it did nearly 60 years ago.
When Florence retired to Florida in the mid 1960s, she asked the Knoll design team to develop outdoor furniture that could withstand the salty air. Richard Schultz, who had joined Knoll in 1951, designed the aluminium Leisure Collection, which is today regarded as the first modern outdoor furniture – weatherproof, lightweight, stylish and elegant. Schultz designed the collection with “a deep interest in sculptural form and its relation to nature and man”, and it still looks as fresh and timely as it did nearly 60 years ago.
B3 Chair (aka Wassily Chair), Marcel Breuer (designed in 1925-26; produced by Knoll since 1968)
In 1925, Marcel Breuer was an apprentice at the Bauhaus school in Germany when he conceived this groundbreaking tubular steel chair, named for his contemporary, Wassily Kandinsky. Tubular steel had not been used in furniture prior and it came to perfectly represent the Bauhaus’s slogan of ‘Art into Industry’. Breuer, inspired by a bicycle, radically reconfigured the classic club chair, distilling it to its elemental lines and planes, like an abstract piece of art.
TELL US
What’s your favourite Knoll piece and why? Share your thoughts in the comments section.
MORE
Herman Miller and the Icons of Mid-Century Modern Explained
12 Reasons to Love the Eames Eiffel Chair
Iconic Homes That Showcase Modern Architecture
In 1925, Marcel Breuer was an apprentice at the Bauhaus school in Germany when he conceived this groundbreaking tubular steel chair, named for his contemporary, Wassily Kandinsky. Tubular steel had not been used in furniture prior and it came to perfectly represent the Bauhaus’s slogan of ‘Art into Industry’. Breuer, inspired by a bicycle, radically reconfigured the classic club chair, distilling it to its elemental lines and planes, like an abstract piece of art.
TELL US
What’s your favourite Knoll piece and why? Share your thoughts in the comments section.
MORE
Herman Miller and the Icons of Mid-Century Modern Explained
12 Reasons to Love the Eames Eiffel Chair
Iconic Homes That Showcase Modern Architecture
In 1938, German-born Hans Knoll established The Hans G. Knoll Furniture Company in New York City, importing modernist design to America. In 1941, Hans hired Danish-born Jens Risom and together they launched their first collection with 15 of the 20 pieces of furniture designed by Risom. He also hired American architect and designer Florence Schust who, having trained at the Cranbrook Academy of Art, had a critical eye for design and an intimate knowledge of European modernism. She also had and friendships with Mies van der Rohe, Eliel and Eero Saarinen, and Charles Eames, among other architects and designers.
Hans and Florence married in 1946 and renamed the company Knoll Associates. And in 1955, Florence took over the company when Hans died in a car accident. Working across both residential and commercial interiors she designed clean and uncluttered open-plan layouts that provided a perfect venue for Knoll’s furniture.
Florence Knoll Sofa, Florence Knoll (1954).
Florence’s designs were architectural in foundation – not sculptural (as were those from Harry Bertoia and Eero Saarinen) and her Lounge Collection is a perfect example of her restrained, geometric approach to furniture. She transferred the modern exterior of the 1950s rectilinear skyscraper to the interior space of the corporate office.