Classics never go out of style. Timeless furniture designs look great in any interior and complement it. They are characterized by original design, functionality and a form that is memorable. Designs that are even decades old still fascinate and inspire the next generation. Such are the most famous designs of the Knoll brand.
A classic is something that, every time you look at it, is accepted as it is and there is no way to improve it.
The author of this sentence is Warren Platner, one of the designers working with the Knoll brand. And he encapsulated the essence of good design in one sentence.
Barcelona collection
Going chronologically through Knoll's portfolio, one of the first examples of the designer's genius is the Barcelona set of lounge furniture. This is some of the most recognizable furniture in history and an object of desire for design devotees. They were designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe to furnish the German pavilion at the 1929 World Exposition. The lump of the pavilion and its furnishings proved to be a sensation and a milestone for modernism. The furniture in the living space was first used in the famous Tugendhat villa (designed by van der Rohe) and is still chosen for private and public interiors today.
Also in the 1920s, van der Rohe designed the MR Lounge Chair , a combination of cool metal and warm leather upholstery. Although it represents the quintessence of Bauhaus purity of line, there are clear echoes of the traditional rocking chair in its form.
Florence Knoll sofa
Florence Knoll, the founder of the brand and also the designer, whose name the sofa of her design is named after, also went down in design history. This piece of furniture is an excellent example of rational, architectural design thinking. And it is the simple form and iron geometry that made the 1954 model still look contemporary.
this is an excellent example of rational, architectural design thinking
© Mood Design press materials
Platner collection
In contrast, a successful marriage of modernism with the spirit of Louis XV era furniture is a series of tables, tables and armchairs by Warren Platner. The Platner collection saw the light of day in 1966 and immediately impressed with its soft, curvy shapes. Interestingly, the intricate, "shiny wheat sheaf"-like bases of the furniture require as many as a thousand welds.
Womb armchair
A similar softness of form can be found in the Womb armchair, which was specially created by Eero Saarinen at the request of Florence Knoll. Florence asked a friend for an armchair "that you can wrap yourself in." In 1948, the famous architect presented her with a piece of furniture that creates an intimate and comfortable oasis of relaxation thanks to its spacious seat. The Womb was the first fiberglass armchair mass-produced in America. The innovative material meant that for years its manufacture was handled by a yacht manufacturer, which was the only one able to make such a complex, organic form.
Harry Bertoi's wire chairs
The turn of the century also saw the creation of Harry Bertoi's wire chairs (1952), which can be associated with café gardens. The author himself described them quite succinctly - "if you look at these chairs, they are mainly made of air, they are like a sculpture, the space just goes through them." The innovation of the project also lay in the unprecedented for the time use of industrial material to create a piece of furniture that quickly achieved the status of a work of art.
"if you look at these chairs, they are mainly made of air, they are like a sculpture, the space just goes through them".
© Mood Design press materials
Pollock Arm Chair
The Pollock Arm Chair (1960) has a completely different character. Charles Pollock's design was originally called a "suspension chair." This term provided it with the distinctive, flowing fabric-like shape of the seat and the way it was attached to a frame made of steel and aluminum. This lightweight chair was reintroduced by the Knoll brand in 2014. Probably because it still works well in the living room despite the passage of years.
