The Knoll Legacy: A History of Design Excellence
Founded as a furniture design company that sought to bring the ideas of modernist design within reach to the American market, Knoll sprang from Hans Knoll’s collaboration with his wife Florence to hone the vision of the company, taking the ideas in modernism forward to make an imprint on the world of architecture and design. For years, Knoll has been the answer to high-end font stuff for architects and designers relying on minimal decoration and the existence of functional quality.
Looking back, some of the designers who collaborated with it included Eero Saarinen, Florence Knoll, and Harry Bertoia, creating some of the most resonating names in the world of mid-century modern.
Iconic Knoll Designers
Eero Saarinen
Role: Finnish-American architect and industrial designer.
Contribution to Knoll: Designs of Eero Saarinen for Knoll are always synonymous with modern elegance and sophistication. Furnished with graceful curves and much innovative perspective on form, his furniture pieces have defined the future course of design thinking.
Notable Works: Some of the magnificent designs included in Knoll’s portfolio by the famous architect were Tulip Table and Womb Chair. The first prize is that in his Tulip Table design—a single pedestal on which the entire table stands, coupled with sheer minimalism at its beauty—changed, in fact, the definition of so-called dining tables today. The last one underscores comfort and modern design by having an organic, cocoonish shape.
Florence Knoll
Role: Architect and designer and also co-founder of Knoll.
Contribution to Knoll: Florence Knoll contributed a great deal to the shaping of the distinctive style of the company for the definition of modern American office and home furniture. Her work had roots in functionality, whereby every piece achieved the dual purposes of being beautiful and practical.
Notable Works: Florence Knoll Lounge Seating is a collection defined by simple elegant minimalist lines complemented with luxurious upholstery. This seating set, with its refined yet pure design, forms one of the modern offices’ hallmarks.
Italian-American artist, designer, sculptor:
Harry Bertoia.
Bertoia’s work for Knoll has been admired and awarded for its coalescence of sculpture and furniture design. His works are most often said to contain a wire form and unique, artistic structures.
Notable Works: The Bertoia Diamond Chair is one such item-offered by Knoll-as one of its best sellers, made from welded steel and mesh, bearing the harmony of comfort alongside a sculptural aesthetics. Bertoia’s design is often referred to as art that can indeed be sat on, revealing his artistic vision from the perspective of furniture.
Best Selling Knoll Furniture Eero Saarinen’s Tulip Table
Design: This is one of Knoll’s most celebrated pieces. The Tulip Table adopts the organic form into a single pedestal, gracefully swooping in toward the floor, replacing the traditional four-legged table. Beyond the visual advantage, this innovation improves the functional use of the table in terms of legroom and distance between people seated at it. It’s Iconic: The Tulip Table exemplified the modernist viewpoint where form follows function. A versatile piece for any use-from dining to work-such timelessness could not fail to impress anyone whom minimalist perfection and practicality were important for furniture.
Eero Saarinen’s Womb Chair
Design: The Womb Chair, designed for comfort, provides a perfect cocooning experience. It has an organic shape, deep cushioning, and a feeling of security, almost as though you were in a “womb.” Molded fiberglass shell clad with soft upholstery.
Why It’s Iconic: The Womb Chair was revolutionary for its design and comfort as a unique, artistic lounge chair. One of the most desired items in modern furniture, it appeals both to those who love beauty and those who desire comfort.
Bertoia Diamond Chair
Design: The Diamond Chair is a sculptural piece made by Harry Bertoia. This chair is constructed of a thin, interwoven wire frame that creates a diamond-looking figure, light and strong at once, in the intersection of art and function.
Why It’s Iconic: One of the most recognizable objects among 20th-century furniture design, it presents a sleek, open frame and a minimalist aesthetic in a modern rendition of the glorious armchair and its ability to easily blend into almost any modern space makes it a highly versatile and enduring piece.
Florence Knoll Lounge Seating
Design: Lounge seating features in the Florence Knoll collection clean, minimalist lines in combination with the most luxurious materials, plush upholstery paired with finely-crafted woods. Pieces designed to provide comfort but with an element of sophistication, suitable for both office and residential space.
Why It’s Iconic: Function meets style in the design of Florence Knoll. All reflected within the Lounge Seating collection, which marries comfort with beauty and practicality. The clean lines and simplicity have resulted in its becoming a favorite in commercial and residential interiors.
Knoll Sofa Collection
Style: Sympathetic to high style, the sofas of Knoll display a shining purity of design and noble materials. Each design merges into contemporary life-with a comforting and alluring presence.
Iconic Status: Knoll sofas exemplify the workings of a design firm that believes that functional furniture should also be aesthetically pleasing. It is the processes of modernism with its emphasis on fine quality materials that have ensured Knoll’s furniture is comfortable, durable, and artistic.
Why Buy Knoll Furniture?
Timeless Designs: Oftentimes, contemporary pieces are designed with a fashionable look that is usually short-lived. Knoll believes that an exciting product designed by a great designer will be exciting for many years to come. Decades after their birth, they still look fashionable and relevant.
Quality Crafts: Knoll is known for all its works being considered where every minor detail is taken into consideration. Quality materials have been used in the production of this item. Production of this piece of furniture includes painstaking skill because it also has to pass the Knoll test of excellence.
Functionally Beautiful: Knoll furniture is, more often than not, the marriage of minimalist beauty and practical performance within a commercial or residential setting. The beauty lies in how functional and comfortable the piece is.
Sustainable for the Earth: Knoll is committed to an environmental perspective, in terms of materials as well as production.
Conclusion
Knoll has solidly made its reputation as an innovator in modern design, working with creative forces such as Eero Saarinen, Florence Knoll, and Harry Bertoia. The Tulip Table, Womb Chair, and Bertoia Diamond Chair remain exuberant and effective ambassadors in their own right, and continue to earn the allegiance of both interior designers and furniture addicts alike around the world. For the most beautiful and surprisingly practical designs for office, home, or public space, you can be quite sure of Knoll.