Vintage Diamond Chair by Harry Bertoia for Knoll, Set of 2
About the Item
- Creator:Harry Bertoia (Designer)
- Design:
- Dimensions:Height: 29.53 in (75 cm)Width: 33.47 in (85 cm)Depth: 29.53 in (75 cm)Seat Height: 18.12 in (46 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1952-1962
- Condition:Refinished. Wear consistent with age and use. The wire mesh structure has been carefully repaired with a fine coat of white paint.
- Seller Location:Cape Town, ZA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU6897228992212
Diamond Chair
To fully understand the design of Harry Bertoia’s (1915–78) 1952 Diamond chair — an austere and photogenic work of woven steel wire, the intricately sculptural wings of which create the illusion of sitting on air — it helps to go back to his college days: In 1937, the Italian-born artist and designer, who emigrated to Detroit at age 15, earned a scholarship to Cranbrook Academy of Art, the illustrious Michigan design school that attracted such luminaries as Florence Knoll, Eero Saarinen and Charles and Ray Eames. Bertoia was deeply influenced by the Eameses, especially by the sculptural quality that was so prominent in the furniture they made. In the 1940s, he left Cranbrook to work for the couple, developing the molded plywood furniture that would become a trademark of their designs.
Bertoia learned to weld while employed by the Eameses, but left their workshop in anger over the lack of credit he received for the important contributions he made there — a dispute that would come to play an important role in the Diamond chair’s development. He eventually took a job at an electronics lab, where he analyzed human mobility for the purpose of designing electronics with easy-to-reach knobs and consoles.
When his former Cranbrook classmate Florence Knoll tapped Bertoia to make furniture for the Pennsylvania company she had recently founded with her husband, Hans, the designer was swayed with the promise of full credit for designs he produced. Armed with a newly minted background in ergonomics as well as the knowledge he gathered from experimentation with the Eameses, Bertoia capably applied what he’d learned over the years at Knoll, where he utilized thin wires of welded metal to produce pieces that appeared to be floating in the wind — yet remained surprisingly comfortable and supportive. The Diamond chair, a widely revered component of the innovative metal furniture line that Bertoia designed at the company, has been in continuous production at Knoll since 1952 and is available in four finishes today.
Harry Bertoia
Sculptor, furniture and jewelry designer, graphic artist and metalsmith, Harry Bertoia was one of the great cross-disciplinarians of 20th-century art and design and a central figure in American modernism. Among furniture aficionados he is known for the wire-lattice Diamond chair (and its variants such as the tall-backed Bird chair) designed for Knoll Inc. and first released in 1952. As an artist, Bertoia is revered for a style that was his alone. Bertoia’s metal sculptures are by turns expressive and austere, powerful and subtle, intimate in scale and monumental. All embody a tension between the intricacy and precision of Bertoia’s forms and the raw strength of his materials: steel, brass, bronze and copper.
Fortune seemed to guide Bertoia’s artistic development. Born in northeastern Italy, Bertoia immigrated to the United States at age 15, joining an older brother in Detroit. He studied drawing and metalworking in the gifted student program at Cass Technical High School. Recognition led to awards that culminated, in 1937, in a teaching scholarship to attend the Cranbrook Academy of Art in suburban Bloomfield Hills, one of the great crucibles of modernism in America. There, Bertoia made friendships — with architect Eero Saarinen, designers Charles and Ray Eames and Florence Schust Knoll and others — that shaped the course of his life. He taught metalworking at Cranbrook, and when materials rationing during World War II limited the availability of metals, Bertoia focused on jewelry design. He also experimented with monotype printmaking, and 19 of his earliest efforts were bought by the Guggenheim Museum.
In 1943, he left Cranbrook to work in California with the Eameses, helping them develop their now-famed plywood furniture. (Bertoia received scant credit.) Late in that decade, Florence and Hans Knoll persuaded him to move east and join Knoll Inc. His chairs became, and remain, perennial bestsellers. Royalties allowed Bertoia to devote himself full-time to metal sculpture, a medium he began to explore in earnest in 1947.
By the early 1950s Bertoia was receiving commissions for large-scale works from architects — the first came via Saarinen — as he refined his aesthetic vocabulary into two distinct skeins. One comprises his “sounding sculptures” — gongs and “Sonambient” groupings of rods that strike together and chime when touched by hand or by the wind. The other genre encompasses Bertoia’s naturalistic works: abstract sculptures that suggest bushes, flower petals, leaves, dandelions or sprays of grass. As you will see on these pages, Harry Bertoia was truly unique; his art and designs manifest a wholly singular combination of delicacy and strength.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Cape Town, South Africa
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
- Vintage Steel Mesh Side Chair by Harry BertoiaBy Harry BertoiaLocated in Cape Town, WCBertoia’s side chair is a definitively iconic expression of mid-century sensibility with a particular emphasis on the relationship between aesthetics and durability. Its silhouette i...Category
Vintage 1950s North American Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Vintage Model 403 Hallway Chair by Alvar Aalto for Artek, Set of 2By Alvar AaltoLocated in Cape Town, WCThe Model 403, or Hallway Chair, is a stackable chair originally designed for a Finnish medical centre in 1932. Finnish modernism finds its structural motif in the form of the Model ...Category
Mid-20th Century Finnish Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsBirch, Plywood
- Early Steel Pantonova Chair by Verner PantonBy Verner PantonLocated in Cape Town, WCThe Pantonova Chair is most famous as the seat of choice for Bond villain Karl Stromberg in the Spy Who Loved Me; and is part of Danish designer Verner...Category
Vintage 1970s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Set of Vintage DalVera Les Arcs Chairs chosen by Charlotte PerriandBy DalVeraLocated in Cape Town, WCStructurally, the chrome frame imitates the backward position of an armchair – yet without armrests, instead finding its comfort in its Cognac leather seat...Category
Vintage 1970s European Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Set of Vintage Oak South African "Riempie" ChairsLocated in Cape Town, WCThe “riempies” is a settler Dutch reference to leather thongs that are seen to be latticed as the seating for this chair. Threading the “riempies” through holes alongside the seat al...Category
20th Century South African Dutch Colonial Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Oak
- Pair of Vintage Model 65 Chairs by Alvar AaltoBy Artek, Alvar AaltoLocated in Cape Town, WCModel 65 encapsulates designer Alvar Aalto’s approach to systematic, rational design within the context of Finnish minimalism; showcasing clean lines and his favoured use of birchwoo...Category
Vintage 1940s European Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsBirch
- Harry Bertoia for Knoll Diamond Chair - ChromeBy Harry BertoiaLocated in Kennett Square, PAChrome diamond chair designed by Harry Bertoia for Knoll - a mid century classic, appears to be fairly recently made. Black leather seat highlights the striking chrome. Always surpri...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsChrome
- Harry Bertoia for Knoll Large Diamond ChairBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Philadelphia, PAHarry Bertoia for Knoll large diamond chair with a green cover. Base is original white. Bushings are in good shape, and overall the cover is pretty clean! ...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Pair of Large Diamond Chairs by Harry Bertoia for KnollBy Knoll, Harry BertoiaLocated in Dallas, TXFabulous, iconic pair of large "Diamond Chairs" by Harry Bertoia for Knoll. Black metal frames and yellow upholstery.Category
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Harry Bertoia for Knoll Vintage Bird Lounge ChairBy Knoll, Harry BertoiaLocated in Saint Louis, USHarry Bertoia for Knoll International bird chair. This iconic lounge chair and ottoman were originally designed by Harry Bertoia in 1952 and manufactured by Knoll International. Each...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Harry Bertoia for Knoll ”BIRD” ChairBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Philadelphia, PAHarry Bertoia Bird Frame or High Back Diamond. Black metal frame with 4 rubber bushings that let that chair rock slightly. Newer Knoll cover in the last 10-15 years. Cover is very...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Large Diamond Chair by Harry Bertoia for Knoll, 1970sBy Knoll, Harry BertoiaLocated in Lasne, BEArmchair in metal and blue fabric by Harry Bertoia. Large Diamond model. Seat height: 39 cm. Wear due to time and age.Category
Vintage 1970s Central American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal