1960s Florence Knoll Partners Desk or Executive Table in Rosewood, Model 2485
About the Item
- Creator:Knoll (Manufacturer),Florence Knoll (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 28.5 in (72.39 cm)Width: 72 in (182.88 cm)Depth: 38 in (96.52 cm)
- Style:Modern (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1960-1969
- Condition:Refinished. Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Philadelphia, PA
- Reference Number:
Florence Knoll
Architect, furniture designer, interior designer, entrepreneur — Florence Knoll had a subtle but profound influence on the course of mid-century American modernism. Dedicated to functionality and organization, and never flamboyant, Knoll shaped the ethos of the postwar business world with her polished, efficient design and skillfully realized office plans.
Knoll had perhaps the most thorough design education of any of her peers. Florence Schust was orphaned at age 12, and her guardian sent her to Kingswood, a girl’s boarding school that is part of the Cranbrook Educational Community in suburban Detroit. Her interest in design brought her to the attention of Eliel Saarinen, the Finnish architect and head of the Cranbrook Academy of Art. Saarinen and his wife took the talented child under their wing, and she became close to their son, the future architect Eero Saarinen. While a student at the academy, Florence befriended artist-designer Harry Bertoia and Charles and Ray Eames. Later, she studied under three of the Bauhaus masters who emigrated to the United States. She worked as an apprentice in the Boston architectural offices of Walter Gropius and Marcel Breuer; Ludwig Mies van der Rohe taught her at the Illinois Institute of Technology.
In 1941, she met Hans Knoll, whose eponymous furniture company was just getting off the ground. They married in 1946, and her design sense and his business skills soon made Knoll Inc. a leading firm in its field. Florence signed up the younger Saarinen as a designer, and would develop pieces by Bertoia, Mies and the artist Isamu Noguchi. Her main work came as head of the Knoll Planning Group, designing custom office interiors for clients such as IBM and CBS. The furniture Florence created for these spaces reflects her Bauhaus training: the pieces are pure functional design, exactingly built; their only ornament from the materials, such as wood and marble. Her innovations — the oval conference table, for example, conceived as a way to ensure clear sightlines among all seated at a meeting — were always in the service of practicality.
Since her retirement in 1965, Knoll received the National Medal of Arts, among other awards; in 2004 the Philadelphia Museum of Art mounted the exhibition “Florence Knoll: Defining Modern” — well deserved accolades for a strong, successful design and business pioneer. As demonstrated on these pages, the simplicity of Knoll’s furniture is her work’s great virtue: they fit into any interior design scheme.
Knoll
As a company that produced many of the most famous and iconic furniture designs of the 20th century, Knoll was a chief influence in the rise of modern design in the United States. Led by Florence Knoll, the firm would draw stellar talents such as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Eero Saarinen into its compass. Their work would help change the face of the American home and office.
The company was formed in 1938 by the German immigrant Hans Knoll. He first worked with his fellow ex-pat, the Danish designer Jens Risom, who created furniture with flowing lines made of wood. While Risom served in World War II, in 1943 Knoll met his future wife, Florence Schust. She had studied and worked with eminent emigré leaders of the Bauhaus, including Mies, Walter Gropius and Marcel Breuer. She won Knoll over with Bauhaus notions of industrial arts, and an aesthetic that featured flat and tubular metal frames and angular forms. When Hans died in a car crash in 1955, Florence Knoll was appointed head of the company. It was as much through her holistic approach to design — a core division of the firm was dedicated to planning office systems — as Knoll's mid-century modern furnishings themselves that she brought about the sleek and efficient transformation of the American workplace.
Today, classic Knoll furnishings remain staples of modern design collections and decor. A history of modern design is written in pieces such as the elegant Barcelona chair — created by Mies and Lilly Reich — Saarinen’s pedestal Tulip chair, Breuer’s tubular steel Wassily lounge chair and the grid-patterned Diamond chair by Harry Bertoia.
As you can see from the collection of these designs and other vintage Knoll dining chairs, sofas and tables on 1stDibs, this manufacturer's offerings have become timeless emblems of the progressive spirit and sleek sophistication of the best of modernism.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Lebanon, PA
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 14 days of delivery.
- 1960s Florence Knoll Executive Desk in Walnut w/ Chromed-Steel X-Base Model 2485By Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Philadelphia, PAThis is a Florence Knoll Executive Desk, Model 2485, initially designed by Florence Knoll for Knoll in 1954. This particular example date...Category
Vintage 1960s American Modern Desks
MaterialsChrome, Steel
- 1950s Florence Knoll Double Pedestal Walnut Chrome and Laminate Executive DeskBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Philadelphia, PAListed for sale is a double pedestal desk, model 1503, designed by Florence Knoll and produced by Knoll Associates. This is an original example dating to circa late 1950s. It is cons...Category
Vintage 1960s American Modern Desks
MaterialsChrome
- 1960s Florence Knoll Rosewood Four Drawer Dresser with Marble Top - 3x AvailableBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Philadelphia, PAThis is a Florence Knoll Rosewood 4-drawer dresser, model 325, designed by Florence in 1960 for Knoll International. The listed price includes one dresser and we have three available...Category
Vintage 1960s American Modern Dressers
MaterialsMarble
- 1960s Jens Risom Designs Double Pedestal Executive Desk w/ Wood Pulls in WalnutBy Jens RisomLocated in Philadelphia, PAThis is an executive desk in walnut, designed by Jens Risom for Jens Risom Designs in the 1960s. It features two drawers on the left, three drawers on the right, and pull-out surface...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Modern Desks
MaterialsWalnut
- 1963 Florence Knoll "T" Angle Dining Table, Model 309 in White LaminateBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Philadelphia, PAThis is an original T Angle dining table, Model 309, designed by Florence Knoll for Knoll International in 1952. It features a square top of white laminate, and has black enameled st...Category
Vintage 1960s American Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsSteel
- Florence Knoll Studio Square Espresso Marble Low Side or Coffee Table in SquareBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Philadelphia, PAListed for sale is a Florence Knoll for Knoll Studio 23.5 x 23.5 x 12 inch low coffee table / end table. This example has a gorgeous espresso marble top ...Category
Early 2000s American Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsMarble, Metal
- Florence Knoll Rosewood Dining Table or DeskBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Chicago, ILFlorence Knoll rosewood dining table or desk, highly figured rosewood veneer top with beveled edge detail. Solid steel brushed chr...Category
Vintage 1960s American Desks
MaterialsSteel
- Vintage Walnut Executive Desk by Florence KnollBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in North Hollywood, CAAmazing vintage executive desk designed by architect and furniture designer Florence Knoll in the United States, circa 1960s. This iconic design...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsSteel, Chrome
- Vintage Oak Dining Table or Desk by Florence KnollBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in North Hollywood, CAAmazing vintage oak dining table / desk designed by Florence Knoll for Knoll International in the United States, circa 1960s. The design of th...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsStainless Steel, Chrome
- Florence Knoll Style Mid Century Rosewood and Chrome Executive DeskBy Florence KnollLocated in Countryside, ILFlorence Knoll Style Mid Century Rosewood and Chrome Executive Desk This desk measures: 82 wide x 38 deep x 29.25 high, with a chair clearance of 27.25 inches All pieces of furnitu...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsChrome
- Florence Knoll DeskBy Florence KnollLocated in Chicago, ILKnoll International Planed Office Group double pedestal desk with modesty panel model 1503. Features five drawers one for files. Modesty panel shows st...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsMetal
- Florence Knoll DeskBy Florence KnollLocated in Chicago, ILKnoll International Planed Office Group double pedestal desk with modesty panel model 1503. Features five drawers one for files. Modesty panel shows steel reveal details. (Ten mor...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsMetal
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
10 Trailblazing Female Designers
From pioneering visionaries to contemporary talents, get to know some of the most important women in design.
Remembering Design Visionary Florence Knoll Bassett (1917-2019)
A loving look back at the life and career of a doyenne of mid-century-modern style, who died last week at the age of 101.