Knoll 3 Seater Relax Sofa by Florence Knoll Mid Brown Cognac 1970s
View Similar Items
Knoll 3 Seater Relax Sofa by Florence Knoll Mid Brown Cognac 1970s
About the Item
- Creator:Knoll (Cabinetmaker),Florence Knoll (Designer)
- Design:Relaxed SofaRelaxed Series
- Dimensions:Height: 31.5 in (80 cm)Width: 90.56 in (230 cm)Depth: 30.71 in (78 cm)Seat Height: 17.72 in (45 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970
- Condition:Reupholstered. Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Aachen, DE
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU6944234169862
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 skillfully realized office plans and polished, efficient designs for sofas, credenzas, desks and other furnishings.
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.
Florence Knoll's main work came as head of the Knoll Planning Group, designing custom office interiors for clients such as IBM and CBS. The furniture she 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.
Find vintage Florence Knoll sofas, benches, armchairs and other furniture on 1stDibs.
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.
- Vintage Mid Brown Club Sofa Italian Designer 1970sLocated in Aachen, NWThis timeless iconic sofa was made in the 1970s in Italy in the manner of Poltrona Frau or De Sede. The sofa is upholstered in an amazing super smooth Mid Brown leather. The cushi...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Modern Sofas
MaterialsStainless Steel
- Florence Knoll Seagrass Sideboard Model 116 by Knoll, 1952By Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Aachen, NWRare midcentury Seagrass sideboard model 116 by Florence Knoll for Knoll. Designed in 1947 and made in Germany in a very low production line in the early 1950s. Impressive veneer & ...Category
Vintage 1950s German Sideboards
MaterialsWood, Seagrass
- Early Bird Chair & Ottoman Bouclé by Harry Bertoia for Knoll, 1970sBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Aachen, NWEarly Bouclé wool edition Bird chair & ottoman by Harry Bertoia for Knoll. The groundbreaking Bird chair was designed in the 50s by Harry Bertoia and made by Knoll. This mid-century classic supports countless positions and offers a comforting oasis of calm. This edition is a very nice fully restored Bouclé...Category
Mid-20th Century American Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Vintage Cognac Eames Lounge Chair by Herman Miller 1970sBy Charles and Ray Eames, Herman MillerLocated in Aachen, NWThis rare lounge chair was designed by Charles & Ray Eames and were produced by Herman Miller in the early 1970s. It is one of the earlier lounge chairs which were produced in Europe...Category
Vintage 1970s German Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Vintage De Sede DS31 Sofa & 2x DS31 Lounge Chair Cognac 1970sBy De SedeLocated in Aachen, NWThis amazing living room set with a 3-seater Sofa and 2x lounge chairs model DS31 were designed in the 1960s by the De Sede design team and produced by De Sede in Switzerland in the ...Category
Vintage 1970s Swiss Living Room Sets
MaterialsChrome
- Vintage Cognac Egg Chair & Ottoman by Arne Jacobsen for Fritz Hansen, 1970sBy Fritz Hansen, Arne JacobsenLocated in Aachen, NWThis very rare 70s edition Egg chair and ottoman was designed in the 50s by Arne Jacobsen for the SAS Hotel in Copenhagen and produced by Fritz Hansen around 1979/1980. The Egg chair...Category
Vintage 1970s Danish Lounge Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Florence Knoll 2-Seater Sofa, Classic Mid Century Modern, KnollBy Florence Knoll, KnollLocated in Buffalo, NYVintage Florence Knoll 2 seater 'lounge series' sofa with original 2nd generation upholstery in a coarse woven off-white mottled wool fabric. This sofa d...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Loveseats
MaterialsChrome
- Florence Knoll Three-Seat SofaBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Chicago, ILFlorence Knoll Three-Seat Sofa reupholstered with Great Plains "Teddy" warm silver heavy boucle made of alpaca, and wool. Solid maple-turned tapered legs.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsBouclé, Maple
- Florence Knoll 3-Seat SofaBy Florence KnollLocated in Munich, DEFlorence Knoll 3-seat sofa. Nice original condition.Category
Vintage 1960s German Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric
$2,198 Sale Price44% Off - Florence Knoll Brown Sofa ~ Model 2577By Florence Knoll, KnollLocated in New York, NYFlorence Knoll three seat sofa by Knoll Associates. Model 2577. Original Naugahyde brown upholstery with chrome-plated steel base. Unsigned. USA, circa 1960-1970. Dimensions:...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsMetal, Chrome
- Early Florence Knoll 3-Seat Model 26 SofaBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Brooklyn, NYVery early Florence Knoll sofa, circa late 1940s, in vintage oatmeal nubby wool Knoll fabric, with down seat and back cushions. The six inset legs make...Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsTextile, Maple
- Rare 'Model 66' 2-Seater Sofa by Florence Knoll for Knoll International, 1950sBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Antwerpen, VANRare 2-seater sofa designed by Florence Knoll Basset around 1955. This armless version is called ‘Model 66’ or ‘Slipper’ and features a slim black lacquered base in steel with a funk...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsSteel
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.