Mid-20th Century Florence Knoll Molded Plywood Pivoting Letter Tray
View Similar Items
Mid-20th Century Florence Knoll Molded Plywood Pivoting Letter Tray
About the Item
- Creator:Knoll (Manufacturer),Florence Knoll (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 6.5 in (16.51 cm)Width: 15 in (38.1 cm)Depth: 11.5 in (29.21 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:Metal,Plywood
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1961-1970
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Minor losses. Age appropriate wear. Some discoloration to the wood. Stray black mark on top tray. There is a spot on the top tray that appears to be some sort of discolored residue.
- Seller Location:Indianapolis, IN
- Reference Number:Seller: 23FDB2501stDibs: LU6661235033852
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.
- Mid 20th Century Marcello Fantoni Raymor Italian Orange and Brown Ceramic VaseBy Raymor, Marcello FantoniLocated in Indianapolis, INA mid-20th century beige, orange, and brown ceramic vase by sculptor, ceramist, metalworker, multi-media artist and designer Marcello Fantoni (1915-2011) for Raymor Italy. The brown ...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Vases
MaterialsCeramic
- Marcel Breuer Knoll “Wassily” Brown Leather and Chrome ChairBy Knoll, Marcel BreuerLocated in Indianapolis, INA vintage brown leather and chrome Wassily chair designed by Hungarian architect and furniture designer Marcel Breuer (1902-1981) for Knoll. Composed of a tubular chrome frame with b...Category
Late 20th Century American Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsChrome
- Marcel Breuer Knoll “Wassily” Brown Leather and Chrome ChairBy Knoll, Marcel BreuerLocated in Indianapolis, INA vintage brown leather and chrome Wassily chair designed by Hungarian architect and furniture designer Marcel Breuer (1902-1981) for Knoll. Composed of a tubular chrome frame with b...Category
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsChrome
- Martz Marshall Studios Mid-Century Modern Walnut and Round Tile Top TableBy Gordon & Jane Martz, Marshall StudiosLocated in Indianapolis, INA Mid-Century Modern custom ordered table designed by husband and wife duo Jane and Gordon Martz of Marshall Studios in Veedersburg, Indiana. Produced during this 1960s, this walnut ...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
MaterialsCeramic, Walnut
- Jane and Gordon Martz Marshall Studios Mid Century Modern Walnut Tile Table LampBy Gordon & Jane Martz, Marshall StudiosLocated in Indianapolis, INA Mid Century Modern table lamp designed by husband and wife design duo Jane and Gordon Martz for Marshall Studios in Veedersburg, Indiana. Composed of walnut, the lamp has a round t...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsCeramic, Walnut
- Francisco Sainz Signed Mid-Century Oil on Canvas Abstract PortraitLocated in Indianapolis, INAn oil on canvas painting by the Spanish artist Francisco Sainz (1928-1988). Signed to the stretcher on the verso and most likely painted during the 1950s or 60s, the painting depict...Category
Mid-20th Century Modern Paintings
MaterialsCanvas, Paint
- Florence Knoll Molded Plywood Architectural Letter Tray, 1960sBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Costa Mesa, CAFlorence Knoll molded plywood architectural letter tray, 1960s. This piece retains its original label to the bottom letter tray.Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Desk Sets
MaterialsWalnut
$1,200 Sale Price20% Off - Vintage Florence Knoll Molded Plywood Architectural Letter TrayBy Florence KnollLocated in Esperance, NYThis is a very unique premium paper or letter tray that is now available for sale. It comes with its original Knoll tag and is an early version of the product. With its stunning desi...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern More Desk Accessories
MaterialsBentwood
- American Mid-Century Modernist Walnut Letter Desk TrayBy KnollLocated in San Diego, CAIncredible midcentury letter tray in solid walnut. Great lines and construction rounded corners with dove tail joinery.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Desk Sets
MaterialsWalnut
- 20th Century Letter OpenerLocated in Greven, DEAntique Letter Opener, So beautiful, very nice condition!Category
Mid-20th Century Letter Openers
MaterialsBrass
- Molded Teak Plywood Double Letter Tray in the Style of Martin Aberg / RainbowBy House of Rainbow Wood Products Inc., Martin ÅbergLocated in San Diego, CAVery nice and functional double letter tray in the style of Martin Aberg for Rainbow Wood Products Company of Sweden, circa 1970s. The trays are made of molded teak plywood and can s...Category
Mid-20th Century Swedish Mid-Century Modern More Desk Accessories
MaterialsTeak
- Molded Teak Plywood Double Letter Tray by Martin Aberg for Rainbow of SwedenBy House of Rainbow Wood Products Inc., Martin ÅbergLocated in San Diego, CAVery cool and functional double letter tray by Martin Aberg for Rainbow Wood Products Company of Sweden, circa 1970s. The trays are made of molded teak plywood and can swivel into an...Category
Mid-20th Century Swedish Mid-Century Modern More Desk Accessories
MaterialsTeak
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.