Set of 4 Knoll Chrome Harry Bertoia Chairs for Knoll
View Similar Items
Set of 4 Knoll Chrome Harry Bertoia Chairs for Knoll
About the Item
- Creator:Harry Bertoia (Designer),Knoll (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 28.75 in (73.03 cm)Width: 21.75 in (55.25 cm)Depth: 19.75 in (50.17 cm)Seat Height: 17.75 in (45.09 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 4
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:San Diego, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU936612228421
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.
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.
- Pair of Custom Diamond Bertoia Chairs for Knoll American Mid CenturyBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in San Diego, CAGreat and rare pair of Harry Bertoia diamond chairs, with original seat pads and original chrome bases, we have the tops sandblasted and powder coated in green, they look great with ...Category
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsMetal, Chrome
- Set of 4 Original Tulip Armless Chairs by Saarinen for Knoll Studio Leather PadsBy Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in San Diego, CASet of 4 Tulip chairs in great condition by Saarinen for Knoll for the quintessential modern dining set, or mix and match for a statement in any room. b...Category
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Set of 6 Handkerchief Armchairs Designed by Massimo Vignelli for Knoll StudioBy Massimo Vignelli, KnollLocated in San Diego, CAA great set of 6 armchairs designed by Massimo Vignelli for Knoll, circa 1983, for Knoll studio in great condition, black on black the seats are very clean these chairs are nice and ...Category
20th Century American Post-Modern Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Set of Four Armchairs by Ettore Sottsass for Knoll Memphis EraBy Ettore Sottsass, KnollLocated in San Diego, CANice set of four Mandarin chairs designed by Sottsass for Knoll, in red fabric on foam black enameled tubular legs and silver pipping arms, simple and elegant by this master architect.Category
Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Armchairs
MaterialsMetal
- Pair of Stainless Steel Chairs by Karim Rashid for UmbraBy Umbra, Karim RashidLocated in San Diego, CAA very cool and rare pair of stainless steel chairs by Karim Rashid for Umbra, circa 1970s. Great patina, solid and sturdy.Category
Vintage 1970s Canadian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsStainless Steel
- Postmodern Set of 4 Italian Fan Back Chairs by Pietro CostantiniBy Pietro CostantiniLocated in San Diego, CASet of four tall back Italian chairs by Pietro Costantini, circa 1990s in black lacquer glossy finish and handstitched black leather seat, soli...Category
Late 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood, Lacquer
- Chairs by Harry Bertoia for Knoll, 1960s, Set of 8By Knoll, Harry BertoiaLocated in Lasne, BESet of 8 white metal chairs. Seat height 44 cm. Wear and tear from time and age of the chairs.Category
Vintage 1960s Central American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Set of Four Harry Bertoia Designed Child Chairs for KnollBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in San Francisco, CAOffered here are four Harry Bertoia designed child chair for Knoll. First designed in 1950. All are white.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsMetal
$700 Sale Price / set50% Off - Bertoia Chair, Model 420, Harry Bertoia for KnollBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Neuss, NWBertoia chair, model 420, designed in the 1940s by Harry Bertoia for Knoll. Frame made of wire mesh with a new seat cover in grey. Quality Features: very good workmanship high...Category
Vintage 1940s American Chairs
MaterialsWire
- Pair of Large Diamond Chairs by Harry Bertoia for KnollBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated 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
- Diamond Chairs by Harry Bertoia for Knoll InternationalBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Brussels, BEDiamond chairs by Harry Bertoia for Knoll International, 6 available Sold par piece 1250€.Category
Vintage 1970s European Armchairs
MaterialsChrome
- Diamond Chairs by Harry Bertoia for Knoll InternationalBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Brussels, BEDiamond chairs by Harry Bertoia for Knoll International, 6 available Sold par piece 1200€.Category
Vintage 1970s European Armchairs
MaterialsChrome