Set Rare Warren Platner Chair for Knoll
View Similar Items
Set Rare Warren Platner Chair for Knoll
About the Item
- Creator:Warren Platner (Designer)
- Design:Platner ArmchairPlatner Series
- Dimensions:Height: 28.75 in (73 cm)Width: 19.69 in (50 cm)Depth: 19.69 in (50 cm)Seat Height: 17.33 in (44 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1960-1969
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Finally we have a set in our collection! The coveted Warren Platner chairs were designed in 1966 for Knoll. This model is called Platner Side Chair. Made in 1966 He is also famous for designing several prominent New York City interiors.
- Seller Location:Oostrum-Venray, NL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU5799224690262
Platner Armchair
Despite being made of sturdy nickel-plated steel wire rods, the Platner armchair — designed by Warren Platner (1919–2006) — takes on a delicate, organic quality.
The interior designer and furniture maker studied architecture at Cornell University before working in the offices of Raymond Loewy, I.M. Pei and Eero Saarinen. Architecture became Platner’s primary field — the Baltimore native was the 1955 winner of the Rome Prize in Architecture, and he is best known for his glamorous design of the Windows on the World restaurant at the original World Trade Center. Over time, Platner also developed a special interest in furniture and took on interior projects under award-winning Irish-American architect Kevin Roche. As head of interior design for Roche's firm in the mid-1960s, Platner created the now-revered office spaces at the Ford Foundation’s headquarters in New York City. While finishing that project, he went on to open his own practice in Connecticut.
Platner’s armchair was part of the decorative Platner Collection, his seminal work in furniture design. In addition to the armchair, the series — created in 1962 — originally included a dining table, side tables and more. The designer had already built a relationship with Knoll over the years, and the company introduced Platner's chair in 1966. Platner found inspiration for this piece in the now-celebrated designs that came before it, such as Saarinen’s Tulip chair and tables. But rather than firmly plant his work within the futuristic realm of mid-century modernism, Platner incorporated a graceful aesthetic reminiscent of the Louis XV era in his lightweight chair. The Platner armchair is still produced by Knoll today.
Warren Platner
Though his vintage furniture and interiors are icons of mid-century modernism, architect and furniture designer Warren Platner took his stylistic inspiration from as far back as 18th-century France, once saying about his seminal collection for Knoll that his design intent was to evoke “the kind of decorative, gentle, graceful kind of design that appeared in period style like Louis XV.”
Indeed, the marriage of modern sensibility and classical grace is a marker of Platner’s style across furnishings and interiors — both genres in which he left an enduring legacy.
Born in 1919 in Baltimore, Maryland, Platner studied architecture at Cornell before cutting his teeth working for design icons like Eero Saarinen and Kevin Roche, eventually serving as head of interior design in the latter’s office. In 1965, Platner opened his own office, in Greenwich, Connecticut, where he continued to hone his particular brand of graceful modernism.
Knoll released the Platner Collection of seating and tables in 1966. (Originally designed in 1962, the suite took nearly four years of development to bring to life.) The decorative bent-metal-and-glass pieces — an armchair, a dining table and more — make certain nods to the trademarks of his former employers, but also to the shapes of historic European furniture. The sculptural elegance of his line recalls Saarinen’s iconic Tulip collection, which includes armchairs and dining tables, while his materiality aligns with Roche’s cutting-edge use of glass and metal for the headquarters of the Ford Foundation in New York.
Many of Platner’s Knoll pieces would go on to find homes in a certain fabled locale: the Windows on the World restaurant at the original World Trade Center, whose interiors Platner was tapped to outfit in the mid-1970s. Upon the opening of the restaurant in 1976, New York Times architecture critic Paul Goldberger dubbed its style “sensuous modernism” — an apt tagline for Platner’s oeuvre as a whole.
Platner died in 2006 at the age of 86. His furniture is still produced by Knoll, and original examples — along with idiosyncratic custom works he created for interior design clients — are coveted by collectors today.
Find vintage Warren Platner furniture on 1stDibs.
- Set of 8 dinning chairs model 71, Arne Hovmand Olsen for Mogens Kold, 1960sBy Arne Hovmand-OlsenLocated in Oostrum-Venray, NLSet of 8 dinning chairs model 71, Arne Hovmand Olsen for Mogens Kold, 1960s Discover the timeless elegance of the Arne Hovmand-Olsen designer chair, a masterpiece that embodies the ...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsWood
- Vintage Pagholz Flototto Stacking Chair Set of 14 chairs, 1970By PagholzLocated in Oostrum-Venray, NLDiscover the charm of the 70s with this authentic Pagholz stacking chair, designed by Flototto. This rare dining room chair is a real collector...Category
Vintage 1970s German Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsPlastic, Wood
- Vintage Sine Chairs by Karl Friedrich Förster - Set of 4By KFFLocated in Oostrum-Venray, NLVintage Sine Chairs by Karl Friedrich Förster - Set of 4 Discover the iconic Sinus chairs, designed by Karl-Friedrich Förster in 1984, a true eye-catcher in any interior. This set o...Category
Vintage 1960s German Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Set of 2 dining room chairs in sheep leather, 1970 Netherlands.Located in Oostrum-Venray, NLSet of 2 dining room chairs in sheep leather, 1970 Netherlands. This is a set of leather chairs made of sheep leather. Made in the Netherlands ...Category
Vintage 1970s Dutch Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsLeather
$1,186 Sale Price / set20% Off - Midcentury Danish Erling Torvits Darkwood Chairs by Sorø Stolefabrik, Set of 4By Erling TorvitsLocated in Oostrum-Venray, NLDining room chairs by Erling Torvits for Sorø Stolefabrik, 1960s Set of 4 dining room chairs designed by Erling Torvits and manufactured for Sorø Stolefabrik in the 1960s, Denmark. T...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsWood
$3,789 / setFree Shipping - Solaria Leather Set of 4 Dining Chairs made by Arrben, 1970 Italy.By Tito AgnoliLocated in Oostrum-Venray, NLSolaria Leather Set of 4 Dining Chairs made by Arrben, 1970 Italy. Midcentury Modern Italian design set of 6 cognac leather armchairs (designed by Tito Agnoli) produced by Arrben, ...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsLeather
$2,152 Sale Price / set20% Off
- Vintage Warren Platner Arm Chairs, Set of Six for KnollBy Knoll, Warren PlatnerLocated in Lambertville, NJA stunning example of the 1966 Warren Platner arm chair for Knoll, these chairs are timeless and integrate beautifully with many style tables. They f...Category
Vintage 1980s Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsSteel
- Set of 6 Warren Platners Chairs in cream/beige fabric by Knoll InternationalBy Knoll, Warren PlatnerLocated in amstelveen, NLWarren Platner dining chairs, beige kvadrat fabric, set of 6, Knoll International In 1966, the Platner Collection captured the “decorative, gentle, graceful' shapes that were beginn...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsWool
- Warren Platner for Knoll Arm Chairs/ PairBy Warren Platner, KnollLocated in Philadelphia, PAWarren Platner for Knoll Pair of Armchairs. In like new condition! Chairs are not even 2 years old! Beautiful chairs in great condition! 1966 Design that still looks current! Ni...Category
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsNickel
$5,500 / set - Warren Platner for Knoll Mid Century Dining Chairs - Set of 4By Knoll, Warren PlatnerLocated in Countryside, ILWarren Platner for Knoll Mid Century Dining Chairs - Set of 4 Each chair measures: 28.25 wide x 22 deep x 29.5 high, with a seat height of 19 and arm height/chair clearance 25 inche...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Knoll Warren Platner 4 Chair Set Steel VelvetBy Warren PlatnerLocated in Minerbio, BOSet consisting of 4 green velvet chairs, Designed by American architect and designer Warren Platner, the chair is part of the collection of the same name for Knoll. Its frame is cons...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Armchairs
MaterialsVelvet
$9,885 / set - Pair of Warren Platner Lounge Chairs for KnollBy Knoll, Warren PlatnerLocated in Paris, FRPair of Warren Platner lounge chairs for Knoll.Category
Vintage 1960s American Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
$13,400 / set