Warren Platner for Knoll Armchair Set of 4, Nickel, Blue Wool, 1966

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.

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.