Harry Bertoia Bird Chair and Ottoman, 1st Series, Made by Knoll International
View Similar Items
Harry Bertoia Bird Chair and Ottoman, 1st Series, Made by Knoll International
About the Item
- Creator:Harry Bertoia (Designer),Knoll (Manufacturer)
- Design:
- Dimensions:Height: 39.77 in (101 cm)Width: 39.38 in (100 cm)Depth: 33.47 in (85 cm)Seat Height: 15.75 in (40 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1952
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Original fabric, stained and worn in places in line with age and use.
- Seller Location:Wargrave, GB
- Reference Number:Seller: Bertoia bird chair ottoman1stDibs: LU839532873622
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.
- Platner Lounge Chair, designed 1966 by Warren Platner for Knoll InternationalBy Warren Platner, KnollLocated in Wargrave, BerkshireOriginal 1960s Platner Lounge Chair, designed 1966 by Warren Platner and manufactured by Knoll International. This iconic chair is made of moulded fibreglass covered in the original...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Warren Platner, Easy Lounge Chair and Ottoman, Knoll Intl, original 1972 exampleBy Warren Platner, KnollLocated in Wargrave, BerkshireWarren Platner Easy Lounge Chair and matching Ottoman, designed 1966 and manufactured by Knoll International, this set dated 1972. This iconic chair is made of moulded fibreglass co...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Marco Zanuso, Pair of Senior Chairs, 1950s and matching pair of ottomansBy Marco Zanuso, ArflexLocated in Wargrave, BerkshireMarco Zanuso, Pair of Senior Chairs, originally designed 1951, these examples likely dating from late 1950s/early 1960s and manufactured by Arflex. Accompanied by a pair of matching...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal, Brass
- Model NV45 Easy Chair, Designed by Finn Juhl, Made by Niels Vodder, 1940sBy Finn Juhl, Niels VodderLocated in Wargrave, BerkshireModel NV45 easy chair, designed by Finn Juhl and manufactured by Niels Vodder, Denmark, 1940s. Original teak frame, recently upholstered in light oatmeal wool fabric with pale grey ...Category
Vintage 1940s Danish Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Teak
- Hans Wegner, Ox Chair, Model AP-46, Designed 1960, Made by AP Stolen, CopenhagenBy A.P. Stolen, Hans J. WegnerLocated in Wargrave, BerkshireOne of the most iconic designs of the 20th century, the Ox Chair by Hans J Wegner is recognised the world over. Combining function and comfort with style and innovation, the model AP...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Eero Saarinen for Knoll International, Tulip Low Table, Marble Top, Design 1958By Knoll, Eero SaarinenLocated in Wargrave, BerkshireEero Saarinen for Knoll International, Tulip Low Table Green variegated marble circular top on painted metal base 90cm diameter, 53.5cm high Knoll label to underside The Pedest...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsMarble, Metal
- Harry Bertoia for Knoll International Bird Chair and OttomanBy Knoll, Harry BertoiaLocated in The Hague, NLHarry Bertoia for Knoll International bird chair and ottoman. This iconic lounge chair and ottoman were originally designed by Harry Bertoia in 1952 and manufactured by Knoll Interna...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Harry Bertoia for Knoll International Bird Chair and OttomanBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Houston, TXHarry Bertoia for Knoll International bird chair and ottoman. This iconic lounge chair and ottoman were originally designed by Harry Bertoia in 1952 and manufactured by Knoll Interna...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
$3,880 Sale Price / set20% Off - Bird Chair + Ottoman by Harry Bertoia for KnollBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Chicago, ILc. 1960s. Price is for the set. Contact us if you’d like to purchase a single item. Wire frame, good for indoor or outdoor use.Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal
$2,200 / set - Bird Lounge Chair by Harry Bertoia for Knoll International, 1970sBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Izegem, VWV1970s production Bird Chair in black by Harry Bertoia for Knoll International. New rubber shockmounts were provided.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Bird Chair by Harry Bertoia for Knoll InternationalBy Harry BertoiaLocated in Gießen, DEThe „Bird Chair“ is the Lounge Chair version of the Harry Bertoia product family for Knoll International, designed in 1952. Black and white steel construction connected with original...Category
Vintage 1950s Lounge Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Harry Bertoia for Knoll ”BIRD” ChairBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Philadelphia, PAHarry Bertoia Bird Frame or High Back Diamond. Black metal frame with 4 rubber bushings that let that chair rock slightly. Newer Knoll cover in the last 10-15 years. Cover is very...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal