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Vincent Cafiero Executive Task Chair in Graphite Gray Velvet by Knoll
About the Item
While under the direction of Florence Knoll, her namesake company was known for more than just the impressive portfolio of designs still celebrated to this day. Knoll’s teams of talented designers, the best in their respective categories, were tasked with a multitude of duties such as comprehensive interiors in the “Planning Unit” where Vincent Cafiero worked as a Senior Designer. One project Cafiero would work on was the famed CBS interior of 1965. His time after the “Planning Unit” was focused designing Knoll’s own showrooms.
Cafiero also designed a small collection of furniture during his time at Knoll which responded to the designs of his time. Whereas organic “bucket” forms were ubiquitous, Cafiero opted to introduce a clean-lined minimalist approach to Executive seating. One piece from his collection is this Executive Task Chair which very much inherited Knoll’s design DNA with formal blind tufts and definitive geometry. Cafiero’s superior in quality designs have since been discontinued making them highly sought after amongst discerning collectors.
Our team brought this piece right down to its frame for a full restoration. The new upholstery re-implements Cafiero’s intentional design details such as the careful use of piping and a grid of blind tufts on both the back and seat. The original stainless steel base is not only a discontinued Knoll design, but it’s 5-leg layout is far less seen than Knoll’s 4-leg design of the time. The base, which has minor wear consistent with age and history, is equipped with both tilt and manual height adjustment for optimal comfort.
- Creator:Vincent Cafiero (Designer),Knoll (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 33.5 in (85.09 cm)Width: 25.5 in (64.77 cm)Depth: 25.5 in (64.77 cm)Seat Height: 19 in (48.26 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:Circa 1960
- Condition:Reupholstered. Wear consistent with age and use. New restoration by Object Refinery. Minor wear consistent with age and history.
- Seller Location:Stamford, CT
- Reference Number:Seller: OR1681stDibs: LU10053244119212
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.
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