Florence Knoll Upholstered Three-Seat Armless Sofa
View Similar Items
Florence Knoll Upholstered Three-Seat Armless Sofa
About the Item
- Creator:Knoll (Maker),Florence Knoll (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 31 in (78.74 cm)Width: 84 in (213.36 cm)Depth: 32 in (81.28 cm)Seat Height: 16 in (40.64 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Newly upholstered. Very good condition.
- Seller Location:Brooklyn, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1560210246663
Florence Knoll
Architect, furniture designer, interior designer, entrepreneur — Florence Knoll had a subtle but profound influence on the course of mid-century American modernism. Dedicated to functionality and organization, and never flamboyant, Knoll shaped the ethos of the postwar business world with her skillfully realized office plans and polished, efficient designs for sofas, credenzas, desks and other furnishings.
Knoll had perhaps the most thorough design education of any of her peers. Florence Schust was orphaned at age 12, and her guardian sent her to Kingswood, a girl’s boarding school that is part of the Cranbrook Educational Community in suburban Detroit. Her interest in design brought her to the attention of Eliel Saarinen, the Finnish architect and head of the Cranbrook Academy of Art.
Saarinen and his wife took the talented child under their wing, and she became close to their son, the future architect Eero Saarinen. While a student at the academy, Florence befriended artist-designer Harry Bertoia and Charles and Ray Eames. Later, she studied under three of the Bauhaus masters who emigrated to the United States. She worked as an apprentice in the Boston architectural offices of Walter Gropius and Marcel Breuer; Ludwig Mies van der Rohe taught her at the Illinois Institute of Technology.
In 1941, she met Hans Knoll, whose eponymous furniture company was just getting off the ground. They married in 1946, and her design sense and his business skills soon made Knoll Inc. a leading firm in its field. Florence signed up the younger Saarinen as a designer, and would develop pieces by Bertoia, Mies and the artist Isamu Noguchi.
Florence Knoll's main work came as head of the Knoll Planning Group, designing custom office interiors for clients such as IBM and CBS. The furniture she created for these spaces reflects her Bauhaus training: the pieces are pure functional design, exactingly built; their only ornament from the materials, such as wood and marble. Her innovations — the oval conference table, for example, conceived as a way to ensure clear sightlines among all seated at a meeting — were always in the service of practicality.
Since her retirement in 1965, Knoll received the National Medal of Arts, among other awards; in 2004 the Philadelphia Museum of Art mounted the exhibition “Florence Knoll: Defining Modern” — well deserved accolades for a strong, successful design and business pioneer. As demonstrated on these pages, the simplicity of Knoll’s furniture is her work’s great virtue: they fit into any interior design scheme.
Find vintage Florence Knoll sofas, benches, armchairs and other furniture on 1stDibs.
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.
- Leather and Chrome Three Seat LC2 Sofa by Le Corbusier for CassinaBy Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, Charlotte Perriand Cassina, CassinaLocated in Brooklyn, NYClassic, LC2, three seat sofa designed by Le Corbusier, Charlotte Perriand and Pierre Jeanneret produced by Cassina, 1970s features black leather upholstery with a tubular chrome frame.Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsChrome
- Scandinavian Modern Low Teak Upholstered SofaLocated in Brooklyn, NYSleek, low, Scandinavian modern, teak frame sofa features streamlined, chocolate brown tweed upholstery with rolled back cushion. The frame is minimal from the front and sides but fe...Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric, Teak
- Scandinavian Modern Beech Frame Upholstered SofaBy Peter HvidtLocated in Brooklyn, NYScandinavian modern, 6 foot sofa produced in Yugoslavia features a beech wood frame with slat back, tapered elgs and scoop arms in the style of Peter Hvid...Category
Mid-20th Century Macedonian Scandinavian Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric, Beech
- Midcentury Aluminum Frame Loveseat Sofa by GoodFormBy GoodFormLocated in Brooklyn, NYMidcentury, machine-age loveseat sofa by GoodForm, The General Fireproofing Co. features a streamlined aluminum frame with striped vinyl upholstery and painted wood armrests.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Loveseats
MaterialsAluminum
- Mid-Century Modern Patio Sofa Set by WoodardBy Woodard Furniture Co.Located in Brooklyn, NYMid-Century Modern, 3 piece, patio seating set by Lee L Woodard Sons features two, painted wrought iron, 3 seat sofas upholstered in pale pink textured o...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Patio and Garden Furniture
MaterialsWrought Iron
$6,800 / set - Mid-Century Modern Rosewood Case Sofa By Milo BaughmanBy Milo Baughman, Thayer CogginLocated in Brooklyn, NYSleek, low-profile, mid-century modern, rosewood case sofa by Milo Baughman for Thayer Coggin features a beautifully grained rosewo...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsChrome
- Florence Knoll Three-Seat SofaBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Chicago, ILFlorence Knoll Three-Seat Sofa reupholstered with Great Plains "Teddy" warm silver heavy boucle made of alpaca, and wool. Solid maple-turned tapered legs.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsBouclé, Maple
- Early Florence Knoll Armless Sofa and Chair SetBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Los Angeles, CAThis is an early and rare Knoll sofa and chair set. This sets one and only home was non-other then a Richard Nuetra estate in the Hollywood Hills. N...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsStainless Steel
- Florence Knoll 3-Seat SofaBy Florence KnollLocated in Munich, DEFlorence Knoll 3-seat sofa. Nice original condition.Category
Vintage 1960s German Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric
$2,197 Sale Price44% Off - 1949 Florence Knoll Associates 26 BC Upholstered 3-Seater Sofa New UpholsteryBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Philadelphia, PAListed for sale is a 1949 Florence Knoll for Knoll Associates 26 BC upholstered 3-seater sofa, which was just freshly reupholstered by Forthright, a renowned upholstery shop based in...Category
Vintage 1940s American Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric
- Early Florence Knoll 3-Seat Model 26 SofaBy Knoll, Florence KnollLocated in Brooklyn, NYVery early Florence Knoll sofa, circa late 1940s, in vintage oatmeal nubby wool Knoll fabric, with down seat and back cushions. The six inset legs make...Category
Vintage 1940s American Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsTextile, Maple
- Florence Knoll 2-Seater Sofa, Classic Mid Century Modern, KnollBy Florence Knoll, KnollLocated in Buffalo, NYVintage Florence Knoll 2 seater 'lounge series' sofa with original 2nd generation upholstery in a coarse woven off-white mottled wool fabric. This sofa d...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Loveseats
MaterialsChrome
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
10 Trailblazing Female Designers
From pioneering visionaries to contemporary talents, get to know some of the most important women in design.
Remembering Design Visionary Florence Knoll Bassett (1917-2019)
A loving look back at the life and career of a doyenne of mid-century-modern style, who died last week at the age of 101.