Warren Platner Modernist Executive Desk in Leather, Teak and Steel, 1970s, USA
View Similar Items
Warren Platner Modernist Executive Desk in Leather, Teak and Steel, 1970s, USA
About the Item
- Creator:Warren Platner (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 29.5 in (74.93 cm)Width: 84 in (213.36 cm)Length: 29.5 in (74.93 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1983
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Denver, CO
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU4735116347132
Warren Platner
Though vintage Warren Platner chairs, sofas and interiors are icons of mid-century modernism, the architect and furniture designer 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.
- Executive Abbondi Desk, 1970s ItalyLocated in Los Angeles, CAStunning Italian executive desk in a dark Rosewood. Three pull-out drawers flank each side. Lockable drawers with original locks. Solid aluminum frame with unusual, rounded corners o...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsAluminum
- 1968 Executive DeskBy Warren PlatnerLocated in Hanover, MAExecutive desk formerly belonging to noted architect George M. Notter, (1933–2007) of the Boston firm Anderson Notter Finegold (now known as Finegold Alexander Architects). Current institutional memory at the firm suggests it was a special order from Herman Miller for the then new New York offices of MGM, however Herman Miller's archivist was unable to confirm. Styling, particularly the distinctive slim milled aluminum tracks through which the entire drawer carriage glides is clearly similar to Warren Platner's designs for Lehigh-Leopold which were then among the most costly of executive office furnishings. The bent flat bar chromed steel base with its distinctive pigeon toe splay is somewhat similar to a table base in Stow Davis' Electa Series, designed by Alexis Yermakov circa 1971. Walnut laminate top is very clean with no issues. One one corner edge shows a small separation. The only identifying markings are within the milled aluminum channel: G.P. F.I. 2 And the date Dec. 20, 1968. See image 18. Between the rectangular laminate top and the chrome base is a heavy blackened steel plate. Underneath the bent chrome pigeon toe feet are bars of a thick phenolic material which act as floor protector. We can have keys made to fit the two locking drawers. Tim Anderson...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsAluminum, Steel, Chrome
$6,500 - French Wooden Modernist Desk, France 1970sLocated in Antwerp, BEProbably one-of-a-kind, this desk has been crafted with precision and care. It features clean lines and impeccable craftsmanship. Its sleek silhouette exudes an air of understated lu...Category
Vintage 1970s French Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsWood
- Executive Desk, Corner Desk in Mahogany, Germany, 1970'sBy Johannes Andersen, Arne VodderLocated in Wiesbaden, DEBeautifully designed writing desk in teak. With a very distinct design this desks every wood surface has been given specific angles such as the tabletop, the unit with drawers as wel...Category
Mid-20th Century German Scandinavian Modern Desks
MaterialsMetal
- Italian Rattan Black Painted Wood Brass Handles Executive Desk 1970sLocated in Paris, IDFThis is a beautiful Italian rattan executive desk from the 1970s. The mix of rattan, black painted wood all around, and brass handles, is inspired by mid-century Italian icon Gabriel...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsBrass
- 1970s National Mt. Airy Military Campaign Style Executive DeskBy National Mt. AiryLocated in Dallas, TXAnother good looking campaign style piece for your collection! We are delighted to offer for sale this vintage executive desk hand crafted in the Military Campaign style by Mt. Airy, which is one of the higher quality campaign manufacturers. This well-made desk executed out of oakwood which has a lovely warm patina to it, the cuts of timber are lovely with great proportions from any angle. Supporting a rectangular top with a central drawer flanked on either side by a column cabinet with four drawers each having a top and bottom drawer, two of which are double as a filing drawer in the middle offering plenty of storage space. Solid finished back all standing on a plinth base to make it more stable. The brass inset military handles & brass corner brackets are all original and in brass. Signed "National Mt...Category
Late 20th Century American Campaign Desks
MaterialsOak