Eero Saarinen 'Tulip' Armchairs and Centro Progetti Tecno Round Table
About the Item
- Creator:
- Design:Tulip Arm ChairSaarinen Pedestal Series
- Dimensions:Height: 31.89 in (81 cm)Width: 26.38 in (67 cm)Depth: 23.23 in (59 cm)Seat Height: 18.12 in (46 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 7
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Every item Morentz offers is checked by our team of 30 craftspeople in our in-house workshop. Special restoration or reupholstery requests can be done. Check ‘About the item’ or ask our design specialists for detailed information on the condition.
- Seller Location:Waalwijk, NL
- Reference Number:
Tulip Armchair
Eero Saarinen (1910–61) absolutely hated clutter. "The undercarriage of chairs and tables in a typical interior makes an ugly, confusing, unrestful world,” the Finnish-American architect and industrial designer once said. “I wanted to clear up the slum of legs.” With the original Tulip armchair, he did just that, streamlining the standard four-legged piece into a graceful shape atop a single pedestal.
The 1957 design — which is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York — was one of Saarinen’s last; he died in 1961. Its sculptural shape displays the best of Saarinen, who referred to himself as a “form giver,” whether that form was a flower-shaped seat or the swooping curve of the Gateway Arch, a more than 600-foot-tall stainless-steel-clad concrete monument in St. Louis, Missouri, that he designed in the late 1940s.
The Tulip armchair was part of Saarinen’s Pedestal collection of armless chairs, stools, dining tables and more — a mid-century modernist exercise in simplifying. The series was designed for Knoll, which continues to produce it today. Visitors to the TWA Hotel, the 2019 reinvention of Saarinen’s iconic airport terminal, will find Tulip chairs dotting the structure.
Interestingly, the Tulip armchair’s shape suggests one single plastic form, but despite Saarinen’s many experiments to achieve this, it is actually constructed in two pieces: an aluminum frame obscured in a plastic finish and a fiberglass upper-shell seat. Two parts or one, it achieves Saarinen’s desired streamlined effect.
Eero Saarinen
Through his work as an architect and designer, Eero Saarinen was a prime mover in the introduction of modernism into the American mainstream. Particularly affecting were the organic, curvilinear forms seen in Saarinen’s furniture and his best-known structures: the gull-winged TWA Flight Center at John F. Kennedy airport in New York (opened 1962), Dulles International Airport in Virginia (1962) and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri (1965).
Saarinen had a peerless modernist pedigree. His father, Eliel Saarinen, was an eminent Finnish architect who in 1932 became the first head of the Cranbrook Academy of Art in suburban Detroit. The school became synonymous with progressive design and decorative arts in the United States, and while studying there the younger Saarinen met and befriended several luminaries of mid-century modernism, among them Harry Bertoia and Charles and Ray Eames.
At Cranbrook, Saarinen also met Florence Schust Knoll, who, as director of her husband Hans Knoll's eponymous furniture company, would put Saarinen’s best designs into production. These include the Grasshopper chair, designed in 1946 and so named because its angled bentwood frame resembles the insect; the Tulip chair (1957), a flower-shaped fiberglass shell mounted on a cast-aluminum pedestal; and the lushly contoured Womb lounge chair and ottoman (1948). In his furniture as in his architecture, the keynotes of Eero Saarinen’s designs are simplicity, strength and grace.
Find vintage Eero Saarinen tables, chairs and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Established in 2006, Morentz has a team of approximately 55 restorers, upholsterers, interior advisers and art historians, making it a gallery, workshop and upholstery studio, all in one. Every day, a carefully selected array of 20th-century furniture arrives from all over the world at the firm’s warehouse, where the team thoroughly examines each piece to determine what, if any, work needs to be done. Whether that means new upholstery or a complete restoration, Morentz's aim is always to honor the designer’s intention while fulfilling the wishes of the client. The team is up to any challenge, from restoring a single piece to its original glory to furnishing a large-scale hotel project.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Waalwijk, Netherlands
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 10 days of delivery.
- Dining Set with Centro Progetti Tecno Table and Eero Saarinen ChairsBy TecnoLocated in Waalwijk, NLCentro Progetti Tecno, dining or conference table model 'T335', lacquered wood, aluminum, Italy, 1975-1978 Large dining or conferenced table with a black lacquered wooden top that h...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Conference Tables
MaterialsAluminum
- Centro Progetti Tecno Dining TableBy TecnoLocated in Waalwijk, NLCentro Progetti Tecno, dining table model 'T334C', lacquered wood, lacquered aluminum, Italy, 1975-1978 Round dining table with a black lacquered wooden top that has an incredibly s...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Post-Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsAluminum
- Centro Progetti Tecno Dining TableBy TecnoLocated in Waalwijk, NLCentro Progetti Tecno, dining table model 'T334C', lacquered wood, aluminum, Italy, 1975-1978 Round dining table with a black lacquered wooden top that has an incredibly soft textur...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Post-Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsAluminum
- Centro Progetti Tecno Pair of Stackable ‘Modus’ ChairsBy TecnoLocated in Waalwijk, NLCentro Progetti Tecno, pair of stackable chairs model ‘Modus', nylon / plastic, aluminum, metal, Italy, 1970s Highly functional chairs designed by Ce...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Post-Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsMetal, Aluminum
- Centro Progetti Tecno Set of Twelve Stackable ‘Modus’ ChairsBy TecnoLocated in Waalwijk, NLCentro Progetti Tecno, set of twelve stackable chairs model ‘Modus', nylon / plastic, aluminum, metal, Italy, 1970s. Highly functional chairs designed ...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsMetal, Aluminum
- Centro Progetti Tecno Set of Eight Stackable ‘Modus’ ChairsBy TecnoLocated in Waalwijk, NLCentro Progetti Tecno, set of eight stackable chairs model ‘Modus', nylon / plastic, aluminum, metal, Italy, 1970s. Highly functional chairs designed by Centro Progetti Tecno that a...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Post-Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsMetal, Aluminum
- Eero Saarinen for Knoll Tulip Dining Table & ChairsBy Knoll, Eero SaarinenLocated in London, GBA stylish and iconic design, this tulip dining table and four matching swivel dining chairs were designed by Eero Saarinen for Knoll in the 1950’s. This example is from the 50th a...Category
Early 2000s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Sets
MaterialsMetal
- Knoll Tulip Dining Set by Eero Saarinen 1960s Large Marble Table ArmchairsBy Knoll, Eero SaarinenLocated in Ijzendijke, NLMagnificent fully original tulip dining set designed by Eero Saarinen and produced by Knoll International in the 1960s. The set consists of 6 original marked tulip armchairs and the ...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Sets
MaterialsCarrara Marble, Aluminum
- Eero Saarinen Tulip Oval Carrara Arabescato Marble Tulip Table for Knoll, 1967By Knoll, Eero SaarinenLocated in Vicenza, ITTulip oval dining table designed by Eero Saarinen in 1957 and manufactured by Knoll in 1967. Composed of a white lacquered pedestal and a tabletop made of ...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Space Age Dining Room Tables
MaterialsCarrara Marble
- Eero Saarinen "Tulip" Dining Room Set for KnollBy Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in North Hollywood, CAThe tulip dining room set with Carrara marble includes a 96" Tulip Dining Table and eight matching Tulip Dining Chairs, all designed by Eero Saarinen for Knoll. The set features a mi...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Sets
MaterialsMarble, Aluminum
- 1960s Eero Saarinen for Knoll Tulip Dining Table & Four White Tulip Side ChairsBy Knoll, Eero SaarinenLocated in Philadelphia, PAListed for sale is a gorgeous 1960s vintage Tulip dining table and chair set, designed by Eero Saarinen and produced by Knoll. The set ca...Category
Vintage 1960s American Modern Dining Room Sets
MaterialsAluminum
- 1970’s Eero Saarinen for Knoll, Tulip form Table & 4 Chairs, 2 side 2 armsBy Knoll, Eero SaarinenLocated in New York, NY1970’s Tulip form Table & 4 Chairs, Eero Saarinen for Knoll, circa 1970, A stylish and iconic design, this tulip dining table and four matching swivel dining chairs were designed by...Category
Vintage 1970s American Scandinavian Modern Dining Room Sets
MaterialsAluminum
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
A Short History of the World’s Most Iconic Designs
Of the million-plus items on 1stdibs, some seem to have transcended time, looking as fresh today as when they were first produced. The pieces highlighted on our new Iconic Designs page stand out for longevity, functionality and quality of design and manufacture — just the tonic for the present unsettled moment.
You Don’t Need a Fictional Fairy to Get This Real Pinocchio Lamp
Warm chalet style meets cool Bauhaus functionality in Pietro Cascella’s cleverly carved creation.