Karl Springer LTD, Free-Form Low Tables, USA

About the Item

Todd Merrill Studio is pleased to unveil the free-form low table, the first piece created under the gallery’s new, exclusive representation of Karl Springer LTD. The gallery will be reissuing a selection of Springer’s unique designs on a commission basis, such as this unique amorphic table. Sleek and elegant, the mirror-polished stainless steel low table is set on hidden recessed casters so it can move and pivot with ease. Made in Springer’s exact original design, the free-form low table is available by commission in stainless steel, brass, or polished bronze, with bespoke dimensionality and white or black glass tops available. Originally created in the 1970s during the designer’s showroom Expansion to a 20,000 square-foot penthouse on East 61st street, the free-form table is one of Springer’s most iconic designs in his extensive body of work. Springer worked to perfect the shape of each table. The prototypes were made in polished stainless steel, sometimes with a ¾” black glass top— an addition artfully executed by his long time friend Wesley Depp. At once functional piece and unique sculptural objet d’art, the free-form low table makes its contemporary design debut with Todd Merrill Studio. Dimensions: Table C: 49” W x 33” L x 14-18” H, Table B: 46” W x 26” L x 14-18” H, Table A: 33? x 23? x 14-18” H Materials: As shown: Mirror-polished stainless steel; other options available.

Creator:
Karl Springer (Artist)
Dimensions:
Height: 17 in (43.18 cm)Width: 63 in (160.02 cm)Depth: 58 in (147.32 cm)
Sold As:
Set of 3
Materials and Techniques:
Stainless Steel,Polished
Period:
2010-
Date of Manufacture:
2016
Production Type:
New & Custom(Re-Edition)
Estimated Production Time:
Available Now
Condition:
Seller Location:
New York, NY
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU90538699523
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Shop All Karl Springer

Karl Springer

The Berlin-born, New York–based designer Karl Springer brought a chic, high-fashion sensibility to furnishings. During his heyday in the 1970s, Springer’s work was a favorite of the glamour set, who enjoyed the novelty of pieces finished in rich and striking materials that ranged from exotic hides and skins to lacquer and chromed metal. In a sense, Springer was a pre-postmodernist. Much as the dull, safe, corporate sameness of late 20th-century modernism prompted Ettore Sottsass, Michael Graves and others to explore new and provocative structures and materials in design and architecture, so, too, was Springer driven to enliven his creations with fresh and alluring energy and sleekness.

Springer came to New York in the late 1950s and found work arranging window displays at the department store Lord & Taylor. He had studied bookbinding in Germany, and, using his meticulous skills, he began crafting desk accessories wrapped in leather as a sideline. These pieces were sold in luxury stores like Bergdorf Goodman, and drew a sophisticated clientele that included the Duchess of Windsor. By 1965, he had established his own Manhattan atelier, and at his death he had showrooms as far afield as Los Angeles, Tokyo and Munich.

The chairs, tables, credenzas and other furniture forms Springer created are generally simple, but substantial, and often have robust, rounded lines. The appeal of his work lies in Springer's insistence on exacting construction and, above all, his eye for unusual materials and finishes. He employed Lucite, brass, and gunmetal along with chromed and polished steel, and revived exquisite finishes rarely seen since the days of Art Deco masters such as Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann and Jean-Michel Frank: shagreen (a type of sharkskin), python, goatskin, bone, horn, and lacquered parchment, as well as fabrics that include batik prints. Made of such materials, Springer’s work is by its very nature flamboyant and eye-catching: a suite of pieces will astonish, and an artfully placed side table in exotic hide will add a surprising spark.

Find a collection of vintage Karl Springer furniture today on 1stDibs.