Image source: Knoll — Saarinen Collection
© Knoll and the respective rights holders. Quoted to accompany INTEBEE's independent design commentary and research.
Collection Story
Origin
Eero Saarinen and Florence Knoll met at Cranbrook Academy of Art, and Knoll says that when Florence joined the company in the 1940s she invited him to design for it. The Tulip chairs and tables, the Womb Chair and the 70 Series of seating are the pieces Knoll names first from that partnership.
Design Language
Saarinen turned in the early 1950s against what he called the slum of legs under typical tables and chairs. Knoll dates the realisation of his formal unity to 1957, in the Pedestal Table and Tulip Chair collections: one-legged pieces whose base increases leg room and reduces visual noise.
Image source: Knoll — Saarinen Collection · © Knoll and the respective rights holders. Quoted to accompany INTEBEE's independent design commentary and research. · View official website ↗ · Image use & copyright policy
Key Pieces
- Tulip Chair (armchair and armless) and Tulip Stool
- Saarinen Tables: dining (round and oval, indoor and outdoor), lounge height, coffee and side
- Womb Chair and Womb Settee; Saarinen Executive Chair and Executive Stool
Pieces in this collection
Saarinen Tulip Armchair
Eero Saarinen's 1955-56 pedestal armchair, with a swivel or fixed seat
Womb Chair
Saarinen's 1948 Womb Chair, made for Florence Knoll to curl up in
Saarinen Dining Table, Round 137 cm
Saarinen's 1957 one-legged pedestal table, round 54 in (137 cm) with a stone top
Saarinen Outdoor Dining Tables
Eero Saarinen's 1957 pedestal dining table in weatherproof Vetro Bianco quartz
Saarinen Coffee Tables
Eero Saarinen's 1957 pedestal coffee tables in round and oval, with a choice of tops and bases
Saarinen Dining Table - Oval
Saarinen's 1957 pedestal dining table in oval form, 72 to 96 in wide
Saarinen Executive Armchair – Wood Legs
Eero Saarinen's 1950 executive armchair with an open back, here on steam-bent oak legs
Saarinen Executive Stool
Eero Saarinen's Executive chair as a bar or counter stool on solid wood legs
Saarinen Side Tables
Eero Saarinen's 1957 pedestal side tables in round and oval, up to 20 inches high
Saarinen Table - Lounge Height
Eero Saarinen's 1957 pedestal table at a lower 26 inch lounge height
Tulip Chair (Armless)
Eero Saarinen's 1957 armless Tulip chair on a single cast-aluminum pedestal, fixed or swivel
Tulip Stool
Eero Saarinen's 1957 swivel stool on the Tulip pedestal base, 18 inches high
Womb Settee
Eero Saarinen's double-wide Womb Settee, model 73L, back in Knoll's line since 2015
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