Between 1950 and 1953, Italian-born sculptor Harry Bertoia (1915–1978) designed a series of steel wire chairs for the furniture manufacturer Knoll, including the well-known Diamond Chair. Among these designs was the children’s chair shown here.
From 1939 to 1943, Bertoia headed the metal workshop at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where he crafted jewelry and practiced goldsmithing. He applied his deep understanding of materials and design to his seating furniture, producing chairs with flowing, transparent forms and exploring spatial concepts. Harry Bertoia utilized a technique previously patented by designers Charles and Ray Eames in 1950. After working with the Eames for several years, Bertoia joined Knoll. This prompted a patent infringement lawsuit by Herman Miller (Eames’ producer), which Bertoia lost.
Text: Rudolf Fischer, Director ADA
Further Media
- Museum
- Archiv der Avantgarden
- Inventory number
- M 2