Harry Bertoia, Diamond chair for Knoll International

HARRY BERTOIA (St. Lawrence, 1915-Pensylvania, 1978) for Knoll International.
"Diamond" Chair designed in 1952.
The chair is part of Bertoia's popular collection of furniture made from sculpted steel mesh. The seat is made of leather and is removable.
Chair with small signs of use.
Produced by Knoll International, with controllable from Knoll, pillows are with Knoll inscription on the back.
Measurements 75 x 85 x 75 cm, seat high 45 cm.

Harry Bertoia's Diamond Chair (1952) is a sculptural chair formed by a structure of welded steel rods that create a diamond-shaped open mesh, giving it a light and almost transparent appearance; its wide, curved seat adapts ergonomically to the body despite being metal, and is usually complemented with a cushion for greater comfort, while its metal base reinforces the sensation of structural continuity, making it an icon of modern design for its balance between art, engineering and functionality.

A painter, graphic artist, sculptor, university professor and furniture designer, Harry Bertoia emigrated to the United States at the age of fifteen, and it was there that he developed his training and career. He studied at the Detroit Society of Arts and Crafts and later at the Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield, Michigan, where he later became a teacher and created the department of metalwork. During these years he began to experiment with the forms of jewelry, and to explore ideas that would later emerge in his sculpture and designs. In 1943 he began his collaboration with designer Charles Eames, with whom he worked until 1946. After a period working for Point Loma Navel Electronics as a creator of equipment manuals, in 1949 he joined Hans Knoll at Knoll Associates. His first sculpture exhibition was held at the Knoll Showroom in New York in 1951, and the following year Knoll would patent his most famous furniture design, the welded rod "Diamond" chair. Bertoia's designs are now in the collections of major design and contemporary art museums, including MoMA in New York and many others.