Warren Platner, chairs and table for Knoll

WARREN PLATNER (Baltimore, 1919 – Connecticut, 2006) for Knoll.
Set with 5 side chairs and dining table designed in 1966. Nickel-plated steel base, chairs with red velvet upholstery. Tabel with glass plate.
Chairs with minimal signs of use, table with small signs of use, but without any chips on the edges.
Produced by Knoll.
Measurements: Table D 135 cm, height 70 cm, Chairs 76 x 74 x 58 cm. Seat height 46 cm.

Warren Platner is considered one of the most prominent designers of the 1960s, known for his furniture pieces and interiors that revitalized the vision of American aesthetics. In his pieces, Platner used steel wire rod to create the collection of sculptural furniture presented here, which would go on to become an icon of design. Behind each of his works lay a clear architectural concept, as demonstrated in the interior of “Windows on the World” or in the restaurant at New York’s North Tower.

In 1966, Platner designed an innovative concept for the American manufacturer Knoll: to create a chair without legs—a design that was both rational and aesthetic. The Platner Chair, the collection’s centerpiece, was conceived to envelop and complement the person sitting in it. The pieces in the Platner collection, distributed by Knoll, are composed of hundreds of individual welds, all hand-welded using traditional processes to achieve that delicacy and purity in the piece.

Warren Platner studied at Cornell University, graduating in 1941 with a degree in architecture. He worked with legendary architects Raymond Loewy, Eero Saarinen, and I. M. Pei before opening his own studio. His career in architecture was marked by notable contributions, including the Georg Jensen Design Center and the Windows on the World restaurant at the World Trade Center, both in New York.

However, it was the furniture collection he designed for the Knoll brand that brought Platner worldwide recognition. The collection in question, named after its designer, is an icon of modern furniture. Platner personally developed production techniques for each chair, which features more than a hundred steel rods.