Tulip Armchair by Eero Saarinen for Knoll
About the Item
- Creator:Knoll (Manufacturer),Eero Saarinen (Designer)
- Design:Tulip Arm ChairSaarinen Pedestal Series
- Dimensions:Height: 32 in (81.28 cm)Width: 23.25 in (59.06 cm)Depth: 26 in (66.04 cm)Seat Height: 17.5 in (44.45 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1990
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Minor losses.
- Seller Location:Brooklyn, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1546236478912
Tulip Armchair
Eero Saarinen (1910–61) absolutely hated clutter. "The undercarriage of chairs and tables in a typical interior makes an ugly, confusing, unrestful world,” the Finnish-American architect and industrial designer once said. “I wanted to clear up the slum of legs.” With the original Tulip armchair, he did just that, streamlining the standard four-legged piece into a graceful shape atop a single pedestal.
The 1957 design — which is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York — was one of Saarinen’s last; he died in 1961. Its sculptural shape displays the best of Saarinen, who referred to himself as a “form giver,” whether that form was a flower-shaped seat or the swooping curve of the Gateway Arch, a more than 600-foot-tall stainless-steel-clad concrete monument in St. Louis, Missouri, that he designed in the late 1940s.
The Tulip armchair was part of Saarinen’s Pedestal collection of armless chairs, stools, dining tables and more — a mid-century modernist exercise in simplifying. The series was designed for Knoll, which continues to produce it today. Visitors to the TWA Hotel, the 2019 reinvention of Saarinen’s iconic airport terminal, will find Tulip chairs dotting the structure.
Interestingly, the Tulip armchair’s shape suggests one single plastic form, but despite Saarinen’s many experiments to achieve this, it is actually constructed in two pieces: an aluminum frame obscured in a plastic finish and a fiberglass upper-shell seat. Two parts or one, it achieves Saarinen’s desired streamlined effect.
Eero Saarinen
Through his work as an architect and designer, Eero Saarinen was a prime mover in the introduction of modernism into the American mainstream. Particularly affecting were the organic, curvilinear forms seen in Saarinen’s furniture and his best-known structures: the gull-winged TWA Flight Center at John F. Kennedy airport in New York (opened 1962), Dulles International Airport in Virginia (1962) and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri (1965).
Saarinen had a peerless modernist pedigree. His father, Eliel Saarinen, was an eminent Finnish architect who in 1932 became the first head of the Cranbrook Academy of Art in suburban Detroit. The school became synonymous with progressive design and decorative arts in the United States, and while studying there the younger Saarinen met and befriended several luminaries of mid-century modernism, among them Harry Bertoia and Charles and Ray Eames.
At Cranbrook, Saarinen also met Florence Schust Knoll, who, as director of her husband Hans Knoll's eponymous furniture company, would put Saarinen’s best designs into production. These include the Grasshopper chair, designed in 1946 and so named because its angled bentwood frame resembles the insect; the Tulip chair (1957), a flower-shaped fiberglass shell mounted on a cast-aluminum pedestal; and the lushly contoured Womb lounge chair and ottoman (1948). In his furniture as in his architecture, the keynotes of Eero Saarinen’s designs are simplicity, strength and grace.
Find vintage Eero Saarinen tables, chairs and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Brooklyn, NY
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Vintage Tulip Coffee Table by Eero Saarinen for KnollBy Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in Brooklyn, NYA vintage coffee table by Eero Saarinen for Knoll with white tulip base and laminate top. This icon of mid-century modern design was acquired from the family of the original owner, w...Category
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsMetal
- Eero Saarinen for Knoll Walnut Tulip Side TableBy Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in Brooklyn, NYStunning walnut side table. 20 in diameter circular wood top finished in walnut. Like new original surface. Retains original early Knoll bow tie label on underside. Cast iron base is...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
MaterialsMetal
- Vintage Knoll Walnut Tulip Side Table by Eero SaarinenBy Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in Brooklyn, NYVintage tulip side table with walnut top by Eero Saarinen for Knolll. Retains full earliest iteration bowtie label. In near perfect condition.Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
MaterialsWalnut
- Eero Saarinen White Carrara Marble Tulip Side Table by KnollBy Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in Brooklyn, NYGorgeous original example of the classic Tulip side table by Eero Saarinen for Knoll. Executed in white Carrara Italian marble. Circa 1960s with original Knoll bowtie label fully int...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
MaterialsCarrara Marble, Iron
- Spectacular Eero Saarinen for Knoll Tulip Dining Table in Verde Alpi MarbleBy Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in Brooklyn, NYTruly spectacular Tulip dining table in Verdi Alpi marble. Expertly designed by legendary Eero Saarinen and manufactured by Knoll. 47 inches in diameter. It accommodates 4-6 side cha...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Tables
MaterialsMarble, Aluminum
- Eero Saarinen for Knoll Vintage Tulip Coffee Table in Verdi Alpi MarbleBy Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in Brooklyn, NYSpectacular vintage Tulip coffee table designed by Eero Saarinen for Knoll. Circa 1970s production with original Knoll label underneath. Cast iron base and green marble knife edge sl...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsMarble
- Tulip Armchair by Eero SaarinenBy Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in Sagaponack, NYA Mid-Century Modern dining chair designed by Eero Saarinen. This chair features an upholstered seat on a white enameled cast iron pedestal base. Upholstery varies. Manufactured by K...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsAcrylic, Upholstery
- Eero Saarinen Upholstered Tulip Armchair for KnollBy Eero SaarinenLocated in Cincinnati, OHA special order upholstered tulip arm chair with nice curved back and supportive bottom seat cushion . This is a very comfortable chair for hours of relaxing at home or in the office...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsMetal
- 1 Original Knoll Eero Saarinen Swivel Tulip ArmchairBy Eero SaarinenLocated in Pasadena, TXDesigner: Saarinen, Eero. Date of design: 1956. Model number: 150A. Made in France. Materials: Base is cast aluminum, lacquer paint finish. The shell is molded fiber glass reinforced plastic. Original Knoll upholstered detachable cushions. Swivel mechanism. Saarinen’s pedestal furniture was designed between 1955-1957 as a part of his "one piece, one material" furniture philosophy. He attempted also to minimize the clutter of feet that most furniture creates. Saarinen’s original...Category
Vintage 1950s French Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Executive Armchair by Eero Saarinen for Knoll Inc. / Knoll International, 1960sBy Knoll, Eero SaarinenLocated in Lasne, BEArmchair in yellow fabric. Stamped Knoll. Wear due to time and age of the chair (see photo) Seat height: 47cm.Category
Vintage 1960s Belgian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Wood
- Pair of Eero Saarinen For Knoll Executive ArmchairsBy Knoll, Eero SaarinenLocated in Brooklyn, NYPair of executive armchairs by Eero Saarinen for Knoll feature black nylon seats with contrasting geometric print backs. These iconic chairs are extrememly comfortable and are the ep...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsChrome
- Eero Saarinen Tulip Armchairs for Knoll, 1960By Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in Chicago, ILEarly pair of tulip dining arm chairs by Eero Saarinen for Knoll, circa 1960. Cushions upholstered in Jack Lenor Larsen velvet with new foam.Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Fiberglass
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
A Short History of the World’s Most Iconic Designs
Of the million-plus items on 1stdibs, some seem to have transcended time, looking as fresh today as when they were first produced. The pieces highlighted on our new Iconic Designs page stand out for longevity, functionality and quality of design and manufacture — just the tonic for the present unsettled moment.
The 21 Most Popular Mid-Century Modern Chairs
You know the designs, now get the stories about how they came to be.