A Living Legend of Modern Design Turns 95 Today, Happy Birthday Florence Knoll
Florence Knoll and her dog Cartree, enjoying a spot of tea, beside a stabile by Alexander Calder, a coffee table by Alexander Girard, and a Butterfly Lounge Chair by BKF.
Iconic Knoll Textiles
Raise a glass and toast a pioneer of workspace planning and design; Florence Knoll.
Through the course of her career she defined the look and feel of modern corporate interiors and championed the Bauhaus approach to interior design through the Knoll Planning Unit. Her success and contributions to the field of design are beyond measure. So happy birthday to Florence Knoll!
New York Knoll Showroom, 1955
The Knoll Planning Unit (1943–71), the interior design service of Knoll Associates, was responsible for some of the most innovative corporate interior design of the post-war period. The Planning Unit was directed by Florence Knoll, who trained as an architect and designed buildings, interiors, furniture and textiles over the course of her career.
Florence Knoll was part of a movement to professionalize interior design in America and played a key role in defining the new field of interior design. The offices she designed for the Planning Unit were distinguished by a humanized modernism which combined spare form with rich textures and vivid colour. They showcased the Knoll look, a recognizable combination of furniture, colours and fabrics that became the trademark of Knoll design.
Through a combination of prestigious clients, astute promotion and skilled staff, Florence Knoll and the Knoll Planning Unit turned this corporate humanized modernism into a ubiquitous reality.
New York Knoll Showroom, 1955
All images from Knoll Facebook page.
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My heart felt birthday wishes to Florence. Designing needs creative mind to create new kind of designs. I know how it is difficult to create a new designing concept and Florence done it eventually.