The American modernist designer Eero Saarinen was a Finnish-born (and Yale-educated) architect and sculptor as well as a contemporary of influential American designers Charles and Ray Eames.
Their collaboration on the Organic Chair (1940; Vitale Armchair) for the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) competition ‘Organic Design in Home Furnishings’ in New York was so visionary it took a decade for the chair to be able to be mass-produced.
Saarinen’s classic Tulip Chair, part of the Pedestal Collection, (1956; Lioden Chair/Elegante Armchair and Jacob Dining Table) went where no chair had ever gone before on the television series Star Trek’s starship U.S.S. Enterprise in the 1960s, due to its futuristic looks tempered by the organic tulip form. Saarinen had replaced the traditional chair legs with a harmonious, slim pedestal base.
His recognizable Womb Chair and Ottoman (1948; Tyrone Lounge Chair and Tyrone Ottoman) also set new precedents with their exploratory builds and production techniques. He actually roped in a boat builder in New Jersey in developing new manufacturing methods involving fibreglass and resin for the chair, which has a unique shell. Saarinen also researched sitting positions to come up with a very ergonomic chair at the behest of Florence Knoll who wanted a chair “like a basket full of pillows”. It not only looked good on its own but also when occupied.
The chairs shown above are replicas.
View all of our Eero Saarinen-inspired products in our Modern Classics collection
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