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    Tulip™ Chair Armchair

    Eero Saarinen  1957

    How To Purchase

    The Tulip Chair demonstrates Eero Saarinen’s purist approach to architecture and design. Seeking a solution to resolve the “confusing, unrestful world” underneath tables and chairs, he designed a sculptural base that brings visual and physical freedom to the surrounding environment.


    Defining form

    Saarinen Table - Oval with Tulip Chairs

    The Saarinen Pedestal Collection brings order and beauty to the surrounding architecture.

    Tulip Chairs Detail

    The swiveling seat allows for easy entrance and exit from a table.

    Tulip Chairs

    The Tulip Chair base is offered in black, white, and cream—three glossy finishes that pair beautifully with a wide range of upholsteries.

    Knoll Eero Saarinen Tulip Pedestal Chair history

    Shaping the experience of space

    While studying at Cranbrook Academy of Art in the 1930s, Florence Knoll and Eero Saarinen forged a lasting friendship. The connection between these avid students of design evolved into a partnership that produced some of the most revered furniture pieces of the 20th century.

    Eero Saarinen insisted that, in any design, “confusion comes from trying to amalgamate several conflicting ideas.” To avoid that confusion, in his furniture, as in his architecture, Saarinen sought the essential idea and represented it formally with clarity and strength, always striving for “consistency and relatedness of all parts.”

    In the early 1950s, he turned his attention to the “ugly, confusing, unrestful world” he believed resulted from “the slum of legs” underneath typical tables and chairs. In 1957, he realized his ideal of formal unity with the Pedestal Table and Tulip Chair collections for Knoll. These majestically effortless, one-legged tables and chairs have since become symbols of modern design and mainstays of the Knoll design legacy.

    Knoll Designer Eero Saarinen

    Eero Saarinen

    Born to world famous architect and Cranbrook Academy of Art Director Eliel Saarinen and textile artist Loja Saarinen, Eero Saarinen was surrounded by design his whole life. After meeting Florence Knoll at Cranbrook, Saarinen went on to design many of Knoll's most recognizable pieces, including the Tulip collection, the Womb chair, and the 70 Series of seating. In addition to these achievements, Saarinen became a leader of the second-generation modernists. 

    Learn more

    Additional Info

    Construction and Details
    • Cushions available in a wide range of KnollTextiles and Spinneybeck leathers®
    • Seat shell is molded fiberglass
    • Base is heavy molded cast aluminum with a glossy paint finish
    • Available with swivel base
    Sustainable Design
    • Learn more about Tulip™ Armchair product certifications and materials at Ecomedes.

    Dimensions

    •   w d h seat h arm h
      150A Tulip Arm Chair 26" 23.25" 32" 18" 25.375"

    For a complete list of applicable upholsteries, please visit the Surface Finish Library.
     

    Shell and Base

    White

    White
    Black

    Black
    Cream

    Cream

    Environment

    Whitesweep

    Configure Tulip™ Chair - Armchair

    The configurator below is for reference purposes only. All options, finishes and sizes may not be represented.
    For the complete scope, please refer to the KnollStudio price list.


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    General Info

    Document

    Tulip Chair and Stool Product Sheet
    Document

    Saarinen Pedestal Collection Brochure
    Document

    Saarinen Collection
    Document

    KnollStudio Price List Vol 1

    3D Symbols