Rare and Early Jens Risom Stool for Knoll Associates, New York City
About the Item
- Creator:Jens Risom (Designer),Knoll (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 14 in (35.56 cm)Width: 12 in (30.48 cm)Depth: 13 in (33.02 cm)Seat Height: 14 in (35.56 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1948
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Buffalo, NY
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1062413937802
Jens Risom
The Danish-born Jens Risom brought the Scandinavian modern design sensibility to a wide audience in the United States. As the first designer for Knoll Inc., Risom introduced American buyers to the region’s enduring design values of simplicity, grace and craftsmanship.
Risom trained in furniture making at the Copenhagen School of Industrial Arts and Design under Ole Wanscher, alongside classmates Hans Wegner and Børge Mogensen. In 1939, a year after graduating from business school, Risom decided to move to the U.S.
While working for an interior designer in New York in 1941, he met Hans Knoll, and the businessman and the designer hit it off. They brought out their first line the next year, despite wartime materials restrictions. The signature piece — now a design icon — was a lounge chair with a striking, undulant birch frame and a seat made of webbed sub-military grade parachute straps. Risom was drafted into the army, and served as a translator under General George Patton. When he returned from the war, Risom clashed over furniture design ideals with his business partner’s new bride, Florence Knoll, the pioneering mid-century modernist who was schooled in the Bauhaus method, which favored furniture with strict, geometric metal frames. Risom then started his own company, Jens Risom Design.
In the course of his long career, Risom developed a stylistic vocabulary that was a reflection of the life of the man himself: his furniture has Danish warmth coupled with an American air of crisp efficiency. Vintage Risom chairs are almost instantly recognizable — the arms and seat backs are set at a distinctive angle that seems to invite people to sit back and relax, yet they know they can hop up in an instant, ready to go.
As you will see on these pages, Jens Risom is one of the great men of American modern design who made furniture that is unique and timeless.
Find a collection of vintage Jens Risom furniture on 1stDibs that includes lounge chairs, desks, coffee tables and more.
Knoll
As a company that produced many of the most famous and iconic furniture designs of the 20th century, Knoll was a chief influence in the rise of modern design in the United States. Led by Florence Knoll, the firm would draw stellar talents such as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Eero Saarinen into its compass. Their work would help change the face of the American home and office.
The company was formed in 1938 by the German immigrant Hans Knoll. He first worked with his fellow ex-pat, the Danish designer Jens Risom, who created furniture with flowing lines made of wood. While Risom served in World War II, in 1943 Knoll met his future wife, Florence Schust. She had studied and worked with eminent emigré leaders of the Bauhaus, including Mies, Walter Gropius and Marcel Breuer. She won Knoll over with Bauhaus notions of industrial arts, and an aesthetic that featured flat and tubular metal frames and angular forms. When Hans died in a car crash in 1955, Florence Knoll was appointed head of the company. It was as much through her holistic approach to design — a core division of the firm was dedicated to planning office systems — as Knoll's mid-century modern furnishings themselves that she brought about the sleek and efficient transformation of the American workplace.
Today, classic Knoll furnishings remain staples of modern design collections and decor. A history of modern design is written in pieces such as the elegant Barcelona chair — created by Mies and Lilly Reich — Saarinen’s pedestal Tulip chair, Breuer’s tubular steel Wassily lounge chair and the grid-patterned Diamond chair by Harry Bertoia.
As you can see from the collection of these designs and other vintage Knoll dining chairs, sofas and tables on 1stDibs, this manufacturer's offerings have become timeless emblems of the progressive spirit and sleek sophistication of the best of modernism.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Buffalo, NY
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Early Fiberglass shell and Metal Bertoia Bar Stools, Harry Bertoia for KnollBy Harry Bertoia, KnollLocated in Buffalo, NYEarly fiberglass shell and metal Bertoia bar stools, Harry Bertoia for Knoll, structurally sound, wear to original black molded fiberglass tops, retain original early KNOLL labels.Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Stools
MaterialsMetal
- Pair Vintage BKF Hardoy for Knoll Cream Leather Butterfly StoolBy Jorge Ferrari-Hardoy, KnollLocated in Buffalo, NYClassic butterfly ottoman in stunning cream leather, designed by Jorge Ferrari-Hardoy and produced by Knoll. An essential companion to the butterfly ...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Ottomans and Poufs
MaterialsIron
- Early Pair of Knoll Saarinen Swiveling Tulip Base Stools. Salmon Color LeatherBy Eero Saarinen, KnollLocated in Buffalo, NYPair of Early production Knoll Saarinen Swiveling Tulip Base Stools. Circa 1950's. Designed by Eero Saarinen . manufactured by Knoll .Classic Mid-Century Modern design. Retain they'r...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Stools
MaterialsAluminum
- Early Adjustable Industrial Machinist Stool, Manufactured by ToledoBy Toledo Metal Furniture Co.Located in Buffalo, NYEarly adjustable Industrial machinist stool, manufactured by Toledo,, Wonderful original patina color and surface. Solid carved wood top and back.Category
Vintage 1920s American Industrial Stools
MaterialsMetal
- Early production Florence Knoll Desk, Classic Modernist design, Knoll New YorkBy Florence Knoll, KnollLocated in Buffalo, NYEarly production walnut and rosewood desk designed by Florence Knoll for Knoll ,features richly grained walnut top rosewood frame, pencil drawer and file drawer. Retains early Knoll ...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsStainless Steel
- Early Production Florence Knoll End or Occasional Table Knoll, New YorkBy Florence Knoll, KnollLocated in Buffalo, NYClassic modernist architectural design white laminate round top solid polished steel "x" base, retains early Knoll label. Florence Knoll Bassett (born May 24, 1917) is an American...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern End Tables
MaterialsStainless Steel
- 'Le Temoin' Stool by Man Ray for GavinaBy Man Ray, GavinaLocated in Little Burstead, EssexBeautiful example in pristine condition, designed by Man Ray for Gavina's ultramobile exhibition.Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Stools
MaterialsAcrylic, Foam, Plywood, Faux Leather
- 'Le Temoin' Stool by Man Ray for GavinaBy Man Ray, GavinaLocated in Little Burstead, EssexBeautiful example in pristine condition, designed by Man Ray for Gavina's ultramobile exhibition.Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Stools
MaterialsFaux Leather, Acrylic, Foam, Plywood
- Cairn Stool in Oiled Maple by Alvaro Uribe for WoodaBy Alvaro UribeLocated in Omro, WIThe Cairn collection by Alvaro Uribe for Wooda challenges the perception of furniture being purely functional. We believe furniture brings a sense of spirituality and magic to our li...Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Stools
MaterialsHardwood, Maple, Walnut
- Black High-Gloss Nekton Stools by Zaha Hadid for Established & SonsBy Zaha Hadid, Established & SonsLocated in London, GBZaha Hadid was the first woman to be awarded the distinguished Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2004 and is internationally known for her built, theoretical and academic work. Her reco...Category
21st Century and Contemporary English Modern Stools
MaterialsFiberglass, Lacquer
- Efforus stoolBy ELAKFORMLocated in Växjö, SECarved wooden stool from locally sourced elm wood from the lanscape of Småland . Hand carved by master Swedish woodmaker ELAKFORM. Painted by hand with a durable acrylic-based colou...Category
2010s Swedish Stools
MaterialsElm
- Hiroyuki Nishimura and Zougei Furniture Sculptural Stool 3 Tribal GlampingBy ZougeiLocated in Shibuya-ku, TokyoName: A day for going to the ocean Sculptural stool by Hiroyuki Nishimura and zone carved furniture Material: Cypress This work is carved from log with some kinds of chainsaws. M...Category
2010s Japanese Tribal Abstract Sculptures
MaterialsWood