The Harry Bertoia style Wire Chair has chrome plated, welded steel rods. Its pad is covered with fabric or leather. Bertoia´s designs, such as the Bertoia Wire Chair not only
addressed functional requirements but where also studies in form and
space. Mechanised production was attempted but it was found that the
chairs were easier to produce by hand.
Dimensions: 54 x 57 x 79 cm (W x D x H)
Harry Bertoia
Born March 10, 1915 in San Lorenzo, Pordenone, Italy. dead November 6, 1978 in Barto, Pennsylvania, United States)
He began taking drawing classes in 1928
before emigrating first to Canada, then to Detroit in 1930. He became a
US citizen in 1946.
He designed sound
sculptures, monotypes, jewellery and furniture. His "Sounding
Sculpture" can be found in the plaza of The Aon Center, Chicago's
second tallest building. Another "Sounding Sculpture", in the Rose
Terrace of the Chicago Botanic Garden.
In
the late 1940s, Bertoia was working with Charles Eames on ergonomic
studies that would be used to create practical forms for furniture. In
the period from 1950-1954, after parting ways with the Eames Office,
Bertoia produced the five wire pieces that became known as the Bertoia
Collection for Knoll. Innovative, comfortable and strikingly handsome,
the chairs have a delicate appearance that belies their strength and
durability.
In Bertoia's own words, "If you
look at these chairs, they are mainly made of air, like sculpture.
Space passes right through them."
A
classic, modern design that enhances any environment, Bertoia's wire
chairs remain a fascinating study in bent metal and a fixture of
mid-century design.
