le mag Bel Œil

“A classic design is something that every time you look at it, you accept it as it is and you see no way of improving it.”
Warren Platner

Launched by Knoll in 1966, the Platner collection is an icon of modern furniture. It captured the “decorative, soft, and graceful” lines that were beginning to emerge in the vocabulary of architecture and design.

Warren Platner designed a sculptural furniture collection using steel rods. Each piece requires welding hundreds of bent steel rods to form circular frames serving both as structure and ornament.

Warren Platner, one of Eero Saarinen’s closest collaborators, was a key figure in Knoll’s production from the 1960s onward. His famous furniture series (seating and tables) offers unparalleled sculptural presence, notably through its steel rod bundle structure.

Warren Platner personally developed the production techniques for his models, whose manufacture is a true feat… This collection demonstrates how combining high technology with artisanal craftsmanship remains fundamental in an industry primarily driven by achieving perfect quality.

Each Platner chair requires more than a thousand weld points and over a hundred steel rods… See it in the video below:

The designer had collaborated with Eero Saarinen Associates before 1960. His proposal of chairs and tables came to Knoll just after the famous Tulip collection… It offers an expressive renewal and reveals more spectacular aesthetic values for the design of the time.

At Bel Œil, we particularly appreciate the Platner chairs and Platner tables…
Such an exceptional collection energizes spaces with its unmatched presence.