Through his work as an architect and designer, Eero Saarinen was a prime mover in the introduction of modernism into the American mainstream. Particularly affecting were the organic, curvilinear forms seen in Saarinen’s furniture and his best-known structures: the gull-winged TWA Flight Center at John F. Kennedy airport in New York (opened 1962), Dulles International Airport in Virginia (1962) and the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri (1965).
Saarinen had a peerless modernist pedigree. His father, Eliel Saarinen, was an eminent Finnish architect who in 1932 became the first head of the Cranbrook Academy of Art in suburban Detroit. The school became synonymous with progressive design and decorative arts in the United States, and while studying there the younger Saarinen met and befriended several luminaries of mid-century modernism, among them Harry Bertoia and Charles and Ray Eames.
At Cranbrook, Saarinen also met Florence Schust Knoll, who, as director of her husband Hans Knoll's eponymous furniture company, would put Saarinen’s best designs into production. These include the Grasshopper chair, designed in 1946 and so named because its angled bentwood frame resembles the insect; the Tulip chair (1957), a flower-shaped fiberglass shell mounted on a cast-aluminum pedestal; and the lushly contoured Womb lounge chair and ottoman (1948). In his furniture as in his architecture, the keynotes of Eero Saarinen’s designs are simplicity, strength and grace.
Find vintage Eero Saarinen tables, chairs and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Eero Saarinen Tulip Coffee Table with Oak Top and White Base
By Eero Saarinen
Located in Astoria, NY
Eero Saarinen for Knoll Associates Tulip Coffee Table, with circular oak top above white enameled pedestal base, Knoll Associates, Inc. label to underside. 15.5" H x 42" Diameter. ...
Oak
Eero Saarinen x Knoll Tulip Dining Table, Rosewood, Mid-Century Modern
By Eero Saarinen, Knoll
Located in Astoria, NY
Eero Saarinen (Finnish/American, 1910-1961) by Knoll "Tulip" Dining Table, with white base and rosewood top, Knoll label to underside of top. 29" H x 78" W x 47.5" D. Provenance: F...
Aluminum
Vintage Mid-Century Modern Circular Top Steel Center Table
Located in Astoria, NY
Mid-Century Modern White Laminate Circular Top Steel Center Table, the metal stem above a four-pointed star base. 29" H x 40" Diameter. Provenance: The Morningside Heights Estate...
Steel
Osvaldo Borsani Style Circular Dining Table, White Top & Chrome Base
By Milo Baughman, Osvaldo Borsani
Located in Astoria, NY
Osvaldo Borsani Style Circular Dining Table, white top over chrome base. 30.5" H x 72" Diameter. Provenance: From a New York City Collection.
Chrome
Eero Saarinen Walnut Tulip Coffee Table, Mid-Century Modern, 1950s
By Eero Saarinen, Knoll
Located in Astoria, NY
Eero Saarinen for Knoll Walnut Top Tulip Coffee Table, in the coveted oval surfoboard form with a patinated white metal base, "Knoll / Knoll Associates Inc. / 575 Madison Ave., N.Y. ...
Walnut
George Nelson for Herman Miller Pedestal Table, Black Veneered Maple & Aluminum
By Herman Miller, George Nelson
Located in Astoria, NY
George Nelson for Herman Miller Pedestal Table, black veneered maple top above aluminum base, partial Herman Miller label to underside. 21.75" H x 28.5" Diameter. Provenance: An Ea...
Aluminum
Knoll Tulip Table by Eero Saarinen — Round Top, Mid-Century Modern
By Eero Saarinen
Located in Markington, GB
Eero Saarinen for Knoll — Oval Tulip Table, Circa 1965 Designed in 1958 by Eero Saarinen, the iconic Tulip Table remains one of the most influential pieces in modern design. This ex...
Aluminum
Saarinen Tulip Side Table by Knoll Studio
By Eero Saarinen, Knoll
Located in New York, NY
Authentic Eero Saarinen's signature white pedestal Tulip Table by Knoll Studio, with laminate top and cast-aluminum base. Signature plate on the underside. **List Price: $1,400/EACH ...
Aluminum
Eero Saarinen 20" Top Tulip Side Table for Knoll ( B )
By Eero Saarinen
Located in Cincinnati, OH
A iconic sculptural tulip side table with a bigger sized 20" round top in white Laminate and matching steel base . Retains the manufactures label by Knoll designed by Eero Saarinen ...
Metal
Eero Saarinen for Knoll Rare Oval Tulip Side Table
By Eero Saarinen
Located in Mexico City, CDMX
Circa 1960s we offer this Mid-Century Modern Eero Saarinen for Knoll Rare Oval Tulip Side Table made in the Knoll factory that was installed in Mexico. The white pedestal base is cas...
Aluminum
Eero Saarinen Tulip Side Table for Knoll
By Eero Saarinen
Located in Cincinnati, OH
A very fine sculptural tulip side table with a bigger sized 20" round top in white Laminate and matching base . Retains the manufactures label by Knoll and designed by Eero Saarinen...
Metal
Eero Saarinen for Knoll Tulip Side Table
By Eero Saarinen
Located in Mexico City, CDMX
Circa 1960s we offer this Mid-Century Modern tulip side table made in the Knoll factory that was installed in Mexico. The white pedestal base is cast aluminum. The Tulip table is ver...
Aluminum
