Florence Knoll

Extremely rare and spectacular oval table by Florence Knoll, 1961, with Swiss red marble top and gilded base, no longer in production in this version.

Made by WB Form Switzerland, with manufacturer’s label under the top. Model “Table Desk – Oval 96”.

Dimensions : 244cm x 137cm , height 73cm (96″ x 54″ inches)

Founded in 1938 by Hans Knoll, the company changed its name to Knoll Associates in 1946, the same year Hans and Florence married. Publisher of the biggest names in design, including Eero Saarinen, Pierre Jeanneret, Mies van der Rohe and Harry Bertoia. In 1955, Hans Knoll died and Florence took over the management of the company and created her own furniture, including this table in 1961. From the 1950s onwards Knoll expanded to become Knoll International and had its furniture produced all over the world, including in Switzerland by WB Form Zürich, as the label on the underside of the table top indicates.

This also explains the presence of Swiss marble on a table designed by an American. Moreover, according to the opinion of an expert stonemason, this marble is no longer available, the quarry having closed definitively decades ago.