Florence Knoll
Florence Marguerite Knoll Basset was born on 24.05.1917 in Suginaw, Michigan USA.
Florene Knoll is one of the most renowned American designers and architects of the 20th century and a pioneer in the production of modern furniture. Her innovative interior design had a lasting influence on contemporary interior architecture.
Florence Knoll parents died early. From 1932 she was a boarding student at Kings Wood Girls' School in Bloomsfield Hills, Michigan in the USA. After graduating from school in 1934, Florence Knoll began studying at the Cranbrock Academy of Art, where she acquired arts and crafts skills in metal, wood, and ceramic workshops. It was there that Knoll drew her first furniture designs. From 1935 she studied at the oldest college of architecture, the Architectural Assolation in London.
She began her professional career in the architectural office of Marcel Breuer and Walter Groupius in New York. After that she worked in the studio of Max Abramovitz and Wallace K. Harrison.
At the same time, she was already working as a freelance architect and met Hans Knoll in the course of her work. In 1943, the young woman joined Knoll's firm. In 1946, the two married; according to Florence Knoll, Hans was a fantastic salesman and entrepreneur.
The company was renamed Knoll Associates. The ever-expanding company not only built Florence Knoll's own designs, but also specialized in ideas from innovative architects and designers. Like Mies van der Rohe, Marcel Breuer, Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi who conceptualized furnishings for Knoll.
Florence Knoll acts according to the motto "Good design is good business". She always had the view between interior and space in mind.
Florence Knoll designed sofas, armchairs, tables and sidboards in a minimalist style in the Bauhaus tradition. The simple forms were combined with innovative materials and manufacturing
and manufacturing processes. Such as her classic 1206 sofa from 1954.
After her husband's accident in 1955, she ran the company alone until 1965. Then she sold her rights. Florence Knoll is enjoying her retirement at the age of 101.