Saarinen Side Table

The idea of the Saarinen pedestal design had its beginning about 1953. Saarinen worked first with hundreds of drawings, which were followed by ¼ scale models. Since the compelling idea was to design chairs that looked good in a room, the model furniture was set up in a scaled model room the size of a doll house. Drawing on his early training as a sculptor, Saarinen refined his design through full scale models, endlessly modifying the shape with clay. “What interests me is when and where to use these structural plastic shapes. Probing even more deeply into different possibilities one finds many different shapes are equally logical—some ugly, some exciting, some earthbound, some soaring. The choices really become a sculptor’s choice.”

Saarinen was assisted by Don Petitt, of Knoll’s Design Development Group, who introduced several ingenious methods of model making. Together with a Knoll design research team, they worked out the problems arising in production. Full scale models became furniture and, with family and friends acting as “guinea pigs,” the furniture was tested in the dining room and living room of the Saarinen house in Bloomfield Hills.

Details

CONSTRUCTION AND DETAILS

• Tabletop features beveled edge
• Top attaches to base with threaded rod
• Base is heavy molded cast aluminum with white paint

ADDITIONAL OPTIONS AVAILABLE. 

• Tabletops in a wide range of woods, marbles and granites
• Base with black or platinum paint

Dimensions

SAARINEN SIDE TABLE - 16" ROUND

• Width: 16 ¼"
• Height: 20"