Barcelona Daybed

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Knoll

LUDWIG MIES VAN DER ROHE (Germany, 1886 – USA, 1969) for KNOLL. "Barcelona" Daybed, design from 1929 (Barcelona International Exhibition). Polished stainless steel and leather upholstery. African ramin wood frame. Brown leather upholstered cushion sewn with buttons and chains. Includes matching cervical pillow. Certificate from Knoll International. Reproduced and reviewed in "Charlotte & Peter Fiell. 1000 Chairs", p. 133. Original packaging. New, brand new. The Barcelona daybed is a classic work of 20th century industrial design. Mies van der Rohe created it, along with the matching chair and side table, for the German Pavilion at the 1929 Barcelona International Exhibition, a building that was itself a milestone in 20th century architecture. Like the chairs, the ottoman was made with polished stainless steel structure and leather upholstery. Rohe based his creation, in his personal line of modern classicism, on furniture used by Roman magistrates in antiquity. Today both the Barcelona chair and the ottoman and matching side table continue to be produced by Knoll, the firm that bought the license from the architect in 1953. Modern models are manufactured in two different steel configurations, and in various types of leather in different colors. Examples of the Barcelona chair are currently preserved in important collections around the world, such as MoMA in New York. Architect and industrial designer, Mies van der Rohe trained with Bruno Paul and Peter Behrens, and opened his own studio in Berlin in 1912. Between 1930 and 1933 he directed the Bauhaus in Dessau, although the political situation in Germany soon forced him to emigrate to the United States. There he continued his brilliant career, dedicating himself in parallel to teaching at the Illinois Technology Institute in Chicago. During his career he created emblematic buildings mainly in Germany and the United States, especially highlighting his skyscrapers in New York and Chicago, the German Pavilion for the 1929 Barcelona International Exhibition, and the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin.