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Harry Bertoia And His Bertoia Chairs
Famous for his collection of Bertoia Chairs, Harry Bertoia was born on 10th March 1915 in San Lorenzo, Pordenone, Italy. At the age of fifteen he visited his brother in Detroit and decided to stay in the USA. He attended Cass Technical High School, where he discovered the art of making jewelry. In 1938, Bertoia continued his studies at the Art School of Detroit Society of Arts. In 1939, he won a scholarship to Cranbrook Academy of Art and it was here that he met Ray and Charles Eames.
His professional life commenced in his workshop teaching metal work and jewelry design. Metal was scarce during the war years and it was for this very practical reason that he focused on jewelry making at that time.
He married Brigitta Valentiner in 1943 and moved to California to work with Charles and Ray Eames. They worked on a number of projects at the time, including a project with Eerio Saarinen which resulted in a method for creating moulded plywood splints. This project resulted in a process for designing furniture.
Initially the pieces, upholstered to varying degrees over a molded lattice of steel rods, were produced manually. Controversy ensued when an action by Herman Miller maintained that the patent for part of the collections design, incorporating two thin wires welded on either side of the mesh seat had been granted to Eames. Herman Miller won the action and the Bertoia collection was re-designed using a thicker, single wire and grinding down the edge of the seat wire at a smooth angle.
The Diamond Lounge Chair was a commercial success and the Bertoia Chair Collection was created. This collection includes: the Bertoia Diamond Chair, the Bird Chair, the Bertoia Side Chair, the Bar Stool and the Asymmetric Chaise. Bertoia's experimentation with the concept of bending metal rods into functional art pieces, produced a collection of designer chairs which have been praised by the international design community. His chairs were first manufactured by Knoll in 1952. That they continue production to-day just shows that the designs are truly timeless. In 1957 he became a fellow at the Graham Foundation in Chicago. During this time, his work focused on the relationship between sound and metal and in particular the sounds created by touching the metal or wind passing through it.
The American Institute of Architects recognised the design genius of Harry Bertoia. Harry Bertoia's name has been immortalised, by his collection of chairs. Designed in the 1950's they are a legacy that will live on for a very long time to come.
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