The Barcelona armchair is one of the most famous design objects of the last century and an icon of the modern movement. The handcrafted furniture convinces with high-quality materials and looks particularly valuable due to the wonderfully soft leather surface. What better way to relax than to make yourself comfortable on this timelessly beautiful armchair!

Van der Rohe's mastery of line and material in all media, from architecture to furniture, makes the armchair an incomparable designer piece - and, as intended at the time, worthy of a king (or queen)! The Barcelona armchair represents perfect design combined with excellent craftsmanship, making a strong visual statement. It combines elegance and comfort and looks particularly good in the office or lounge area.

Once upon a time in Barcelona..

Among the classics of the Knoll International collections, the Barcelona series is steeped in history. As a rising figure of the modernist movement, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe was chosen to design the pavilion of the Weimar Republic for the 1929 Industrial Exhibition in Barcelona.

Through masterful proportioning and planning, Mies created a rhythmic and completely unprecedented space that elevated the materials of the industrial age to a level of grace never before achieved. Inside, Mies placed chairs and stools intended as resting places for the King and Queen of Spain. He is said to have modelled the designs on the campaign chairs of ancient Rome.

The Barcelona Pavilion is considered one of the most important achievements of modern architecture, as are the accompanying Barcelona Chairs. Since the formal granting of production rights for the Barcelona Chair and Stool in 1953, the designs immediately became Knoll's trademark and have been built to Mies van der Rohe's exacting standards ever since.

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, born in Germany in 1886, began his career in his father's stonemasonry business. After an apprenticeship with the furniture designer Bruno Paul in Berlin, he joined the office of the architect Peter Behrens, whose work anticipated modernism. in 1912, Mies founded his own office in Berlin, later becoming a member of the Deutscher Werkbund and director of the Bauhaus.

"I feel that it must be possible to harmonise the old and the new in our civilisation." - Ludwig Mies van der Rohe

in 1938 he emigrated to the United States and settled in Chicago. His buildings include the German Pavilion for the 1929 World's Fair in Barcelona, the Villa Tugendhat in Brno, Czechoslovakia, the Seagram Building, which he designed with Philip Johnson, a collection of residential towers along Lakeshore Drive in Chicago, and the campus of the Illinois Institute of Technology, where he was director of architecture. He was also considered a close friend and mentor of Florence Knoll during her time at the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Knoll International - The belief in modern design

in 1938, Knoll International was founded by Hans and Florence Knoll, who drew on the creative genius of the Bauhaus School and the Cranbrook Academy of Art to create new types of furniture and environments for the workplace. Their approach was to combine craftsmanship with technology through the use of design. Florence Knoll also developed the idea of the modern office and pioneered interior design.

Knoll is internationally recognised for creating workplace and home furniture that inspires, evolves and endures. With its thoughtful, inventive products, Knoll caters to individual work styles and endures for multiple generations. Knoll's commitment to modern, sustainable design and understanding of the workplace results in a unique portfolio. Here, the latest collections line up alongside modern classics and iconic products.

For more than 80 years, Knoll has remained true to the Bauhaus design philosophy that modern furniture should complement architectural space, not compete with it. That is why Knoll uses modern design to connect people with their work, their lives, their world. The essence of it all: modern living and working with a contemporary approach without losing the connection to the past.

Material and format

The frame of the Barcelona armchair is made of high-gloss chrome-plated flat spring steel, polished by hand to a mirror finish. The cowhide leather straps are fixed with aluminium rivets and covered with the respective leather on the visible side. The invisible side towards the back cushion is the natural colour.

For the upholstery, 40 individual leather rectangles are cut by hand and sewn with piping from a single hide. The cushions are fitted with fire-retardant foam. The leather is of the highest quality. The seat and back cushions are connected to the frame by small leather straps.

The Barcelona armchair is 75 cm wide, 77 cm deep and 77 cm high and has a seat height of 43 cm.

You can order the armchair in two different leather qualities as well as different colour variations. You can't find the cover you want? We will be happy to provide you with a non-binding offer on request!

Velluto leather: smooth, slightly refined aniline-dyed leather

Volo leather: lightly corrected aniline leather with special retanning

Special featurethe KnollStudio logo and Mies van der Rohe's signature are embossed in the base of each chair.

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Product number:	KNOLL INT 250 LC
Manufacturer	Knoll International
Design Year	1929
designed in	1929
Designer	Mies van der Rohe
Shipping method	Forwarding agent
Width (cm)	75
Depth (cm)	77
Height (cm)	77
Seating height (cm)	43