Go With The Flo
Hello and thank you so much for tuning in today! It’s pretty common for someone to ask an interior designer exactly what is it that they do, or how they are different from a decorator or even an architect. There is really so much overlap between all disciplines of built environment designers, and if you want to dive into the nuisances- check out the episode “Call Me Maybe,” where I break down the distinct differences between design and decoration. It’s understandable how the two get so mixed up. Interior design is still a fairly new profession, and the earliest examples are hobbiest decorators and homemakers. But one person comes to mind when I think of the big turning point in this industry, when the creation of space stopped being seen as a hobby and started being respected - and compensated - as a true profession. That person is none other than Florence Knoll, interior designer, space planner, furniture designer, and trail blazer. Today we are going to look at Florence’s life and work, how you can incorporate her style into your home, and how she took an important role that was otherwise dismissed as frivolous, and turned it into the valued skill and service we have today.
But first, let’s talk about the color of the week. Last week the historic James Webb Space telescope showed off its very first images of deep space. And while these images have major implications beyond the scope of this podcast, an interesting fact about the pictures - in their raw state, they are black and white. The telescope takes pictures in grayscale to capture brightness, and additional filters are used to capture the wavelengths of infrared light, that is an approximation of what we believe the colors would look like. So although the stars, nebulas, and galaxies appear to look like a blurry string of multi-colored twinkle lights, rest assured - deep space is dark black. That is why today our color of the week is Benjamin Moore Space Black 2119-10. Black in general has made a huge comeback over the last three years. Historic homes have opted to be painted from head-to-toe in daring shades of black, that serve a more modern and monolithic aesthetic. And yes, a touch of goth. In a world where white and stainless steel window frames were kings of the castle, now the modern move is to have frames in black. A color like Space Black can be the perfect way to introduce this modern bold move, whether you’re painting a collection of picture frames a single color to unify them, or even being so daring as to paint all the trim and base boards in your home this color to tie into that fabulous wallpaper you chose - Space Black has a softness to it, that won’t feel over bearing, but will bring a profound sense of stillness to any room. It’s as relaxing as the night sky itself.
Our dear Florence Knoll was born in Michigan as Florence Schuster, and many close to her called Shu as an endearing nickname. Florence was tragically orphaned at a young age, and wound up at the Kingswood College Prep and Boarding School, which was associated with none other than our beloved Cranbrook. If you’ve listened to the episodes “My Father’s House” or “Ray of Light,” this school will sound familiar. Lead by Eliel Saarinen, Cranbrook produced many great American architectural designers of the mid-century modern movement. Florence is a shining example of this. At 14, she decided to design a house as part of her studies, and introduced thoughtful design moves, such as car garages that had roll up doors on the front and back, as she was learning to drive and had not gotten the hang of backing up yet. Her design was communicated via a three dimensional scaled model, and caught the eye of Eliel Saarinen and his family, and they soon took Florence under their wing. Many sources claim they basically adopted her, as she lived with the family until graduation.
After her time at Cranbrook, she studied at several other prestigious schools and her internship resume reads like a who’s who of modern architecture. Walter Gropius, Mies Van Der Role, Marcel Breuer, and Alvar Aalto all contributed to Florence’s education. She trained as an architect, but she was drawn to interiors and furniture, thinking deeply about the human interactions and behavior that occurs in any given space. And when she met her future husband Hans Knoll, whose family business was furniture, that’s when things really started to synergize. Florence was able to help Hans position and market his furniture. She created multiple arms of the business to help fully integrate the design experience, it wasn’t just a furniture showroom or catalogue. It was a full service treatment. There was Knoll textiles - a unique collection of fabrics that could be used on all Knoll upholstered pieces, custom made to order of course. The look and feel of these fabrics were a strong departure from the decorator world to date. What would normally be a catalogue of delicate florals, damasks, and silks was replaced with sturdy upholstery reminiscent of business suit jackets. Simple, flat woven, small scale gingham, subtle pinstripes, and tone on tone herringbone - mostly made from wool, took up the better part of the selections. This was a welcome change, and helped propel the furniture world out of the stuffy, antiquated decorating world into the modern era.
Florence got into the nuances of space planning when she was in charge of designing the Knoll’s furniture showrooms all over the United States and Europe. In each instance, she was given office space that had all kinds of challenges, from seemingly random placed columns, to lack of daylight, or low ceilings. Florence used color theory and contrast to shape and define each space, making the showrooms feel open, but not cold. What emerged from these projects was her signature style of using large, brightly colored panels to help the eye move around the showroom.
Because Knoll primarily sold office furniture, Florence turned her attention to office design. She created an entire Space Planning department within knoll, that meticulously looked at the flow and circulation of offices. She focused on creating efficient, dynamic, functional and modern offices.
Up until this point, interior design wasn’t exactly defined the way it is today. It wasn’t a real occupation, you couldn’t get a masters degree in it. It was seen as a hobby, almost always associated with the home only, and especially considered the dreaded pigeon hole of women’s work. It was just part of a wife and mother’s duty as a homemaker. Architecture, on the other hand, was (and still is) a male dominated field that often focused its efforts on sweeping gestures, massing, and formal geometries; that at its worst, neglected the human scale.
Having studied with some of the major teachers from Germany’s Bauhaus, Florence designed interiors to be wholistic, total works of art, or Gesamtkunstwerk as the Germans say. This means that architecture, furniture, accessories, and graphics in the space all work together to tell one big story. Florence is credited with coining the term experiential design. All five senses are engaged into one cohesive space, and the lens Florence saw interiors through was simple, but still soft. Sleek, but vibrant.
Florence was the person who championed the idea that interior design was in fact a job, not related to domestic life, and uniquely different from the work of an architect. The principles of interior design needed to be implemented in all types of spaces. She said, “in those days the boss usually had a decorator. They did his office and maybe some of the other senior executives, but the people further down the line had offices designed by the purchasing agent, who ordered furniture out of a catalog. So when I came along with my questionnaire, I wanted to know what they needed. It was kind of a radical ideal, but it was also logical and obvious.”
That questionnaire she mentioned, is the foundation of any well planned interior. It’s a process often referred to as programming, pre-design, and design strategy. Ultimately, this process is a fact finding, information gathering series of exercises, interviews, and conversations; that determine the course of the design before it even sets sail. By interviewing the people that work in the space, the design can evolve from the very small, everyday tasks that actually drive the use of the space. Designing from the inside out, so to speak. An office for someone who is in meetings all day should look different from one for a person who is clacking away, super focused, on their computer for eight hours.
This process is often devalued, overlooked, and dismissed as being fluffy and unnecessary, and yet - every project I have worked on that had a solid programming initiative, had a much clearer path to success than ones that didn’t. A client might say they want a modern space, but teasing out exactly what that means can take a little back and forth. One person’s modern is another person’s traditional, and it’s so much better to do that in the beginning than in the middle of construction.
This was a turning point in the world of interiors, and in some ways, the industry is still churning to evolve away from the idea that interior spaces are organized in a frivolous manner, solely based on trends. What Florence was tapping into was elements of behavioral psychology, ergonomics, emotions, and yes, aesthetics.
Florence also changed the way design was communicated. She used the technique referred to as a paste-up plan. This was a floor plan of the space surrounded by elevations of each wall. So it looks like an unfolded box, laid flat. She would then use samples of all the materials and fabrics to fill in the context of the room. This created a two-dimensional model of the entire room, which was quicker then creating than a built-up 3D model, but still effectively communicated the look of the space. Effective communication of aesthetics prior to their construction is a foundation of the professional interior design world.
Collaboration between different designers can either make or break a project, and Florence was an alchemist when it came to finding the right people for the job. She used her Cranbrook connections to commission furniture and accessories from prolific designers such as Harry Bertoia, Eero Saarinen, and Isamu Noguchi. The iconic Tulip, Womb, Barcelona, and Bertoia chairs were all commissioned by Florence for Knoll. But she did her fair share of her own furniture design. Not only did she envision an office table that could be dually used as a desk or a meeting table (which is now a basic building block in office design), she also created the hair pin table leg, which is so ubiquitous in coffee and side tables today, it’s easy to forget its origin story.
Today, Knoll furniture designs are still in production and available for sale, both through the recently merged company MillerKnoll, and through the beloved store Design Within Reach. If you ever find yourself in a DWR store, which seems to be growing in number by the year, take a look at the designers of each piece - while there are many newly designed pieces, there are also historic artifacts that serve as the foundation of modern design. If Florence’s designs from 1950’s still look fairly modern today, it’s fun to think about how striking they must have been when they originally debuted.
Making your home feel like a Knoll space is easy, if you’re willing to embrace clean lines and modernism. Try adding a single, brightly colored accent wall like a cobalt blue or the signature Knoll red-orange, layering in creamy, solid color fabrics and textiles, primarily rectilinear furniture with minimalist details, neatly organizing furniture into carefully planned clusters (organized on their own area rugs), and celebrating authentic materials like walnut wood flooring. Avoid elaborate moulding and trim, and botanical patterns (especially small scale ones). Most importantly, let the use of the space drive the design.
Florence retired and gave up her stake in Knoll in 1965, and like a true Golden Girl, moved to Florida, were she became intensely private. Good for her. She lived to be 101 years old and left behind a legacy that will last as long as furniture is being made.
Do you have a favorite Knoll piece furniture? It’s hard to choose - there are so many great options. If you haven’t already, you can check out the show notes for some great links to the pieces mentioned in this episode. I hope you’re treating yourself like you plan on living to be 101, and I’ll talk to you in the next episode.
