“The Original Design“ on view from 13 January 2020 at the Pesch showroom in Cologne 

 

After the success of the exhibition “The Original Design” opened in November at the RBC showroom in Paris, Knoll transforms it into a traveling event, selecting some of the most important cities in Europe, starting precisely in Cologne during the imm cologne fair.

With “The Original Design” Knoll narrates the story of some of the great inventions of Mies van der Rohe and Eero Saarinen in the exhibition titled “The Original Design”: a tribute to two great masters of 20th-century design. An exhibition that aims to highlight the connection between Knoll's masterpieces and the History of Design, starting from the publication of a series of books, “The Original Design,” that reveals a story out of the ordinary, intertwining his specific experience with a wider universal dimension, full of protagonists that have marked both their own era and the entire productive heritage of modern and contemporary Design. Only respecting the originality of design thinking is possible to continue to create something that is truly “Modern Always.” Reconstructing these stories is a tribute to a collective memory, a way to share a precise idea of producing and fostering the project. Remembering the roots becomes a way to look ahead, without nostalgia, but with the awareness of the potential of a living heritage. Means and thought are variable, but the ability to interpret an original design remains the constant of Knoll's vision.

Inside the Pesch showroom in Cologne, a long-term reference point for design lovers, starting on 13 January 2020 the exhibition “The Original Design” presents a concept entirely focused on the works of Eero Saarinen, one of the greatest 20th-century designers. Part of his success was down to his amazing ability to fuse different elements into one whole: sculpture, design and architecture, the present and the future, Europe and America, organicism and abstraction.

The projects of the great master Eero Saarinen featured in the show come alive in a display honed down to the smallest details, which narrates their history through a creative voyage through the iconic collections created in collaboration with Knoll – Pedestal, Tulip and Womb – accompanied by historic archival images and technical drawings for every piece.

The exhibition is on view from 13 January to 29 February 2020 at the Pesch showroom, Kaiser-Wilhelm-Ring 22, 50672 Cologne.