Karl Springer Square Plinth Coffee Table With Grass Cloth Circa 1970s

Description

This Karl Springer Floating grass cloth coffee table is in great condition and has a large rectangular top covered in … more This Karl Springer Floating grass cloth coffee table is in great condition and has a large rectangular top covered in grass cloth. The top rest on a sturdy floating base made from wood that has been stained a grey with a satin finish. This Coffee Table is sturdy, stylish, and ready to be used in any home or office for years to come.

The Berlin-born, New York–based designer Karl Springer brought a chic, high-fashion sensibility to furnishings. During his heyday in the 1970s, Springer’s work was a favorite of the glamour set, who enjoyed the novelty of pieces finished in rich and striking materials that ranged from exotic hides and skins to lacquer and chromed metal. In a sense, Springer was a pre-postmodernist. Much as the dull, safe, corporate sameness of late 20th-century modernism prompted Ettore Sottsass, Michael Graves and others to explore new and provocative structures and materials in design and architecture, so, too, was Springer driven to enliven his creations with fresh and alluring energy and sleekness.

The attraction of Springer’s work lies in his insistence on exacting construction and, above all, his eye for unusual materials and finishes. He employed Lucite, brass, and gunmetal along with chromed and polished steel, and revived exquisite finishes rarely seen since the days of Art Deco masters such as Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann and Jean-Michel Frank: shagreen (a type of sharkskin), python, goatskin, bone, horn, and lacquered parchment, as well as fabrics that include batik prints. Made of such materials, Springer’s work is by its very nature flamboyant and eye-catching: a suite of pieces will astonish, and an artfully placed side table in exotic hide will add a surprising spark.

Dimensions: 41x41x16
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