Haussmann Lounge Chair

As with a piece of Chesterfield furniture, the characteristic diamond pattern gives structure to the seat and back. This is achieved by the traditional button upholstery technique. The delicate feet are an homage to the Bauhaus. As a sofa and an armchair, this is a statement piece in lobbies and lounges.

Handcrafted excellence, skilled upholstery, and modernity – these are what Walter Knoll stands for, and what the Haussmann Armchair stands for. The iconic armchair was originally designed in 1962 by the Swiss architect and designer couple Trix and Robert Haussmann, as part of the Swiss Design Collection. Their idea? “To design a piece of furniture that offers the comfort of the classic Chesterfield but looks lighter.”

Trix and Robert Hausssmann are known as the “protagonists of Swiss lifestyle culture”. Their most highly acclaimed projects include the redesign of Zurich’s main station and the Galleria Hamburg. They describe their approach as critical mannerism: “Taking up lost traditions, developing them further, and giving them a new, modern interpretation – combined with humor and, last but not least, a touch of irony.”

In the 1950s, Robert Haussmann attended the interior design class at Zurich University of the Arts alongside Willy Guhl, Wilhelm Kienzle, and Johannes Itten. Trix Haussmann, born Kelterborn-Högl, studied architecture at ETH Zurich. The pair met and fell in love at Expo 64. Together they decided to found the “General Design Institute of Zurich“. Their goal was to question modernity and the German Werkbund – while also developing them further. In 2013, their work was honored with the Swiss Grand Prix of Design.  

In 1962 the creative couple designed a circular armchair. The idea behind it, in the words of Robert Haussmann, was “to develop a piece of furniture as comfortable as the classic Chesterfield, but lighter in appearance”. Its modernity is evident in the filigree style of the feet, an homage to the Bauhaus. The Haussmanns successfully created an enduring original whose quality and substance remain something special to this day.