The CP Lounge is Charles Pollock’s first new product for an American company in 47 years.
June 29th, 2012
“It starts as a thought, and then becomes an idea, something I might think about for years. When the time is right, I express it on paper, usually as a simple line in space. Finally it takes shape and becomes a product or sculpture,” recalls Charles Pollock in describing the creative process that has served him well for 7 decades.
This deliberate process of creation produced the iconic Pollock Chair. When it was released by Florence Knoll in 1965, the chair became the most successful office chair in history and a symbol of the modern office.
Bernhardt Design recently introduced the 82 year old Pollock’s first new product for an American company in 47 years. The CP Lounge Collection debuted in New York during the International Contemporary Furniture Fair in May 2012.
“I’ve always been fascinated by Charles Pollock. He created such a significant product, yet very little has ever been published about him. Given our fascination with mid-century American designers, this lack of information seemed remarkable to me,” says Jerry Helling, President of Bernhardt Design.
“When I started my search to find Charles, I simply wanted to meet him and hear his story. I didn’t dream at the time that he would be willing and excited to design a new product after all these years.”
In 1982, the Italian company Castelli introduced another breakthrough Pollock design in Europe. The Penelope Chair was one of the first passively ergonomic chairs produced with simple parts.
20 years before mesh became an indispensable material in furniture, Pollock used it as the key component in the Penelope Chair.
In late 2010, a hand delivered letter of introduction from Helling encouraged Pollock to schedule a meeting.
“After searching for him for such a long time, I was a bit anxious about actually meeting him,” says Helling.
“When I walked into the room, the first words out of his mouth were ’you were supposed to be a fat man in a suit’ and I knew instantly all the effort in finding him was not wasted.”
Surprisingly, their first meeting concluded with a plan to explore several design concepts for a new product.
Pollock and Helling spent the next few months evaluating a number of ideas before selecting the CP Lounge as their first project together.
Bernhardt Design is available in Australia from KE-ZU.
KE-ZU
kezu.com.au
A searchable and comprehensive guide for specifying leading products and their suppliers
Keep up to date with the latest and greatest from our industry BFF's!
The Sub-Zero Wolf showrooms in Sydney and Melbourne provide a creative experience unlike any other. Now showcasing all-new product ranges, the showrooms present a unique perspective on the future of kitchens, homes and lifestyles.
Sub-Zero and Wolf’s prestigious Kitchen Design Contest (KDC) has celebrated the very best in kitchen innovation and aesthetics for three decades now. Recognising premier kitchen design professionals from around the globe, the KDC facilitates innovation, style and functionality that pushes boundaries.
Create a configuration to suit your needs with this curved collection.
In the pursuit of an uplifting synergy between the inner world and the surrounding environment, internationally acclaimed Interior Architect and Designer Lorena Gaxiola transform the vibration of the auspicious number ‘8’ into mesmerising artistry alongside the Feltex design team, brought to you by GH Commercial.
Liebherr are excited to announce the arrival of the new SBS 57I2-07, fully integrated side by side refrigerator and freezer. Superseding the SBS 57I2, the replacement model offers many more new and exciting features including the SoftSystem door closing mechanism which cushions the movement when the door is closed. This ensures that even if the […]
Lucy McRae’s new film project explores how space travellers might use architecture and design to train their bodies from the extremes encountered away from earth.
The internet never sleeps! Here's the stuff you might have missed
We spoke with Jeffrey Wilkes of WILKESDESIGN about the John Portman-designed building, which has been infused with touches of local culture and colour.
A third in the series of boutique hotels under the Lloyd’s Inn brand, Lloyd’s Inn Kuala Lumpur bring the immediacy of nature to the new high-rise hospitality experience in the heart of a bustling city. “Lloyd’s Inn Kuala Lumpur is unique from the other properties in that it is a high-rise development, with more than […]