Parsons Table research files
Online Access
Available digital items: https://digital.archives.newschool.edu/index.php/Detail/collections/PC080201
Abstract
This collection consists of correspondence, clippings, and research related to the Parsons table, a conceptual table design thought to have originated at the Paris Ateliers, the precursor to Parsons Paris, in the 1920s or 1930s and often attributed to French designer Jean-Michel Frank (1895–1941). The materials were assembled by the New School Archives staff as part of a Parsons School of Design Design and Management Department project in 2002.
Dates
- 1922 - 2006
- Majority of material found within 1960 - 1975
Creator
- Parsons the New School for Design. Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Design Archives (Compiler, Organization)
Extent
1.3 Cubic Feet (1 box)
Language of Materials
English
Scope and Content of Collection
The Parsons Table research files consist primarily of work conducted and assembled by the director and staff of the New School Archives in 2002 to support a Parsons School of Design's Design and Management Department project in which students would construct and market a version of the Parsons Table. Archives staff prepared a questionnaire for alumni to gather information about the origins of the table and its design. Several responses include sketches of the table. While furnishing no conclusive evidence, these files will be useful to researchers investigating the history of the table, its relationship to the school, and the stories that have been told about it.
Access Restrictions
Collection is open for research use. Please contact archivist@newschool.edu for appointment.
Use Restrictions
To publish images of material from this collection, permission must be obtained in writing from the New School Archives. Please contact: archivist@newschool.edu.
Historical Note
The Parsons Table was reportedly designed at the Paris Ateliers, the precursor to Parsons Paris, sometime in the 1920s or 1930s. A modernist design, the chair is characterized by its straight, clean lines and square legs, in which the legs are the same width as the tabletop. French designer Jean-Michel Frank (1895–1941) is often identified as the creator of the table. Frank served as a critic in the Paris Ateliers, and one hypothesis suggests that he had students follow the simple table design as part of a classroom project in furniture construction.
Organization and Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically by subject.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Research compiled by archives staff.
- Clippings files (Type of Material) Subject Source: Art & Architecture Thesaurus
- Design -- History -- Study and teaching (Subject) Subject Source: Local sources
- Furniture design -- France -- History -- 20th century (Subject) (Places) (Temporal) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- New York School of Fine and Applied Art
- Paris Ateliers
- Parsons School of Design
- Tables (Subject) Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Title
- Guide to the Parsons Table research files
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- New School Archives and Special Collections Staff
- Date
- March 9, 2012
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Revision Statements
- January 24, 2023: Jason Adamo added inclusive dates and folder numbers to the folders.