Last Friday, American designer Florence Knoll Bassett passed away at age 101. A pioneer of midcentury design, Bassett was the creative force behind the legendary furniture company Knoll, where she helped to change the landscape of the modern home and office.

A pupil of Eliel Saarinen, Mies van der Rohe, and Bauhaus founders Walter Gropius and Marcel Breuer, Bassett was an influential advocate of Modernism's clean, functional forms—both exhibited in her own work as well as the high-end furniture her company brought into production such as the Diamond Chair, Barcelona Chair and Cyclone Table.

Through her interior services at Knoll Planning Unit, Bassett came to design the corporate headquarters for some of America's largest companies, including CBS, Seagram and IBM. There, Knoll's "total design" philosophy revolutionized the postwar office as she introduced open-plan layouts, creative textiles, sleek furniture, and open-riser staircases. 

Of her own designs, standouts include her simple 45" x 22" coffee table and her renowned lounge collection. Today, many of her works remain in production—a testament to her remarkable vision.