Ah, the versatile Paperclip. Not only is this emblem of office organization a handy device for securing unwieldy sheaves of paper, it’s also a powerful remembrance of an historical atrocity (see The Paperclips Project) and a versatile games piece to while away the hours—my favorite trick involves bending one into a triangle with a double length on one side such that it can be made to “hop” along the desk. Manufacturer Knoll has their own take on this simple loop of wire (one that’s far more productive than my modification)—the classic Paperclip Table by Massimo and Lella Vignelli is “a playful variation on one of the world’s greatest designs, fashioning a clever base of metal rods with round and square tops.”

Paperclip Table. Designed by Massimo and Lella Vignelli for Knoll.

Design Inspiration from Unlikely Places

The Paperclip series of tables was conceived as a companion piece to the Vignellis’ equally clever Handkerchief Chair, a tubular steel affair with a compression molded polyester back in the form of a fluttering hankie. Who knew that paperclips and handkerchiefs were such good bedfellows? Or perhaps I should say, “compatible office mates.” The Paperclip Tables also share with Handkerchief a similar materials palette: each table features a base of 7/16″ D cold rolled steel rod with fused polyester. Top options include 1” thick laminate, ¾” thick natural cleft slate, or ½’ thick clear tempered glass. Finishing touches run the gamut, from beveled to polished pencil edges, from square to round tops, from 36” to 48” diameters, from Knoll’s signature fire engine red to black as pitch.

Of course, the great draw of Paperclip is the subtle play on the namesake. Here, the Vignellis evoke the mundane while—with the help of some nifty machining—re-inventing same.

Paperclip can be used indoors or out (a powder coated black base provides protection from the elements), as well as in or out of the office, as they’re “ideal for a range of residential and business applications.”