Alexander Krikhaar

In 1986 Alex Krikhaar left the Netherlands for the United States, where he studied architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology. The study program taught there was the creation of architect Mies van der Rohe and other former Bauhaus teachers, who had left Germany after the Bauhaus had been closed.

After his graduation he joined an architectural firm in Chicago, where he was able to apply his affinity for clean and uncluttered design to both residential and commercial projects. For one of these commissions he was asked to design a large number of furniture items, including several chromed tubular steel benches. It was these furnishings which attracted the attention of the Gebroeders van der Stroom.

Asked to design several pieces for production Krikhaar worked for a year to develop the furnishings now offered for sale. Krikhaar approaches the design of his furniture pieces as if they were buildings, concentrating on craftmanship and fine detailing, and striking a careful balance between clear functionality, good proportions and the use of strong and sumptuous materials.

These new pieces blend in well with the existing designs by Gispen and Rietveld, and add a touch of quiet luxury and sophistication to any interior from the traditional to the contemporary.