New Amsterdam

Gerrit Rietveld designed the New Amsterdam armchair in 1937, for the ‘New Amsterdam’ steamship. This Holland America Line flagship made its first trip to New York on 10 May 1938. The chair was part of a complete interior design that Rietveld made for a first-class cabin.

With its minimalist style Rietveld created a cabin that had to meet the luxury and comfort of the modern ocean traveller. Most striking in the interior design were the comfortable armchairs. As part of Rietveld Originals, this design is now available in the Spectrum collection.

Limited Edition

On the occasion of the first production of the New Amsterdam armchair a Limited Edition of 37 pieces was made. These unique and numbered armchairs are upholstered in luxurious velour with a frost-stone colour, the armrests are made of solid American walnut. The Limited Edition is packed in a special crate. It was this way of packaging that inspired Rietveld to design his famous crate chair, shortly before he accepted the commission for the New Amsterdam steamship. The wooden crate of the Limited Edition packaging allows the owner to easily build an original Rietveld crate chair.