Arri “Harry” Bertoia was born on March 10, 1915, in the small village of San Lorenzo, Friuli, Italy. In 1930 at 15 years old Harry chose to move to Detroit in America where his brother Oreste was already established.
In 1936, a one-year scholarship to the School of the Detroit Society of Arts and Crafts allowed him to study painting and drawing. His fate was cast when in 1950 Harry was invited to move to Pennsylvania to work with Hans and Florence Knoll (Florence was also a Cranbrook Graduate). During this period he designed five wire chair pieces that became known as the Bertoia Collection for Knoll. Among these was the famous diamond chair a fluid, sculptural form made from a welded lattice work of steel.