Knoll Barcelona Armchair Dusseldorf Landmarks Stock Photos, Pictures & Royalty Free Images iStock. The Knoll Barcelona chair is a true icon of Modernist furniture design. Designed by Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe in 1929 for the German Pavilion at the Exposicion Internacional de Barcelona, the Barcelona Chair was actually used as a throne for King Alfonso XIII at the exhibition's opening ceremony. The handmade process involved in making it is time consuming, the upholsterer uses 40 Individual leather panels for the chair and 16 for the stool, the leather panels are cut, hand welted and hand tufted from a single cowhide. The Barcelona chair is often copied (a form of flattery in our opinion to the timelessness of the design) but never bettered, the Knoll original version is truly outstanding. Also comes with an Ottoman for extra comfort.