Adrian Mount Pearsall (born in Trumansburg, New York) was an America architect and furniture designer. As a young man he went to the University of Illinois and studied Architectural Engineering. He graduated in 1950.
Adrian Pearsall founded Craft Associates in Pennsylvania in 1952 to manufacture his own designs. By the late 1950s his designs incorporating walnut became hugely popular. Adrian was prolific with his designs and even at the height of production, allowed for custom work, making it very difficult to archive all of the interesting designs that were distributed throughout the world.
Pearsall’s influences included Vladimir Kagan, Nakashima and Knoll. He then added a confident flair of his own by utilizing fabrics, materials, bold shapes and colour combinations that had never before been seen in the mass market. Craft Associates went on to become one of America’s most prominent furniture designers during the mid-century ‘atomic age’.
Known for his daring designs which brought high style to the masses, he is credited with the creation of long and low gondola sofas, free-form walnut and glass tables, and the popularization of the venerable bean bag chair. As an industry testament to his achievements, Adrian was nominated for inclusion into the American Furniture Hall of Fame in 2008.
