The renowned British architect Sir Norman Foster trained at the University of Manchester in England and at Yale University before establishing his first architectural partnership, called Team4, with Richard Rodgers in 1963. In 1967 he established his own office, initially called Foster Associates but later renamed Foster + Partners. Since then, the firm has specialized in commercial and cultural buildings that reflect a vocabulary of sleek forms constructed from glass and steel. In the more than sixty years that Foster has practiced, he has also designed furniture, lighting, and tableware for major international firms, including the Nomos table, one of his most significant designs.

 

According to Foster’s office, the mass-produced version of the table grew out of a series of tables that Foster designed in 1982 for his own office on Great Portland Street in London and for the Renault Distribution Centre in Swindon, England.¹ At both locations, the Nomos predecessors were used for working, dining, and the display of models.² During the 1986 design process with Tecno, an Italian furniture manufactory, the prototypes were made in steel. However, the initial production models were made in lighter-weight aluminum with steel tubes. In addition, they featured either circular or rectangular glass tops.

 

The system-solution innovations of the Nomos design lie in its “spine” that spans the length of the table. This column allows for electric cables and cords to be seamlessly run through its form, creating an efficient workspace. The table’s design has been described variously as resembling a grasshopper or the lunar landing module.³

 

The Nomos system was designed to be flexible with a standard “kit of parts” that fits beams and glass tops of different sizes. This allowed for efficient computer-aided manufacturing, though the table still required manual assembly. Consumer choices in the first twelve years of production included the size and shape of the table and glass top. In 1999, due to the success of the design, Tecno asked Foster to create a new version in honor of the upcoming millennium. Foster added the choice of red, blue, white, or yellow frames, curved edges, and secondary elements in black and introduced wood or laminate tops to the design vocabulary. In 2013 he further enhanced the aesthetic possibilities of Nomos by creating a special-edition square table with a marble top, black chrome legs, and a circular insert for a Foster-designed lamp.

 

Nomos debuted to great acclaim at the April 1987 Salone de Mobile fair in Milan, Italy, and won the prestigious Compasso D’Oro award that same year. The table remains in production by Tecno today. —Cindi Strauss