The 1960s Italian design wonder
The 1960s Italian design wonder
Italian furniture design took a significant step forward in the 1960s. This article looks at how new materials, a changing society, and bold ideas shaped a freer and more colorful approach to furniture, highlighting important designers like Anna Castelli Ferrieri, Giancarlo Piretti, and Joe Colombo, along with their lasting works.
The 1960s was the decade when the strong and unparalleled Italian furniture design wave started. Sure, the 1950s gave us unforgettable Italian iconic objects like Giò Ponti’s Superleggera chair and the Castiglioni brothers’ Mezzadro stool, but with the 1960s came the great international breakthrough.
The European youth´s radical protests against the conventional lifestyle and post-war consumerism suited the temperament of many Italian designers. In the upcoming freer lifestyle, traditionally coordinated interior design ideals were replaced by unpretentious, simple, and colorful furniture. The possibility of using new materials clearly influenced the design development, for example, the unbridled faith in the revolutionary effect of plastics. By then, there was still no more profound insight into the impact of fossil materials on the climate.
So, the firm belief in a future of constant positive development unleashed a lot of creative energy in architects- and design studios all around Europe, especially in Italy. The fact that the Italian furniture industry was a large and significant player in Italian society probably also increased the willingness to invest in new designs. Italian business leaders were brave enough to try new ideas, and the government was willing to support research, development, and export initiatives. We know today that this ’triple helix’, consensus and collaboration between the Italian design academy, the furniture industry, and the state yielded great international success for a long period of time.
Here are some of my personal favorites from the 1960s Italian design revolution:
The inflatable Blow Chair exploded like a bomb when it was shown at the Milan Furniture Fair in 1967. The chair, designed by the Italians Jonathan De Pas, Donato D’Urbino, and Paolo Lomazzi, became the first mass-produced inflatable chair. Zanotta spread it internationally, often in candy-colored PVC plastic. The Blow Chair reached a price target different from traditional Italian seating furniture on the market. The idea aligned with the ‘nomadic’ trend among 1960s young people. Let the air out, put the chair in your bag, and inflate it again in a new place.
Anna Castelli Ferrieri (1918-2006) was the first woman to graduate from the prestigious Milan Polytechnic School. In 1949, Castelli Ferrieri and her husband Giulio Castelli founded Kartell, a leading furniture company known for its high-quality plastic designs.
Castelli Ferrieri’s storage unit Componibili is one of Kartell’s oldest products and is still a best seller. These modern stackable modules can meet various storage needs in the home. To quote the designer: “It is not true that what is useful is beautiful. It is what is beautiful that is useful. Beauty can improve people’s way of life and thinking.”
Giancarlo Piretti (b.1940) was the designer who invented a new typology for a simple folding chair. When the Plia chair was first presented at the Milan Furniture Fair in 1967, it became an instant international success. Since then, this chair has been a role model for developing folding chairs worldwide. Despite all the similar chairs on the market today, I would say that Plia is still unsurpassed in both technical and aesthetic aspects. Piretti’s design takes functionality, technicality, and elegance to the extreme.
If you were to look at photos from advertising agencies, architect bureaus, or design studios from the 1960s and 1970s, you would most likely find the Boby trolley in use. This furniture icon quickly became popular around the world as a symbol of the creative workplace.
The Italian architect Joe Colombo (1930-1971) designed the Boby trolley for the company Bieffeplast in 1968. His idea was to create a multi-functional office tool with rotatable drawers and compartments for accessories and drawings. At the same time, Boby was designed to be a strong, visible mark for an artistic approach. It has graced my own office since the late 1970s.
Article written by Lars Bülow
