Set of 6 "122" Chairs by Vico Magistretti for Cassina, Italy, 1960s
About the Item
- Creator:Vico Magistretti (Designer),Cassina (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 29.34 in (74.5 cm)Width: 19.69 in (50 cm)Depth: 20.48 in (52 cm)Seat Height: 17.52 in (44.5 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1960s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Argelato, IT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU7342239396522
Vico Magistretti
As one of the founding fathers of modern Italian design, prolific architect and industrial designer Ludovico Magistretti (known by his nickname Vico) was guided by his philosophy, “There is no excuse for bad design.” His architectural projects are widely revered, and an ingenious meld of form and function can be found in his stylish and deceptively simple table lamps, sofas, armchairs and other mid-century furnishings.
Born in Milan, Magistretti followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather (both architects) to study architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan. At the outbreak of World War II, he fled to Switzerland, and it was there he met his role model and mentor, renowned humanist architect Ernesto Nathan Rogers. Magistretti was inspired by Rogers’s vision to revive postwar Italy, and they collaborated on several reconstruction projects. Among Magistretti’s first architectural designs is a “poetic” round church, which he created for the QT8, an experimental Milanese neighborhood.
When Magistretti returned to Milan in 1945, he worked at his father’s architectural firm. It wasn’t until the early 1950s that he expanded his talents into design while working with furniture artisans.
In the 1960s, Magistretti began his 30-year working relationship with famed entrepreneur Cesare Cassina of the Cassina furniture manufacturing company. In their design approach, the two men shared a vision of the relationship between modernity and tradition and enjoyed a close bond (Magistretti designed Cassina’s luxurious villa in 1965). However, their friendship was not without contention.
Legend has it that upon seeing the prototype for Magistretti’s Maralunga sofa, Cassina hated it so much that he punched it, breaking the back of the sofa, which crumpled into itself.
“Right, great, it looks perfect to me like that,” an unfazed Magistretti allegedly responded, and the Maralunga’s slumped, adjustable-height backrest was born. Incidentally, the Maralunga sofa won Italy’s Compasso d’Oro award as did his Eclisse lamp for Artemide and his Atollo lamp for Oluce.
Magistretti died in 2006, but his designs live on in galleries, museums and private residences and offices around the world.
Find a range of vintage Vico Magistretti furniture and lighting on 1stDibs.
Cassina
Furniture manufacturer Cassina is a prolific design house for more reasons than one: It not only owns the licenses to an exquisite collection of iconic chairs, sofas, tables and other pieces from the 20th and 21st centuries but also produces original works that are characterized by innovation and the finest Italian craftsmanship.
Cassina’s illustrious legacy includes being one of the first companies to bring industrial design to Italy in the 1950s. Founded in 1927 in Meda, Italy, by brothers Cesare and Umberto Cassina, the Italian manufacturing giant originally specialized in bespoke woodworking. In nearly a century since its founding, the company has shown incredible foresight about design trends and the evolution of technology.
In 1964, Cassina signed an exclusive licensing agreement to manufacture furniture by Le Corbusier and his collaborators — such as the LC4 chaise longue made with trailblazing French modernist Charlotte Perriand and Pierre Jeanneret — a move that would shape the future of the company. Cassina’s I Maestri collection is an ongoing initiative to restyle landmark designs from the 20th century, such as pieces by Gerrit Rietveld (the Red and Blue armchair from 1918), Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Erik Gunnar Asplund, Franco Albini and Frank Lloyd Wright. The company preserves the intentions and original styles of their designs but adds updated techniques, materials and processes — rendering them the best possible combination of past, present and future. The brand has also worked with contemporary icons like Zaha Hadid, Gio Ponti and Philippe Starck.
Cassina’s original designs are cutting-edge as well. They include pieces for everyday use, the development of which is guided by comfort and the marriage of Italian craftsmanship with industrial technology.
Some of Cassina’s pieces, both from its contemporary and I Maestri collections, can be found in the collections of museums like the Museum of Modern Art and the Vitra Design Museum. In 2014, the company became part of Haworth in its acquisition of Italian furniture group Poltrona Frau, and in 2015, Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola joined Cassina as its art director, leading the brand into its next century of inventive style.
Find a collection of new and vintage Cassina furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Argelato, Italy
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
- Set of Four SD51 "Golem" Chairs by Vico Magistretti for Poggi, Italy, 1960sBy Poggi, Vico MagistrettiLocated in Argelato, BOThe Golem chair, with a high backrest in lacquered wood, was born, as Magistretti states, from the desire to pay homage to the designer Mackintosh, after visiting an exhibition on th...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Post-Modern Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Vico Magistretti, Chimera Floor Lamp for Artemide, Italy, 1960s (Old Edition)By Vico Magistretti, ArtemideLocated in Argelato, BOIconic and unusual lamp designed by the great Italian architect and designer Vico Magistretti. This is one of the first versions, coming from an important hotel in Romagna (Italy) ...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Floor Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- Set of four chairs by Ico Parisi for Mim, Italy, 1960sBy Ico ParisiLocated in Argelato, BOSet of four chairs by Ico Parisi for Mim, Italy, 1960s. Four chairs with wooden structure and red fabric padding, designed by Ico Parisi for the MIM company in Rome. An elegant and ...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Wood
- Set of 6 Leather "121" Chairs by Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, Italy, 1967By Tobia Scarpa, Afra & Tobia ScarpaLocated in Argelato, BOSet of 6 Leather "121" Chairs by Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, Italy, 1967 The chair, which has now become an icon of Italian style, features Scarpa's typical double trestle structure w...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Set of 2 Black Leather "121" Chairs by Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, Italy, 1967By Tobia Scarpa, Afra & Tobia ScarpaLocated in Argelato, BOSet of 2 Black Leather "121" Chairs by Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, Italy, 1967 The chair, which has now become an icon of Italian style, features Scarpa's typical double trestle struc...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Set of 6 Black Leather "121" Chairs by Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, Italy, 1967By Tobia Scarpa, Afra & Tobia ScarpaLocated in Argelato, BOSet of 6 Black Leather "121" Chairs by Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, Italy, 1967 The chair, which has now become an icon of Italian style, features Scarpa's typical double trestle struc...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Italian mid-century modern chairs 122 by Vico Magistretti for Cassina, 1960sBy Cassina, Vico MagistrettiLocated in MIlano, ITItalian mid-century modern chairs 122 by Vico Magistretti for Cassina, 1960s Set of four chairs mod. 122 with brown leather seat. The structure is entirely made of wood, the backrest...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Vico Magistretti, a Pair of Chairs, Model 122, Cassina, 1960sBy Cassina, Vico MagistrettiLocated in Paris, FRA pair of dark brown walnut stackable dining chairs. Each with a bent plywood back, the seat upholstered with burgundy velvet on four feet. Manufactured by Cassina. Italy. 1967. P...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Walnut
- Vico Magistretti "122" Chairs for Cassina, 1967, Set of 8By Cassina, Vico MagistrettiLocated in Lonigo, VenetoVico Magistretti for Cassina "122" chairs for Cassina, brown leather, beech and plywood, Italy, 1967, set of eight. The "122" chairs designed by Vico Magistretti in 1967 have a scul...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBeech, Plywood, Leather
- Vico Magistretti "Carimate" Dining Chairs for Cassina, 1960, Set of 2By Cassina, Vico MagistrettiLocated in Lonigo, VenetoVico Magistretti "Carimate" dining chairs for Cassina, green lacquered wood and straw seat, Italy, 1960, set of two. The "Carimate" chair is one of Vico Magistretti’s most famous ...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsStraw, Wood
- Vico Magistretti "Carimate" Dining Chairs for Cassina, 1960, Set of 6By Vico Magistretti, CassinaLocated in Lonigo, VenetoVico Magistretti "Carimate" dining chairs for Cassina, red lacquered wood and straw seat, Italy, 1960, set of six. The "Carimate" chair is one of Vico Magistretti’s most famous ch...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsStraw, Wood
- Vico Magistretti "Carimate" Dining Chairs for Cassina, 1960, Set of 4By Vico Magistretti, CassinaLocated in Lonigo, VenetoVico Magistretti "Carimate" dining chairs for Cassina, red lacquered wood and straw seat, Italy, 1960, set of four. The "Carimate" chair is one of Vico Magistretti’s most famous c...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsStraw, Wood
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
The 21 Most Popular Mid-Century Modern Chairs
You know the designs, now get the stories about how they came to be.
Billy Cotton Layers His Interiors with Lived-In Comfort
The Brooklyn-based designer is adept at styles ranging from austere to over-the-top, espousing an architectural, detail-oriented approach also evident in his line of furniture and lighting.