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Mario Bellini "Forma" Cantilever Armchair for Vitra, Italy 1990s

Name: Mario Bellini "Forma" Cantilever Armchair for Vitra, Italy 1990s
Brand: Mario Bellini
Price: 665.76 USD
Availability: InStock

About the Item

The now historic story goes: “About 20 years ago Rolf Fehlbaum, the Chairman of Vitra, called me up and said: The things we’re making are too boring. We want to change that, and you’re our man. Oh, I thought, he knows more about me than I do about myself! Well, in any case that was the start of a development process lasting five years, which ultimately resulted in five office chairs that provided a more dynamic, less gravity-bound sitting experience. They became a great success, and of course that was good for our relationship. Though I should say, the good relationship was there from the very beginning – otherwise our collaboration would not have worked!” Mario Bellini This armchair is a visual reminder of Bellini’s ideas regarding the mantra of “form follows function” which he simply sees as premeditated nonsense. It also showcases the designer’s background as a trained architect, who has consistently taken an architectural approach to design, emphasising austerity and precision, yet nevertheless investing his objects with emotion. The main design element is of course the frame itself with an innovative cantilever structure that stands as a balancing act. The curved arms covered in plastic contrast with the square shape of the legs, pulling the design into balance. The seat and back are upholstered in a red fabric that stands out against the black frame and thus draws the eye. Every small detail reflects the design prowess of Bellini resulting in a piece that far surpasses the ideas of an ‘office chair’. This “Forma’ chair is both of its time and eternally contemporary, which is one if its main charms. It is sure to elevate any interior while also infusing it with design history. Bellini was recently acclaimed by The New York Times as the ‘last great protagonist of Italian design’. Indeed, Mario Bellini is one of the predominant Italian designers of the past thirty years and has been the most frequent recipient of the Italian design prize Compasso d’Oro.

Creator:

Mario Bellini (Designer)

Dimensions:

Height: 34.26 in (87 cm)Width: 24.02 in (61 cm)Depth: 25.2 in (64 cm)Seat Height: 18.9 in (48 cm)

Style:

Modern (In the Style Of)

Materials and Techniques:

Metal

Place of Origin:

Italy

Period:

1990-1999

Date of Manufacture:

1990s

Condition:

Wear consistent with age and use. The chair has its original red upholstery, but can be reupholstered upon request by our in house atelier in any fabric of choice. Please get in touch with us for details.

Seller Location:

Budapest, HU

Reference Number:

1stDibs: LU9486237617802

View Invoice

Shop All Mario Bellini

Mario Bellini

Milan-born architect and designer Mario Bellini just may be the closest thing to a modern-day Renaissance man: His creative output spans genres, from electronics to furniture to architecture to cars, comprising iconic designs in each. Vintage Mario Bellini sofas, dining chairs and other seating pieces are widely coveted, and the designer has been the recipient of multiple prestigious Compasso d’Oro awards. More than 20 of his works are in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.

Born in 1935, Bellini studied architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan before founding his own firm in his native city in the early 1960s. He soon branched out beyond architecture, however, first for the tech manufacturer Olivetti, where he served as chief industrial design consultant from 1963 to 1991. During that time, Bellini oversaw the design of some of Olivetti’s most popular typewriters.

His penchant for electronic design didn’t stop there: Bellini also designed cameras for Fuji, televisions for Brionvega and a slew of audio devices for Yamaha, then served as design consultant for Renault and devised the interior of the 1980 Lancia Trevi for Fiat. Meanwhile, his architecture work spans continents, including such modern gems as the Museum of Islamic Arts at the Louvre, the National Gallery of Victoria extension in Melbourne, the Dubai Creek Complex and the Milan Convention Centre in his hometown.

And then there’s the furniture: Over the last 70 years, Bellini has designed office furniture for Vitra; lamps for Artemide, Erco and FLOS; porcelain for Rosenthal and long-admired sofas and other seating for Kartell, Natuzzi, B&B Italia, Cassina and more.

His oft-imitated 1977 Cab chair for Cassina, comprising 16 individual pieces of saddle leather that create a “skin” over a minimal metal frame, remains one of the manufacturer’s best sellers today. His pudgy-legged, round tables for Cassina foreshadow Faye Toogood’s widely loved Roly Poly line. His postmodern Summa armchairs for Kartell, as well as his elegant Chiara floor lamp, still lure collectors on vintage furniture websites.

Bellini’s most famous contribution to furniture design, though, may be his 1970 Camaleonda sofa for B&B Italia (then C&B Italia). An entrant to the 1972 MoMA show “Italy: The New Domestic Landscape,” the seat takes its name from the Italian words for chameleon and wave. Its bulbous, modular form makes it infinitely flexible. The sofa was a runaway hit at the show and, once discontinued, remained so popular among vintage dealers that B&B Italia reissued it in 2020 with all recycled materials and interchangeable seat covers. “Of all the objects I have designed, Camaleonda is perhaps the best in terms of its sense of freedom,” Bellini said.

Browse an expansive collection of vintage Mario Bellini furniture — including dining tables, armchairs, mid-century sofas and more — today on 1stDibs.