Ico Parisi Sofa in Leaf Motif Fabric and Tapered Wooden Legs, Italy, 1950s
About the Item
- Creator:Ico Parisi (Designer)
- Similar to:Federico Munari (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 34.26 in (87 cm)Width: 65.75 in (167 cm)Depth: 37.41 in (95 cm)Seat Height: 17.33 in (44 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Please note that the material shows signs of wear and use and that we advise reupholstery before use.
- Seller Location:Almelo, NL
- Reference Number:
Ico Parisi
Domenico “Ico” Parisi was one half of a prolific postwar design duo he comprised with his wife, Luisa. Their furniture designs are known for running the stylistic gamut, with celebrated mid-century modern pieces ranging from elegantly skeletal — like dramatic ebonized dining chairs — to plush and shapely, like the iconic 1951 Egg chair, in a plethora of materials.
The son of an art teacher father, Ico Parisi was exposed to art at an early age. Born in 1916 in the Sicilian capital of Palermo, he and his family moved to Como in 1925. There, the young Parisi would begin to develop his interest in architecture and design. After earning a degree as a building inspector in 1936 and working as a civil engineer, Parisi took on an apprenticeship in the studio of Giuseppe Terragni, the modernist, fascist Italian architect, pioneer of the Rationalist movement and creator of the iconic Casa del Fascio.
While working for Terragni, Parisi crossed paths with such contemporary design talents as Lucio Fontana, Bruno Munari and Pietro Lingeri, though he briefly moved away from design and architecture to explore photography and film. His artistic work would soon be interrupted, however, by the outbreak of World War II, during which he served at the front before returning to Como in 1943. There, he resumed work as a designer and architect, founding two architecture groups: the Alta Quota and the Gruppo Como.
Through his creative circles, Parisi met Luisa Aiani, a former student of the prolific architect and furniture designer Gio Ponti, who was affiliated with the Alta Quota. They married in 1947 and founded the studio La Ruota — a cross between a design firm and an intellectual salon — in Como shortly thereafter. In 1950, Parisi finally completed his architectural schooling, studying under the nationalist architect Alberto Sartoris at the Athenaeum Architecture School in Lausanne, Switzerland. He and Aiani began several decades of sophisticated output, designing curved sofas upholstered in yellow velvet and armchairs with slender mahogany frames for enduring Italian manufacturers such as Cassina and others.
Much like Charles and Ray Eames in America, the Parisis worked as a team and relied on experimentation in style and material for many of their designs. Ico Parisi died in Como in 1996.
Find a collection of vintage Ico Parisi coffee tables, dining chairs and more on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Almelo, Netherlands
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
- Ico Parisi / Federico Munari Sofa in Orginal Fabric, 1950sBy Federico Munari, Ico ParisiLocated in Almelo, NLIco Parisi / Federico Munari sofa in original fabric and tapered wooden legs, Italy 1950s Italian 1950s organic sofa, attributed to Ico Parisi. (also sometimes attributed to Feder...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric, Beech
- Ico Parisi Armchairs in Fabric and Tapered wooden Legs, Italy 1950sBy Ico Parisi, Ariberto ColomboLocated in Almelo, NLIco Parisi armchairs in fabric and tapered wooden legs, Italy 1950s Ico and Luisa Parisi designed a pair of collectible Italian mid-century arm...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Beech
- Emilio Sala and Giorgio Madini, Sofa with Tapered Wooden Legs Italy, 1950sBy Gio PontiLocated in Almelo, NLEmilio Sala and Giorgio Madini sofa with Tapered wooden legs Italy, in the 1950s. This small sofa with tapered wooden legs and original upholstery was designed by Emilio Sala and G...Category
Vintage 1950s Mid-Century Modern Loveseats
MaterialsVelvet, Beech
- Emilio Sala and Giorgio Madini, Sofa with Tapered Wooden Legs Italy, in the 1950By Gio PontiLocated in Almelo, NLEmilio Sala and Giorgio Madini sofa with Tapered wooden legs Italy, in the 1950s. Lovely small sofa with tapered wooden legs and ori...Category
Vintage 1950s Mid-Century Modern Loveseats
MaterialsVelvet, Beech
- Giuseppe Pagano Pogatschnig. 'Bocconi' Sofa, Italy, 1940sBy Giuseppe Pagano PogatschnigLocated in Almelo, NLGiuseppe Pagano Pogatschnig. 'Bocconi' sofa, Italy, 1940s. Giuseppe Pagano Pogatschnig e Gino Maggioni designed this 'Bocconi' sofa in curved wood. Two large squares form it in cu...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Settees
MaterialsRope, Beech, Bentwood
- High Back Sofa By Gio Ponti For ISA Bergamo in Bouclé Fabric Upholstery 1950sBy ISA Bergamo, Gio PontiLocated in Almelo, NLElegant three seat high back sofa reupholstered in new bouclé fabric was designed by Gio Ponti and produced by the ISA company in Bergamo, Italy 1950s. ISA Bergamo was responsible fo...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsBrass
- Curved Egg Shape Sofa, in the Style of Ico Parisi, Italy, 1950s / 60sBy Jean Royère, Ico ParisiLocated in London, GBA superb and unusual Italian 1950s/1960s egg shaped sofa, in the style of Ico Parisi. The sofa has been reupholstered in an ivory pure alpaca fabric and is of a curved, shallow organ...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric, Wood
- Italian Designer, Sofa or Settee, Fabric, Brass, Italy, 1950sLocated in High Point, NCA fabric and brass sofa, designed and produced in Italy, 1950s.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Settees
MaterialsBrass
- Ico Parisi Style Mid-Century Modern Italian Sofa, 1950sBy Ico ParisiLocated in Puglia, PugliaThree seater sofa in the style of Ico Parisi. Very elegant and comfortable, with floral fabric upholstery, the upholstery was redone twenty years ago but new upholstery is recommended.Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric, Beech
- Italian Sofa attributed to Ico Parisi in original fabricBy Ico ParisiLocated in Milano, ITElegant small Italian living room sofa attributed to Ico Parisi from the 1950s. The sofa is in its original condition, we also find its original fabric of the time in grey-brown stri...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsVelvet, Wood
- Ico Parisi Vintage Italian Curved Sofa from the, 1950sBy Ico ParisiLocated in PEGO, ESRetro Italian designed curved four-seater sofa Ico Parisi "Comma" iconic piece, completely restored and newly reupholstered with an ecru stretch fabric, finished with aged studs and ...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Sofas
MaterialsBrass
- Ico Parisi Sofa, 1950By Ariberto Colombo, Ico ParisiLocated in Berlin, DEThe sophisticated and avantgardistic design language of Ico Parisi is epitomized in this beautiful three seater. For the entrance of a villa in Como, Ico Parisi designed this beautiful seater. It consists of beautiful ash wood, brass and upholstery of velvet in elegant blue. Excellent condition. The model in question takes up the motif given by the repetition of the wooden X-shaped crosses that draw the three seats and resolve the support of the padded backrests. In this case, the supporting structure, carved in solid ash, is completed by short legs, a logical continuation of the uprights, which mark the seats. The upholstery is not original. About the designer: Ico Parisi was born in Palermo in 1916. He graduated in construction and served his apprenticeship in the studio of Giuseppe Terragni. In 1937 he made a photographic study of the Casa del Fascio for the magazine Quadrante, which marked the whole of Parisi's research into "meditating on the legacies and contradictions of the enormous store of ideas and forms constituted by the experience of the masters". His activity, marked by continuous experimentation, consists in an incessant research in the fields of architecture, art and design. Between 1948 and 1950 he devoted himself to the study of furniture elements. In the field of design, the crucial encounters with Munari and Fontana (1951), and Melotti profoundly marked his experience. In 1948 he founded, with his wife Luisa Aiani, planner and designer, the studio La ruota which ceased its activity in 1995. In 1954 he won the Gold Medal at the Milan Triennial X with the work Padiglione soggiorno, with Silvio Longhi and Luigi Antonietti. In 1957 he presented the work Casa per vacanze at the exhibition Colori e forme della casa d'oggi, the result of a collaboration with Manlio Rho...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Modern Sofas
MaterialsBrass
