Bel Design is a post-war miracle
Rome. Actress Monika Vitta is crossing Navona Square, and this is the artist Renato Guttuso looking at the Trevi Fountain, Marcello Mastroianna finishing his espresso in the bright lobby of the hotel. A Catholic nun solemnly steps past St. Peter's Basilica, a schoolboy in short pants hurries down the Spanish Steps, which are flooded with tourists, government officials, and pigeons. Four unemployed men are playing cards right on the steps. Here is the funeral of the communist leader Palmyro Togliatta, here is a ball in the Palazzo Pallavicina art museum, and this is workers repairing a section of the road from Rome to Florence. Young girls in Palermo are returning from the beach, a boy is running along a narrow street hung with freshly washed linen like sails, several priests are reading the socialist newspaper Avanti, the son of a fisherman in Naples looks after his younger sisters, the racer Alberto Ascara is approaching the finish line in his Lancia, in Venice, a couple kisses in the rain on St. Mark's Square, the inhabitants of the village of Buccianica celebrate the May Festival, and this is Via Montenapoleone in Milan. Here is a bootshine boy, here is a taxi driver, here is a young hairdresser, and here, in the heart of the quarter, far from the crowd, a street violinist is playing right in front of a bookstore...
Viareggio, 1959, photographer Paolo di Paolo
This is how we represent Italy in the 50s and 60s. on documentary shootings, street photographs, feature films of Pier Paolo Pasolini and Michelangelo Antoniona. The post-war crisis, workers' strikes, political upheavals, student movements, industrial development - everything is bordered by a bright social life, the flowering of art, fashion and design. The atmosphere of freedom, majesty and tragedy.
At that time, Italy was experiencing a real economic miracle, the culmination of which came in the mid-50s. He took over the baton from the USA, it became the leading country in the field of industrial design. Production developed at breakneck speed, and soon the whole world began to dress in Italian suits, ride Italian scooters, drink from Italian coffee makers, type on Italian typewriters. Post-war factories made it their mission to improve the quality of human life. The concept of Bel Design appeared on the mental map of the world. A furore in the furniture industry occurred when, along with classic items, new, modern furniture began to be created.
Monica Vitti and Michelangelo Antonioni, Rome, 1958, photographer Paolo di Paolo
Pier Paolo Pasolini on Testaccio Hill, Rome, 1960, photographer Paolo di Paolo
Paolo di Paolo is a photographer born in Larino, Southern Italy, in 1925. After the Second World War, he moved to Rome, where in 1954 he got a job at Il Mondo publishing house, where he worked for 14 years. During these years, more than 500 of his photographs appeared in the magazine, but after the publication was closed, he left the profession forever, focusing on history and philosophy. The photographer took many beautiful pictures illustrating the atmosphere of his native Italy. Di Paolo was friends with many celebrities and he managed to colorfully convey episodes of their everyday life.
[Not] a sweet life and modest charm
The Flexform factory was founded in 1959, when, it seems, the entire concentrate of Italy was placed in Federico Fellina's famous film "Sweet Life", released at the time, and the economic boom reached its climax. Descendants of craftsmen who worked with wood at the beginning of the XNUMXth century, the Galimbert brothers - Pietro, Romeo and Agostino - decided to open their own production. The birthplace of the factory was the small, quiet town of Meda, located north of Milan.
Salon Flexform Mood from Dominio Group in Kyiv. On display: Armand sofa, Carmen ottoman, Marmaduke coffee table
The first stages in the formation of the company's image were the development of a corporate style and advertising. In pre-war and post-war Italy, there was no special design education, all designers were architects. They were engaged in the creation of products, interior design, decor and graphic design. In 1969, the architect Pino Tovalya, the author of the logo of the legendary Alfa Romeo, developed a logo for Flexform. The next step in communication with the world is emotional black-and-white advertising pictures in magazines made by famous photographers Aldo Ballo, Mario Ciampa, Fabrizio Ferra, Gianna Berengo Gardin. By the 70s Flexform reached a new level by selling its products outside of Italy. Initially, local architects China Boera, Joe Colombo, Rodolfo Bonetto, Sergio Asta, Giulio Manzoni, Paolo Nava participated in the development of the furniture design.
Every year, the factory expanded the boundaries of cooperation, while staying true to its roots. New York, Milan, Shanghai, Tokyo, Sydney... Today, representatives of the Flexform company work in 89 countries around the world, whose items have become a must-have for the "correct" modern interior: refined, subtle, not "flashy", with high-class materials and "smart" details that create the character of the space, which is often called "timeless", "elegant" or "referring to the classics". In Buñuel's words, it could be described as "the modest charm of the bourgeoisie." However, it is difficult to choose an exact epithet that fully corresponds to an intellectual product that was the result of more than half a century of creative search. The history of the Halimberta family continues, because the children and grandchildren of the masters who came in the distant 60s still work in the company's production workshops.
Salon Flexform Mood from Dominio Group in Kyiv. On display: Dragonfly bed, Eaton tables, Timmy banquette
"When I think about design, I am always inspired by the history of families, especially when it comes to furniture. It's always the story of families and people, combined with the idea of creativity," says the legendary Milanese architect Antonio Citterio. (Antonio designed his first object in his father's carpentry shop.) This incredibly energetic person and prolific architect has been working for more than 40 years on creating designs for the Flexform factory and now holds the post of art director of the company. It is thanks to his philosophy and new creative methods that Flexform items have become so recognizable and convincing.
Antonio Citterio and his "simple" architecture
Antonio Citterio is an architect, designer, born in 1950 in the city of Meda in northern Italy, graduated from the Faculty of Architecture of the Technical University of Milan, in 90. became one of the most popular designers in the world.
In 1987, together with the architect, Terry Dwan's wife, he organized Antonio Citterio and Terry Dwan Architects. In 1999, Citterio was the founder of the studio Antonio Citterio and Partners, in 2009 he was the co-founder of the office Citterio Patricia Viel and Partners together with the architect Patricia Viel.
Antonio Citterio collaborates with Arclinea, Axor / hansgrohe, B&B Italia, FLOS, Fusital, Boffi, Brionvega, Hackman, Inda, Pozzi-Ginori, Hermès, Iittala, Kartell, Maxalto, Technogym, Vitra.
Antonio Citterio
Among his works are the reconstruction of the Brera Art Gallery in Milan, the Vitra factory, the Seregno administrative and commercial building complex, the Massimo De Carlo gallery, the Milan, Antwerp and Amsterdam offices of Esprit, the construction of a factory for the Vitra company, the BVLGARI hotels in London, the Mandarin Oriental in Milan and Bodrum (Turkey), the headquarters of Ermenegildo, Zegna in Milan, he designs for Valentino, Cerruti, Emanuel Ungaro, De Beers.
Since 2006, Antonio Citterio has taught at the Academy of Architecture of the University of Italian Switzerland, taught at the Domus Academy in Milan and at the Universita la Sapienza in Rome.
Antonio Citterio considers the main quality in his achievements to be curiosity, his life's motto is never to give up.
Flexform and Citterio share common roots, an understanding of beauty and the desire to make work a part of their lives. Born in the city of Meda, raised in post-war Italy, Antonio Citterio considers "the gap between wealth and poverty to be the greatest problem of mankind." Either in the desire to reduce this gap, or in the desire to create things for a different quality of life, or dreaming of his own elegant style of life, he has been planning his subsequent creative path since childhood. At the age of 13, Antonio decided that he would be an architect, at the age of 18 he received the first prestigious award for the design of upholstered furniture, at the age of 22 he opened his first office.
Antonio Citterio's list of international awards and projects implemented around the world is admirable. He twice received the Compasso d'Oro from the Association of Industrial Design (ADI), became the owner of the Red Dot Design Award: Best of the Best, holds the honorary title of Royal Designer for Industry, awarded by the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a member of the Council of of design established by the Ministry of Culture. His author's objects are included in the exposition of the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA), the Georges Pompidou Center for Contemporary Art, and the Chicago Museum of Architecture and Design.
Author's objects by Antonio Citterio are included in the exposition of the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA), the Georges Pompidou Center for Contemporary Art, the Chicago Museum of Architecture and Design
Citterio is an all-rounder who designs everything from doorknobs to the spaces of industrial facilities, develops style for the most famous factories and fashion houses, teaches students, participates in conferences and international competitions.
All this multifaceted background remains somewhere behind the scenes, when we see a calm, quiet, charming family man, dressed in a simple gray polo shirt. This is what his objects look like. Simple and meaningful. Balance and absolute infallibility. "I create simple architecture because I've always done it and I can't change it now," says Citterio about his work principle. But behind this apparent simplicity are many years of experience, colossal work and a deep understanding of the essence of design.
About honesty and items "for yourself"
Being a worshiper of rationalism, inspired by the works of Tadao Ando, Charles and Ray Imzow, contrasting himself with singers of radical design such as Alessandro Mendina, the Memphis and Alchemy groups, the minimalist Antonio Citterio explains: "Being simple does not mean being banal." In this concept, the architect invests ideal ergonomics, thought out to the smallest detail, a limited color palette, laconic forms. Citterio compares his profession sometimes with the theater, sometimes with cooking, sometimes with religion. Everything that the design process has in common with these spheres probably consists in the ability to create true things. It is impossible to deceive the client with a beautiful picture, he will believe or not believe in the quality offered at first glance, word, taste.
Confessing this philosophy to his customer, Antonio Citterio remains honest with himself. There are no extra items in the space of his own workshop Citterio Patricia Viel and Partners. There are no bright, flashy things here, only what is needed for work: a large comfortable table, books and professional magazines (the latter only reads, loves to read newspapers), several things created during the period of joint creativity with his American wife Terri Dwan, a wooden terrace , living plants. Here, on Via Cerva, in the very heart of Milan, on the last seventh floor of an office building designed by the architect himself, behind a metal door, Citterio has been making "things for himself" for 21 hours. An architect creates things with which he would like to fill his life.
"The exact ratio of the height of the back and the depth of the sofa is the secret formula of comfort," says the owner of the Flexform factory, Giuliano Galimberti
Groundpiece by Flexform was created in response to a changed way of life: the sofa ceased to be just a seat, it transformed into a place where people rest, work, sleep, eat, watch movies, communicate with guests
Flexform items: Thomas armchair, Soffio coffee table, Jiff coffee table, Groundpiece sofa, Cesta Outdoor basket
"A private house is the dream project of your client's whole life," says the architect. According to Antonio, interior elements and space should serve a person, saving him from unnecessary troubles and difficulties. The door, for example, models the space, outlines the trajectory of the movement, and this is its only task, so it needs to be invisible and silent. All items must be "modest and quiet". A person does not need to think once again where the table or the switch is, how to find any item in the wardrobe, they feel discomfort due to the lack of light. When a person does not feel obstacles in space, it saves his time and energy, which he can direct to what he needs, to any business and occupation. This creates another quality of life. Observing such a difficult and special role of inanimate objects in people's lives is considered by Antonio Citterio to be one of the most important tasks of design. However, proclaiming function at the head of everything, Citterio does not exclude the emotional component as an important ingredient of design. At the same time, Citterio does not mean the external features of an object, expressed in a bright color or an unusual shape, by emotionality, but the feelings that this object evokes in the user. "Any space should convey emotion... You don't just wash in the bathroom. This is a place for relaxation, rest, and relaxation." This is how, for example, he presented the AXOR Citterio bathroom collection, designed for hansgrohe, in which the architect made it clear: "The most important luxury in the bathroom is water." And in addition to it, even higher quality of execution, weighted forms, balanced proportions, noble materials.
A sofa that is comfortable to live on
Citterio created many objects for Flexform, but thanks to his approach to design, this company became revolutionary precisely in the production of upholstered furniture.
"Our sofas are not just comfortable to sit on, they are comfortable to live on," says Flexform owner Giuliano Galimberty. How can you describe in words this ideal sofa for life? Do you remember how the famous character Exupery spoke about the beauty of the objects around us? "Why do adults always need numbers? If you say, for example, that a certain house is very beautiful, this will not give you the slightest idea of what it is like, but if you say that it costs billions, then the person will be admired and admit that it is really very beautiful a beautiful house..." said the Little Prince.
One of Groundpiece's know-how is a new concept of an armrest that acts as a coffee table and a shelf for storing accessories or books
Citterio created many objects for Flexform, but thanks to his approach to design, this company became revolutionary precisely in the production of upholstered furniture
One of Groundpiece's know-how is a new concept of an armrest that acts as a coffee table and a shelf for storing accessories or books
The price tag for Flexform sofas sometimes reaches several hundred thousand euros and does not require any justification for those who want to make these items part of their happy life. After all, it is not just about beauty, but about the highest quality of materials and technologies. Each collection and each model of the factory's furniture is thought out down to the smallest detail. The Flexform company is constantly improving both the items themselves and the work methods. How to arrange the joints? How to make a more simple and reliable assembly? How to stylistically combine a piece of furniture with an entire era? "Five types of polyurethane of different stiffness are used for one chair," says Giuliano Galimberta about the intricacies of production, "since it is impossible to make a truly comfortable seat with just one filler." Masters make elements of soft furniture according to a special technology: the polyurethane layer of the pillow is covered with a shell made of goose down, the soft back of the product at the level of the lower back is reinforced with dacron. Such a combination makes the seat as effective as possible. The factory uses only natural fabrics for upholstery, which have high density and are designed for long service.
Changes in the mindset of society are no less important for the operation of the factory than innovations in production and design itself. Proof of that is the emergence of Groundpiece.
Revolution from Flexform
"I am sometimes asked if there should be a comfortable sofa? - says Antonio Citterio. — I never ask such a question. If I ever create an uncomfortable sofa, it won't be a sofa at all."
Citterio received his first award for the design of upholstered furniture in 1968, and since then he has not stopped his creative pursuits in this direction.
In 2001, at the request of Pietro Galimberta, Antonio Citterio developed the Groundpiece design. This low, soft modular sofa is an interior element created as a response to a changed lifestyle: the sofa stopped being just a seat, it transformed into a place where people relax, work, read, sleep, eat, socialize with guests, watch movies. And the Groundpiece model reflects all these needs. Compared to the classic sofas that everyone is used to, Groundpiece has some know-how. The first consists in the very geometry of the object. The developers increased the depth of the seat from the standard 97 cm to a size of 120 cm, which immediately changed the format of using the sofa. This "four-legged friend" invites the owner to lie down, feel at home, relax and allow himself, as the Italians say, dolce far niente (in translation, "sweet nothingness").
Flexform items: Groundpiece sofa, Thomas armchair, Soffio coffee table, Jiff coffee table
Groundpiece sofa from Flexform
"The exact ratio of the height of the back and the depth of the sofa is the secret formula of comfort," says the owner of the factory Giuliano Galimberti. The second brilliant idea is a new concept of an armrest that acts as a coffee table and a shelf for storing accessories or books. Another innovation is special tilting rollers for supporting the head and pillows filled with goose down, which create additional comfort. The highest quality materials are used in the sofa manufacturing process. Its basis is a frame made of solid wood or metal, on which elastic belts are stretched, which allows you to evenly distribute the weight coming to the sofa. Groundpiece has become a trendsetter for soft furniture with deep seats, which has gained popularity all over the world. This year, when the Groundpiece sofa celebrated its 20th anniversary, the model remains relevant for any modern interior.
"Our goal is a new level of comfort," explains Giuliano Galimberti. — We do not strive to offer what already exists on the market. The future is based on discoveries"!
Italy is close
To be convinced of this statement, it is not necessary to fly to Italy. The Dominio Group company, which maintains close cooperation with world factories of the highest level, has significantly reduced the distance between Milan and Kyiv. With the recent opening of the new Flexform monobrand salon, Ukrainian architects and designers will have even more opportunities to do what they love, without limiting themselves to choosing unique high-class items for their projects. This is already the second Dominio showroom, which represents this famous Italian factory. In the first, already popular showroom of Flexform by Dominio in the capital, you can get acquainted with the best samples of the factory, where Zeno Light and Lifesteel sofas, Este, Guscio, Leda, Sveva armchairs and many other interesting things make up the stellar neighborhood of the legendary Groundpiece. The new exposition is devoted to the Mood collection, in which designers combined Italian tradition with American classics.
With the opening of the new Flexform Mood monobrand salon, the Dominio Group reduced the distance between Milan and Kyiv
Salon Flexform Mood from Dominio Group in Kyiv. On display: Arthur coffee table, Riviera tables and Alfred sofa (Mood collection)
Family craft workshops of post-war Italy, which grew over time into large companies, undertook a bold experiment in the field of furniture production. Gradually, improving technologies and working together with talented architects, changing approaches to design, they were able not only to change the way they look at design, but also on the philosophy of design as a whole. Continuing their development until now, remaining true to their roots, they set the direction for the vast international market and model a new lifestyle.
Yury Porubchenko
Head of the Dominio Group company
The head of the Dominio Group company Yury Porubchenko told about the opening of the new Flexform Mood showroom: "This year, the legendary Italian factory Flexform is experiencing a real revolution. The fact is that today the owners of the company decided to combine the main collections with the Flexform Mood collection, which until now existed as a separate direction. Now this is a single brand. We cannot lose sight of such a significant turning point for the history of the factory and want to share this collection in our new, second monobrand showroom of the company.
Yury Porubchenko, head of the Dominio Group company
The Flexform Mood collection was originally created in collaboration with the American designer John Hutton in 2001. Later it was supplemented by Carlo Colombo. Today, the Italian Roberto Lazzeroni is engaged in the development of items for the new direction. The Mood collection incorporated the Italian tradition with its love for refined details, natural materials and elegant forms, and the American style, which brought new moods: feelings of holiday, luxury, freedom. These items have even more exquisite fabrics, even more expensive finishes. Materials such as tanned leather and natural marble are often used in the products.
I would like to note that the designers of the factory participated in the creation of the interior of our new Flexform Mood showroom. The exposition has several different zones, which we divided with wooden panels. The salon space turned out to be very cozy and homely. We paid a lot of attention to lighting, you will see interesting lighting effects here. Fireplaces create a special atmosphere. When you come here, you will see how everything is filled with warmth - the interior and every item in the Mood collection."
/The material is published on the pages #30 of volume PRAGMATIKA.MEDIA/
