Osvaldo Borsani L150 Bed in metal, Faux leather upholstery, circa 1967
About the Item
- Creator:Osvaldo Borsani (Designer),Tecno (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 24.81 in (63 cm)Width: 81.5 in (207 cm)Depth: 46.46 in (118 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1967
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Milan, IT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU5054123133532
Osvaldo Borsani
With his stylish and technically innovative furniture, Osvaldo Borsani helped change the face of Italian design in the 1950s and ’60s. His sofas and chairs, featuring deeply upholstered seating and adjustable position settings, have an aura of optimism and efficiency that still seems fresh and lively today.
Born in the commune of Varedo in northern Italy’s Lombardy region, Borsani studied at the Brera Academy in Milan — the same school attended by such luminaries as designer Piero Fornasetti and artist Lucio Fontana — as well as the Polytechnic University of Milan. Borsani first worked for his father’s furniture-making firm, Arredamenti Borsani, an atelier influenced by the more expressive and curvaceous wing of Art Deco design.
By 1953, when, along with his twin brother, Fulgenzio — the pair also created this visionary mid-century villa — Borsani opened the furniture company Tecno, his design sensibilities had evolved toward furnishings with strong, simple forms enhanced by mechanical innovations, as with the P40 adjustable armchair. Borsani would be the firm’s lead designer for 30 years, while fostering work by Vico Magistretti, Carlo De Carli, Robin Day and others.
Similar to Gio Ponti in the earliest years of his career, Borsani first created designs marked by lush and buoyant lines: tables with voluptuous curved legs, sofas with undulating backrests.
But Borsani’s best-known and most novel pieces date from Tecno’s initial furniture lines: the adjustable D70 sofa, which folds open to make a daybed, and the P40 recliner. The latter — now included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art and the Victoria & Albert Museum — is an articulated lounger with a back, seat and leg rest that can be moved into 486 different positions. Not only is it extremely comfortable, it is also enduringly chic.
Find a collection of vintage Osvaldo Borsani tables, dining chairs and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Tecno
From his early start at his father’s boutique furniture and cabinetry atelier — Arredamenti Borsani (ABV) — Italian designer Osvaldo Borsani began to steadily dream to life the movement-inducing pieces that would eventually lead to him founding his innovative furniture company, Tecno, with his twin brother, Fulgenzio.
Born in the commune of Varedo in northern Italy’s Lombardy region, Borsani studied at the Brera Academy in Milan — the same school attended by such luminaries as designer Piero Fornasetti and artist Lucio Fontana — as well as the Polytechnic University of Milan. He first worked for the family furniture-making firm, ABV, an atelier influenced by the more expressive and curvaceous wing of Art Deco design. Borsani took over Arredamenti Borsani in 1937.
With his stylish and technically innovative furniture, Borsani helped change the face of Italian design in the 1950s and ’60s. His sofas and chairs, featuring deeply upholstered seating and adjustable position settings, have an aura of optimism and efficiency that still seems fresh and lively today.
While he is today recognized as a master of mid-century modernist Italian furniture, Borsani is most famous these days for cofounding Tecno. (He and Fulgenzio also created Villa Borsani, a visionary mid-century estate cherished for its modern lines and exquisite custom furnishings.)
When Borsani opened Tecno, an office-focused maker of industrial design, his design sensibilities had evolved toward furnishings with strong, simple forms enhanced by mechanical innovations, as with the P40 adjustable armchair.
When they were originally released, Tecno pieces like the P40 and the award-winning D70 sofa bed were acclaimed as cutting-edge, and they are still considered groundbreaking in their adaptability and functionality. The firm quickly garnered widespread acclaim for its tech-forward designs and quality craftsmanship.
Borsani would be Tecno’s lead designer for 30 years, while partnering on projects with the likes of architect Eugenio Gerli and fostering work by Vico Magistretti, Carlo De Carli, Robin Day and others.
Borsani designed pieces for Tecno until shortly before his death in 1985, when his daughter Valeria and her husband, Marco Fantoni, took over the creative work.
Today, the family’s legacy is preserved by Borsani’s architect grandson Tommaso Fantoni, who, along with Norman Foster, curated a blockbuster retrospective of Osvaldo Borsani’s work at Milan’s Triennale Design Museum in 2018.
Find vintage Tecno chairs, tables, desks and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Fizzonasco, Italy
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
- Osvaldo Borsani Rosewood Sideboard Model SE3, Prod. Tecno, Italy, 1962By Osvaldo Borsani, TecnoLocated in Milan, ITThis rosewood sideboard model SE3 featuring two sliding doors was designed by Osvaldo Borsani for Tecno in 1962. Functionality and essential shapes are the keywords around which th...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sideboards
MaterialsMetal
- Stunning Red Armchairs P71 by Osvaldo Borsani - Mid century Italian Design 1950sBy Tecno, Osvaldo BorsaniLocated in Milan, ITThese unique armchairs, crafted by Osvaldo Borsani and manufactured by Tecno in Como, Italy, date back to 1954. The P71 model stands as one of Tecno's early creations, showcased at t...Category
Vintage 1950s Armchairs
MaterialsFabric, Wood
- Osvaldo Borsani Italian Wood and Crystal Wall Console TableBy Arredamenti Borsani, Osvaldo BorsaniLocated in Milan, ITThis big and elegant wall console - designed by Osvaldo Borsani - features a top in back-painted crystal, while the wall mount are made out of brass. Manufactured by ABV Arredamenti...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Console Tables
MaterialsCrystal
- Carlo Mollino Stackable Beds from Casa del Sole Apartments in Cervinia, 1953By Carlo MollinoLocated in Milan, ITThe importance of Mollino and his work is beyond the simple aesthetics of the beds designed for the "Casa del Sole". Casa del Sole was a visionary project, a jump into the future wit...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsBrass
- Pair of Nightstands in Wood, Made in Italy circa 1960sLocated in Milan, ITTwo nightstands in lacquered wood with a nickel-plated metal handle and leather details. It features an upper drawer and lower compartment with double doors. The line of these nights...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Night Stands
MaterialsMetal
- Romeo Rega Bed, Brass Wood and Fabric, Italian Design, 1970sBy Romeo RegaLocated in Milan, ITRomeo Rega is famous for his production of fine brass furnitures and lamps that became an emerging trend during 1970s. The eclectic spirit of the time brought new ideas all-over soci...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsBrass
- Italian Midcentury D-70 Sofa / Bed by Osvaldo Borsani & Tecno, New UpholsteryBy Osvaldo Borsani, TecnoLocated in New York, NYAn important statement in the history of Modern design: the Italian Mid-Century Modern D 70 sofa, couch or bed by Osvaldo Borsani for Tecno. Tecno was one of the ...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsSteel, Brass
- Osvaldo Borsani Brass BedBy Arnaldo Pomodoro, Osvaldo BorsaniLocated in London, EnglandThis bed is part of an exclusive series designed by Borsani and Pomodoro, each crafted in very limited numbers. Handmade by Arredamento Borsani in Varedo, Italy, these beds represent...Category
Vintage 1970s Scandinavian Scandinavian Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsBrass
- Rare Osvaldo Borsani Single Bed in BrassBy Osvaldo BorsaniLocated in Waalwijk, NLOsvaldo Borsani, single bed, model L79, brass, lacquered wood, fabric, Italy, 1963. This eccentric single bed is designed by Osvaldo Borsani and embodies a splendid construction of...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsBrass
- Sculptural form brass day bed by Osvaldo Borsani, Arredamento Borsani, circa 1958By Osvaldo Borsani, Arredamenti Borsani, Arnaldo PomodoroLocated in bergen op zoom, NLBeautiful and important sculpturakl form brass single bed or day bed circa 1958-1963 by Osvaldo Borsani for 'Arredamento Borsani', Varedo , Italy. The small series of Borsani beds designed were produced in several different designs ,each in very limited numbers and all hand made by the Arredamento Borsani in Varedo, italy. This series of beds never went into serial industrial production , a fact confirmed to me by the Arredamento Borsani archives. Beginning in the late 1950s,Osvaldo Borsani went on to collaborate with many great artists such as Lucio Fontana, Fausto Melotti, Agenore Fabbri, Aligi Sassu and Arnaldo Pomodoro, amongst others entrusting each to provide decorative elements to his designs. The brass headboard features a series of heavy cast solid brass interlocking geometric elements each featuring a beautiful organic three dimensional surface finish creating a supremely elegant and timeless repetitive motif . The bed still retains all its original decorative brass nuts ,bolts and finials which feature the same three dimensional decorative finish as the decorative sculptural forms contained in the headboard. We have had a new bespoke mattress and bolster pillow made with a natural latex foam surface as they would have originally had which also has the benefit that latex breathes. The mattress has an opulent decorative buttoned finish . Botht the mattress and pillow have been finished in 100% wool 'PLOEGWOOL' fabric by the high quality Dutch fabric manufacturer DE PLOEG. MATTRESS DIMENSIONS : Width 100cm x length 200cm / 3ft 3.37inch x 6ft 6.74inch BOLSTER PILLOW DIMENSIONS: Width 100cm diameter 24cm / 3ft 3.37inch x 9.45inch The mattress is supported on a 20mm ( 0.75 inch ) thick plywood board ,with breathing holes, which spans across the transverse brass plated steel frame elements. When used as a day bed SEATING...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsBrass
- Osvaldo Borsani Brass Double Bed, Italy, 1960sBy Osvaldo BorsaniLocated in Brussels, BEOsvaldo Borsani brass double bed, Italy, 1960s.Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsBrass
- Osvaldo Borsani & Arnaldo Pomodoro Brass Bed, Italy, 1970sBy Arnaldo Pomodoro, Osvaldo BorsaniLocated in Brussels, BEOsvaldo Borsani & Arnaldo Pomodoro brass bed, Italy, 1970s.Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Beds and Bed Frames
MaterialsBrass