Up5 La Mamma Chair by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Chicago, IL
c. 1960s. Italy Reupholstered in furrish brown fabric.
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
Fabric
Up5 La Mamma Chair by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Chicago, IL
c. 1960s. Italy Reupholstered in furrish brown fabric.
Fabric
Gaetano Pesce Nobody's Perfect Small Chair in Red Resin by Zerodisegno 2000s
By Gaetano Pesce, Zerodisegno
Located in Cascina, Pisa
Some of his most famous furniture pieces include the Up-7 Piede, a large plastic lounge chair shaped like a human foot (1969); the Up5 armchair, also known as La Donna or La Mamma, a...
Resin
Gaetano Pesce The Faces Chair from Nobody's Perfect series by Zerodisegno 2005
By Zerodisegno, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Cascina, Pisa
Some of his most famous furniture pieces include the Up-7 Piede, a large plastic lounge chair shaped like a human foot (1969); the Up5 armchair, also known as La Donna or La Mamma, a...
Resin, Plastic
Gaetano Pesce Set of Four Multicoloured Umbrella Chairs by Zerodisegno 1990s
By Gaetano Pesce, Zerodisegno
Located in Cascina, Pisa
Some of his most famous furniture pieces include the Up-7 Piede, a large plastic lounge chair shaped like a human foot (1969); the Up5 armchair, also known as La Donna or La Mamma, a...
Aluminum
$8,110 / item
UP5&6 "La Mamma" by Gaetano Pesce designed in 1969
Located in Brussels, BE
The iconic UP5 armchair and its matching UP6 ottoman commonly known as “La Mamma”, "La Donna", " Big Mamma" or "Up 50" is imagined in 1969 by Gaetano Pesce and reedited in 2019 by B&...
Fabric
MINT Black UP5 La Big Mamma UP 2000 Chair & UP6 Ottoman Gaetano Pesce B&B Italia
By B&B Italia, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Basel, BS
Often referred to as the "Big Mama Chair" or "La Mamma," it is distinguished by its organic, sculptural form that harmoniously merges comfort with aesthetic appeal.
Fabric, Upholstery, Foam
UP5 La Big Mamma Chair & UP6 Ottoman Gaetano Pesce, 2000s
Located in PARIS, FR
Designed in 1969 by Gaetano Pesce for C&B Italia — soon to become B&B Italia — the UP5/6, known as "La Mamma" or "Donna," remains one of the most politically charged objects ...
Fabric, Foam
$2,600Sale Price|31% Off
'Babel' Resin Wine Bucket by Gaetano Pesce for Fish Design Italy, 1990s, Signed
By Gaetano Pesce, Fish Design
Located in Los Angeles, CA
His creations reflect a profound contemplation of modernity, exemplified by the La Mamma chair (1969), which evokes a prehistoric fertility figure, and the Organic Building in Osaka ...
Resin
Gaetano Pesce Set of Three Nesting Play Tables in Resin by Fish Design 1999
By Fish Design, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Cascina, Pisa
Some of his most famous furniture pieces include the Up-7 Piede, a large plastic lounge chair shaped like a human foot (1969); the Up5 armchair, also known as La Donna or La Mamma, a...
Steel
Gaetano Pesce Luigi (o mi amate voi?) 902 Shelf in Lacquered Wood by Bernini 80s
By Bernini, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Cascina, Pisa
Some of his most famous furniture pieces include the Up-7 Piede, a large plastic lounge chair shaped like a human foot (1969); the Up5 armchair, also known as La Donna or La Mamma, a...
Metal
$1,820Sale Price|24% Off
'Amazonia' Resin Vase by Gaetano Pesce for Fish Design Italy, Serie 2007, Signed
By Fish Design, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Los Angeles, CA
His creations reflect a profound contemplation of modernity, exemplified by the La Mamma chair (1969), which evokes a prehistoric fertility figure, and the Organic Building in Osaka ...
Resin
Unavailable
H 40.56 in W 47.25 in D 51.19 in
Gaetano Pesce Up Armchair + Ottoman, “La Mamma” B&B Italia
By Gaetano Pesce
Located in PEGO, Alicante
One of a kind lounge chair by Gaetano Pesce, the Up armchair and ottoman or “La Mamma” chair for B&B Italia 1969.
Fabric
La Mamma Up 5 Lounge Chair & Ottoman for B&B Italia
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Los Angeles, CA
La Mamma Up 5 camel lounge chair by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia, c.2000s, Italy.
Foam, Upholstery
La Mamma Up 5 Bouclé Lounge Chair & Ottoman for B&B Italia
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Los Angeles, CA
La Mamma Up 5 powder blue bouclé lounge chair by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia, c.2000s, Italy.
Bouclé, Foam
La Mamma Up 5 Bouclé Lounge Chair & Ottoman for B&B Italia
By B&B Italia, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Los Angeles, CA
La Mamma Up 5 teddy bear brown bouclé lounge chair by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia, c.2000s, Italy.
Bouclé, Foam
Sold
H 40 in W 44 in D 44 in
Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia La Mamma UP5 and UP6 Lounge Chair and Ottoman
By Gaetano Pesce
Located in Fort Lauderdale, FL
Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia UP5 and UP6 Lounge Chair and Ottoman. Labeled on bottom. Originally designed in 1969 for a few years before it was discontinued in 1973, the UP5 & 6 loun...
Fabric, Foam
Sold
H 29.93 in W 27.17 in D 21.66 in
post-modern broadway chair by gaetano pesce for bernini, 1993, set of 4
By Gaetano Pesce, Bernini
Located in Frankfurt am Main, DE
how to turn a new idea for a chair’s suspension into a pop art piece: gaetano pesce’s „broadway chair“, designed in 1993. pesce, a visionary designer, artist and architect, always se...
Steel
Sold
H 40.56 in W 47.25 in D 51.19 in
Vintage La Mamma Up5 Bouclé Lounge Chair by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italian, 1960s
By B&B Italia, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Wesseling, DE
Large designer lounge chair "La Mamma" Up 5 with matching ottoman by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia.
Bouclé
Sold
H 40 in W 42 in D 48 in
B&B Italia 'La Mamma' Up 5/6 Lounge Chair & Ottoman, Red Stripe by Gaetano Pesce
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Toronto, CA
Since its first appearance, the Up Series, designed in 1969 by Gaetano Pesce, has been one of the most talked about examples of modern furniture design. The exceptional visual impact...
Fabric, Foam
Sold
H 40.56 in W 47.25 in D 51.19 in
UP5 La Mamma UP 2000 Chair & UP6 Ball Ottoman by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia
By B&B Italia, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Izegem, VWV
Designed by Gaetano Pesce in 1969, right from the onset the Up series has been one of the most outstanding expressions of design with its expressive shapes upholstered with elastic f...
Fabric, Foam, Latex, Polyester
Sold
H 40.56 in W 47.25 in D 51.19 in
La Mamma set, armchair and ottoman UP5 and 6 by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Lyon, FR
Stunning La Mamma set, 2000 series, made of the UP5 lounge chair and its UP6 ottoman.
Velvet, Foam
Gaetano Pesce Up5 Chair for B&B Italia, 1969
By Gaetano Pesce
Located in Las Vegas, NV
Legendary “La Mamma” Up5 lounge chair from iconoclastic designer and artist Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia in gray.
Foam
Sold
H 40.56 in W 47.25 in D 51.19 in
UP5_6 armchair from the UP 2000 series, by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Langemark-Poelkapelle, BE
Known as the "Big Mama Chair" or "La Mamma", this piece stands out for its organic, sculptural shape that seamlessly combines comfort and aesthetics.
Fabric, Foam
Triple Play Side Table by Gaetano Pesce for Fish Design, Nr. 11/2019
By Gaetano Pesce, Fish Design
Located in Frankfurt am Main, DE
“i like beauty full of mistakes because we are human. perfection is for machines, it is obsolete, gone,” he once said. and you can feel it in his organic, innovative, warm, sometimes...
Metal
Sold
H 40 in W 42 in D 48 in
B&B Italia 'La Mamma' Up 5/6 Lounge Chair&Ottoman, Green Stripe by Gaetano Pesce
By B&B Italia, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Toronto, CA
Since its first appearance, the Up Series, designed in 1969 by Gaetano Pesce, has been one of the most talked about examples of modern furniture design. The exceptional visual impact...
Fabric, Foam
Triple Play Dining Table by Gaetano Pesce for Fish Design, Nr. 1/2016
By Gaetano Pesce, Fish Design
Located in Frankfurt am Main, DE
“i like beauty full of mistakes because we are human. perfection is for machines, it is obsolete, gone,” he once said. and you can feel it in his organic, innovative, warm, sometimes...
Metal
Sold
H 40.16 in W 46.86 in D 47.25 in
Gaetano Pesce Up 5 and Up 6 2000 Series Lounge Chair and Ottoman 'La Mamma'
By B&B Italia, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Zagreb, HR
Over the years, the UP5 6 armchair has become an international icon with different names, from "La Mamma", "Big Mama" to "Blow-Up". The chair and the ottoman are made entirely of p...
Fabric, Foam
$56,418
H 76.78 in W 43.31 in D 21.66 in
Modern Penedo Quartz Display Cabinet, Handmade in Poerugal by Greenapple
By Greenapple, GF Modern
Located in Lisboa, PT
Mid-Century Modern Penedo Quartz Display Cabinet, Handmade in Portugal - Europe by Greenapple The Penedo quartz display cabinet captures the enduring beauty of nature’s landscapes,...
Onyx, Carrara Marble, Granite, Brass
$2,860 / item
H 29.93 in W 23.63 in D 23.63 in
Ethnic Straw Armchair by +55design Brazilian Design with Indigenous Craft
By Neca Abrantes
Located in Jardim America, SP
This rotating armchair by Neca Abrantes is a striking fusion of contemporary Brazilian design and indigenous handcrafted traditions. Known for her deep passion for native craftsmansh...
Straw
Ettore Sottsass Memphis Milano Diva Vintage Wall Mirror, Italy, 1984
By Memphis Milano, Ettore Sottsass, Memphis Group
Located in Vienna, AT
A post-modern wall-mounted mirror, Model „Diva" designed in 1984 by Ettore Sottsass for Memphis Milano, Italy. This mirror is a vintage original from the 1980s, made from wood and mi...
Glass, Mirror, Laminate, Wood
$9,500 / set
H 35 in W 20 in D 20.5 in
Postmodern Sculptural Steel Brown Leather French Pair of Chairs, 1980s, France
By Maria Pergay
Located in New York, NY
Sculptural steel brown leather French pair chairs, 1980s, France These are very rare leather and steel chairs form France. From the Maria Pergay, Michel Boyer Era. The leather is in...
Steel
Tavolino serie Triple Play, Gaetano Pesce, Fish Design 2018
By Gaetano Pesce
Located in Rivoli, IT
Bellissimo tavolino della serie Triple Play di Gaetano Pesce, produzione Fish Design, n. 19/2018
Resin
$38,400 / set
H 23.63 in W 35.44 in D 35.44 in
Mario Bellini "Camaleonda" Sofa for B&B Italia, Two-tone Velvet, Set of 8
By Mario Bellini, B&B Italia
Located in Lonigo, Veneto
Mario Bellini "Camaleonda" modular sofa for B&B Italia, velvet, metal and plastic, Italy, 1970, eight elements. "Camaleonda" is an icon, rediscovered. Our atelier carefully res...
Plastic, Velvet
$5,876 / set
H 21.66 in W 24.02 in D 36.23 in
Italian Mid-Century Modular Sofa or Seating Set in Ochre Boucle, 1970s Italy
Located in Zagreb, HR
Italian Mid-Century Modern lounge chairs or club chairs. Modules can be used as a modular sofa or modular seating set. Beautiful and unique shape. A 1970 design and production, fully...
Bouclé, Upholstery, Foam, Wood
$22,720Sale Price / set|20% Off
H 7.49 in W 37.41 in D 37.41 in
Le Mah Jong Modular Sofa Hans Hopfer Roche Bobois Missoni Silk Velvet, Corduroy
By Roche Bobois, Hans Hopfer, Missoni
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Mah Jong modular sofa set by Hans Hopfer, designed in 1971 for Roche Bobois and in a current customized mix of textiles from Sonia Rykiel and the house of Missoni. Features multiple ...
Silk, Velvet
Una 'Articolo Indeterminativo' Wood Chaise Longue
By Stefano Marolla
Located in Roma, IT
The chaise longue is the third piece of the collection Una (Articolo Indeterminativo) by Stefano Marolla. The name of the collection comes from the Italian grammar where the indeterm...
Wood
$6,950Sale Price|36% Off
H 38 in W 72 in D 48 in
'Joe' Lounge Chair by De Pas, D’Urbino, Lomazzi for Poltronova, 1970s, Signed
By Gionathan de Pas & Donato D’Urbino & Paolo Lomazzi, Poltronova
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This beautiful patinated leather "Joe" lounge chair by De Pas, D’Urbino, Lomazzi for Poltronova is covered in a gorgeous and soft light brown / tan leather signed with artist embosse...
Leather
$22,920
H 27.56 in Dm 118.12 in
Rare and Exceptional 'Gilda' Circle Sofa in Velvet by Michel Ducaroy, 1972
By Michel Ducaroy, Ligne Roset
Located in Echt, NL
Very rare extra large 'Gilda' circle sofa in excellent condition. Designed by Michel Ducaroy in 1972. The sofa is manufactured by 'Roset' the company name of Ligne Roset prior to 1...
Metal
Sol Chair by Giacomo Tomazzi Studio
Located in Geneve, CH
Sol Chair by Giacomo Tomazzi Studio Dimensions: W 60 x D 48 x H 90 cm Materials: Main structure in polished stainless steel tube, Spheres in solid sucupira wood, Seat in curved lamin...
Stainless Steel
$7,640 / item
H 34.06 in W 24.02 in D 22.05 in
Modern Solid Brass, Handspun Wool Upholstered Luxury Dining Chair by Egg Designs
By Egg Designs
Located in Bothas Hill, KZN
The Strelitzia bespoke, dining chair is designed by Egg Designs and manufactured in South Africa. This luxury dining chair has a backrest of solid sand-cast brass, the method of sa...
Brass
Rare Gaetano Pesce Resin Lamp
By Gaetano Pesce
Located in Austin, TX
Rare post modern resin lamp by collectible artist Gaetano Pesce from his Olo series. "Olo" translates to "feeling" in English. Transformer and bulb modified for US use. Lights at eye...
Resin
$179,834 / item
H 35.83 in W 131.89 in D 18.9 in
MUR, 21st Century Unique Contemporary Brass Large Freestanding Sideboard
By Privatiselectionem
Located in Sofia, BG
MUR - 21st century unique contemporary brass large freestanding sideboard No matter how you look at MUR sideboard – from the top or from the side, it resembles a busy city’s skyli...
Brass
$5,210 / item
H 48.04 in W 40.95 in D 35.44 in
Original Shadow Armchair by Gaetano Pesce for Meritalia, Postmodern Icon
By Ligne Roset, Gaetano Pesce, Meritalia, Michel Ducaroy
Located in Grand Cayman, KY
Shadow armchair by Gaetano Pesce for Meritalia is a highly collectible iconic masterpiece of Post Modern Design. The chair "deconstructed". Designed and made in limited numbers in 2...
Leather, Upholstery, Latex, Resin
Gaetano Pesce was of a generation of Italian architects who in the early 1960s rebelled against the industrial perfection of modernism by conceiving new furniture and objects that were at once expressive and eccentric in form; or you might say they were more like art than functionalist design.
Born in the picturesque coastal Italian city of La Spezia in 1939, Pesce was a precocious talent who could have forged a career as an artist but opted instead to go to Venice to study architecture because, as he has said, it was “the most complex of all the arts.” Rather than having new worlds opened to him at design school, however, Pesce found the rationalist curriculum oppressive in its insistence on standardization and prescribed materials and technologies.
Pesce wanted to explore the latest of both materials and technologies to create objects and buildings never before imagined, with what he called “personalities” that spoke to the issues of the day. He was keen to examine ways to diversify mass production so that each manufactured work could be distinct.
In 1964, Pesce met Cesare Cassina, of the forward-looking furniture company C&B Italia in Milan (now known as B&B Italia), for whom he would create many important designs, beginning with a collection of what he called “transformational furniture” — two chairs and a loveseat — made entirely out of high-density polyurethane foam. To make the pieces easy to ship and cost-efficient, he proposed that after being covered in a stretch jersey, they be put in a vacuum, then heat-sealed flat between vinyl sheets. Once the foam was removed from its packaging, the piece returned to its original shape — hence, the name Up for the series, which debuted in 1969.
In addition to these pieces, Pesce proposed for the collection something he referred to as an “anti-armchair,” which took the shape of a reclining fertility goddess, the iconic Donna.
Producing the piece's complex form turned out to be a technical challenge. Bayer, the foam’s manufacturer, deemed it impossible to accomplish. Pesce persisted and came up with a new procedure, demonstrating not only the designer’s key role in researching the nature and potential of new materials but also his vital importance in “doubting rules.” The Up chair and accompanying ottoman were born, and they were revolutionary in more ways than one.
In the early 1970s, Pesce began exploring one of his key concepts, the idea of the industrial originals. Employing a mold without air holes, and adding a blood-red dye to the polyurethane, he cast a bookcase that resembled a demolished wall, the rough edges of the shelves and posts resulting from fissures in the material made by trapped air.
Through his research into polyurethane, Pesce figured out a way to make a loveseat and armchair using only a simple wood frame and strong canvas covering as a mold. Since the fabric developed random folds during the injection process, the pieces were similar but not identical. Cassina named the suite of furnishings Sit Down and introduced it in 1975. By experimenting with felt soaked in polyurethane and resin, Pesce conceived I Feltri, another collection of armchairs introduced by Cassina in 1987.
Pesce went on to live a life that defied expectation and convention and along the way became one of the most seminal figures in art and design.
Find vintage Gaetano Pesce chairs, sofas, vases and more on 1stDibs.