In 1966, Piero Ambrogio Busnelli cofounded C&B Italia, a modern Italian furniture manufacturer, with Cesare Cassina in northern Milan. From the outset, Busnelli and Cassina set about recruiting the most talented modernists in Italy to conceive of creative furnishings manufactured in modern ways. In the early 1970s, the company split, with Cassina founding his own eponymous firm and Busnelli taking leadership of what became B&B Italia.
For decades, Busnelli cultivated relationships with the world’s best design talent, resulting in furniture pieces that remain iconic today — be they Gaetano Pesce’s outwardly curvaceous Up seating (made for C&B, reintroduced by B&B) or tables from industrial designer Paolo Piva, each more sophisticated than the next in their geometrically complex steel-tube bases. B&B Italia earned four prestigious Compasso d’Oro design awards: in 1979 for Mario Bellini’s Le Bambole, in 1984 for the Sisamo wardrobe system by Studio Kairos, in 1987 for Antonio Citterio’s modular Sity sofa and, in 1989, the first award given to a manufacturing company itself.
Other notable names who designed for B&B Italia over the course of its 54-year history include Patricia Urquiola, Naoto Fukasawa, Zaha Hadid, Ettore Sottsass and Vincent Van Duysen, to name a very few. And while these names bring star power to the B&B brand, in many cases, it was B&B Italia who helped usher in their celebrity, fostering a wave of design talent on the world stage.
The company’s forward-thinking vision manifested in its own headquarters, too: In 1972, B&B Italia tapped architects Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers to design a steel-framed, postmodern-style home for the brand, whose crisscrossing metal exoskeleton is reminiscent of the pair’s Centre Pompidou in Paris, which was built at roughly the same time. Now, B&B Italia manages a contract division and outdoor section as well as its residential arm, and it also controls production for Maxalto, a brand spun out with furniture designs by Antonio Citterio.
At 1stDibs, find a range of vintage B&B Italia furniture — including sofas, cocktail tables and more.
B&B Italia Overscale Flames by Jean-Marie Massaud Outdoor Oil Candle
By Jean-Marie Massaud, B&B Italia
Located in Los Angeles, CA
An exceptionally rare and highly sculptural Overscale Flames outdoor fireplace designed by Jean-Marie Massaud for B&B Italia, originally introduced in 2007 as part of B&B Italia’s gr...
Steel
$3,824 / set
H 16.74 in W 10.24 in D 5.32 in
Pair Of Antique Vienna 3-Flame Biedermeier Silver Candle Holders, dated 1857
By Viennese Manufactory
Located in Vienna, AT
Two festive Biedermeier silver candleholders on a four-pass, cambered stand with curved rim, chased and chiselled rose decoration between raised folds on the foot and baluster-shaped...
Silver
Moroccan Hurricane Metal Candle Lantern Indoor or Outdoor
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Moroccan Moorish metal candle lantern. Hurricane candle lamp handcrafted in Morocco by artisans, metal hand-cut openwork and hammered with Moorish design, open in front for use with ...
Metal
$1,195 / item
H 57.88 in W 8.27 in D 8.27 in
21st Century Candle Holder Torchère Indoor Outdoor Black Cast Iron
By Benedikt Bolza Design, B.B. for Reschio
Located in Lisciano Niccone, Perugia
An iron torchère on simple tripod base These come together with six Sicilian candles, the heavy wicks producing a wonderful flickering outdoor light. Specifications: untreated stee...
Steel
Saman Candle Holder by Chandler McLellan
Located in Geneve, CH
Saman Candle Holder by Chandler McLellan Dimensions: D 19.05 x W 21.6 x H 45.1 cm. Materials: Metal. A sculptural candle holder. Inspired by grounded whimsey and the hug of a rain tree...
Metal
Chinese Oil Slick Candle Stand, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
This sculptural 19th-century Chinese candle stand celebrates the wabi-sabi beauty of handmade pottery. The tiered candlestick is chunky and bold, shaped of earthenware with curving l...
Earthenware
Glazed ceramic candle lamp by Jean Maubrou, circa 1940-1950
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Glazed ceramic candle light by Jean Maubrou. Artist signature under the base. Circa 1940-1950. Perfect original conditions. H : 7.9 x 4.1 inches. - A student of LACHENAL, Jean MAUB...
Ceramic
Chinese Ming Oil Lamp with Santal Candle
Located in Chicago, IL
This sculptural ceramic object is a Chinese oil lamp from the late Ming dynasty, originally used in altar displays for Buddhist ceremonies and ritual ...
Ceramic
$412
H 8.27 in W 2.37 in D 2.37 in
Burden and Flame Hand-Built High-Fired Ceramic Candle Holder by Darren Dai
By Darren Dai
Located in London, GB
Burden and Flame is a sculptural ceramic candle holder by Chinese artist Darren Dai. The work intertwines mythology, ritual, and the quiet weight of devotion. A seated figure support...
Ceramic
White Kubus 4 Candle Holder by Lassen
Located in Geneve, CH
White Kubus 4 candle holder by Lassen Dimensions: D 14 x W 14 x H 20 cm Materials: Metal Also available in different dimensions. Weight: 1.50 K...
Metal
Black Kubus 4 Candle Holder by Lassen
Located in Geneve, CH
Black Kubus 4 candle holder by Lassen Dimensions: D 14 x W 14 x H 20 cm Materials: Metal Also available in different dimensions. Weight: 1.50 Kg...
Metal
Black Line Candle Holder by Lassen
Located in Geneve, CH
Black line candle holder by Lassen Dimensions: D 10 x W 10 x H 16 cm Materials: Metal Also available in different dimensions. Weight: 0.60 Kg With a sharp sense of contemporary Functionalist style, Mogens Lassen designed the iconic Kubus candleholder in 1962, a piece once reserved solely for family and close architect colleagues. In 1983 he reapproached his own geometric candleholders...
Metal
Black Kubus 8 Candle Holder by Lassen
Located in Geneve, CH
Black Kubus 8 candle holder by Lassen Dimensions: D 23 x W 23 x H 29 cm Materials: Metal Also available in different dimensions. Weight: 1.50 Kg With a sharp sense of conte...
Metal
"UP 7" Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italian Sculptural Foot
By B&B Italia, Gaetano Pesce
Located in Byron Bay, NSW
Part of the smooth, somewhat futuristic collection of sculptural furniture pieces known as the UP Series by Gaetano Pesce is a giant polyurethane rubber foot dubbed the UP7. Strangel...
Rubber
Sold
H 32.68 in W 65.75 in D 26.38 in
Italian Modern Black UP7 Foot Sculpture by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia, 2000s
By B&B Italia, Gaetano Pesce
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian moder polyurethane with black coating UP7 foot sculpture by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia and reissued around 2000. UP7 model foot sculpture, in injection polyurethane with b...
Plastic
Silver Foil Enameled Ceramic Bowl, B&B Italia
By B&B Italia
Located in Tulsa, OK
Joker bowl by B&B Italia Silver leaf exterior with glossy white enameled ceramic interior add more distinction to this Nicole Aebischer’s Joker Bowl for B&B Italia. Measures: ...
Ceramic
Gold Foil Enameled Ceramic Vase, B&B Italia
By B&B Italia
Located in Tulsa, OK
Tall joker vase by B&B Italia Gold leaf exterior with glossy white enameled ceramic interior add more distinction to this Nicole Aebischer’s joker vase for B&B Italia. This piece ha...
Ceramic
Large B & B Italia Ceramic Bowl by Marcel Wanders
By B&B Italia, MARCEL WANDERS
Located in New York, NY
Large and impressive Postmodern ceramic bowl by Marcel Wanders for B & B Italia. The bowl has a white ground with surreal juxtaposed decorative elements. The bowl is in excellent ori...
Ceramic
Gaetano Pesce Up7 Piede / Foot by B&B Italia, 1969
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Pijnacker, Zuid-Holland
Up-7 Piede / Foot by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia, designed in 1969. It is made of polyurethane foam with a black coating. This piece is in excellent condition. It comes with a “Cer...
Foam
Sold
H 27 in W 39 in D 36 in
Rare Pair of Tobia Scarpa "Bonanza" Lounge Chairs in Cognac Leather, 1969
By Tobia Scarpa, B&B Italia
Located in Buffalo, NY
Extremely rare Bonanza' chairs designed by Tobia Scarpa in a collaboration with B&B Italia in 1969, Italy Amazing original condition. Age appropriate wear, stunning cognac leather. I...
Leather, Fiberglass
Gaetano Pesce Up7 Piede / Foot by B&B Italia, 1969
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Pijnacker, Zuid-Holland
Up-7 Piede / Foot by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia, designed in 1969. It is made of polyurethane foam with a black coating. This piece is in excellent condition. It comes with a “Cer...
Foam
Gaetano Pesce Up7 Piede / Foot by B&B Italia, 1969
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Pijnacker, Zuid-Holland
Up-7 Piede / Foot by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia, designed in 1969. It is made of polyurethane foam with a black coating. This piece is in excellent condition. It comes with a “Cer...
Foam
Gaetano Pesce Up7 Piede / Foot by B&B Italia, 1969
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Pijnacker, Zuid-Holland
Rare Up-7 Piede / Foot by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia, 1969. It is made of polyurethane foam with a black coating. It can be used both as a sculpture and as a lounge chair. The foo...
Foam
Gaetano Pesce Up7 Piede / Foot by B&B Italia, 1969
By Gaetano Pesce, B&B Italia
Located in Pijnacker, Zuid-Holland
Rare Up-7 Piede / Foot by Gaetano Pesce for B&B Italia, 1969. It is made of polyurethane foam with a black coating. It can be used both as a sculpture and as a lounge chair. The foo...
Foam