Franco Albini Furniture
Italian, 1905-1977
While working under the polymath Gio Ponti — arguably the most important figure in 20th-century Italian modernism — furniture designer Franco Albini nurtured a love for modern forms combined with traditional craft techniques.
Albini is widely known for working with organic materials such as rattan and cane for his chairs and other seating, but he also played a pivotal role in the Italian rationalist movement of the early 20th century, which saw architects and furniture makers applying a strict emphasis on geometry in their work. Rationalists drew on Ancient Roman architecture but rejected ornament, much in the way that Le Corbusier and celebrated Bauhaus figures such as Ludwig Mies van der Rohe had in their modernist furniture.
Albini received his degree in architecture from the Polytechnic University of Milan in 1929, and, in 1931, he founded his practice in Milan, where he tackled workers’ housing and other reconstruction projects. A gifted urban planner, he also developed the Palazzo Bianco, Palazzo Rosso and Tesoro di San Lorenzo museums in Genoa. While Albini is revered for his Margherita chair — a Triennale Milano award winner created for Bonacina in 1951 — he also collaborated with manufacturers Poggi and Cassina in the 1940s on seating, tables and more that embodied his artistic vision. Of that mid-century work, the one piece that perhaps best captures this vision is the iconic Luisa chair.
With its cherry red upholstery and sinuous wooden legs that seem to float aboveground, the Luisa is a genuine masterpiece. It is also a testament to Albini’s perfectionism, as it endured several prototypes — including one made by Knoll in the late 1940s — and took approximately 15 years to design. Poggi launched the final version of the armchair in 1955, earning Albini the prestigious Compasso d’Oro from Italy’s Association for Industrial Design. It is produced today by Cassina. Albini named the chair for someone who likely saw the process firsthand: his personal secretary of two decades, Luisa Colombini.
Find vintage Franco Albini furniture on 1stDibs.
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Item type: Antique and Vintage
Creator: Franco Albini
Armchair "Fiorenza" in Original Red Color, by Franco Albini in 1952 for Arflex
By Franco Albini, Arflex
Located in Wolfurt, AT
This pair of Italian "Fiorenza" armchairs was designed by Franco Albini for Arflex. The elegantly shaped wooden frame supports the furniture body, which is covered with the original ...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Fabric, Wood
Midcentury AM/AS Table Lamp by Franco Albini for Sirrah, 1969
By Franco Albini
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Midcentury AM/AS table lamp by Franco Albini for Sirrah, 1969.
Category
1960s Italian Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Metal, Chrome
Oak Side Table by Franco Albini
By Franco Albini
Located in East Hampton, NY
Franco Albini, side table Model TN6 "Cicognino", Italy, 1952
Measures"
Overall height: 31.5"
Height to the tabletop: 16".
Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Wool
Writing Table by Franco Albini, Italy, 1950's
By Franco Albini
Located in New York, NY
Canted corners on rectangular surface with beveled edge, raised on crossed legs with H-form stretcher, and converging suspension rods of black enameled
metal. Model TL2 for Poggi. Li...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Metal
Mid-Century Modern Vintage Rattan Pouf Stool Franco Albini attr Italy, 1950s
By Franco Albini
Located in Vienna, AT
A mid century modern vintage rattan pouf or stool, which was designed attributed to Franco Albini. Italy 1950s.
The rattan pouf is very stable, although it looks like lightweight. F...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Rattan
Rare Floor Lamp by Franco Albini and Franca Helg
By Franca Helg, Franco Albini
Located in New York, NY
Unusual from of chrome-plated steel with handblown white glass shade, and trumpet form upshade. Part of a large and varying series of lighting produced by Sirrah, Italy.
Category
1960s Italian Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Two Table Lamps by Franco Albini, Italy, circa 1962
By Franco Albini
Located in New York, NY
Openwork Perspex lamps in a chrome frame, model number 524. Original Arteluce label partially intact.
Category
1960s Italian Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Chrome
"AM/AS" Adjustable Ceiling Lamp by Albini, Helg and Piva for Sirrah, Italy, 1960
By Franco Albini
Located in Milan, IT
Adjustable AM/AS ceiling light fixture by Franco Albini, Franca Helg and Antonio Piva for Sirrah. Beautiful opaline glass and chromed frame. Also a pendant lamp available from the sa...
Category
1960s Italian Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Opaline Glass
Walnut Sideboard "Mb15" by Franco Albini for Poggi, Italy, 1950s
By Franco Albini
Located in Milan, IT
Walnut sideboard model "Mb15" by Franco Albini for Poggi.
Removable trays and beautiful proportions.
Category
1950s Italian Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Wood
Pair of Italian 1950s Stools
By Franco Albini
Located in New York, NY
Black lacquered wood stools.
Category
1950s Italian Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Wood
Franco Albini for Bonacina Bamboo Oval Wall Mirror, Italy, 1960s
By Franco Albini, Bonacina
Located in Naples, IT
Italian rattan wall mirror (circa 1960s) by Franco Albini. The mirror has a complex weave of rattan in a series of horseshoe projections on the edge of the frame. There is a lovely a...
Category
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Bamboo, Rattan, Mirror
Poltrona in Rattan - Mod. MARGHERITA - Franco Albini per Bonacina - Italia - '50
By Franco Albini
Located in Milano, IT
Questa non è solo una poltrona. Questo è tra i pezzi più iconici, identificativi e riconoscibili di un'epoca e di un architetto-designer. Si tratta del modello Margherita, disegnato ...
Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Bamboo, Rattan
Italian mid-century modern rattan armchair Margherita Albini for Bonacina, 1950s
By Franco Albini, Bonacina
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian mid-century modern rattan armchair Margherita Albini for Bonacina, 1950s
Round base armchair mod. Margherita with structure completely in rattan. The seat and backrest follow...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Fabric, Rattan
Midcentury Gala armchair by Franco Albini for Bonacina, 1951
By Franco Albini, Bonacina
Located in Piacenza, Italy
Gala armchairs by Franco Albini for Bonacina.
In the 1950s Franco Albini combined formal experimentation with the recovery of a "poor" material to be worked by hand, the rattan. The...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Bamboo, Rattan
Franco Albini Oval Mirror in Rattan, Wicker, Bamboo, French Riviera, Italy 1960s
By Franco Albini, Bonacina
Located in Roma, IT
Marvelous French Riviera style oval mirror fully made in curved rattan, bamboo and woven wicker. This lovely mirror was designed by Franco Albini in Italy during the 1960s.
This ch...
Category
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Wicker, Bamboo, Mirror, Rattan, Cane
Midcentury Wall Coat Rack in Bamboo and Rattan by Franco Albini, Italy 1960s
By Franco Albini, Franco Albini and Franca Helg
Located in Rome, IT
Midcentury beautiful wall coat rack in bamboo and rattan by Franco Albini & Franca Helg.
Made in Italy in the 1960s.
Category
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Bamboo, Wicker, Cane, Rattan
Pair of Franco Albini "Luisa" teak chairs for Poggi, Italy 1955
By Franco Albini, Poggi
Located in Renens, CH
Pair of Franco Albini "Luisa" teak chairs for Poggi, Italy 1955
These timeless and minimalist dining chairs with armrests feature a structure in teak wood with stunning details and ...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Teak
Set of 6 italian midcentury chairs "Luisa" by Franco Albini
By Franco Albini
Located in Piacenza, Italy
Set of six Luisa chairs with a wooden structure reupholstered in beige fabric, designed by Franco Albini and manufactured by Poggi Pavia, c. 1950.
Luisa chair won the Compasso d'oro...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Wood
Bookcase LB7 by Franco Albini for Poggi in Rosewood & Brass
By Franco Albini, Poggi
Located in Byron Bay, NSW
LB7 bookcase, designed by Franco Albini and manufactured by Poggi in 1957. Modular bookstore composed by upholds, containers with flying and doors, shelve. The industrial standard fo...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Brass
Vintage bamboo egg chairs, Franco Albini, Italy 1960s, set of four
By Franco Albini, Bonacina
Located in Ceglie Messapica, IT
Set of four bamboo egg chairs designed by Franco Albini in the 1960s.
Beautifully shaped bamboo and rattan structure. The chairs have been fullry restored as follows:
Structure stre...
Category
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Bamboo, Rattan
Midcentury Italian "Margherita" Rattan Armchairs by Franco Albini for Bonacina
By Franco Albini, Bonacina
Located in Piacenza, Italy
Iconic Franco Albini armchair model "Margherita" 1951, manufactured by Bonacina.
Margherita is considered the first "legless" armchair of Italian design. The piece pays homage to th...
Category
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Rattan
A large Italian 1970s bamboo oval mirror with spiral frame by Franco Albini
By Franco Albini, Bonacina
Located in London, GB
A large Italian 1970s Franco Albini bamboo oval mirror with spiral frame, for Bonacina
Category
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Bamboo, Mirror
Iconic Franco Albini Woven Rattan Ottoman, 1960s
By Vittorio Bonacina, Franco Albini
Located in Miami, FL
A vintage rattan round pouf designed by Franco Albini in the 1950s and manufactured by Vittorio Bonacina in the 1960s. An ingeniously designed stool that's composed solely of bent-ra...
Category
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Rattan
Franco Albini for Bonacina Pair of Rattan and Bamboo Stools, Italy, 1960s
By Franco Albini, Bonacina
Located in Naples, IT
Pair of round rattan and bamboo stools designed by Franco Albini and produced by Bonacina in the 1960s.
Category
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Bamboo, Rattan
Mid-century rocking chaise longue by Franco Albini for Ar.Ar Milano, Italy 1940
By Franco Albini
Located in Piacenza, Italy
Rare mid-century rocking chaise longue by Franco Albini.
This rare piece was designed for Ar.Ar Milano in 1940 by Franco Albini.
Extraordinary shaped wood structure , original fabri...
Category
1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Fabric, Wood, Rope
Pair of Mid-Century Franco Albini Bamboo Stools
By Franco Albini
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pair of Mid-Century Bamboo Stools by Italian Mid-Century master Franco Albini, the visionary mind behind many of Cassina's most acclaimed furniture masterpieces. Hand woven and in or...
Category
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Bamboo
Franco Albini Bonacina Mid Century Margherita Chair & Coffee Table- 2 Pieces
By Franco Albini
Located in Basel, BS
The "Margherita chair" by Franco Albini is one of the most notable pieces of furniture created by the Lombard architect and designer Franco Albini in the 1950s. He partnered with Franca Helg for various projects in years. Albini’s inspiration in creating the chair is to suspend things and people in the air. Since it is a wooden, rattan and reed chair, a garden is the perfect setting for it. Just after a year of its creation, Margherita chair won first place at the 9th Milan Triennale. Moreover, MoMA in New York City, the Museum of Art in Philadelphia, and the Triennale Design Museum in Milan showcased this beautiful and stunning wooden chair.
The name ‘Margherita’ is an Italian word meaning “daisy.” Moreover, the rattan and reed structure will give anyone who sits on it the confidence. It helps abandon every thought to the suspension of a dream or a break from reality. Franco Albini designed this wooden chair for Vittorio Bonacina.
Albini’s furniture mostly features a traditional Italian craftsmanship practice with minimal concepts...
Category
20th Century Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Rattan
Bookcase LB10 by Franco Albini
By Franco Albini
Located in Brussels , BE
Bookcase LB10 by Franco Albini.
Category
Mid-20th Century European Mid-Century Modern Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Wood
LB7, “Infinito” Bookcase by Franco Albini, Poggi
By Franco Albini
Located in Milano, Lombardia
In the LB7 library of the Poggi production (1956), we find all the principles long treated by Albini on the theme of the light upright, which in this modular syst...
Category
1950s Italian Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Wood
Franco Albini Rattan and Bamboo Wall Mirror, Italy 1960s
By Franco Albini
Located in Naples, IT
Italian rattan wall mirror (circa 1960s) by Franco Albini. The mirror has a complex weave of rattan in a series of horseshoe projections on the edge of the frame. There is a lovely a...
Category
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Franco Albini Furniture
Materials
Bamboo, Mirror, Rattan
Franco Albini furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
Franco Albini furniture are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of wood and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Franco Albini furniture, although brown editions of this piece are particularly popular. We have 173 vintage editions of these items in-stock, while there is 21 modern edition to choose from as well. Many of the original furniture by Franco Albini were created in the mid-century modern style in europe during the 20th century. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider furniture by Marco Zanuso, Paolo Buffa, and Arflex. Prices for Franco Albini furniture can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $209 and can go as high as $58,000, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $5,981.
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