The Italian architect and designer Gae Aulenti will forever be best remembered for her work with museums, in particular her 1980–86 renovation of a Beaux Arts Paris train station to create the galleries of the Musée d’Orsay. Aulenti — whose first name, short for Gaetana, is pronounced “guy” — should also be recalled for her tough intellectual spirit and for working steadily when few women found successful architectural careers in postwar Italy.
After she graduated from the Milan Polytechic in 1954, Aulenti opened an architectural office. She also joined the staff of the progressive architectural magazine Casabella, whose editorial line was that the establishment, orthodox modernism of Le Corbusier and the Bauhaus, had outlived it usefulness. When their movement for fresh approaches to architecture and design received a sympathetic hearing, Aulenti found patrons — most prominently Gianni Agnelli, of Fiat, who later employed her to renovate the Palazzo Grassi in Venice for use as an arts exhibition space.
Commissions for showrooms and other corporate spaces brought Aulenti to furniture design. She felt that furniture should never dominate a room. Her chairs and sofas — low-slung, with rounded enameled metal frames and ample seats — and tables, particularly her 1972 marble Jumbo coffee table for Knoll, project solidity and sturdiness. In lighting design, however, Aulenti is bravura.
Each work has a marvelous sculptural presence. Pieces such as her Pipistrello table lamp and Quadrifoglio pendant are a perfect marriage of organically shaped glass and high-tech fixtures. Others have a futuristic elegance — and some even have a touch of personality. Aulenti’s Pileino and La Ruspa table lamps each look almost like little robots. Her lighting pieces are an artful grace note in the career of a woman who believed in strength.
Find vintage Gae Aulenti armchairs, coffee tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
$5,505Sale Price|25% Off
Locus Solus Daybed by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova
By Gae Aulenti, Poltronova
Located in Wien, AT
The Locus Solus daybed, designed in 1964 by the influential Italian architect and designer Gae Aulenti for Poltronova, is a striking example of 1960s avant-garde design. With its tub...
Steel
Gae Aulenti, Kuka, Daybed, Zanotta, 1970s
By Gae Aulenti, Zanotta
Located in Paris, FR
Gae Aulenti Kuka A very rare square daybed covered with a light grey fabric. The removable head rest behind two rectangular cushions, the seat with two ...
Fabric
$22,000 / set
H 26.19 in W 22.05 in D 22.05 in
Gae Aulenti “Locus Solus” Dining Chairs for Poltronova, 1964, Set of 10
By Gae Aulenti, Poltronova
Located in Lonigo, Veneto
Gae Aulenti “Locus Solus” dining chairs for Poltronova, metal, Italy, 1964, set of ten Designed in 1964 by Gae Aulenti, the “Locus Solus” dining chairs are a vivid expression of Ita...
Metal
Venfield Modern Sofa /Daybed
By Venfield
Located in New York, NY
Stylish Modern sofa with 6 back pillows and low, wide arms. This sofa's deep single seat cushion is perfectly sized to serve as a daybed or single bed for ...
Steel
$6,900
H 28.75 in W 76.78 in D 29.53 in
Johannes Spalt 'Constanze' Convertible Daybed Sofa by Wittmann, Austria, 1970
By Wittmann, Johannes Spalt
Located in Hausmannstätten, AT
A freestanding sofa model 'Constanze' / 'Constance' with black steel and a fabric in a warm cognac / golden / ocher / mustard yellow / orange tone designed by Prof. Johannes Spalt fo...
Metal
$1,250
H 26.19 in W 22.45 in D 21.86 in
Early Gae Aulenti for Zanotta 'Locus Solus' Tubular Armchair in Steel
By Zanotta, Gae Aulenti
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Gae Aulenti for Zanotta, 'Locus Solus' armchair, chromed tubular steel, blue leatherette, Italy, 1964 This Locus Solus armchair, designed by Gae Aulenti and produced by Zanotta, is ...
Steel
Daybed in the style of Gae Aulenti
By Gae Aulenti
Located in Milan, IT
Red tubular daybed in the style of Gae Aulenti.
Metal
$2,937Sale Price|20% Off
H 26.38 in Dm 22.45 in
Locus Solus chair designed by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova 1964
By Gae Aulenti
Located in Arezzo, Italy
Locus Solus chair designed by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova 1964. An early production in good condition, restored bouclé seat. Chrome metal frame, cotton. The chair has slight defects, ...
Metal, Chrome
$2,001 / set
H 26.78 in W 21.66 in D 21.26 in
5x Original Locus Solus Stühle Poltronova Gae Aulenti Metall design
By Poltronova, Gae Aulenti
Located in Berlin, DE
Wir bieten einen von fünf wunderschönen und sehr seltenen Armlehnstühlen des italienischen Traditionsherstellers Poltronova aus den 1960er Jahren zum Verkauf an. Das Design stammt vo...
Metal
$4,442 / set
H 26.38 in W 21.66 in D 20.87 in
Set of 4 pink Locus Solus chairs by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova, 1960s
By Poltronova, Gae Aulenti
Located in amstelveen, NL
A set of 4 lacquered metal Locus Solus chairs by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova, 1964. The round seat is perforated sheet metal. The structure, which forms the backrest, armrests, and le...
Steel
$5,330Sale Price|25% Off
H 32.29 in W 28.35 in D 39.38 in
Locus Solus armchair by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova, 1964
By Gae Aulenti
Located in Arezzo, Italy
Locus Solus armchair designed by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova 1964. A first production in excellent condition, restored. Structure in painted metal,...
Iron
Mid-Century 3-Seat Sofa or Daybed, Jitona, 1970's
By Jitona
Located in Praha, CZ
Made in Czechoslovakia Made of fabric, wood, leatherette Daybed :Height- 87 :Depth-136 Original condition.
Fabric, Faux Leather, Wood
Mid-Century Modern Italian Bamboo Sofa Bed, 1970s
Located in Prato, IT
Mid-Century Modern Italian red brown coated bamboo sofa bed. This sofa bed comes with its original metallic bed net and needs a mattress of cm. 80 x 190 (about inch. 31.50 x 74.80)....
Bamboo, Rattan
Locus Solus Orange Loveseat by Gae Aulenti
By Gae Aulenti, Exteta
Located in Milan, IT
Part of the Locus Solus collection of outdoor furniture, this colorful loveseat boasts a retro-inspired silhouette made of tubular steel with an oblong seat upholstered with an exclusive artwork printed...
Steel
Gae Aulenti «Locus Solus» Daybed
By Gae Aulenti
Located in Forest, BE
This bed was designed by the Italian architect Gae Aulenti, as a representative piece of her work. The name “Locus Solus” comes from a novel by the French writer Raymond Roussel. In ...
Steel
Daybed with pull-out bed 'Locus Solus' by Gae Aulenti 1960s
By Poltronova, Gae Aulenti
Located in Milano, IT
Daybed with pull-out bed from the 'Locus Solus' series designed by Gae Aulenti and produced by Poltronova since the late 1960s. Made of chrome-plated tubular metal frame, it features...
Metal
"Locus Solus" daybed by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova, 1960s
By Poltronova, Gae Aulenti
Located in bruxelles, BE
Daybed, meridian with cushion in yellow fabric with green stitching and metal structure by Gae Aulenti. Model: Locus Solus. Wear due to time and age FOR SHIPPING, REQUEST US FOR RE...
Metal
Daybed ''Locus Solus'' by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova, 1960s
By Gae Aulenti, Poltronova
Located in Quarrata, IT
Daybed by Gae Aulenti, belonging to the ''Locus Solus'' collection designed and produced by Poltronova, Italy, 1960s.
Steel
Daybed ''Locus Solus'' by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova, 1960s
By Gae Aulenti, Poltronova
Located in Quarrata, IT
Daybed by Gae Aulenti, belonging to the ''Locus Solus'' collection designed and produced by Poltronova, Italy, 1960s.
Steel
Gae Aulenti Locus Solus daybed for Poltronova, Italy, 1964
By Gae Aulenti, Poltronova
Located in Chiavari, Liguria
Tubular metal daybed, model Locus Solus, designed by Gae Aulenti, produced by Poltronova in 1964. A painted metal tube unpredictably bends and takes the form of a daybed, as if sket...
Metal
Sold
H 22.84 in W 78.75 in D 33.08 in
Gae Aulenti for Poltronova 'Locus Solus' day bed in chromed steel
By Poltronova, Gae Aulenti
Located in Argelato, BO
Gae Aulenti for Poltronova 'Locus Solus' day bed in chromed steel Locus Solus has a tubular structure, which is shaped by bending to form the backrest and armrests. The seat is made...
Steel
"Locus Solus" daybed by Gae Aulenti for Poltronova, 1960s
By Poltronova, Gae Aulenti
Located in bruxelles, BE
Daybed, meridian with cushion in yellow fabric with green stitching and metal structure by Gae Aulenti. Model: Locus Solus. Wear due to time and age
Metal
Day Bed Locus Solus by Gae Aulenti, Poltronova, 1970s
By Poltronova, Gae Aulenti
Located in Rivoli, IT
Day Bed mod. Locus Solus by Gaetano Aulenti in chromed metal, production Poltrona 1970s
Metal
Locus Solus Daybed by Gae Aulenti, circa 1970
By Gae Aulenti
Located in VILLEURBANNE, FR
Gae Aulenti is a renowned Italian architect and designer who has left a significant mark in the field of design throughout her prolific career. This daybed is one of her notable cre...
Steel
Gae Aulenti Locus Solus daybed for Poltronova, Italy 1964
By Poltronova, Gae Aulenti
Located in London, GB
Gae Aulenti (1927-2012) was a renowned Italian architect, famous for key cultural landmarks – the Musée d’Orsay (1980–86), the Contemporary Art Gallery at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the restoration of Palazzo Grassi in Venice (1985–86). Often straying from architecture into furniture, exhibitions, graphic and interiors, her design ethos is best understood in her own words: “Advice to whoever asks me how to make a home is to not have anything, just a few shelves for books, some pillows to sit on… to take a stand against the ephemeral, against passing trends [and] return to lasting values.” With the Locus Solus daybed...
Chrome
Gae Aulenti «Locus Solus» Daybed
By Gae Aulenti
Located in Forest, BE
This bed was designed by the Italian architect Gae Aulenti, as a representative work of her designs. The name “Locus Solus” comes from a novel by the French writer Raymond Roussel. I...
Steel