Gianfranco Frattini is widely regarded as a mid-century master of Italian modern design. He was an award-winning architect and designer, and specialized in creating furniture and decor that is both decorative and practical — Frattini’s vintage desks, armchairs, nesting tables and other works are celebrated for their sophisticated merging of function and form.
Born in Padua in 1926, Frattini studied architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan. He later apprenticed with his teacher and mentor, Gio Ponti. Through Ponti — arguably the most important figure in 20th-century Italian architecture and design — Frattini met many notable modernist designers such as Oscar Niemeyer and Le Corbusier, but an introduction to famed Italian entrepreneur Cesare Cassina would prove incredibly significant in helping launch his career.
During the mid-1950s, Frattini began to collaborate with Cassina’s eponymous company. He designed the brand’s acclaimed leather and walnut Model 849 lounge chair — a winner of the Compasso d’Oro award — the Marema nesting tables and the iconic Sesann collection. The latter, an enduring 1970s suite of impossibly welcoming leather-covered seating, is now produced by Tacchini. In addition to Cassina, Frattini created furniture and lighting for other manufacturers such as Bernini, Arteluce, Artemide, Knoll and more.
While many of his designs incorporate glass, tubular steel and other materials, Frattini loved working with wood. The sculptural Albero bookcase — an innovative floor-to-ceiling structure made in walnut that swings on a 360-degree vertical swivel axis — is a striking example of Frattini’s dedication to traditional woodworking techniques. In the early 1970s, he traveled to Japan with friend and collaborator Pierluigi Ghianda — a master Milanese cabinet maker — in order to study the work of artisans in Kyoto. The trip inspired his design of the Kyoto table, a work of solid beech with Canaletto walnut inserts that is part of the permanent collection of the Milan Triennale’s Design Museum. The Kyoto and Albero have been revived by Poltrona Frau.
Frattini’s designs are in the permanent collections of prestigious museums such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.
Find vintage Gianfranco Frattini furniture, lighting and decor on 1stDibs.
Italian Dining Chairs by Gianfranco Frattini Reupholstered
By Gianfranco Frattini
Located in Atlanta, GA
Set of Four Clean Lined Italian Dining Chairs, designed by Gianfranco Frattini for Lema S.P.A., Italian, circa 1960s. The chairs are currently being reupholstered and can be complete...
Upholstery, Plastic, Wood, Maple
$2,600 / set
H 29.93 in W 17.72 in D 18.12 in
Midcentury Set of 7 Dining Chairs Mod 101 by Frattini for Cassina, Italy, 1960
By Gianfranco Frattini, Cassina
Located in Saarbruecken, DE
Midcentury set of 7 dining room chairs mod. 101 by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina, Italy, 1960. Signed. Teak wood. Solid and stable. Fully restored.
Teak
$5,198 / set
H 30.71 in W 17.72 in D 16.15 in
Six Dining Chairs "Model 101", by Gianfranco Frattini For Cassina, Italy 1960s
By Gianfranco Frattini, Cassina
Located in Wolfurt, AT
Set of six Italian dining chairs, model 101, designed by Gianfranco Frattini in the 1960s and manufactured by Cassina. Fine rosewood combined with mint-colored fabric upholstery by L...
Fabric, Wood
$6,983 / set
H 31.5 in W 22.05 in D 23.23 in
Set of 4 pcs. Italian Mid-Century Giorgetti Dining Chairs from 1980's
By Giorgetti S.p.A.
Located in Vilnius, LT
Italian mid-century Giorgetti set of 4 pcs. dining chairs. The chairs are created in black painted wood with walnut details and authentic excellent quality Pale Carmine color natural...
Leather, Wood
Chair by Gianfranco Frattini, 1960
By Gianfranco Frattini, Cassina
Located in Berlin, DE
This extraordinary chair was designed by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina 1960. The construction of the 'Model 904' is made of solid walnut wood. The seat and back are upholstered. Th...
Wool, Walnut
Knoll Marble Dining Table With 5 Chairs by Eero Saarinen, 1960s
By Eero Saarinen, Knoll
Located in Oud Beijerland, NL
Magnificent and fully original Tulip dining set designed by Eero Saarinen. It is produced by Knoll International in the 1960s. The set consists of 5 original tulip chairs and the o...
Carrara Marble, Metal
$4,974 / set
H 28.15 in Dm 51.19 in
Dining Room Set with Table and Four Chairs by Giotto Stoppino, Italy 1970s
By Giotto Stoppino
Located in Hellouw, NL
Very nice dining room set by Giotto Stoppino from the 1970s in Italy. This set consists of a dining table and four matching dining room chairs. The table has a tubular, chrome-plated...
Metal, Chrome
$4,888 / set
H 32.68 in W 20.87 in D 17.72 in
6 walnut chairs, Model 104, by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina, Italy, 1960s.
By Gianfranco Frattini
Located in MADRID, ES
6 walnut chairs Model 104 by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina, Italy, 1960s. Set of 6 upholstered in Namay Samay fabric. Gianfranco Frattini was an architect and designer of furnitur...
Walnut
$1,417 / item
H 30.32 in W 19.69 in D 18.12 in
Gianfranco Frattini for Bernini Walnut and Black Leather Chairs, Italy 1981
By Gianfranco Frattini, Bernini
Located in Sacile, PN
Gianfranco Frattini for Bernini set of six walnut and black leather chairs, Italy 1981 circa. This set, designed by Gianfranco Frattini for Bernini, is characterized by a splendid co...
Leather, Wood
$5,800
H 22 in W 30 in D 35 in
Chrome Metal Lounge Chair with Loose Cushions by Gianfranco Frattini, Italy
By Gianfranco Frattini
Located in New York City, NY
Lounge Chair by Gianfranco Frattini, Italy, circa 1970s. Sleek, low lounge chair with chrome-plated metal frame, tubular legs, and unique arm and backrests typical of acclaimed f...
Chrome
$4,074Sale Price|40% Off
H 26.37 in W 43.3 in D 37 in
Sesann Lounge Chair by Tacchini designed by Gianfranco Frattini
By Gianfranco Frattini, Tacchini
Located in Carson, CA
The Sesann armchair designed by Frattini is an icon of 1970s Italian design, the absolute representation of softness, inviting one to give in to the beauty of the most authentic comf...
Chrome
$3,550 / set
H 31.5 in W 18.12 in D 16.93 in
Gianfranco Frattini, Italian Mid-Century Modern Set of 4 Wooden Chairs, 1950s
By Gianfranco Frattini
Located in Milan, IT
Beautiful Set of 4 wooden chairs by Gianfranco Frattini, 1950s: a perfect Italian Mid-Century addition in a well curated dining room. Subtle geometric transitions between curves and...
Leather, Wood
$7,400
H 38 in W 32.5 in D 37.5 in
Gianfranco Frattini Attribution, Lounge Chair, Teak, Velvet, Italy, 1960s
By Gianfranco Frattini
Located in High Point, NC
A green velvet and teak lounge chair attributed to Gianfranco Frattini, Italy, c. 1960s. Seat height: 16" Seat depth: 23" Seat width: 20" Arm height: 20" Newly upholstered.
Velvet, Teak
Mid Century Italian Dining Set by Gianfranco Fratrini
By Gianfranco Frattini, Bernini
Located in Paddock Wood Tonbridge, GB
Dining table and six chairs by Gianfranco Frattini A table and six chairs designed by Frattini and produced by Bernini in Italy in 1957. The model 552 dining table has two hourglass...
Rosewood