Although he was best known as a leading figure of organic architecture in Italy, architect Luigi Pellegrin also created sleek and luxurious mid-century modern furniture that included designs for modular seating and more, particularly during the 1950s and 1960s.
Born in 1925 in Courcelette, Pellegrin attended school in Rome, where he met legendary American architect Frank Lloyd Wright in 1951. Upon meeting Wright — and later seeing his work in person — Pellegrin became greatly influenced by Wright’s organic approach to architecture. This philosophy, which refers to buildings that exist in harmony with their natural surroundings — had a profound influence on the shape of modern life.
Pellegrin became a member of the A.P.A.O. Association for Organic Architecture, an organization founded by his mentor, Italian architect Bruno Zevi in 1945. Zevi, who studied with Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius at Harvard Graduate School of Design, encountered Wright’s work in America and suggested Pellegrin visit the United States, where the mentee experienced Wright's architecture at Florida Southern College in Lakeland. He later wrote about Wright’s work in a monthly periodical founded by Zevi called L'architettura Cronache e storia.
At the Art Institute of Chicago, Pellegrin was shown drawings made by Louis Sullivan, an architect and mentor to Wright as well as others who came to be associated with the Prairie School. From the 1950s onward, Pellegrin established a reputation for his gigantic urban infrastructures and complex, technologically intricate designs. The influence of Wright can be found in Pellegrin’s designs for private and public buildings in Lombardy and Rome. He patented prefabrication systems, built hundreds of schools (more than 70 of which were in Saudi Arabia) and much more.
During the late 1950s and 1960s, Pellegrin turned his attention toward furniture design, collaborating with award-winning postwar furniture manufacturer MIM Roma, where he was mentored by Ico Parisi, a Palermo-born architect and one-half of a prolific furniture design duo he comprised with his wife, Luisa. The company, founded in 1957, focused on producing pieces created by new, visionary designers such as Pellegrin, Carlo Scarpa, Gio Ponti and others that were innovative, visually artistic and embraced Italian modernism.
Pellegrin designed several seating pieces for MIM Rosa, including sectional sofas, modular living room sets and armchairs featuring sculptural bases and square or rectangular forms. The furniture was made using materials such as metal and fiberglass and often came upholstered in velvet, faux leather, polyester and bouclé wool.
Today, Pellegrin’s furniture is coveted by architects, interior designers and collectors of Italian 20th-century modernist design.
Find a range of vintage Luigi Pellegrin furniture on 1stDibs.
Mid-Century Modern Pair of Armchairs by Luigi Pellegrin for MIM Roma, Italy
By Luigi Pellegrin
Located in Brussels, BE
Mid-Century Modern Pair of Armchairs by Luigi Pellegrin for MIM Roma, Italy, 1950s
Leather, Plastic
$2,379Sale Price / set|20% Off
H 19.69 in W 28.35 in D 30.71 in
Ico Parisi Italian Midcentury Armchairs for Mim
By MIM Roma, Ico Parisi
Located in bari, IT
Set of four armchairs in white fiberglass Kubilia series of Ico Parisi for M.I.M. Rome, Italy. Ico Parisi was born in Palermo in 1916. He gained a diploma in construction and served his apprenticeship in Giuseppe Terragni's studio. In 1937 he carried out, for the magazine Quadrante, a photographic study of the Casa del Fascio that marked the entire research that Parisi conducted in "meditating on the legacies and contradictions of the enormous baggage of ideas and forms constituted by the experience of the masters". His activity, marked by continuous experimentation, is an incessant quest in the fields of architecture, art and design. Between 1948 and 1950 he devoted himself to the study of furniture elements. In the field of design, crucial encounters with Munari and Fontana (1951) and Melotti profoundly marked his experience. In 1948 he founded the studio La ruota with his wife Luisa Aiani, a designer and designer, which ceased its activity in 1995. In 1954 he was awarded the Gold Medal at the X Milan Triennale with the work Padiglione Soggiorno, with Silvio Longhi and Luigi Antonietti. In 1957 he presented at the exhibition Colori e forme della casa d'oggi the work Casa per vacanze, which was the result of a collaboration with Manlio Rho...
Velvet, Fiberglass
$4,164 / set
H 34.65 in W 28.75 in D 31.5 in
Pair of Paolo Buffa Mid-Century Modern Italian Armchairs, 1950s
By Paolo Buffa
Located in Puglia, Puglia
Beautiful pair of armchairs with curved armrests, made by Paolo Buffa in 1950. The structure in curved and padded wood, the upholstery was redone more than twenty years ago but is in...
Fabric, Beech
$2,141 / set
H 34.26 in W 37.41 in D 33.47 in
Pair of Mid-Century Modern Italian Satin Armchairs, 1950s
By Guglielmo Ulrich
Located in Puglia, Puglia
Pair of armchairs in the Ulrich style, structure and legs in solid wood, covering in satin, made in the 1950s Conditions as shown in the photos, it is advisable to redo the upholstery.
Satin, Beech
$3,331 / set
H 33.47 in W 29.14 in D 29.14 in
Pair of Mid-century Modern Italian Design Armchairs, 1950s
Located in Puglia, Puglia
Pair of armchairs covered in eco-leather and brass feet, 1950s Italian design. The armchairs have original upholstery, as shown in the photos in good condition but with small signs o...
Brass
1970s , Pair of Mid-Century Modern Armchairs , Italy
Located in Praha, CZ
good condition cleaned seat height 43cm
Fabric
$1,784
H 35.83 in W 37.01 in D 28.35 in
Pair of Gigi Radice Mid-Century Modern Italian Armchairs for Minotti, 50s
By Minotti, Gigi Radice
Located in Puglia, Puglia
Pair of armchairs designed by Gigi Radice for Minotti. They feature a solid wood frame, original jacquard fabric upholstery, and gold-plated brass legs. The armchairs require reuphol...
Brass
$3,331 / set
H 36.23 in W 33.47 in D 29.93 in
Pair of Mid-Century Modern Italian Real Leather Armchairs by Cinova, 1964s
Located in Puglia, Puglia
This pair of armchairs upholstered in genuine leather-colored leather were produced by the famous Italian company Cinova, in the 1960s. Cinova made use of the collaboration of great...
Leather
$4,521 / set
H 33.86 in W 30.32 in D 29.53 in
Pair of Italian Mid-Century Armchairs by Gigi Radice for Minotti
By Minotti, Gigi Radice
Located in Roma, RM
An elegant pair of Italian mid-century armchairs designed by Luigi 'Gigi' Radice for the respected Italian manufacturer Minotti, dating from the late 1950s to early 1960s. The chair...
Metal
$2,855 / set
H 31.5 in W 35.44 in D 38.19 in
Mid-Century Modern Italian Pair of C&B Coronado Armchairs by Tobia Scarpa, 1970s
By C&B Italia, Tobia Scarpa
Located in Prato, IT
Mid-Century Modern Italian pair of C&B Italia "Coronado" armchairs by Tobia Scarpa with their original vintage upholstery. The armchairs are in good vintage conditions, sings and we...
Fabric, Wood
Mid-Century Modern Pier Luigi Collie Armchair, Mod. 505, Italy
By Pier Luigi Colli
Located in San Francisco, CA
Collectible armchair, model 505 Rol, designed by Italian designer Pier Luigi Colli. The chair features a sculpted frame and is upholstered in soft suede, offering both style and comf...
Suede, Wood
MIM Roma Mid-Century Modern Executive Swivel Chair, Italy
By MIM Roma
Located in Naples, IT
Office armchair with armrests and five-spoke aluminium base with castors, seat and backrest shell made of curved plywood, original foam and skai upholstery. A rare piece of iconic de...
Metal
$1,427
H 30.71 in W 17.33 in D 20.87 in
Pair of Mid-Century Modern Rattan Armchairs, Bamboo, Italy, 1960s
Located in Naples, IT
Rattan armchairs with curved armrests. Good conditions.
Bamboo, Rattan
Sold
H 27.56 in W 30.71 in D 30.71 in
Brown Velvet Fiberglass Armchair by Luigi Pellegrin for MIM Roma, 1950s, Italy
By Mobili Italiani Moderni (MIM), MIM Roma, Luigi Pellegrin
Located in Rome, IT
Brown velvet armchair by Luigi Pellegrin for MIM, Roma, 1950s, Italy. Featuring a fiberglass base in good condition, some signs or bumps visible in the pictures, the cushions should...
Velvet, Fiberglass, Polyester