Every so often a company produces a design so iconic that it comes to symbolize its entire history. For Studio 65, the Italian avant-garde design collective cofounded by Franco Audrito, Piero Gatti and others, this was the Bocca sofa — alternatively known as the “lips sofa,” “red lip sofa,” “Dalí sofa” or Marilyn sofa.”
Studio 65’s lip-shaped seat — modeled after a singular feature from Surrealist artist Salvador Dalí’s portrait of Mae West — became a design icon shortly after its release in 1970 and remains a beloved collector’s item today. The Bocca symbolizes Studio 65’s playful, subversive approach to design. The collective took shape in Turin in 1965 with the goal of avant-garde experimentation. The group would eventually grow to comprise artists, designers and poets, including Roberta Garosci, Enzo Bertone, Paolo Morello and Paolo Rondelli. It would also play a central role in the Italian Radical design movement, the practitioners of which found inspiration in Pop art, minimalism and Arte Povera.
The Bocca sofa was born of one of Audrito’s earliest commissions — to design a gym in Milan — which he accepted just a year after graduating from architecture school. The collective enlisted Italian manufacturer Gufram, a firm at the forefront of Italian Radical design, to create a bold red sofa in the shape of plump lips; it was dubbed Marilyn after Ms. Monroe and was an instant sensation when installed at the fitness center.
Studio 65 would follow this with the also iconic Capitello side chair (another Gufram collaboration, now in the permanent collection at The Met), whose reimagining of a decapitated marble classical architectural column in squishy foam was an on-the-nose expression of the group’s pushback to traditional design. It’s a nod they iterated with the Attica coffee table, whose form appears sliced from an oversize column.
Though Studio 65 still operates as an architecture studio under the leadership of Audrito today, the original collective broke up in the late 1970s, making its output from the past decade sought-after fodder for collectors of postmodern, Radical and Italian design.
Find Studio 65 chairs, sofas and other furniture on 1stDibs.
$13,000 / item
GUFRAM Capitello Chaise Lounge by Studio 65
By Gufram Furniture, Studio 65
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The chaise loungeCapitello is contemporary archaeological finds that can be left out in the weather thanks to a particular finish which is suited also to outdoor use. Or displayed in...
Foam
Gufram Capitello Chair by Studio 65
By Studio 65, Gufram Furniture
Located in Toronto, ON
The CAPITELLO seat, designed by Studio 65, is born from the “deconstruction” of a traditional Greek column, giving life to a unique series that emulates the various parts of it. Each...
Foam
Modern Armchair Chaise Lounge Studio 65 Gufram Soft Polyurethane White
By Studio 65, Gufram Furniture
Located in Milan, IT
What happens if a Majestic Greek column falls down and breaks into several pieces? The answer is obvious: it is transformed into a Gufram lounge. This architectural archetype, produced in polyurethane, becomes in this way a series of objects of Industrial Design of smooth texture and cosy ergonomics. The Ionic volute, which is the upper part of the column and was not by chance called Capitello, becomes a luxurious chaise...
Foam
$13,200 / item
H 33.47 in W 83.47 in D 31.5 in
GUFRAM BOCCA (LIPS) by Studio 65 (Registered Trademark)
By Gufram Furniture, Studio 65
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
Bocca, the original 1970 lips-shaped couch is only Gufram's. This sensual couch, which is ideal for a tête-à-tête, has entered the collective imagination on par with Andy Warhol's works, as well as other pop art masterpieces...
Other
$9,450Sale Price|24% Off
H 34.25 in W 29.5 in D 52 in
French 19th Century Louis XVI Style White-Painted Lounge Chaise Ottoman Armchair
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A fine French 19th century Louis XVI style white-painted lounge ottoman armchair with recent striped upholstery. The square back armchair with a padded backrest, sides and armrests f...
Paint, Walnut
$9,800 / item
+ 3 moreH 33.47 in W 83.47 in D 31.5 in
Gufram Standard Colors Bocca Unlimited by Studio 65
By Studio 65, Gufram Furniture
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
On the occasion of its 50th anniversary, Bocca revolutionizes its image: 25 new colors dye Gufram’s iconic lips, which for the occasion are dressed up in an unprecedented, more mater...
Wool
$10,600 / item
+ 16 moreH 33.47 in W 83.47 in D 31.5 in
Gufram Special Colors Bocca Unlimited by Studio 65
By Studio 65, Gufram Furniture
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
On the occasion of its 50th anniversary, Bocca revolutionizes its image: 25 new colors dye Gufram’s iconic lips, which for the occasion are dressed up in an unprecedented, more mater...
Wool
Gufram, Bocca Lip-Shaped Sofa, Red, by Studio 65
By Gufram Furniture, Studio 65
Located in Beverly Hills, CA
Bocca, the original 1970 lips-shaped couch is only Gufram’s. More than any other, this object of design represents the perfect abstraction of feminine beauty. It is no coincidence that it was photographed by important photographers such as David La Chapelle...
Fabric, Upholstery
GUFRAM Pink Lady Couch by Studio 65
By Studio 65, Gufram Furniture
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
Bocca, the original 1970 lips-shaped couch is only Gufram's. This sensual couch, which is ideal for a tête-à-tête, has entered the collective imagination on par with Andy Warhol's works, as well as other pop art masterpieces...
Other
GUFRAM Dark Lady Couch by Studio 65
By Studio 65, Gufram Furniture
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
Bocca, the original 1970 lips-shaped couch is only Gufram's. This sensual couch, which is ideal for a tête-à-tête, has entered the collective imagination ...
Other
Limited Edition Gufram Bocca Sofa by Studio 65
By Studio 65, Gufram Furniture
Located in New York, NY
Born to satisfy the demand of a private customer, it’s been featured since then on dedicated - but not only - magazine covers, and it is still displayed in the most unconventional ho...
Wool
Customizable Gufram Bocca Sofa by Studio 65
By Studio 65, Gufram Furniture
Located in New York, NY
Born to satisfy the demand of a private customer, it’s been featured since then on dedicated - but not only - magazine covers, and it is still displayed in the most unconventional ho...
Wool
GUFRAM Attica Armchair by Studio 65
By Gufram Furniture, Studio 65
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The armchair Attica is contemporary archaeological finds that can be left out in the weather thanks to a particular finish which is suited also to outdoor ...
Other
Limited Edition Gufram Bocca Sofa by Studio 65
By Studio 65, Gufram Furniture
Located in New York, NY
Born to satisfy the demand of a private customer, it’s been featured since then on dedicated - but not only - magazine covers, and it is still displayed in the most unconventional ho...
Wool
$4,371Sale Price / item|25% Off
H 36.7 in W 25.6 in D 47.3 in
Sculptural Modern Chaise Lounge, Old Silver Metal & Natural Tobacco Leather
By Jover + Valls
Located in Alcoy, Alicante
The Hug contemporary chaise longue is designed and conceived with a light aesthetic, the slight oscillation of the steel rod of 16 mm is complemented by the flexibility of the doubl...
Brass, Steel
Sold
H 32.29 in W 43.31 in D 47.25 in
Modern Armchair Chaise Longue Studio 65 Gufram Soft Polyurethane White
By Studio 65, Gufram Furniture
Located in Milan, IT
What happens if a Majestic Greek column falls down and breaks into several pieces? The answer is obvious: it is transformed into a Gufram lounge. This architectural archetype, produced in polyurethane, becomes in this way a series of objects of industrial design of smooth texture and cosy ergonomics. The Ionic volute, which is the upper part of the column and was not by chance called Capitello, becomes a luxurious chaise...
Foam
Capitello Lounge Chair by Studio 65 for Gufram
By Gufram Furniture, Studio 65
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Capitello armchair, polyurethane foam, by Studio 65, Gufram, Italy, 1971. This lounge chair is molded into the form of uppermost architectural element of the Greek Ionic column: th...
Polyurethane