Mario Bellini Furniture
Milan-born architect and designer Mario Bellini just may be the closest thing to a modern-day Renaissance man: His creative output spans genres, from electronics to furniture to architecture to cars, comprising iconic designs in each. He has been the recipient of multiple prestigious Compasso d’Oro design awards, and more than 20 of his works are in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art.
Born in 1935, Bellini studied architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan before founding his own firm in his native city in the early 1960s. He soon branched out beyond architecture, however, first for the tech manufacturer Olivetti, where he served as chief industrial design consultant from 1963 to 1991. During that time, Bellini oversaw the design of some of Olivetti’s most popular typewriters.
His penchant for electronic design didn’t stop there: Bellini also designed cameras for Fuji, televisions for Brionvega and a slew of audio devices for Yamaha, then served as design consultant for Renault and devised the interior of the 1980 Lancia Trevi for Fiat. Meanwhile, his architecture work spans continents, including such modern gems as the Museum of Islamic Arts at the Louvre, the National Gallery of Victoria extension in Melbourne, the Dubai Creek Complex and the Milan Convention Centre in his hometown.
And then there’s the furniture: Over the last 70 years, Bellini has designed office furniture for Vitra; lamps for Artemide, Erco and FLOS; porcelain for Rosenthal and long-admired sofas and other seating for Kartell, Natuzzi, B&B Italia, Cassina and more.
His oft-imitated 1977 Cab chair for Cassina, comprising 16 individual pieces of saddle leather that create a “skin” over a minimal metal frame, remains one of the manufacturer’s best sellers today. His pudgy-legged, round tables for Cassina foreshadow Faye Toogood’s widely loved Roly Poly line. His postmodern Summa armchairs for Kartell, as well as his elegant Chiara floor lamp, still lure collectors on vintage furniture websites.
Bellini’s most famous contribution to furniture design, though, may be his 1970 Camaleonda sofa for B&B Italia (then C&B Italia). An entrant to the 1972 MoMA show “Italy: The New Domestic Landscape,” the seat takes its name from the Italian words for chameleon and wave. Its bulbous, modular form makes it infinitely flexible. The sofa was a runaway hit at the show and, once discontinued, remained so popular among vintage dealers that B&B Italia reissued it in 2020 with all recycled materials and interchangeable seat covers. “Of all the objects I have designed, Camaleonda is perhaps the best in terms of its sense of freedom,” Bellini said.
Browse an expansive collection of Mario Bellini furniture — including dining tables, armchairs, mid-century sofas and more — today on 1stDibs.




1970s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Steel
20th Century Italian Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Steel
Mid-20th Century European Mid-Century Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Cord, Fabric, Foam, Plywood
Mid-20th Century Mario Bellini Furniture
Chrome
1980s European Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Stainless Steel
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Other
1970s Post-Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Metal
Late 20th Century European Post-Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Wool, Foam
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Velvet
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Metal
Late 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Steel
Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Leather
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Plastic
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Bouclé
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Textile
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Crystal
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Velvet, Plastic
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Steel
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Bouclé
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Travertine, Marble
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Metal
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Fabric
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Leather, Fiberglass
1980s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Leather
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Fabric
1970s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Marble, Steel
Mid-20th Century European Mid-Century Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Ceramic
Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Plastic
1970s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Metal
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Plastic, Rubber
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Metal
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Aluminum
1970s European Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Mohair
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Metal
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Fabric
1970s Italian Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Leather
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Marble
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Leather
1970s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Mohair
1970s Italian Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Leather
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Leather
2010s Italian Mario Bellini Furniture
Other
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Plastic
Late 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Leather
20th Century Italian Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Steel
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Fiberglass
Mid-20th Century Italian Art Deco Mario Bellini Furniture
Fabric
1970s Italian Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Travertine
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Wood
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Metal
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Leather
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Mario Bellini Furniture
Leather, Plastic
Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Wool, Foam
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Marble
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Mario Bellini Furniture
Fiberglass