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Toshiyuki Kita "Wink" Multifuntional Recliner Cassina Italy 1980

About the Item

A great vintage example Wink chair designed by Japanese designer Toshiyuki Kita in 1980 and produced by Cassina Italy The development of the Wink multifunctional recliner chair took Toshiyuki almost 5 years and resulted into this design classic that is in the collection of many Museums all around the world Also being named the Mickey Mouse chair as a wink to the Disney figure referring to the shape and the adjustable ears (headrest) of this chair The upholstery fabric is probably from a special edition as this chair changed its appearance many times since its introduction in 1980 by Cassina The condition is good with minor user wear The fabric has faded from UV light but this gives a nice vintage effect to the overall look A small nick to the fabric at the back of a headrest is another minor issue, overall a very nice original functional example Dimensions (upright): 40 5/8 x 33 x 31 5/8" (103.2 x 83.8 x 80.3 cm, seat h. 14 3/4" (37.5 cm); (reclining): 24 3/8 x 33 x 75 3/4" (61.9 x 83.8 x 192.4 cm) On the designer: Industrial designer Toshiyuki Kita was born in Osaka, Japan in 1942. Kita studied at the Naniwa Design College in Osaka (now the the Osaka University of Arts), graduating with a degree in Industrial Design in 1964. He worked in product development for an aluminum company before deciding to establish his own design firm in 1967 to focus on his real passion—seating design. His sculptural Saruyama Chair (1967) for Moroso echoed natural forms—icebergs, canyons, and mountain—which were then manipulated to cradle the human form. In 1969, Kita relocated to Italy, where he worked as an industrial designer for Italian brands such as Bernin, Bilumen and Cassina. In 1980, he designed the versatile and playful Wink Chair for Cassina, perhaps Kita's most well-known design. This multifunctional recliner could be adjusted into various positions, and featured a removable and replaceable cover to change with the season. Kita’s designs focus on the dichotomies between the East and the West, and the past and the future; creating truly distinct and individual pieces. He combines technologically advanced design with traditional and sophisticated Japanese decorative arts, using natural materials such as Washi rice paper and Urushi lacquerware. Iconic designs by Kita include the Kick table (1983) for Cassina which was intended to complement the Wink Chair; the Multilingual Chair (1991)—designed for the World Exposition in Seville, the chair was equipped with an audio system of recordings in three different languages; the reclining K10 Dodo (2000) for Cassina; the K06 Aki Biki Canta Series (2000) for Cassina; Aquos LCD TV (2000) for Sharp; and Wakamaru, the first humanoid domestic robot (2002) for Mitsubishi Electrics. Kita’s work remains in permanent collections at several international museums, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, and the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe in Hamburg. He is also the recipient of the Japan Interior Designers Association Award in 1975, the Product Design Award in 1983, Spain’s Delta de Oro Award in 1990, and is just one of three non-Italians to have been awarded the prestigious Compasso d’Oro International Career Prize in 2011 from the IDA. Kita is also the author of several design books, including Exploration of Design 1969—Why I went to Italy to Design (2012) and Toshiyuki Kita: The Soul of Design (2001), among others. A Professor at the Product Design Department of the Osaka University of Art since 2003, Kita has also curated many exhibitions in Italy and Japan. Kita currently dedicates himself to traditional crafts and developing artisan industries.

Creator:

Toshiyuki Kita (Designer),Cassina (Manufacturer)

Dimensions:

Height: 40.63 in (103.2 cm)Width: 33 in (83.8 cm)Depth: 31.62 in (80.3 cm)Seat Height: 14.77 in (37.5 cm)

Style:

Post-Modern (Of the Period)

Materials and Techniques:

Fabric,Foam,Plastic,Steel

Place of Origin:

Italy

Period:

1980-1989

Date of Manufacture:

1990s

Condition:

Wear consistent with age and use. Minor fading.

Seller Location:

Bergen op Zoom, NL

Reference Number:

1stDibs: LU5407225437042

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Cassina

Furniture manufacturer Cassina is a prolific design house for more reasons than one: It not only owns the licenses to an exquisite collection of iconic chairs, sofas, tables and other pieces from the 20th and 21st centuries but also produces original works that are characterized by innovation and the finest Italian craftsmanship.

Cassina’s illustrious legacy includes being one of the first companies to bring industrial design to Italy in the 1950s. Founded in 1927 in Meda, Italy, by brothers Cesare and Umberto Cassina, the Italian manufacturing giant originally specialized in bespoke woodworking. In nearly a century since its founding, the company has shown incredible foresight about design trends and the evolution of technology.

In 1964, Cassina signed an exclusive licensing agreement to manufacture furniture by Le Corbusier and his collaborators — such as the LC4 chaise longue made with trailblazing French modernist Charlotte Perriand and Pierre Jeanneret — a move that would shape the future of the company. Cassina’s I Maestri collection is an ongoing initiative to restyle landmark designs from the 20th century, such as pieces by Gerrit Rietveld (the Red and Blue armchair from 1918), Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Erik Gunnar Asplund, Franco Albini and Frank Lloyd Wright. The company preserves the intentions and original styles of their designs but adds updated techniques, materials and processes — rendering them the best possible combination of past, present and future. The brand has also worked with contemporary icons like Zaha Hadid, Gio Ponti and Philippe Starck.

Cassina’s original designs are cutting-edge as well. They include pieces for everyday use, the development of which is guided by comfort and the marriage of Italian craftsmanship with industrial technology.

Some of Cassina’s pieces, both from its contemporary and I Maestri collections, can be found in the collections of museums like the Museum of Modern Art and the Vitra Design Museum. In 2014, the company became part of Haworth in its acquisition of Italian furniture group Poltrona Frau, and in 2015, Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola joined Cassina as its art director, leading the brand into its next century of inventive style.

Find a collection of new and vintage Cassina furniture on 1stDibs.