Gerrit Thomas Rietveld Utrecht Sofa for Cassina in red, green or blue
About the Item
- Creator:Cassina (Manufacturer),Gerrit Rietveld (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 27.56 in (70 cm)Width: 47.25 in (120 cm)Depth: 33.47 in (85 cm)Seat Height: 14.57 in (37 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:2022
- Production Type:New & Custom(Current Production)
- Estimated Production Time:13-14 weeks
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Berlin, DE
- Reference Number:
Gerrit Rietveld
Best known for his Red and Blue chair, a modernist icon created using only two plywood plates and 15 connecting bars, Dutch designer Gerrit Thomas Rietveld trained as a cabinetmaker, and his bold vision for furniture was supported by his expertise in construction and craftsmanship.
Born in Utrecht, Rietveld learned goldsmithing in addition to the cabinetry apprenticeship he had in his carpenter father’s workshop. He studied draftsmanship with architect Piet Klaarhamer at the Utrecht Museum of Applied Arts and opened his own furniture workshop in 1917. In the 1930s, Rietveld began to experiment with then-unusual materials like plywood and aluminum, and he pursued intellectual concepts through his design, even considering a seat as a resting place for the body and the soul.
Designed in 1918, the minimalist Red and Blue chair is widely coveted by collectors and gained admirers in the likes of legendary American sculptor and designer Donald Judd over the years. (Examples of Rietveld’s designs can be found in Judd’s restored home-museum in New York City.) The Red and Blue chair is so stunning in its geometric simplicity that it is one of the most important symbols of the Dutch art and design movement of the early 20th century called De Stijl, of which Rietveld was an important part. De Stijl means “the Style” and was an effort to express utopian values through pure abstraction in design and the use of primary colors.
Another example of Rietveld’s celebrated seating furniture is the Zig-Zag chair, which was commissioned by the Dutch department store Metz & Co. and intended to be mass-produced. The resulting design — to which the rights to manufacture were bought by Cassina in 1971 — is the essence of the De Stijl movement and an example of Rietveld’s experiments with jointless chairs made from a single material, wood. The Zig-Zag chair’s armless, legless, elegant form is pure abstraction, yet it is also sturdy and comfortable.
Later in his career, Rietveld worked more often as an architect, designing buildings in prestigious settings like the Venice Biennale. He was a pioneer in more ways than one: The first building he designed, Rietveld Schröder House in Utrecht in 1924, is a radically modern space and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000.
Find vintage Gerrit Rietveld furniture on 1stDibs.
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.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Berlin, Germany
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Gerrit Thomas Rietveld Utrecht Armchair for Cassina in purple, red, green...By Cassina, Gerrit RietveldLocated in Berlin, DEArmchair designed by Gerrit Thomas Rietveld in 1935. Relaunched in 2015. Manufactured by Cassina in Italy. Available in many different colors.Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsFabric
- Utrecht XL or Baby Armchair Gerrit Thomas Rietveld for Cassina in pink, red...By Cassina, Gerrit RietveldLocated in Berlin, DEPrices vary dependent on the chosen color and size of the chair. Available in three sizes: Standard: 64 width, 85 depth, 70 height, 37 seat height XL: 66 width, 89 depth, 75 height...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsFabric
- Gerrit Thomas Rietveld Zig Zag Chair for Cassina, Italy, newBy Cassina, Gerrit RietveldLocated in Berlin, DEPrice is dependent on the chosen material/color. Chair designed by Gerrit Thomas Rietveld in 1934. Relaunched in 1973/ 2011. Manufactured by Cassina in Italy.Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsWood
- Gerrit Rietveld Red and Blue Chair for Cassina, Italy, newBy Cassina, Gerrit RietveldLocated in Berlin, DEChair designed by Gerrit Rietveld in 1918. Relaunched in 1973. Manufactured by Cassina in Italy.Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Chairs
MaterialsWood
- Gerrit Rietveld Zeilmaker Version of Black Red and Blue for Cassina, Italy newBy Cassina, Gerrit RietveldLocated in Berlin, DEThe price given applies to the chair as seen in the first picture. Chair designed by Gerrit Rietveld in 1920. Relaunched in 2015. Manufactured by Cassina in Italy. One of the version...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Chairs
MaterialsWood, Leather
- Rodolfo Dordoni 'Sail Out' Outdoor Sofa for Cassina in white, purple or blueBy Cassina, Rodolfo DordoniLocated in Berlin, DEThe price given applies to the sofa as shown in the first picture. The price varies dependent on the size/material and color of the sofa. Sofa designed by Rodolfo Dordoni in 2020. Manufactured by Cassina in Italy. Inspired by the spirit of 1950s seaside resorts, Sail Out is an outdoor modular sofa...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsMetal
- Italian modern Velvet sofa Utrecht by Gerrit Thomas Rietveld for Cassina , 1990sBy Gerrit Rietveld, CassinaLocated in MIlano, ITItalian modern Velvet sofa mod. Utrecht by Gerrit Thomas Rietveld for Cassina , 1990s fantastic three-seater sofa mod. Utrecht with curved seat and backrest, padded and upholstered ...Category
1990s Italian Modern Sofas
MaterialsVelvet
- Gerrit Thomas Rietveld Utrech Sofa by CassinaBy Gerrit Rietveld, CassinaLocated in Barcelona, BarcelonaSofa designed by Gerrit Thomas Rietveld in 1935. Relaunched in 1988. Manufactured by Cassina in Italy. Gerrit Rietveld came up with the design ...Category
2010s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsFabric
- Gerrit Thomas Rietveld "Utrecht" Armchair for Cassina, 1935By Gerrit Rietveld, CassinaLocated in Lonigo, VenetoGerrit Thomas Rietveld "Utrecht" armchairs for Cassina, wool and steel, Netherlands, 1935. The designer came up with the idea of the “Utrecht” armchair in 1935 while working for t...Category
Vintage 1980s Dutch Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsSteel
- Gerrit Thomas Rietveld Utrecht Armchair by CassinaBy Gerrit Rietveld, CassinaLocated in Barcelona, BarcelonaArmchair designed by Gerrit Thomas Rietveld in 1935. Relaunched in 2015. Manufactured by Cassina in Italy. Gerrit T. Rietveld came up with the design for the Utrecht armchair...Category
2010s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric
- Gerrit Thomas Rietveld Utrecht Armchair by CassinaBy Gerrit Rietveld, CassinaLocated in Barcelona, BarcelonaArmchair designed by Gerrit Thomas Rietveld in 1935. Relaunched in 2015. Manufactured by Cassina in Italy. Gerrit T. Rietveld came up with the design for the Utrecht armchair...Category
2010s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric
- Gerrit Thomas Rietveld Utrecht Armchair by CassinaBy Gerrit Rietveld, CassinaLocated in Barcelona, BarcelonaArmchair designed by Gerrit Thomas Rietveld in 1935. Relaunched in 2015. Manufactured by Cassina in Italy. Gerrit T. Rietveld came up with the design for the Utrecht armchair...Category
2010s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFabric
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
The 21 Most Popular Mid-Century Modern Chairs
You know the designs, now get the stories about how they came to be.
Original in Berlin’s Lars Triesch Has Turned a Passion for Design into a Booming Business
His two gallery spaces in the German capital bring together thousands of pieces ranging from mid-century classics and Murano glass to covetable reproductions manufactured in-house.