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Libro Armchair by Gianni Pareschi and Umberto Orsoni for Gruppo Dam, 1970

About the Item

Libro armchair designed by Gianni Pareschi and Umberto Orsoni for Gruppo Dam and produced by Gruppo Industriale Busnelli in 1970. A unique piece aimed at collectors and enthusiasts of items from the 1970s that revisit the Italian radical design movement of the post-war period, characterized by a clear desire to redefine industrial design in a subversive lifestyle. A sculptural armchair that makes its originality a unique piece as beautiful as it is functional, as the seat unfolds, and each page corresponds to a sitting position. A hinged central frame provides support for the seat pages attached to the frame's articulation. The covering is made of glossy white and fuchsia technical fabric coated with polyurethane resins. It has a white jute floor strap and a small plate with the famous silver B of Gruppo Industriale Busnelli. The Poltrona Libro is to be considered a true cultural icon of radical design; only a very limited number were produced as it was particularly "bold" for its time of creation. The Libro armchair is so artistic that it is displayed in some of the world's most important museums, such as the MoMA in New York. Historical images by the renowned photographer Giorgio Casali for Domus. Literature: Davide Mosconi, "Italian Design 70," Ed. Achille Mauri Editore Milano "Annual Interior 84, the House," Ed. Electa periodicals, year 1984 "Italy in the Pop years," Ed. Vente ARS, year 1993 "Design Journal," page 79, 1970 P. Decelle, D. Hennebert, P. Loze, "L'utopie du tout plastique," Norma Editions, p. 102, Paris 1994 A. Bangert, "Italienisches mobeldesign. Klassiker von 1945 bis 1985," CIP, p. 98, Munich 1985 "1000 Chairs," Charlotte & Peter Fiell, Taschen, page 492, 1997 Designers: In 1968, Gianni Pareschi, along with the G 14 (Gianni Pareschi, Roberto Ubaldi, Gianfranco Facchetti, Pino Pensotti, Umberto Orsoni), Ezio Didone, and Alberto Colombi, co-founded the Dam Group, Designer Associati Milano. They created significant products for the Gruppo Industriale Busnelli (such as Topos, Armadillo, Baffo, Zen, Materasso...) and worked on shaping the company's image, ranging from trade show presentations to advertising campaigns. Their ideas and content were remarkably unconventional and profoundly visionary for the time. In addition, the Dam Group designed exclusive ceramic items, tiles, flower pots, ashtrays, and more for the historic Cedit Ceramiche. In 1970, they also designed a series of models for another historic chandelier and blown glass objects company in Venice. The Dam Group endorsed various ideological and programmatic design manifestos and organized a large exhibition of their products in Milan at the Domus Center.

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