Had Cini Boeri been a man, the Milanese architect and furniture designer, who died in 2020 at age 96, might be regarded today on par with such visionaries of the mid-20th century as Gio Ponti or Marco Zanuso. She worked with both. Although she’s well known and deeply respected in Italy, her renown elsewhere has been more akin to a cult following.
“I admire the work she did across architecture, interiors and furniture,” designer Faye Toogood says of Boeri’s impact. “She practiced architecture during a time when it was considered that women were too fragile to work outside.”
Boeri was one of very few women of her era to graduate from Milan Polytechnic with an architecture degree, which she did in 1951. Her illustrious career hinged on the strict economy of her designs and limited palette of materials. For example, her innovative 1971 Serpentone sofa for Arflex was crafted from just one material, polyurethane foam, and sold by the meter. Her ingenious 1987 Ghost chair for Fiam was cut from a single sheet of thick glass.
But in Boeri’s earlier days, her pieces displayed a more youthful exuberance. The circa 1968 Cubotto cabinet, produced in small numbers by Arflex, is an elegantly irregular arrangement of eight drawers of varying dimensions. The wooden cube, two feet square, was finished in laminate — in vivid orange, blue, sand or white — with color-coordinated casters and handles of black-enameled brass. Its design reflects a Space Age interest in flexible, space-saving, multiuse furnishings.
“It’s a very clean piece of design,” says Kaisha Davierwalla, owner and founder of Vaspaar Italy. “Even with its strong, square lines, somehow the vibrant colors and asymmetry have the feel of a feminine touch.”
Find vintage Cini Boeri seating, lighting and tables on 1stDibs.
H 24.41 in W 37.41 in D 29.53 in
Customizable Fiam Italia Ghost Glass Chair by Cini Boeri
By Cini Boeri, FIAM
Located in New York, NY
ARMCHAIR IN CURVED GLASS Monolithic chair in 12 mm-thick curved glass. “ I would never have thought of making a chair from glass… My initial distrust of an idea which seemed quite u...
Glass
H 24.41 in W 37.41 in D 29.53 in
Smoked Glass Fiam Italia Ghost Glass Chair by Cini Boeri
By Cini Boeri, FIAM
Located in New York, NY
ARMCHAIR IN CURVED GLASS Monolithic chair in 12 mm-thick curved glass. “ I would never have thought of making a chair from glass… My initial distrust of an idea which seemed quite u...
Glass
H 24.41 in W 37.41 in D 29.53 in
Set of Two Fiam Italia Ghost Glass Chairs by Cini Boeri - Customizable colors
By Cini Boeri, FIAM
Located in New York, NY
ARMCHAIRS IN CURVED GLASS Monolithic chair in 12 mm-thick curved glass. “ I would never have thought of making a chair from glass… My initial distrust of an idea which seemed quite ...
Glass
H 29.93 in W 25.6 in D 53.15 in
Arflex BOBORELAX Armchair by Cini Boeri
By Arflex, Cini Boeri
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Boborelax, created from Bobo, and together with it, makes up a curious and unusual family of essential furnishings, an example of pure design, without labels and adjectives. Dimensi...
Fabric
H 22.84 in W 36.62 in D 37.8 in
Strip sofa / armchair modules by Cini Boeri for Arflex
By Cini Boeri, Arflex
Located in RIDDERKERK, NL
The Strips sofa, designed by the Italian architect Cini Boeri in 1968, is one of Arflex 's most iconic collections and a highly acclaimed design from the 1970s. We have two modules ...
Fabric, Velvet
H 32.29 in W 35.44 in D 43.31 in
Cini Boeri 'Taboga' Lounge Chair for Arflex 1976
By Cini Boeri
Located in Tilburg, NL
Cini Boeri 'Taboga' Lounge Chair for Arflex 1976. Designed in 1976. New, current production. Price noted is for a Taboga in fabric upholstery T5. Taboga armchair was designed by Ci...
Fabric
H 29.14 in W 35.83 in D 31.5 in
Arflex Pecorelle Armchair in Denver Fabric and Black Fur Corners by Cini Boeri
By Cini Boeri, Arflex
Located in Brooklyn, NY
The architect Cini Boeri tells that she was inspired by Christo Vladimirov Javasev's and Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon's works, masters in the art of landscape painting. Nature pr...
Metal
H 29.14 in W 35.83 in D 31.5 in
Arflex Pecorelle Armchair in Denver Fabric with Black Metal Legs by Cini Boeri
By Arflex, Cini Boeri
Located in Brooklyn, NY
The architect Cini Boeri tells that she was inspired by Christo Vladimirov Javasev's and Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon's works, masters in the art of landscape painting. Nature pr...
Metal
H 31.5 in W 70.87 in D 37.41 in
'Brigadier' Loveseats by Cini Boeri for Knoll, Italy, 1980s
By Knoll, Cini Boeri
Located in Antwerp, BE
Exceptional sofa from the award-winning Brigadier Series by renowned Italian architect and designer, Cini Boeri (1924–2020). Crafted in the 1980s for Knoll, these sofas feature a sle...
Leather, Lacquer
H 19.69 in W 20.87 in D 20.87 in
Arflex Botolo Low Back Armchair in Natural Fur & Black Metal Legs by Cini Boeri
By Arflex, Cini Boeri
Located in Brooklyn, NY
An innovative upholstered rolling chair with three large tubular legs. Botolo is an ideal place to sit, relax and be creative.Cini Boeri designed Botolo in 1973, giving life to a new design style, where you could choose the height of the legs to have a dining chair in the high version or a style, at that time modern, "the living at a low level", a way of living...
Fur
The Italian designer’s playful piece offers an elegant storage solution.
The architect has imbued the minimalist-chic Tel Aviv stay with his signature style, while at the same time honoring the site's long history.
