Gaetano Pesce Green Street Chair Vitra, Germany, 1984
View Similar Items
Gaetano Pesce Green Street Chair Vitra, Germany, 1984
About the Item
- Creator:Vitra (Manufacturer),Gaetano Pesce (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 37.8 in (96 cm)Width: 20.08 in (51 cm)Length: 37.8 in (96 cm)Seat Height: 18.12 in (46 cm)
- Style:Post-Modern (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:1980-1989
- Date of Manufacture:1984
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Roosendaal, NL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU933020667992
Gaetano Pesce
Gaetano Pesce was of a generation of Italian architects who in the early 1960s rebelled against the industrial perfection of modernism by conceiving new furniture and objects that were at once expressive and eccentric in form; or you might say they were more like art than functionalist design.
Born in the picturesque coastal Italian city of La Spezia in 1939, Pesce was a precocious talent who could have forged a career as an artist but opted instead to go to Venice to study architecture because, as he has said, it was “the most complex of all the arts.” Rather than having new worlds opened to him at design school, however, Pesce found the rationalist curriculum oppressive in its insistence on standardization and prescribed materials and technologies.
Pesce wanted to explore the latest of both materials and technologies to create objects and buildings never before imagined, with what he called “personalities” that spoke to the issues of the day. He was keen to examine ways to diversify mass production so that each manufactured work could be distinct.
In 1964, Pesce met Cesare Cassina, of the forward-looking furniture company C&B Italia in Milan (now known as B&B Italia), for whom he would create many important designs, beginning with a collection of what he called “transformational furniture” — two chairs and a loveseat — made entirely out of high-density polyurethane foam. To make the pieces easy to ship and cost-efficient, he proposed that after being covered in a stretch jersey, they be put in a vacuum, then heat-sealed flat between vinyl sheets. Once the foam was removed from its packaging, the piece returned to its original shape — hence, the name Up for the series, which debuted in 1969.
In addition to these pieces, Pesce proposed for the collection something he referred to as an “anti-armchair,” which took the shape of a reclining fertility goddess, the iconic Donna.
Producing the piece's complex form turned out to be a technical challenge. Bayer, the foam’s manufacturer, deemed it impossible to accomplish. Pesce persisted and came up with a new procedure, demonstrating not only the designer’s key role in researching the nature and potential of new materials but also his vital importance in “doubting rules.” The Up chair and accompanying ottoman were born, and they were revolutionary in more ways than one.
In the early 1970s, Pesce began exploring one of his key concepts, the idea of the industrial originals. Employing a mold without air holes, and adding a blood-red dye to the polyurethane, he cast a bookcase that resembled a demolished wall, the rough edges of the shelves and posts resulting from fissures in the material made by trapped air.
Through his research into polyurethane, Pesce figured out a way to make a loveseat and armchair using only a simple wood frame and strong canvas covering as a mold. Since the fabric developed random folds during the injection process, the pieces were similar but not identical. Cassina named the suite of furnishings Sit Down and introduced it in 1975. By experimenting with felt soaked in polyurethane and resin, Pesce conceived I Feltri, another collection of armchairs introduced by Cassina in 1987.
Pesce went on to live a life that defied expectation and convention and along the way became one of the most seminal figures in art and design.
Find vintage Gaetano Pesce chairs, sofas, vases and more on 1stDibs.
Vitra
Design house Vitra has garnered international recognition for more than 70 years — the Swiss family-owned furniture company has outfitted public spaces as well as residential properties and offices worldwide. It has been a proponent of modernist design since the 1950s. While the brand is heralded for its collaborations with mid-century modern icons such as Verner Panton, Charles and Ray Eames, Alexander Girard and others, Vitra’s German campus is also home to buildings designed by legendary architects Zaha Hadid and Frank Gehry. Among them is the Vitra Design Museum, an independent cultural institution that displays two centuries of design today.
Vitra was established in Weil Am Rhein, Germany, in 1950 by husband and wife team Willi and Erika Fehlbaum. On a trip to New York several years later, Willi Fehlbaum encountered the work of design polymaths Ray and Charles Eames in a furniture store and immediately knew that he had found his bliss.
In 1957, Vitra entered into a licensing agreement with Herman Miller, which saw the company producing designs by George Nelson, the Eameses and others. Later, Vitra partnered with Verner Panton and created the Panton chair, which was the first chair ever crafted from a single piece of molded plastic (it was also the first piece to be independently developed by Vitra). After 27 years of establishing the Vitra brand, the Fehlbaums passed control to their two sons, Rolf and Raymond Fehlbaum.
When a fire destroyed the factory in 1981, the brothers developed the Vitra Factory Campus, subsequently taking the opportunity to redirect the architectural landscape of the company. They created a masterplan with Nicholas Grimshaw, and together they erected four buildings in just a few short years.
In 1988, with the passing of Ray Eames and the disbandment of the Los Angeles Eames office, Rolf and Raymond acquired the furniture design portion of her estate, including the Eames prototypes and experimental models, housed today in the Vitra Design Museum.
Rolf and Roy opened the Vitra Design Museum in 1989. This began a period rich with design relationships, including collaborations with Antonio Citterio, Jasper Morrison, Maarten van Severen, Philippe Starck, Alberto Meda and others.
In 2012, leadership passed to Nora, the third generation of the Fehlbaums. Nora Fehlbaum has, like her grandparents, expanded the company and brought it into the 21st century with the acquisition of Finnish furniture manufacturer Artek. Nora has turned the company’s focus to sustainability yet still maintains its international and cultural relevance legacy.
Find a collection of Vitra lounge chairs, tables, side chairs, sofas and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- Gaetano Pesce La Smorfia Chair Meritalia, 2003By Gaetano PesceLocated in Roosendaal, Noord BrabantPostmodern chair designed by Gaetano Pesce and manufactured by Meritalia, Italy 2003. This unique shaped chair is more of a sculpture and fits perfectly in the oeuvre from Pesce, wit...Category
Early 2000s Italian Post-Modern Armchairs
MaterialsMetal
- Gaetano Pesce Exhibition Poster Bernini, Italy, 2001By Gaetano PesceLocated in Roosendaal, Noord BrabantRare exhibition poster designed by Gaetano Pesce for Bernini, Italy 2001. This poster was an exhibition poster for the Bernini Exhibition at Gal...Category
Early 2000s Italian Post-Modern Contemporary Art
MaterialsGlass, Wood, Paper
- Gaetano Pesce Goto vase Domus Caffe Florian 1995By Gaetano PesceLocated in Roosendaal, Noord BrabantThis charming vase designed by Gaetano Pesce and made by Caffe Florian in 1995 was created to mark the G. Pesce show at the Caffe Florian during the Venice Biennale in 1995. The vase is shaped like the head of the Lion of San Marco, and it has the Italian text "Toast to Venice" molded onto it. On the bottom, you'll find the words "Florian Temporanea." Each Goto vase...Category
1990s Italian Post-Modern Vases
MaterialsRubber
- Gaetano Pesce Fish design vase Murano Italy 1994By Gaetano PesceLocated in Roosendaal, Noord BrabantExtremely rare glass vase designed by Gaetano Pesce and manufactured by Fish Design in Italy in 1994. These vases were all unique, This vase was executed in Murano, and only made in ...Category
1990s Italian Post-Modern Vases
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Maurizio Peregalli Poltroncina Armchairs for Zeus, Italy, 1984By Maurizio PeregalliLocated in Roosendaal, Noord BrabantFantastic set of 10 Postmodern Poltroncina armchairs designed by Maurizio Peregalli and manufactured by Zeus, Italy 1984. These chais have a black painted metal tubular frame covered...Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Elmar Flototto Pagholz stacking chairs Germany 1970By Pagholz FlötottoLocated in Roosendaal, Noord BrabantNice large set of S22 stacking chairs designed by Elmar Flototto and manufactured by Pagholz in Germany in 1970. They're very well designed to be stacked on top of each other and int...Category
Vintage 1970s German Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Up1 Chairs by Gaetano Pesce for B&B ItaliaBy B&B Italia, Gaetano PesceLocated in Chicago, ILc. 1990s. Price is for the set. Contact us if you’d like to purchase a single item. These chairs are a piece of postmodern Italian design history. Fully made of polyurethane foam.Category
1990s Italian Post-Modern Chairs
MaterialsFabric
$5,900 / set - Gaetano Pesce Broadway Chairs 543 Made in Italy by Bernini 1993 GreenBy Gaetano PesceLocated in Vancouver, BCA set of 4 extremely uncommon Broadway Chairs produced by Bernini. Each chair is unique and both seat and back are casted in a green/yellow resin. A frozen fluidity - portrait of a...Category
1990s Italian Post-Modern Chairs
MaterialsStainless Steel
- Umbrella chair, Gaetano Pesce, Zerodisegno, 1995'sBy Gaetano PesceLocated in PARIS, FR"Umbrella " chair in epoxy metal and plastic, with seating system following the operating principle of an umbrella. Edited by ZerodesignoCategory
1990s Italian Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Umbrella chair, Gaetano Pesce, Zerodisegno, 1995'sBy Gaetano PesceLocated in PARIS, FRUmbrella model chair in epoxy metal and plastic, with seating system following the operating principle of an umbrella. Edited by ZerodesignoCategory
1990s Italian Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Umbrella chair, Gaetano Pesce, Zerodisegno, 1995'sBy Gaetano PesceLocated in PARIS, FR"Umbrella " chair in epoxy metal and plastic, with seating system following the operating principle of an umbrella. Edited by ZerodesignoCategory
1990s Italian Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Broadway chair, Gaetano Pesce, Bernini, 1993By Gaetano PesceLocated in PARIS, FRBroadway chair, Gaetano Pesce, Bernini, 1993 Gaetano Pesce ‘Broadway’ chair produced by Bernini with four rubber-capped feet standing on springs. Model 543, created in 1993 for Ber...Category
1990s Italian Chairs
MaterialsMetal
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Ruth Lande Shuman’s Manhattan Apartment Is a Happy Rainbow — Thanks to Gaetano Pesce
Over the years, Shuman has filled her Park Avenue penthouse with the Italian designer's radically colorful creations. Here's how it all came to together.
With Their Rambunctious Faux Naïf Aesthetic, Young Makers Are Changing the Way We Think about Design
Following in the footsteps of Italian master Gaetano Pesce, these mostly millennial talents are embracing an intentionally imperfect style with wildly creative results.