Vintage Italian "Soriana" Chaise Lounge and Ottoman by Afra and Tobia Scarpa
About the Item
- Creator:Cassina (Manufacturer),Afra & Tobia Scarpa (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 24.5 in (62.23 cm)Width: 48 in (121.92 cm)Depth: 32 in (81.28 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:ca. early 1970s
- Condition:Refinished. Wear consistent with age and use. Newly upholstered. Chrome has been cleaned, and is in very good, vintage condition.
- Seller Location:Brooklyn, NY
- Reference Number:
Afra & Tobia Scarpa
Widely recognized as superstars of postmodern Italian design, husband-and-wife team Afra and Tobia Scarpa (1937–2011; b. 1935) collaboratively created chairs, sofas and other furniture that work equally well in both traditional and cutting-edge environments.
Ranging from architecture and interior design to furniture and clothing, the Scarpas’ practice from its beginnings in the mid-1950s to the 21st century has included a diverse scope of projects combining new technology with thoughtful function and sculptural yet simple forms.
Afra Bianchin and Tobia Scarpa met as architecture students at the Università Iuav di Venezia. In a class led by architect and furniture designer Franco Albini, they created their first collaborative piece, the Pigreco armchair, later produced with Gavina. After graduating in 1957, Tobia worked for Murano glass company Venini & Co. before the couple opened a studio in Afra’s hometown, Montebelluna, in 1960. (Tobia, the son of famed glass artist and architect Carlo Scarpa, was born in Venice.)
For Afra and Tobia, a close collaborative process was pivotal to the success of their designs. The duo was also prolific — they designed for the most influential European manufacturers, including B&B Italia, Cassina, Knoll and FLOS. With respect to the latter, Afra and Tobia were among the legendary Italian lighting maker’s earliest collaborators, and their pioneering designs for the brand included the Papillon lamp, one of the first fixtures to use halogen technology. Their most recognized designs include the Bastiano sofa (1962), the Vanessa bed (1959), the Coronado sofa (1966) and the Soriana seating collection (1970). Work on the Soriana sofa began in late 1969 for an early 1970 debut, and it feels as radical today as it did in its heyday.
Architecture was also a central part of Afra and Tobia’s practice, which spanned residential buildings and factories for Italian companies such as Benetton. Their commissions for the global fashion brand included numerous industrial projects, from textile plants to storefronts. By 1985, Afra and Tobia Scarpa’s work was celebrated in a 30-year retrospective at Center Four in Queens, New York. Looking around the 30,000-square-foot exhibition space, Afra joked to the New York Times, “Seeing all those things makes us feel very tired, and now we feel that maybe we worked too much.”
It was not too much for their legacy, as Afra and Tobia Scarpa’s work continues to inspire new generations. Scarpa designs are in collections at the Louvre, the Museum of Modern Art and the Victoria and Albert Museum. The couple was awarded the Compasso d’Oro in 1970 for the Soriana armchair.
Find vintage Afra & Tobia Scarpa furniture today 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: Brooklyn, NY
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 2 days of delivery.
- Mid-Century French Lucite and Steel Chaise Longue PrototypeBy Marc du PlantierLocated in Brooklyn, NYThis remarkable chaise longue (circa 1950 France) marries elements of Machine Age and Hollywood Regency Styles to form one sculpturally elegant masterpiece. From the collection of a ...Category
Vintage 1950s French Mid-Century Modern Chaise Longues
MaterialsNickel
- Postmodern Leather "Wave" Chaise by Giovanni Offredi for SaporitiBy Saporiti, Giovanni OffrediLocated in Brooklyn, NYFully restored postmodern leather "Onda" or "Wave" Chaise designed in 1974 by Giovanni Offredi for Saporiti, (Milan, Italy). The jewel of the Sapor...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Post-Modern Chaise Longues
MaterialsSteel
- Midcentury Walnut and Leather Lounge Chair and Ottoman by Mel SmilowBy Smilow-Thielle, Mel SmilowLocated in Brooklyn, NYScarcely seen wide, armless lounge chair designed by Mel Smilow for Smilow-Thielle in the 1950s. Includes the original, oversized ottoman, which can double as a coffee / wide side ta...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Walnut
- Italian Modern Carlo de Carli Lounge Chair and Ottoman in Walnut and LeatherBy Carlo De Carli, M. Singer & SonsLocated in Brooklyn, NY1950s Italian walnut lounge chair and ottoman designed by Carlo de Carli for M. Singer & Sons. Features a highly sculpted, ladder-back fra...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Vintage Italian Ochre Cotton Velvet and Brass Lounge ChairsLocated in Brooklyn, NYMid-20th Century Italian Modernist lounge/arm chairs in original ochre cotton velvet upholstery (ca. 1960s, Italy). Low slung form with wide, sculptural arms, all supported by four s...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsBrass
- Leather and Walnut Milo Baughman for James Inc. Lounge Chair and OttomanBy Milo Baughman, James Inc.Located in Brooklyn, NYBeautifully designed and well constructed Milo Baughman for James Inc. lounge chair and ottoman supported by turned, walnut legs. Clean lines with generously curved, sweeping arm res...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsWalnut, Leather
- Afra & Tobia Scarpa 'Soriana' Chaise Lounge Chair with Ottoman in Red CorduroyBy Cassina, Afra & Tobia ScarpaLocated in Berlin, DEAfra & Tobia Scarpa 'Soriana' chaise lounge chair with ottoman in red corduroy Iconic chaise lounge by Italian designer couple Afra &...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chaise Longues
MaterialsMetal
- 1970s Cassina Soriana Chaise Lounge Chair by Afra and Tobia ScarpaBy Cassina, Afra & Tobia ScarpaLocated in Miami, FLVintage Soriana chaise lounge chair designed by Afra and Tobia Scarpa for Cassina in 1969. This iconic chaise has been beautifully upholstered in...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Space Age Chaise Longues
MaterialsSteel
- Soriana Lounge Chairs + Ottoman by Afra & Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, Italy, 1969By Cassina, Afra & Tobia ScarpaLocated in Pambio Noranco, CHRare soriana chaise longue with pouff by Afra & Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, Italy, 1969 It's reupholstered in a beautiful plum leather. The original foam is in very good condition an...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chaise Longues
MaterialsFabric
- Soriana Lounge Chairs + Ottoman by Afra & Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, Italy, 1969By Cassina, Afra & Tobia ScarpaLocated in Pambio Noranco, CHRare Soriana chaise longue by Afra & Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, Italy, 1969 It's reupholstered in a beautiful plum textured fabric. The original foam is in very good condition and s...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chaise Longues
MaterialsFabric
- Afra & Tobia Scarpa 'Soriana' Chaise Lounge Chair in grey leatherBy Cassina, Afra & Tobia ScarpaLocated in Berlin, DEAfra & Tobia Scarpa 'Soriana' Chaise Lounge Chair in grey leather Iconic chaise lounge by Italian designer couple Afra & Tobia Scarpa designed in 1969 and produced by Cassina. The S...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chaise Longues
MaterialsMetal
- Soriana Lounge Chair by Afra and Tobia ScarpaBy Afra & Tobia ScarpaLocated in Toronto, ONThe Soriana collection aimed to blend beauty and comfort through a unique design featuring a bundle of fabric secured by a chrome-plated steel clamp. The "Soriana Chair," the inaugur...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Chaise Longues
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.
Billy Cotton Layers His Interiors with Lived-In Comfort
The Brooklyn-based designer is adept at styles ranging from austere to over-the-top, espousing an architectural, detail-oriented approach also evident in his line of furniture and lighting.