Terni Series Office Chair by Ico Parisi for MIM Roma, Italy, 1958
About the Item
- Creator:Ico Parisi (Designer),Ico & Luisa Parisi (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 33.47 in (85 cm)Width: 20.87 in (53 cm)Depth: 23.63 in (60 cm)Seat Height: 19.69 in (50 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1958
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Antwerp, BE
- Reference Number:
Ico Parisi
Domenico “Ico” Parisi was one half of a prolific postwar design duo he comprised with his wife, Luisa. Their furniture designs are known for running the stylistic gamut, with celebrated mid-century modern pieces ranging from elegantly skeletal — like dramatic ebonized dining chairs — to plush and shapely, like the iconic 1951 Egg chair, in a plethora of materials.
The son of an art teacher father, Ico Parisi was exposed to art at an early age. Born in 1916 in the Sicilian capital of Palermo, he and his family moved to Como in 1925. There, the young Parisi would begin to develop his interest in architecture and design. After earning a degree as a building inspector in 1936 and working as a civil engineer, Parisi took on an apprenticeship in the studio of Giuseppe Terragni, the modernist, fascist Italian architect, pioneer of the Rationalist movement and creator of the iconic Casa del Fascio.
While working for Terragni, Parisi crossed paths with such contemporary design talents as Lucio Fontana, Bruno Munari and Pietro Lingeri, though he briefly moved away from design and architecture to explore photography and film. His artistic work would soon be interrupted, however, by the outbreak of World War II, during which he served at the front before returning to Como in 1943. There, he resumed work as a designer and architect, founding two architecture groups: the Alta Quota and the Gruppo Como.
Through his creative circles, Parisi met Luisa Aiani, a former student of the prolific architect and furniture designer Gio Ponti, who was affiliated with the Alta Quota. They married in 1947 and founded the studio La Ruota — a cross between a design firm and an intellectual salon — in Como shortly thereafter. In 1950, Parisi finally completed his architectural schooling, studying under the nationalist architect Alberto Sartoris at the Athenaeum Architecture School in Lausanne, Switzerland. He and Aiani began several decades of sophisticated output, designing curved sofas upholstered in yellow velvet and armchairs with slender mahogany frames for enduring Italian manufacturers such as Cassina and others.
Much like Charles and Ray Eames in America, the Parisis worked as a team and relied on experimentation in style and material for many of their designs. Ico Parisi died in Como in 1996.
Find a collection of vintage Ico Parisi coffee tables, dining chairs and more on 1stDibs.
Ico & Luisa Parisi
The Italian architect, artist and furniture designer Ico Parisi (1916–96) and his wife and frequent collaborator, Luisa Parisi (1914–90), formed one of the most prolific and spirited European design teams of the postwar period. Together they created a magnetic aesthetic that combines the refined angularity and elegance of the work of Gio Ponti with the liveliness and lightness of the furniture of Carlo Mollino.
Ico Parisi — his first name is short for Domenico — was born and raised in Palermo. He moved to the northern Italian city of Como in the early 1930s and lived and worked there the remainder of his life. He initially studied and worked as a civil engineer, but later became an associate in the office of architect Giuseppe Terragni, a leading light of the stern and formal Rationalist design movement. Ico moved in artistic circles that included Lucio Fontana and Bruno Munari; after he married Luisa Aiani — a former student of Gio Ponti’s — in 1947 their design studio became known as an artists’ salon. The couple’s big break as designers came the following year when their work was shown, along with that of Carlo Mollino, Paolo Buffa, Franco Albini and other greats, leading to contracts with manufacturers such as Cassina and Singer & Sons.
What attracted these firms was the Parisis’ fluency with a wide array of furniture forms. No two looks are quite alike. Their body of work includes a series of coffee and dining tables and consoles for Singer & Sons created in the early 1950s that feature notch-edged tops and javelin-shaped legs, and cabinets and credenzas such as those with plain fronts and molded-teak and plywood detailing for MIM Rome (1959). Their chairs range from sleek dining pieces with supple, bone-shaped backrests for Singer & Sons to the lush Model 813 Uovo, or Egg chair, for Cassina (1951). Then, as now, Parisi furnishings can fill an entire decor, yet seem eclectic and at the height of style.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Antwerp, Belgium
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 14 days of delivery.
- Cognac Leather Office Chair by Guido Faleschini for Mariani, Italy, 1970sBy Guido Faleschini, i4 MarianiLocated in Antwerp, BECognac leather office chair designed by the renowned Italian designer Guido Faleschini for I4 Mariani. This swivel desk chair, part of The Pace Collection, captures the essence of th...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Aluminum Chairs by Charles & Ray Eames for Vitra, USA, 1958By Vitra, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Antwerp, BEAluminum Chair; Charles & Ray Eames; Vitra; 1958; Office Chair; Leather; Chrome; Brown; The Aluminum Group; USA; Aluminum chair designed by Charles & Ray Eames and manufactured by ...Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Office Chair EA216 by Charles and Ray Eames for Vitra, Germany, 1960sBy Vitra, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Antwerp, BECharles and Ray Eames EA216 softpad office chair, produced by Vitra. This distinguished chair boasts a sleek black leather seat and backrest, complemented by a chrome frame and armre...Category
Vintage 1960s German Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
MaterialsChrome
- Office Chair EA217 by Charles and Ray Eames for Vitra, United States, 1960sBy Vitra, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Antwerp, BECharles and Ray Eames EA217 softpad office chair, produced by Vitra. This distinguished chair boasts a sleek black leather seat and backrest, complemented by a chrome frame and armre...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
MaterialsChrome
- Soft Pad Office Chair by Charles and Ray Eames for Herman Miller, US, 1960sBy Herman Miller, Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Antwerp, BECharles and Ray Eames softpad office chair, produced by Herman Miller. This distinguished chair, crafted as the original USA edition for Herman Miller, features a sleek black leather...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
MaterialsChrome
- Office Cane Chairs by Pierre Jeanneret, PJ-SI-28-A, Chandigarh, 1955By Pierre JeanneretLocated in Antwerp, BEIconic "Office Cane Chairs" created by Pierre Jeanneret in the 1950s for the city of Chandigarh in India, the utopian city designed by his cousin Le Corbusier. Made of solid wood with seat and backrest in braided canework. Tilted backrest and asymmetric flat profiled "compass"-type double side leg assembly, with the legs connected by a crosspiece and supporting the armrests. Slanted, slightly curved backrest, separate from the seat. The seemingly floating back as well as the "compass"-type legs are very typical for this office chair. These specific features make the design even more powerful and interesting. The office chair was part of the furniture from the administrative buildings of Chandigarh. It's a true icon, one of the most famous pieces of all Chandigarh items. Jeanneret’s designs stand out for their essential forms and simple materials, a balance between modern European ideals and traditional Indian spirit. Another interesting and nowadays relevant fact about these and other Chandigarh chairs is that all pieces were made from the trees which were logged because the city was built, so an early adaptation of ecological thinking. We have four office chairs...Category
Vintage 1950s Indian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsCane, Wood
- Ico Parisi Office Chair, Yellow LeatherBy Ico ParisiLocated in Beverly Hills, CAOffice chair by Ico Parisi for MIM, circa 1960s. Aluminum base with curved plywood back and newly upholstered leather seat. Multiple quantity available - Priced individually.Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Office Chairs and Desk Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Rare Lounge Chair by Ico Parisi for Mim Roma, 50s ItalyBy MIM Roma, Ico ParisiLocated in Landgraaf, NLRare lounge chair by Ico Parisi for MIM Roma (Mobili Italiani Moderni), 50s Italy. Rosewood shell with Cognac leather upholstery and cast aluminum base. Leather has been reupholstere...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Rosewood
- Italian Sofa and the Chair by Ico Parisi for Mim RomaBy Ico ParisiLocated in Los Angeles, CAIco Parisi set 1960s period in original condition. Rosewood base and original Mim upholsteryCategory
Vintage 1960s European Mid-Century Modern Living Room Sets
MaterialsRosewood
- Italian Vintage Lounge Chair Design by Ico Parisi Produced for MIM RomaBy Ico ParisiLocated in Los Angeles, CAItalian vintage lounge chair design by Ico Parisi produced for MIM Roma during 1960s. The chair has stainless steel and chrome frame with stitched leather supports and seat with blac...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Ico Parisi Italian Wood and Leather Armchairs for MIM Roma, 1960sBy Ico Parisi, MIM RomaLocated in Rovereta, SMItalian Mid-Century Modern design set of two armchairs designed by Ico Parisi fo Mim Roma with wooden frame and curved plywood, leather upholstery, 1960s.Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsWood
- Ico Parisi Italian Midcentury Armchairs for MimBy MIM Roma, Ico ParisiLocated in bari, ITSet of four armchairs in white fiberglass Kubilia series of Ico Parisi for M.I.M. Rome, Italy. Ico Parisi was born in Palermo in 1916. He gained a diploma in construction and served his apprenticeship in Giuseppe Terragni's studio. In 1937 he carried out, for the magazine Quadrante, a photographic study of the Casa del Fascio that marked the entire research that Parisi conducted in "meditating on the legacies and contradictions of the enormous baggage of ideas and forms constituted by the experience of the masters". His activity, marked by continuous experimentation, is an incessant quest in the fields of architecture, art and design. Between 1948 and 1950 he devoted himself to the study of furniture elements. In the field of design, crucial encounters with Munari and Fontana (1951) and Melotti profoundly marked his experience. In 1948 he founded the studio La ruota with his wife Luisa Aiani, a designer and designer, which ceased its activity in 1995. In 1954 he was awarded the Gold Medal at the X Milan Triennale with the work Padiglione Soggiorno, with Silvio Longhi and Luigi Antonietti. In 1957 he presented at the exhibition Colori e forme della casa d'oggi the work Casa per vacanze, which was the result of a collaboration with Manlio Rho...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsVelvet, Fiberglass