Pair of Broadway Chairs by Gaetano Pesce for Bernini, Italy, 1993
View Similar Items
Pair of Broadway Chairs by Gaetano Pesce for Bernini, Italy, 1993
About the Item
- Creator:Bernini (Manufacturer),Gaetano Pesce (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 29.53 in (75 cm)Width: 21.66 in (55 cm)Depth: 16.54 in (42 cm)Seat Height: 18.12 in (46 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Post-Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:1990-1999
- Date of Manufacture:1993
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Minor losses.
- Seller Location:Munster, DE
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1391222809202
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.
- Aldo Tura Chair Set of 8 Mid-Century Modern High Back Dining Chairs 1962 ItalyBy Atelier Tura, Aldo TuraLocated in Munster, NRWA set of 8 tall ladder-back dining chairs by Aldo Tura, 1962 for Atélier Tura. The chairs frames are made of gloss wood and the backrests feature red lacquered goatskin parchment ap...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Hollywood Regency Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsGoatskin, Wood
- Sculpted Brutalist Dining Table & Bench in Solid Ash 1960 Paris Mid CenturyLocated in Munster, NRWStriking brutalist dining set made of solid blackened ash in the 1960ties. The Set consists of 1 table and its 4 benches. The ensemble comes f...Category
Vintage 1960s French Brutalist Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsAsh
- Pharrell Williams Perspective Chair for Domeau & Pérès Resin Leather FranceBy Domeau & PérèsLocated in Munster, NRWPharrell Williams, Perspective chair for Domeau & Pérès “If we could have fabricators for everything that we think in our lives, do you understand how great life would be?”. Born from the collaboration of a brilliant mind and great craftsmen, the Perspective chair can be seen as a marvelous illustration of this Pharrell Williams quote. Discreet homage to the Eames stacking chairs...Category
Early 2000s French Post-Modern Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Resin
- Soriana Lounge Chair + Ottoman by Tobia + Afra Scarpa 1969 by Cassina, ItalyBy Cassina, Afra & Tobia ScarpaLocated in Munster, NRWLounge chair 'Soriana' with ottoman, designed in 1969 by Afra & Tobia Scarpa and manufactured by Cassina, Italy. The chrome-plated metal structure holds the foam structure firmly in...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
MaterialsLeather
- Pair of Pop Art Sergio Camilli Snail or Chiocciolona for BieffeplastBy Sergio CammilliLocated in Munster, NRWSergio Camilli. 'Snail' or 'chiocciolona' objects, designed in 1974. Measures: Large snail: 95 cm wide, 65 cm deep and 50 cm high. Small snail: 62 cm wi...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Abstract Sculptures
$3,000 Sale Price / set25% Off - Scandinavian Chair in Pine by Edvin Helseth in 1964 for Trybo Furniture, NorwayBy Edvin Helseth, TryboLocated in Munster, NRWDining chair in massive pine by Edvin Helseth, 1964 for Trybo Furniture. Made in Norway. The "Trybo" series was designed in 1964 for the "Trysil-cabin" (Trysil is a Norwegian ski-...Category
Vintage 1960s Norwegian Scandinavian Modern Chairs
MaterialsPine
- Broadway chair designed by Gaetano Pesce for Bernini, 1993By Bernini, Gaetano PesceLocated in Offenburg, Baden Wurthembergbroadway chair, designed in 1993 by Gaetano Pesce Manufactured by Bernini, Italy Gaetano Pesce has been a visionary designer, his quest was his interest in non-rational ways of de...Category
1990s Italian Post-Modern Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- 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
- Broadway Chair by Gaetano PesceBy Gaetano PesceLocated in Long Island City, NYSculptural Broadway chair designed by Gaetano Pesce for Bernini. Each chair features a marble green hue.Supported by flexible and dynamic brushed steel frame. The seat and back are c...Category
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- Set of 6 Broadway chairs, Gaetano Pesce, Bernini, 1993By Gaetano PesceLocated in PARIS, FRRare set of 6 Broadway chairs, Gaetano Pesce, Bernini, 1993 Gaetano Pesce ‘Broadway’ chairs produced by Bernini with four rubber-capped feet standing on springs. Model 543, created...Category
1990s Italian Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- 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
- Karl Springer Pair of "JMF Chairs" in Lacquered Raffia 1993 'Signed'By Karl SpringerLocated in New York, NYPair of J.M.F. Chairs in lacquered raffia by Karl Springer, American 1993 (signature on bottom reads "Karl Springer 1993"). These are very elegant and the raffia is quite beautiful. ...Category
1990s American Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsRaffia, Wood, Lacquer
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.