Hardwood Writing Desk Designed in 1960's by Gianfranco Frattini for Bernini
View Similar Items
Hardwood Writing Desk Designed in 1960's by Gianfranco Frattini for Bernini
About the Item
- Creator:Gianfranco Frattini (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 31.5 in (80 cm)Width: 39.38 in (100 cm)Depth: 25.6 in (65 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1960
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Barcelona, ES
- Reference Number:Seller: 2101201stDibs: LU4859223312252
Gianfranco Frattini
Gianfranco Frattini is widely regarded as a mid-century master of Italian modern design. He was an award-winning architect and designer, and specialized in creating furniture and decor that is both decorative and practical — Frattini’s vintage desks, armchairs, nesting tables and other works are celebrated for their sophisticated merging of function and form.
Born in Padua in 1926, Frattini studied architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan. He later apprenticed with his teacher and mentor, Gio Ponti. Through Ponti — arguably the most important figure in 20th-century Italian architecture and design — Frattini met many notable modernist designers such as Oscar Niemeyer and Le Corbusier, but an introduction to famed Italian entrepreneur Cesare Cassina would prove incredibly significant in helping launch his career.
During the mid-1950s, Frattini began to collaborate with Cassina’s eponymous company. He designed the brand’s acclaimed leather and walnut Model 849 lounge chair — a winner of the Compasso d’Oro award — the Marema nesting tables and the iconic Sesann collection. The latter, an enduring 1970s suite of impossibly welcoming leather-covered seating, is now produced by Tacchini. In addition to Cassina, Frattini created furniture and lighting for other manufacturers such as Bernini, Arteluce, Artemide, Knoll and more.
While many of his designs incorporate glass, tubular steel and other materials, Frattini loved working with wood. The sculptural Albero bookcase — an innovative floor-to-ceiling structure made in walnut that swings on a 360-degree vertical swivel axis — is a striking example of Frattini’s dedication to traditional woodworking techniques. In the early 1970s, he traveled to Japan with friend and collaborator Pierluigi Ghianda — a master Milanese cabinet maker — in order to study the work of artisans in Kyoto. The trip inspired his design of the Kyoto table, a work of solid beech with Canaletto walnut inserts that is part of the permanent collection of the Milan Triennale’s Design Museum. The Kyoto and Albero have been revived by Poltrona Frau.
Frattini’s designs are in the permanent collections of prestigious museums such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.
Find vintage Gianfranco Frattini furniture, lighting and decor on 1stDibs.
- Midcentury Table Lamp Designed by Willy Rizzo, 1970s for Lumica, Spain, BrassBy Willy RizzoLocated in Barcelona, CatalunaTable lamp designed by Willy Rizzo in 1970s for BD Lumica, Spain. Brass and chromed metal structure with black glass ball and three bulbs, shades with new fabric. Can be connected to...Category
Vintage 1970s Spanish Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal, Brass
$1,318 Sale Price20% Off - Vintage Arquímedes Desk Table Lamp by Gemma Bernal for Tramo, 1970'sLocated in Barcelona, CatalunaIn 1974 the Barcelona designers Gemma Bernal and Ramón Isern designed this innovative system of lamps edited by Tramo. In this tabletop version, a square-conical shade in black lacq...Category
Vintage 1970s Spanish Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsSteel
- Spanish midcentury stool in oak wood and white textile.1960'sLocated in Barcelona, CatalunaSpanish stool in white fabric oak wood. 1960's. The upholstery is new.Category
Vintage 1960s Spanish Mid-Century Modern Stools
MaterialsTextile, Oak
- Coffee Table, Wood and Marble Designed by Antonio Moragas, Spain, 1970'sLocated in Barcelona, CatalunaCoffee table, wood and marble Designed by Antonio Moragas. Spain 1970's. Nephew of the modernist architect Antoni María Gallisá, he graduated as an architect from the Higher Technic...Category
Vintage 1970s Spanish Mid-Century Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
MaterialsMarble
- A811 Armchair by Josef Frank for Thonet, 1970'sBy Josef FrankLocated in Barcelona, CatalunaA811 Armchair by Josef Frank for Thonet, 1970'sCategory
Vintage 1970s Czech Mid-Century Modern Chairs
MaterialsWood
- Danish Chest of Drawers Teak Wood by Carlo Jensen for Hundevad, 1950sBy Carlo JensenLocated in Barcelona, CatalunaMidcentury chest of drawers designed by Carlo Jensen for Hundevad & Co. It was produced in Denmark during the 1960s. Nice proportions and good construction.Category
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Commodes and Chests of Drawers
MaterialsTeak
- Gianfranco Frattini Hardwood Writing Desk for Bernini, 1961By Bernini, Gianfranco FrattiniLocated in Barcelona, ESWriting desk model 807 designed in 1961 by Gianfranco Frattini for Bernini, Italy. Tambour top that hides small drawers and a pull out leather writing surface, ten drawers in the low...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsAluminum
- Secretary by Gianfranco Frattini for Bernini, 1960sBy Gianfranco Frattini, BerniniLocated in Lasne, BEWooden secretary. The roll top opens by pulling on the leather inlaid writing surface, underneath it are small drawers. This secretary has 10 drawers in the front, several drawers behind the roll top and in the back there are two glass shelves. The legs are made of solid wood and are connected by aluminum strips. On the top there is a glass shelf on which you can put objects while using the rolling...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Secretaires
MaterialsAluminum
- Wooden Secretary Desk by Gianfranco Frattini for BerniniBy Bernini, Gianfranco FrattiniLocated in Madrid, ESElegant mahogany wood desk with aluminum inserts designed by Gianfranco Frattini for Bernini in 1960. Hardwood and wood veneer, details on feet and the bottom in aluminum. Pull-out t...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsAluminum
- Gianfranco Frattini Writing Desk Model 530 Bernini, Italy, 1963By Gianfranco Frattini, BerniniLocated in Albano Laziale, Rome/LazioBehold, a masterpiece of design and function, the Classic Writing Desk Model 530, a creation of the renowned Gianfranco Frattini, crafted by the s...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks
MaterialsWalnut
$4,393 Sale Price20% Off - Gianfranco Frattini 804 Rolltop desk for Bernini, 1962By Gianfranco FrattiniLocated in Misinto, ITThe 804 secretaire is one of the most significant pieces of Gianfranco Frattini's creativity. Designed in 1962 for Bernini, it highlights Frattini's exceptional design prowess and th...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Secretaires
MaterialsAluminum
- Midcentury Modern Wooden Desk by Gianfranco Frattini for BerniniBy Bernini, Gianfranco FrattiniLocated in Madrid, ESHardwood writing desk designed by Gianfranco Frattini and produced by Bernini, Italy. The desk features a removable top part with extra drawers and storage compartments. This desk ca...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsHardwood