Icon of Italian design in the 1950s and symbol of stylistic, material and technological innovation, the Lady armchair by Marco Zanuso made history with its breathtakingly modern construction.
An icon of 1950s’ Italian Design, the armchair-sofa Lady stands out for its extraordinarily contemporary construction, a symbol of innovation supreme, in terms of style, materials, and technology. In addition to being the first armchair to incorporate expanded polyurethane and foam rubber, the armchair’s seat showcased a new system of springing, using reinforced elastic straps to ensure premier comfort; meanwhile the slender, slim-line metal legs showcase the design’s lightness of touch. The structure is contained in the seat, the back, and the arms, the outcome being a veritable masterpiece of Italian furniture design excellence; so much so that Lady was awarded the Gold Medal at the IX Milan Triennale, in 1951. Cassina’s new re-edition focuses on the looks of the Lady chair, adding a delightful range of new fabric options, including a number by Belgian designer Raf Simons.
A conscious evolution
In the 1960s and 1970s, Cassina was pioneering in the way that it experimented with innovative materials to create new forms and industrially develop its designs with the most advanced solutions. The company advances this avant-garde approach to reflect and reconsider the role of innovation today, listening to the needs of the surrounding society to propose new production methods and materials.
Soriana still today maintains the same design concept and characteristic aesthetic allure while its construction and materials have been completely redeveloped for an eco-friendly version that has the aim of creating a lower environmental impact and a higher level of comfort thanks to the work carried out by Cassina LAB, the collaboration between the Cassina Research and Development Centre and Poli.design at the Milan Polytechnic.
The original, polyurethane structure of this version has been completely substituted with a series of bags filled with microspheres made from BioFoam®, the first patented foam to have an organic base made from biopolymers produced from natural resources. This material is hardwearing and suitable for long- term use while it is also biodegradable and can be industrially composted.
The seat’s comfort is further heightened thanks to a 100% recycled blown fibre padding produced from PET recovered from Plastic Bank®. Thanks to the involvement of local communities, plastic is collected before it reaches the sea, favouring a conscious and circular economy. The same material is also used for the lining’s padding which is wrapped around the structure like a soft quilt.
Contact store for further information
