Cassina

Heritage

Cassina was founded in 1927 by the brothers Cesare and Umberto Cassina in Meda, in the Brianza area north of Milan, as "Amedeo Cassina" — a cabinet-making workshop. After the war it separated design from production and began working with outside architects, above all Gio Ponti, with whom it furnished the liner Andrea Doria in 1952 and produced the 699 Superleggera chair from 1957.

Philosophy

Cassina describes its path as the move from artisan workshop to industrial production, combining research and technology with long-standing craftsmanship. A Research Center opened in 1969, and the company received the Compasso d'Oro for its cultural contribution to Italian design.

Iconic Works

• I Maestri — authorised re-editions of Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret and Charlotte Perriand (from 1964–65), later Rietveld, Mackintosh and Frank Lloyd Wright, researched with the designers' foundations
• Maralunga by Vico Magistretti (Compasso d'Oro 1979), Soriana by Afra and Tobia Scarpa, Cab by Mario Bellini

Today

Cassina continues to work with contemporary designers such as Piero Lissoni, Philippe Starck and Patricia Urquiola, runs Custom Interiors for contract projects, sells through stores and its own online shop, and is part of the Haworth group.