Cavalletto Table

Overview

Cavalletto is a table by Franco Albini; its sheet has "Franco Albini, 1950" under Designed by and "Cassina, 2008" under Produced. The name means trestle in English, and the frame is assembled with two tensioning rods in burnished brass that also serve as bracing.

Construction

Top: chipboard panel, edges in solid ash or American walnut, ash or American walnut veneer. Base: solid ash or American walnut, visible metal parts in black burnished brass. The finishes are black-stained ash, natural ash and American walnut, all matt.

Specifications

• Code 833 02-10-11: 180 cm long, 70 cm deep, 71 cm high
• Top: panel with solid-wood edges and veneer
• Frame: solid ash or American walnut, brass tension rods

By the book

The page calls the Cavalletto a desk built "by the book", a construction that shows Cassina's joinery expertise, and describes the geometric lines as giving a feeling of lightness.

Opposing forces

The page says the table's stability rests on the principle of opposing forces, so that the frame looks improvised, with volumes and weights reduced. It describes the construction process as carried out by Cassina's carpenters, and credits the border trim of the top and the metal parts with the same attention to detail. The sheet frames the table as showing the thought of Franco Albini and the wood-working skills of Cassina.