Image source: Poltrona Frau — Piti Armchair
© Poltrona Frau and the respective rights holders. Quoted to accompany INTEBEE's independent design commentary and research.
Piti Armchair
Piti armchair: Marco Zanuso's theatre seat for Milan's Piccolo Teatro, with a wide wooden back.
Official product information
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Go to the official product pageDescription
Overview
The Piti armchair is a theatre seat that architect Marco Zanuso designed for the Piccolo Teatro in Milan. Poltrona Frau's page says it stands out for its large wooden backrest panel and for an elegant seat that is particularly comfortable. It is part of the company's contract range and is installed in rows.
Construction
The frame is wooden, with non-deforming, fire-resistant polyurethane padding and a curved backrest panel in pressed wood with veneer. Elastic belts form the seat suspension, and the seat is an automatic tip-up type with joints in noise-damping nylon. Rows stand on a cylindrical metal base on a bar in epoxy powder paint resistant to scratches and impacts; an air diffusion function is available on request. Upholstery choices: fabric, velvet or Pelle Frau® leather of the Color System, all made by hand with traditional techniques.
Story
Made for the Piccolo Teatro
The page names a single origin for the Piti: it was designed by Marco Zanuso for the Piccolo Teatro in Milan. The seat's distinguishing feature, in the company's words, is the wide wooden panel that forms its back.
The designer
The page's biography gives Zanuso's birth in Milan in 1916 and places his start as a designer, architect and planner in 1945. He worked for Zanotta from 1969 and died in July 2001.
More by Marco Zanuso
Maggiolina
Celestina
Marco Zanuso's 1978 folding chair with cowhide-covered nylon slats
Marcuso
Marco Zanuso's glass-topped table with stainless steel legs fixed to the top and dismantlable
Lady Armchair
Lady Armchair: Marco Zanuso's 1951 foam-padded armchair with slim metal legs and plywood arms.