Mies Armchair with Ottoman Designed by Archizoom for Poltronova, 1960s

Created by postmodern pioneers Archizoom Associati, the Mies lounge chair is one of the most important examples of Italian Radical design, an audacious antiestablishment design movement that rejected architecture norms and the capitalist excesses that its proponents associated with modernism. Archizoom’s founding members — Andrea Branzi (1938–2023), Gilberto Corretti (b. 1941), Paolo Deganello (b. 1940) and Massimo Morozzi (1941–2014) — formed the group in 1966, and their playful, provocative chair followed three years later.

The young architects who comprised Archizoom met while studying at the University of Florence during a period of political, social and economic unrest in Italy. Like the other Italian Radical design firms of the era that were initiated by architecture students, such as Superstudio (which never actually designed a building), Archizoom was inspired by the visionary work of London architecture collective Archigram— so much so that their name directly references Zoom, a zine published by the British group.

Central to the “anti-design” ethos of the Italian Radicals was the concept that design should always be questioning itself. Archizoom and others brought new materials and a sense of irony into their works to expand the expressive potential of design. Over the eight years they were active, Archizoom’s work spanned architecture, theoretical urban design, interiors and exhibition installations. They designed a range of furniture for Poltronova, including the Superonda sofa (1966), the Safari sofa (1966–67), the Sanremo floor lamp (1968) and the Mies lounge chair (1969).

The Mies chair is a perfect encapsulation of Archizoom’s philosophy. The design emerged from the simple but subversive idea of using a strip of rubber as a seat. At first glance, the piece — the brown Pirelli rubber’s taut surface, the triangular mirrored steel frame — doesn’t really resemble a functional chair. Only when someone sits in it does the chair then assume the form of recognizable seating. But once the weight of the body is removed, the surface snaps back into place.

As a tribute to early modernist architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, who died earlier in the year of the chair’s inception, the piece cheekily questions the tendency of modern design to go a little too far in its pursuit of functionalism. The chair, which was included in the classic “Italy: The New Domestic Landscape” exhibition held at New York City’s Museum of Modern Art in 1972, is still available from Poltronova. It’s paired with an illuminated footstool upholstered in pony hide, another layer of whimsy and contradiction.

Poltronova is known for embracing the creativity that opposites can introduce to a space. Its radical modernist furniture and lighting fixtures are simultaneously grounded in classic aesthetics and inspired by what were then new and provocative artistic movements in mid-century Italy, when the company was founded. This tension resulted in unique and extraordinary pieces at the manufacturer, from eccentric, glove-shaped armchairs to striking dining tables that feature a mix of materials and textures.

Italian designer Sergio Cammilli founded Poltronova in Tuscany in 1957. That same year, it won the Compasso d’Oro for the Panchetto chair designed by Luciano Nustrini. Revolutionary Italian architect Ettore Sottsass — a maestro of postmodern design who would later establish the Memphis Group — came on board as an art director in 1958. Poltronova manufactured many of his furniture and ceramic designs. Sottsass’s lighting, seating and other works for Poltronova showcase the designer’s bold experimentation with solid wood, glass, metal and laminate materials.

Other established names in Italian furniture design collaborated with Poltronova’s Sottsass and Cammilli, including Giovanni Michelucci, Gae Aulenti and Angelo Mangiarotti. However, the company truly set itself apart in its collaborations with Superstudio and Archizoom Associati, groups that were part of an irreverent, avant-garde movement in art and design that took shape during the 1960s in Florence, Turin and Milan. Collectives associated with the movement — which would one day be called Italian Radical design — drew on Pop art and minimalism and explored working with unconventional materials to create colorful, quirky and uniquely shaped objects and furnishings. At the time, Poltronova also worked with up-and-coming names in the art world, like painter Max Ernst and sculptor Mario Ceroli.

Poltronova showcased its groundbreaking designs in many exhibitions, such as “La Casa Abitata,” which was held in Florence in 1965. At Milan's Eurodomus trade show in 1970, Poltronova debuted an entire bedroom collection designed by Sottsass — including his sensuous Ultrafragola mirror. The brand’s furnishings were included in a 1972 exhibition at New York’s Museum of Modern Art called "Italy: The New Domestic Landscape," and in 1977, Poltronova again won the Compasso d’Oro for a book called Fare Mobili con Poltronova (Making Furniture with Poltronova).

Poltronova's enduring and acclaimed furniture designs came to be loved far outside Italy. During the 1960s, importer Charles Stendig represented the company and helped introduce it to the American market.

In 2005, Poltronova established the Centro Studi Poltronova to recreate some of the company's iconic furniture. The brand has also recently collaborated with English architect Nigel Coates, who worked with a Poltronova master craftsman in Italy to design a series of limited-edition furniture in 2011, including the Domo chair.

On 1stDibs, find vintage Poltronova tables, seating, storage cabinets and more.