Franco Albini - Important Design London Wednesday, March 20, 2019 | Phillips

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  • Provenance

    Casa F., Milan, circa 1945

  • Literature

    'La casa di un architetto', Domus, no. 163, July 1941, front cover, p. 9 for a similar example
    'L'appartamento di un professionista', Domus, no. 208, April 1946, illustrated pp. 24-25
    Roberto Aloi, L’ Arredamento Moderno, terza serie, Milan, 1955, fig. 183 for a similar example
    Antonio Piva and Vittorio Prina, Franco Albini: 1905-1977, Milan, 1998, p. 141 for a similar example

  • Catalogue Essay

    The present group of works were designed by the architect Franco Albini as part of the furnishings for a Milanese residence. The project was featured in Domus, titled 'L'appartamento di un professionista', where the present pair of ‘Fiorenza’ armchairs and set of ‘Luisa’ armchairs were illustrated in situ in the dining room. Albini originally designed the ‘Fiorenza’ armchair for his own residence in 1940 and both this design and that of the ‘Luisa’ armchair demonstrate Albini’s continual experimentation with typologies within his design practice. Albini often created multiple versions of his furniture designs to respond to the specific requirements of a project and, in the case of the present two armchair designs, to eventually develop models for industrial production. An important figure of Italian Neo-Rationalism, Albini achieved a purity of expression in his work through formal reduction and the use of modular elements, as illustrated in the present bookcase. Albini designed the bookcase, desk with a pair of drawers and the cabinet a decade later when he returned to the private commission in Milan to refurbish the study. Both rigorous and elegant in their designs, Albini’s furnishings for the study are illustrative of his investigative approach through which he sought to create ‘essential’ forms that expressed a visual clarity.

21

Pair of early 'Fiorenza' armchairs, designed for the dining room of Casa F., Milan

circa 1945
Walnut, fabric, brass.
Each: 92.5 x 75.5 x 95 cm (36 3/8 x 29 3/4 x 37 3/8 in.)
Together with a certificate of authenticity from the Fondazione Franco Albini.

Estimate
£10,000 - 15,000 

Sold for £52,500

Contact Specialist
Madalena Horta E Costa
Head of Sale
+44 20 7318 4019
mhortaecosta@phillips.com

Important Design

London Auction 21 March 2019