Each detail of the Tessa armchair reveals the great complexity hidden behind its apparent simplicity; however, the latter is the result of the ingenuity and manual work that is an inherent part of the product's design.
The structure is made entirely of solid ash or Canaletto walnut and the joints are created in the traditional way; this manufacturing process requires great skill and fully expresses the poetic materiality of the warm and noble material that is wood. The lightweight, robust seat and back are hand-woven from marshland reeds, an ancient art that goes back to the Italian rural tradition. Optional soft cushions secured with minimalist ribbons make Tessa an even more welcoming armchair.
Produced by Flexform, the Tessa family includes an armchair with armrests, a pouffe, a bench and a small table with a marble top available in a variety of finishes.
Born in 1950 in Meda, Italy, he studied architecture at the Milan Polytechnic. Antonio Citterio began working as a designer and industrial design consultant in 1972. From 1987 to 1996 he created the Citterio/Dwan studio in association with Terry Dwan. From 1990 to 1992, Antonio Citterio was a lecturer at the Domus Academy in Milan, from 1993 to 1995 he was an external examiner for furniture design at Royal College London, and in 1997 he taught at La Sapienza University in Rome. In 1999, together with Patricia Viel, he founded the multidisciplinary design agency "Antonio Citterio and Partners" in Milan, and from 1999 to 2002 he taught at the architecture faculty of the Università della Svizzera Italiana. He has held a chair there again since 2006. Antonio Citterio has received numerous awards, including the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce in London. He is one of Italy's most famous designers, with his many and extremely varied creations. It uses the aesthetics of new materials and the performance of new technologies to create its own timeless style. He works mainly with the leading Italian furniture brand B&B Italia, but also with publishers such as Kartell (Battista, Flip and Gastone desks), Vitra (Grand Repos armchair) and Flos (Kelvin Led).
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FLEXFORM
Flexform's history is focused on family. Flexform, which is now run by the third generation of its founding family, was created in Brianza; a furniture-producing region in northern Italy. The unique "Made in Italy" movement was launched there in the 1960s. The region was home to a number of small craft workshops that worked with wood and metal and upholstered sofas from the beginning of the 20th century. And where the great masters of Italian design studied, at the School of Architecture in nearby Milan. Intuition led Flexform to collaborate with some of the greatest designers of the time.