Arki Lounge Chair by Giancarlo Piretti for CASTELLI, Italy 1970

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About the Item

‘ARKI’ lounge chair by Giancarlo Piretti. The chair is in the manor of the Alky and the Groovy.

Designer: Giancarlo Piretti
Manufacturer: CASTELLI
Country: Italy
Model: Arki lounge chair
Design period: 1970
Date of manufacturing: 1970’s
Size WDH in cm: 63 x 73 x 73 seat height 34 cm.
Material: Original fabric / Aluminum feet
Condition: Good / some small damages and some staining on the fabricCreator: Giancarlo Piretti (Designer),Castelli (Manufacturer)Design: Alky ChairDimensions: Height: 29.14 in (74 cm)Width: 24.81 in (63 cm)Depth: 29.14 in (74 cm)Seat Height: 13.39 in (34 cm)Style: Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)Materials and Techniques: Aluminum,FabricPlace of Origin: ItalyPeriod: 1970-1979Date of Manufacture: 1970’sCondition: FairWear consistent with age and use.Seller Location: Pijnacker, NLReference Number: 1stDibs: LU1712241843242

Alky Chair

Designed by Giancarlo Piretti

In the 1960s, Giancarlo Piretti (b. 1940), who earned a degree in art education at the Academy of Fine Arts of Bologna and taught interior design, began working with the Italian manufacturer Castelli, where he would go on to produce some of the most popular chairs in the world. In 1969, he debuted the Alky chair, a sculptural, modernized riff on a slipper chair that appears to float above the ground.

Unlike most chairs, the Alky doesnt have a distinctive base and seat; rather the entire form appears as one continuous piece, originally upholstered in velvet and wool and set on narrow, aluminum feet.

Much of Pirettis popularity in the United States can be attributed to Castellis exhibition The Piretti Collection at the 1988 iteration of the NeoCon design exposition in Chicago. There, his ergonomic office seating earned him a slew of awards and led to increased global attention.

Compared to Pirettis widely revered folding chairs and wheeling desk chairs (the Plia, of which millions have sold, is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art; the DSC 106 is among Castellis best known), the Alky lounge chair no longer in production is by far the most sumptuous design. Yet, as much as its shapely silhouette has made it a favorite of interior designers in residential and commercial spaces alike, it is also rooted in comfort. Its foam-covered back and seat give soft resistance, and the Alky chairs organic shape perfectly cradles the sitter a true mark of the modernist dedication to human-centric design.

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Giancarlo Piretti

Giancarlo Piretti was born in Bologna, Italy, in 1940. He attended art schools there and subsequently taught Interior Design. During that time, he was also designing furniture for Anonima Castelli. He has won numerous awards and has items in many museums, including MoMA, New York. He still lives and works in Bologna with his son, designer Alessandro Piretti.