MONOBLOC CHAIR

VICO MAGISTRETTI

ITALY 1968

IS THIS MATERIAL COMMON?

The design of the Monobloc chair was revolutionary, made from one mould of plastic or resin with no seams or other materials. The chair has become an international symbol of accessible design: light, stackable, inexpensive and durable. The ‘Selene’ is an original Monobloc chair designed by Vico Magistretti. The ability to mass produce at low cost made the Monobloc chair the design item it is and it has been said if it weren’t so common it could have been considered a luxury product given the clever design. When looking at the impact this material has had in the design industry, can we see it as precious rather than disposable? Can we elevate products like this to luxury item status?

ABOUT

Vico Magistretti (1920 – 2006) was an Italian industrial designer, known as a furniture designer and architect. A collaborator of humanist architect Ernesto Nathan Rogers, one of Vico Magistretti's first projects was the "poetic" round church in the experimental Milan neighborhood of QT8. He later designed mass-produced appliances and furniture for companies, and won several awards, including the Gold Medal of the Chartered Society of Industrial Artists & Designers in 1986.