Campanula Chairs

While mid-century architect and furniture designer Carlo Pagani is widely known for the elegant seating he created for powerhouse Italian furniture manufacturer Arflex, his many editorial collaborations with the groundbreaking modernist architect and journalist Lina Bo Bardi are considered to be among his most important works. The pair covered furnishings, interiors, architecture and art, thoroughly documenting European contributions to 20th-century design.

The Milan-born Pagani studied architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan and the University of Rome, graduating from the latter in 1939. He returned to his native city at the invitation of his former professor Gio Ponti, arguably the most important figure in 20th-century Italian architecture and design.

Pagani’s instructor saw great potential in him. He and Bardi, a former classmate at the University of Rome, opened a studio together in Milan in 1940. Pagani initially worked on architectural projects with Ponti but was eventually added to the editorial staff at Domus — the legendary magazine Ponti founded in 1928. Bardi and Pagani designed a utopian theoretical project called Casa sul Mare di Sicilia that was published in an issue of Domus dedicated to seaside living. When Ponti left Domus and launched Stile magazine to cover urban planning, art and Italian architecture, Pagani and Bardi were invited to contribute articles, artwork and more to Ponti's new initiative.

In 1943, Pagani returned to the Domus magazine staff and asked Bardi to join him. The Italian-born Brazilian writer and architect Bardi, who began a career in design journalism in Milan, co-edited the magazine’s “I Quaderni di Domus” with Pagani — a softcover table book series highlighting the best designers and emerging products from postwar Europe, such as Alvar Aalto, Franco Albini and Vico Magistretti. The books, copies of which are very rare today, are considered quintessential documents by collectors of design ephemera and enthusiasts of Italian modernism.

Pagani was asked to design the interiors for La Rinascente, a department store in Milan’s Piazza del Duomo. The project yielded a partnership between the architect and the retailer that lasted decades. He stayed busy throughout his life — Pagani was commissioned to design chairs and other seating for Arflex, he consulted on architecture projects all over the world and continued to design buildings and home interiors.

Find vintage Carlo Pagani furniture on 1stDibs.

With entire areas of our homes reserved for “sitting rooms,” the value of quality antique and vintage seating cannot be overstated.

Fortunately, the design of side chairs, armchairs and other lounge furniture — since what were, quite literally, the early perches of our ancestors — has evolved considerably.

Among the earliest standard seating furniture were stools. Egyptian stools, for example, designed for one person with no seat back, were x-shaped and typically folded to be tucked away. These rudimentary chairs informed the design of Greek and Roman stools, all of which were a long way from Sori Yanagi's Butterfly stool or Alvar Aalto's Stool 60. In the 18th century and earlier, seats with backs and armrests were largely reserved for high nobility.

The seating of today is more inclusive but the style and placement of chairs can still make a statement. Antique desk chairs and armchairs designed in the style of Louis XV, which eventually included painted furniture and were often made of rare woods, feature prominently curved legs as well as Chinese themes and varied ornaments. Much like the thrones of fairy tales and the regency, elegant lounges crafted in the Louis XV style convey wealth and prestige. In the kitchen, the dining chair placed at the head of the table is typically reserved for the head of the household or a revered guest.

Of course, with luxurious vintage or antique furnishings, every chair can seem like the best seat in the house. Whether your preference is stretching out on a plush sofa, such as the Serpentine, designed by Vladimir Kagan, or cozying up in a vintage wingback chair, there is likely to be a comfy classic or contemporary gem for you on 1stDibs.

With respect to the latest obsessions in design, cane seating has been cropping up everywhere, from sleek armchairs to lounge chairs, while bouclé fabric, a staple of modern furniture design, can be seen in mid-century modern, Scandinavian modern and Hollywood Regency furniture styles.

Admirers of the sophisticated craftsmanship and dark woods frequently associated with mid-century modern seating can find timeless furnishings in our expansive collection of lounge chairs, dining chairs and other items — whether they’re vintage editions or alluring official reproductions of iconic designs from the likes of Hans Wegner or from Charles and Ray Eames. Shop our inventory of Egg chairs, designed in 1958 by Arne Jacobsen, the Florence Knoll lounge chair and more.

No matter your style, the collection of unique chairs, sofas and other seating on 1stDibs is surely worthy of a standing ovation.