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Gianfranco Frattini

Italian, 1926-2004

Gianfranco Frattini is widely regarded as a mid-century master of Italian modern design. He was an award-winning architect and designer, and specialized in creating furniture and decor that is both decorative and practical — Frattini’s vintage desks, armchairs, nesting tables and other works are celebrated for their sophisticated merging of function and form.

Born in Padua in 1926, Frattini studied architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan. He later apprenticed with his teacher and mentor, Gio Ponti. Through Ponti — arguably the most important figure in 20th-century Italian architecture and design — Frattini met many notable modernist designers such as Oscar Niemeyer and Le Corbusier, but an introduction to famed Italian entrepreneur Cesare Cassina would prove incredibly significant in helping launch his career.

During the mid-1950s, Frattini began to collaborate with Cassina’s eponymous company. He designed the brand’s acclaimed leather and walnut Model 849 lounge chair — a winner of the Compasso d’Oro award — the Marema nesting tables and the iconic Sesann collection. The latter, an enduring 1970s suite of impossibly welcoming leather-covered seating, is now produced by Tacchini. In addition to Cassina, Frattini created furniture and lighting for other manufacturers such as Bernini, Arteluce, Artemide, Knoll and more.

While many of his designs incorporate glass, tubular steel and other materials, Frattini loved working with wood. The sculptural Albero bookcase — an innovative floor-to-ceiling structure made in walnut that swings on a 360-degree vertical swivel axis — is a striking example of Frattini’s dedication to traditional woodworking techniques. In the early 1970s, he traveled to Japan with friend and collaborator Pierluigi Ghianda — a master Milanese cabinet maker — in order to study the work of artisans in Kyoto. The trip inspired his design of the Kyoto table, a work of solid beech with Canaletto walnut inserts that is part of the permanent collection of the Milan Triennale’s Design Museum. The Kyoto and Albero have been revived by Poltrona Frau.

Frattini’s designs are in the permanent collections of prestigious museums such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.

Find vintage Gianfranco Frattini furniture, lighting and decor on 1stDibs.

Average Sold Price
$5,403
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Materials
Related Creators
Set of Large Reversible Nesting Tables by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina, 1960s
By Gianfranco Frattini, Cassina
Located in Ixelles, Bruxelles
Designer - Gianfranco Frattini Producer - Cassina Model - Model 780 Nesting Tables Design Period - Sixties Measurements - Width 61 cm x Depth 61 cm x Height 44 / 39 / 34 / 29 cm Ma...
Category

1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Gianfranco Frattini

Materials

Laminate, Wood

Gianfranco Frattini Azure Velvet Sesann Three-Seater Sofa for Cassina, 1972
By Gianfranco Frattini, Cassina
Located in Vicenza, IT
Sesann three-seater sofa, designed by Gianfranco Frattini in 1970 and produced by the Italian manufacturer Cassina. It features azure velvet upholstery and a chrome tubular cage as s...
Category

1970s Italian Space Age Vintage Gianfranco Frattini

Materials

Chrome

Set of four "780" coffee tables by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina, Italy 1960s
By Gianfranco Frattini
Located in Argelato, BO
Set of 4 stackable coffee tables "Mod. 780" by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina This set of wooden coffee tables represents one of the most iconic and representative works of the Ita...
Category

1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Gianfranco Frattini

Materials

Wood

Midcentury coffe table mod. 784 by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina, Italy 1968
By Cassina, Gianfranco Frattini
Located in Piacenza, Italy
Midcentury coffee table model 784 designed by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina. Original chromed steel structure and glass top Perfect vintage condition Italy, 1960
Category

1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Gianfranco Frattini

Materials

Metal, Chrome

Tacchini Serie 500/4 Storage Cabinet by Gianfranco Frattini
By Gianfranco Frattini, Tacchini
Located in New York, NY
Optional wooden shelf or Optional glass shelf - extra Serie 500/4: four-piece sideboard with shutters and drawers in the lower left compartment; glass or wood shelves available as...
Category

2010s Italian Gianfranco Frattini

Materials

Walnut

Tacchini Serie 500/3 Storage Cabinet by Gianfranco Frattini
By Gianfranco Frattini, Tacchini
Located in New York, NY
Serie 500/3: three-unit sideboard with shutters and drawers in the left compartment; glass or wood shelves available as optional. Optional wooden shelf or Optional glass shelf - ext...
Category

2010s Italian Gianfranco Frattini

Materials

Walnut

Set of 13 pieces by Gianfranco Frattini for Progetti, 1970
By Gianfranco Frattini
Located in Den Haag, ZH
This set of 13 pieces by Gianfranco Frattini was remarkably ahead of its time! Gianfranco Frattini, renowned for his innovative approach to furniture and industrial design, also ma...
Category

1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Gianfranco Frattini

Materials

Metal

Coffee Table by Gianfranco Frattini for Cassina, 1960s
By Cassina, Gianfranco Frattini
Located in Budapest, HU
"Low coffee table with wooden frame, rounded square shape, flat legs and smoked glass top. An emblematic piece of Italian design, this table was made for Cassina in the 1960s by Gian...
Category

Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Gianfranco Frattini

Materials

Smoked Glass, Wood

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Gianfranco Frattini furniture for sale on 1stDibs.

Gianfranco Frattini furniture are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of wood and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Gianfranco Frattini furniture, although brown editions of this piece are particularly popular. We have 297 vintage editions of these items in-stock, while there is 36 modern edition to choose from as well. Many of the original furniture by Gianfranco Frattini were created in the mid-century modern style in europe during the 20th century. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider furniture by Ico Parisi, Arflex, and Saporiti Italia. Prices for Gianfranco Frattini furniture can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $261 and can go as high as $35,599, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $5,104.

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