With his stylish and technically innovative furniture, Osvaldo Borsani helped change the face of Italian design in the 1950s and ’60s. His sofas and chairs, featuring deeply upholstered seating and adjustable position settings, have an aura of optimism and efficiency that still seems fresh and lively today.
Born in the commune of Varedo in northern Italy’s Lombardy region, Borsani studied at the Brera Academy in Milan — the same school attended by such luminaries as designer Piero Fornasetti and artist Lucio Fontana — as well as the Polytechnic University of Milan. Borsani first worked for his father’s furniture-making firm, Arredamenti Borsani, an atelier influenced by the more expressive and curvaceous wing of Art Deco design.
By 1953, when, along with his twin brother, Fulgenzio — the pair also created this visionary mid-century villa — Borsani opened the furniture company Tecno, his design sensibilities had evolved toward furnishings with strong, simple forms enhanced by mechanical innovations, as with the P40 adjustable armchair. Borsani would be the firm’s lead designer for 30 years, while fostering work by Vico Magistretti, Carlo De Carli, Robin Day and others.
Similar to Gio Ponti in the earliest years of his career, Borsani first created designs marked by lush and buoyant lines: tables with voluptuous curved legs, sofas with undulating backrests.
But Borsani’s best-known and most novel pieces date from Tecno’s initial furniture lines: the adjustable D70 sofa, which folds open to make a daybed, and the P40 recliner. The latter — now included in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art and the Victoria & Albert Museum — is an articulated lounger with a back, seat and leg rest that can be moved into 486 different positions. Not only is it extremely comfortable, it is also enduringly chic.
Find a collection of vintage Osvaldo Borsani tables, dining chairs and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Established in 2006, Morentz has a team of approximately 55 restorers, upholsterers, interior advisers and art historians, making it a gallery, workshop and upholstery studio, all in one. Every day, a carefully selected array of 20th-century furniture arrives from all over the world at the firm’s warehouse, where the team thoroughly examines each piece to determine what, if any, work needs to be done. Whether that means new upholstery or a complete restoration, Morentz's aim is always to honor the designer’s intention while fulfilling the wishes of the client. The team is up to any challenge, from restoring a single piece to its original glory to furnishing a large-scale hotel project.
Guglielmo Ulrich for Ar.Ca Milano Bar Cabinet in Parchment and Wood
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Guglielmo Ulrich for Ar.Ca, chest of drawers, parchment, wood, birdseye maple, Italy, early 1930s This exceptional bar cabinet by Guglielmo Ulrich for Ar.Ca Milano exemplifies the ...
Parchment Paper, Birdseye Maple, Wood
Ernesto Valabrega for Vittorio Valabrega Wardrobe in Oak
By Vittorio Valabrega
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Ernesto Valabrega for Vittorio Valabrega, wardrobe, oak, maple, mirrored glass, Italy, 1930s This exceptional wardrobe, designed by Ernesto Valabrega for Vittorio Valabrega, is a d...
Mirror, Maple, Oak
Exquisite Italian Wardrobe with Mirrored Doors in Walnut Burl
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Large Italian wardrobe, walnut burl, glass, brass, mahogany, maple, Italy, 1950s This exclusive Italian wardrobe has a remarkable size; with its width of over 10ft, this cabinet off...
Brass
André Sornay Large Cabinet in Oregon Pine and Copper
Located in Waalwijk, NL
André Sornay, large cabinet, Oregon pine, copper, France, circa 1934 This large cabinet, designed by André Sornay around 1934, exemplifies his idiosyncratic approach to design. Craf...
Copper
Osvaldo Borsani for ABV Arredamenti Borsani-Varedo Sideboard in Chestnut
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Osvaldo Borsani for Arredamenti Borsani Varedo, sideboard, chestnut, brass, Italy, first half of the 1930s An early and refined design by Italian visionary Osvaldo Borsani, this ra...
Chestnut
André Sornay Cabinet or Wardrobe with Sliding Doors in Mahogany
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Andre Sornay for Sornay Meubles, cabinet or wardrobe, mahogany, lacquered wood, lacquered metal, France, 1960s This tall cabinet, designed by André Sornay in the 1960s, is exemplary...
Wood, Mahogany
1930s cabinet in the style of Borsani
By Osvaldo Borsani, Gaetano Borsani
Located in Correggio, IT
This 1930s Italian-made bar cabinet, in the style or Gaetano and Osvaldo Borsani, is distinguished by its clean and rational lines, an expression of the sober and functional design t...
Mirror, Stained Glass, Wood
Pair of Italian Art Deco Cabinets 1940' Attributed to Osvaldo Borsani
By Osvaldo Borsani
Located in Rome, IT
Elegant pair of bar cabinet. Decorated front doors with geometrical inlaid. Finished in two-tone blond birch and dark coffee colors.
Wood
French Art Deco Cabinet by Maxime Old, Rosewood with Parchment Doors
By Maxime Old
Located in Philadelphia, PA
French Art Deco cabinet by Maxime Old in rosewood with original parchment front and bronze mounts. Signed on verso with full signature. 89" long x 19" deep x 39" high. Maxime Old was (1910-1991) born in Maisons-Alfort (a suburb of Paris), France. He was the grandson and son of fine cabinetmakers. He received his formal training at Ecole Boulle in Paris and his work attracted the attention of the influential school director, Andre Frechet...
Rosewood
Osvaldo Borsani oak cabinet with doors, drawers & drop-front panel, Italy, 1945
By Osvaldo Borsani, Arredamenti Borsani
Located in Chiavari, Liguria
A large oak storage cabinet with doors, drawers and drop-front panel design by Osvaldo Borsani, manufactured by Arredamenti Borsani Varedo, Italy, 1945 This substantial storage cabi...
Brass
Italian 1940s Art Deco Sideboard in Macassar, Parchment, Attr. Osvaldo Borsani
By Osvaldo Borsani
Located in Meda, MB
Refined Art Deco sideboard produced in Italy in the 1940s, attributed to Osvaldo Borsani. The structure is in fine Macassar wood, while the drawers are covered in parchment. On the f...
Brass
Bar Cabinet in Walnut and Glass, attr. Osvaldo Borsani, 1940s
By Osvaldo Borsani
Located in Chiavari, Liguria
This bar cabinet is conceived as a dialogue between two volumes: a broad upper cabinet with softened corners, resting upon a rectilinear console base. The flat slab legs ground the c...
Glass, Mirror, Walnut
