221 - Ignazio Gardella

Ignazio Gardella Digamma Pair of armchairs Fabric, metal, and brass Produced by Gavina spa, 1957 H87 W72 D88 cm Conservative restoration, upholstered in its original fabric A leading postwar Milanese architect, designer of the Milan Pavilion of Contemporary Art and the house on the Zattere in Venice, Ignazio Gardella was also one of the founders of Azucena in 1947. Designed in 1957, the Digamma armchair is among the first models produced by Dino Gavina, a Bolognese manufacturer who would go on to collaborate with Marcel Breuer, Carlo Scarpa, and Kazuhide Takahama. Its name refers to the digamma, a letter of the archaic Greek alphabet. This pair, restored in a conservative spirit and upholstered in its original fabric, is a rare and well-preserved example of Italian rationalism.