b&b italia since 1966
TRANSCRIPT
B&B Italia since 1966
1989, the first Compasso d’Oro Award ever assigned to a company for the constant work of integration carried out in order to combine
the values of scientific and technological research with those necessary to the functionality and expressiveness of its products.
KEY ATTRIBUTES
• 1966 Established as C&B (Cassina & Busnelli).• Modernization and industrialization process drive Italy to initiate
daring experimentation.• Technological revolution of injection moulding (cold polyurethane
foam moulding) yields the icons of design, eg. Up, Coronado, Lombrico and Amanta.
• 1973 Piero Ambrogio Busnelli founded B&B Italia, after previously co-founded C&B Italia with Cesare Cassina.
• 1975 Maxalto was established with research on classical forms and inspired by ancient manual cabinetmaking process and of stringed musical instrument making procedures.
• Wood is the key protagonist in Maxalto collections – Artona (1975) and New Armony (1979) created by Afra & Tobia Scarpa.
KEY ATTRIBUTES
• 80s saw radical changes by merging tradition and experimentation.• 1989 Compasso d’Oro to B&B marks a milestone underscore
B&B’s role in the progress of Italian design.• 90s B&B became acknowledged internationally for high impact
projects by Antonio Citterio, eg. Domus (1989), Harry (1995) and Charles (1997).
• 2000s Collaborated with Patricia Urquiola and Naoto Fukasawa for remarkable projects, eg. Fat-Fat and Lens (2002-2003), Tufty-Time and Lazy (2005), Shelf X (2006), Canasta (2007) and Grande Papilio (2009).
• Canasta marks B&B’s debut on the scene of outdoor furnishings.• B&B remains committed to research and innovation as it is the key
factors and driving force to the company’s growth.
KEY PRODUCTS
CORONADO
Afra & Tobia Scarpa, 1966
• Technological revolution of injection moulding.
• Interesting example of continuous design, it could in fact be continually revised.
• The first upholstered furniture in which all the structural metal work was drowned in polyurethane.
KEY PRODUCTS
SERIE UP
Gaetano Pesce, 1969
• “At the time I was telling a personal story about my idea of women: women have always been, unfortunately, prisoners of themselves. In this way I chose to give this armchair the shape of a woman with a ball at her feet, which also constitutes the traditional image of the prisoner.”
KEY PRODUCTS
LE BAMBOLE
Mario Bellini, 1972
• Icon of the Seventies and winner of Compasso d’Oro in 1979, LE BAMBOLE never gets old.
• Apparent lack of load bearing structure, the extreme naturalness of the shapes, the combination of comfort, softness and elasticity clearly speak about the design.
KEY PRODUCTS
DIESIS
Antonio Citterio & Paolo Nava, 1979
• The design started from idea of taking a classic image, based on the designs of Masters of the Modern Movement, and completely separating the load bearing structure from supporting surfaces.
• The object’s elegance derives from its fine detailing, eg. printed leather, feather padding and leather covers.
KEY PRODUCTS
SISAMO
Studio Kairos, 1983
• SISAMO opened the way for containers with flush sliding doors.
• Together with the minute attention to detail in the product’s design, the attention paid to functionality led to the inclusion of a dust trip along the sides of the doors to create an almost airtight seal.
KEY PRODUCTS
SITY
Antonio Citterio, 1986
• SITY represents a typological revolution – first concept of seating system enhanced by multiple compositional options.
• “No SITY is the same as another SITY.”
• Awarded Compasso d’Oro in 1987.
KEY PRODUCTS
DOMUS
Antonio Citterio, 1989
• DOMUS reinvented, modified and transformed the walls of the home, allowing them to contain, display, hold, light, protect and exhibit objects.
• The innovative wing shelves had a steel core that ran through the shelf to provide an exceptional load bearing capacity of 100kg per metre!
KEY PRODUCTS
CHARLES
Antonio Citterio, 1997
• CHARLES is a tribute to Fifties and Sixties design.
• The possibility of composing a large number of different seating arrangements, starting from fourteen different elements, is the principle that inspired CHARLES.
• An essential design of the cast aluminium feet makes CHARLES a decidedly contemporary sofa.
KEY DESIGNERS
AFRA & TOBIA SCARPA GAETANO PESCE
KEY DESIGNERS
MARIO BELLINI ANTONIO CITTERIO
KEY DESIGNERS
STUDIO KAIROS JEFFREY BERNETT
KEY DESIGNERS
PATRICIA URQUIOLA NAOTO FUKASAWA
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
1995HARRYAntonio Citterio
2007FAT-SOFAPatricia Urquiola
2005TUFTY-TIMEPatricia Urquiola
2007MOON SYSTEMZaha Hadid
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
2010BEND-SOFAPatricia Urquiola
2012LUISAntonio Citterio
2010RAYAntonio Citterio
2013ANDY ‘13Paolo Piva
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
1979DIESISAntonio Citterio & Paolo Nava
2011LANDSCAPEJeffrey Bernett
2008TERMINAL 1Jean-Marie Massaud
2012FRANKAntonio Citterio
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
2003MARTAntonio Citterio
2011HUSKPatricia Urquiola
2009GRANDE PAPILIONaoto Fukasawa
2012J.J.Antonio Citterio
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
2001VOL AU VENTMario Bellini
2011DOYLGabriele & Oscar Buratti
2005LAZY ’05Patricia Urquiola
2012HUSKPatricia Urquiola
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
2003LENSPatricia Urquiola
2010EILEENAntonio Citterio
2008SEVENJean-Marie Massaud
2012ATHOS ’12Paolo Piva
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
2002FAT FAT-LADY FATPatricia Urquiola
2012MICHELAntonio Citterio
2010SURFACEVincent Van Duysen
2012MERAAntonio Citterio
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
1997CHARLESAntonio Citterio
2013HUSKPatricia Urquiola
2007TUFTY-BEDPatricia Urquiola
2013ALYSGabriele & Oscar Buratti
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
2005PABStudio Kairos
2008FLAT.CAntonio Citterio
2006ATHOSPaolo Piva
2008FLAT.CAntonio Citterio
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
2005SHELF XNaoto Fukasawa
2012FRANKAntonio Citterio
2005ARNEAntonio Citterio
2013HIVEAtelier Oi
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
2007CANASTAPatricia Urquiola
2009TITIKAKANaoto Fukasawa
2008CRINOLINEPatricia Urquiola
2010CHARLES OUTDOORAntonio Citterio
PRODUCT COLLECTIONS
2010CARPINOAntonio Citterio
2013LINK OUTDOORJakob Wagner
2013MIRTOAntonio Citterio
2013MINI PAPILIONaoto Fukasawa
QUALITY & MATERIALS
B&B Italia seeks and applies innovative cutting edge technologies to ensure durability in view of updating a collection that increases the possibilities of choice and customisation.
B&B ITALIA FOAM
This provides a whole host of advantages compared to a standard frame (timber frame with shaped polyurethane block):
• Using metal frames immersed in polyurethane guarantees solidity, resistance, durability and functionality;
• The insertion of elastic straps and springs ensures the highest standards of comfort;
• Fibreglass reinforced or preheated aluminium moulds allow unrestrained reproduction of organic forms.
QUALITY & MATERIALS
FABRICS• Fabrics undergo the following set of quality tests to assess their
quality and durability:- RESISTANCE TO ABRASION
- FORMATION OF PILLING
- LIGHT FASTNESS
- RESISTANCE TO TRACTION
- RESISTANCE TO LACERATION AND RUBBING
• To further improve performance, some fabrics are subjected to finishing treatments, such as, for instance:- STAIN PROOFING
- SANFOR
- BUFFING
- FIREPROOFING
QUALITY & MATERIALS
LEATHER• Leather selected from calves and bulls bred in EU community.• Beauty and quality of leather depend on origin and the way animal
was bred.• B&B selects hides from young animals (bullocks) because they are
more intact and compact.• Treatments and finishes preserve the natural features – including
certain anomalies due to natural living condition, such as scars, insect stings, corns, wrinkles, shading, differences in grains, etc – to be considered as positive features and essential elements of leather.
• B&B ensures the utmost care during the leather cutting phase to avoid placing the said “marks” on the visible parts of the products.
QUALITY & MATERIALS
ORIGIN OF WOOD• OAK – solely ribbed American rift white oak. Typically straight but
irregular grain, sometimes coarse texture.• CANALETTO WALNUT – warm shades. Evident grains endow
wood with varied chromatic effects.• ROSEWOOD – from Latin America. Unique and inimitable grain and
chromatic noble wood.• TEAK – solely used for outdoor collection. One of the most precious
tropical woods for its exceptional resistance to atmospheric agents. It contains natural oily resin that makes it highly resistant, thus enhance the degree of waterproofing (even preventing termite attacks).
QUALITY & MATERIALS
WOOD FINISHES• B&B subjects wood to an open pore finish in order to highlight the
distinctive characteristics of the wood and its natural quality.• LIGHT OAK • BLACK OAK• SMOKE OAK
Before applying a clear finish, the surface is subjected to a “brushing” process that highlights the grain in the wood.
• GREY COLOURED OAK
The colour applied is designed not to alter the original characteristics of the wood itself.
QUALITY & MATERIALS
LACQUER• The paints are designed to achieve the best results in terms of
resistance to ageing, scratching, abrasion.• “TITANIUM” FINISH – a very bright paint, is the result of internal
research and of a complex painting cycle, and anticipates the future of chrome effect paints on a wood or metal base.
• All paints used by B&B are water-based, designed and specially tested in compliance with environment-friendly regulations in force concerning emissions.
METALS• STEEL• ALUMINIUM
Varnished, chromed or brushed finish.
QUALITY & MATERIALS
MARBLE• EMPERADOR• BLACK MARQUINA• PORTORO• WHITE CARRARA• WHITE CALACATTA
Two different finishes – • A matt finish that enhances the porosity of the material and which
undergoes only a “stain proofing” treatment that slows down the absorption of liquids.
• Polyester-based paint highlights the beauty of evident veins and chromatic reflections . And ensures waterproofing against all liquids.
QUALITY & MATERIALS
THERMOPLASTIC MATERIAL• It offers advantages such as lightness, resistance and easy
cleaning.
CRISTALPLANT®• A highly technological and innovative material in “solid surface”
category.• It is made of high percentage of aluminium hydrates and acrylic
resin that is poured into moulds.• It is impact resistant, UV rays, temperature fluctuations and wear
resistant.• “Soft touch” effect of the surface.• CRISTALPLANT® is exclusively manufactured in Italy, and it is
100% recyclable.
QUALITY & MATERIALS
ECO-SUSTAINABILITY• PRODUCTS THAT ARE VALUABLE IN TIME – impeccable products
in terms of function, materials, construction quality and design that last in time.
• QUALITY THAT STANDS THE TEST OF TIME – all B&B upholstered models have 10 year guarantee for the frame.
• DESIGN AND FUNCTIONALITY THAT STAND THE TEST OF TIME – “TIMELESS” design from cooperation with leading international designers; adopting “ECOLOGICALLY FRIENDLY” conducts; discovering innovative materials and developing production processes designed to guarantee industrial approach that increasingly respects environmental balance.
