Arflex | An Italian Design Story

Arflex was founded in 1947, when a group of three Pirelli technicians teamed up with the young architect Marco Zanuso to experiment with materials for the furniture industry. Their idea was simple – how could new materials and technologies be applied to the making of upholstery, to help modernise both the production of the pieces and the designs themselves.

After extensive research and development, the results were presented to the public for the first time at the IX Triennale in Milan in 1951, where the new designs won the Gold Medal. Arflex then went on to forge a reputation for excellence in manufacturing, creating aesthetically beautiful designs with new technologies and materials. They embraced the innovation of the 1960s, which saw the development of a range of designs in polyester resins and fibreglass, while also expanding their manufacturing base across Europe.

As well as creating leading-edge designs in the domestic market, Arflex have worked extensively in the automotive industry. They have maintained a reputation for combining innovation with elegance. In recent years they have created award-winning designs with Swedish architects Claesson Koivisto Rune, while a number of original Arflex designs have been incorporated into permanent collections worldwide, including New York’s Museum of Modern Art.