Alessi

Poêle Collection Chair metal silver / By Philippe Starck

To launch its first furniture collection, Alessi has called on the "pope of design": Philippe Starck. The "Frying pan" collection combines Starck's boundless creativity with Alessi's historic expertise in working with steel. The project was born of the subversive and humorous idea of designing a chair inspired by a frying pan, both in terms of manufacturing and aesthetics. Cold-pressed metal technology, traditionally used by Alessi since the 1950s to produce Kitchenware, was reimagined to create a collection of chairs, stools and Coat racks. For Alberto Alessi, who has run the company since 1970, this is a celebration of 100 years of working with metal and over 30 years of collaboration with Philippe Starck, whom he considers a prodigious visionary.

Alberto Alessi: ''I've been trying to make a chair with Philippe Starck for about twenty years, and finally we created it. I asked him if it was possible to design a chair that was made like a frying pan, using Alessi's high-tech cold-pressed metal. And, as is always the case with Starck, it started with a détournement.''

Philippe Starck: ''The starting point for the Frying pan chair was a very serious joke, with a sketch of a frying pan with legs and the excellent idea of adapting existing high technology for different purposes. The seat and backrest are inspired by a frying pan, with the legs acting as handles. The Frying pan chair elegantly embodies the finest proofs of human intelligence: humor and technology. Just like my relationship with Alberto and Alessi.

In its literal reference to the ''frying pan'', this collection pays homage to Alessi's identity as a manufacturer of the highest quality tableware and kitchenware for over a century. Frying Pan Collection" explores the expressive potential of metal work through the vision of Philippe Starck. The result is a family of small furnishings in which the metal element acquires a surprisingly fluid materiality, enveloping the wooden elements with unexpected harmony. Wood and Steel: two opposing materials that combine perfectly for a high-end effect.

Combining tradition and innovation, industry and craftsmanship, these exceptional pieces are made in Italy. They illustrate the exceptional craftsmanship of Alessi's metalworkers. Possessing a strong contemporary identity, this collection is sure to become a new classic of rooted and enduring design. A collection capable of blending into any space, from the home and Desk to high-end hotel projects.

In detail:

• Variation : Polished steel / Burnish Tinted beechwood

• Brand : Alessi

• Designer : Philippe Starck

• Type : Chair

• Colour : Polished steel - Structure: Brown stained beechwood

• Material : Monocoque in mirror-polished 18/10 stainless steel - Structure in brown-tinted beechwood

• Dimensions : W 53.5 x D 53.5 cm x H 81 cm
• Weight : 13.2 lb
• Characteristics : Project date: 2023 - Made in Italy - Opening at the bottom of the folder