Achille Castiglioni Seating
Milanese designer and architect Achille Castiglioni sought to inject personality into all of his work, and found deep inspiration in everyday objects. A legend of Italian mid-century modernism, he created iconic, universally loved table lamps, chairs and other lighting and furniture with his likeminded brothers during the postwar years.
There was the Snoopy lamp, which brings to mind the unmistakable Peanuts character, while the shape of a common street lamp inspired the design behind the Arco floor lamp. Elsewhere, the Toio floor lamp — a provocative fixture in any living room — was made with automotive parts as well as run-of-the-mill recreational gear.
Castiglioni studied the classics at Liceo Classico Giuseppe Parini, art at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Brera and finally architecture and design at the Polytechnic University of Milan. After graduating in 1944, Castiglioni began working with his brothers Pier Giacomo and Livio at the studio they cofounded with classmate Luigi Caccia Dominioni.
Livio left to pursue lighting design and sound technology, leaving Achille and Pier Giacomo to continue to collaborate on various projects. One such design was the iconic Taraxacum hanging lamp for FLOS which featured a resin “cocoon” created with sprayed plastic polymers that protects its steel core and allows for the diffusion of light.
Castiglioni won Italy’s highest award for industrial design — the Compasso d’Oro — seven times, and the Museum of Modern Art was home to his first individual retrospective in the United States. Castiglioni later taught at the Polytechnic University of Turin and at Polytechnic in Milan.
Castiglioni’s designs remain timeless. Some of them can be found in Tokyo’s Living Design Center Ozone, the Triennale di Milano and the Hangaram Art Museum at the Seoul Arts Center.
Find vintage Achille Castiglioni lighting, seating, tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Wood
1970s Italian Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Iron
1980s Italian Industrial Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Plastic
1980s Italian Minimalist Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Plastic
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal, Iron, Chrome, Steel
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Beech
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Achille Castiglioni Seating
Leather, Walnut
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Stainless Steel
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1970s Italian Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Steel
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Steel, Chrome
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Steel
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Steel
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Achille Castiglioni Seating
Steel
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1970s Italian Space Age Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Leather, Plastic
20th Century Achille Castiglioni Seating
Wood
1980s Italian Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Achille Castiglioni Seating
Leather
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Leather
1970s Italian Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1950s Italian Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Chrome, Metal
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1970s Italian Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Steel
1960s Italian Space Age Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal, Steel, Chrome
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1970s Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Wood
20th Century Industrial Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1980s Czech Industrial Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Chrome, Metal, Iron
1980s Swedish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Wicker
1970s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Upholstery, Velvet, Oak
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Achille Castiglioni Seating
Mahogany
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Steel, Chrome
1980s American Bohemian Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Brass
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Achille Castiglioni Seating
Plywood
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Aluminum, Steel, Chrome
Mid-20th Century Italian Bauhaus Achille Castiglioni Seating
Chrome
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Fabric, Beech
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1950s Italian Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Leather, Wood
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Achille Castiglioni Seating
Aluminum, Steel, Chrome
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Steel
1980s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Metal
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Chrome
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Achille Castiglioni Seating
Chrome