Midcentury Gianfranco Frattini Bar Cabinet, 1950-1960
View Similar Items
Midcentury Gianfranco Frattini Bar Cabinet, 1950-1960
About the Item
- Creator:Gianfranco Frattini (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 24.02 in (61 cm)Width: 42.92 in (109 cm)Depth: 26.38 in (67 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1950-1960
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Slight scratches due to age and use.
- Seller Location:Milano, IT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU4911215856681
Gianfranco Frattini
Gianfranco Frattini is widely regarded as a mid-century master of Italian modern design. He was an award-winning architect and designer, and specialized in creating furniture and decor that is both decorative and practical — Frattini’s vintage desks, armchairs, nesting tables and other works are celebrated for their sophisticated merging of function and form.
Born in Padua in 1926, Frattini studied architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan. He later apprenticed with his teacher and mentor, Gio Ponti. Through Ponti — arguably the most important figure in 20th-century Italian architecture and design — Frattini met many notable modernist designers such as Oscar Niemeyer and Le Corbusier, but an introduction to famed Italian entrepreneur Cesare Cassina would prove incredibly significant in helping launch his career.
During the mid-1950s, Frattini began to collaborate with Cassina’s eponymous company. He designed the brand’s acclaimed leather and walnut Model 849 lounge chair — a winner of the Compasso d’Oro award — the Marema nesting tables and the iconic Sesann collection. The latter, an enduring 1970s suite of impossibly welcoming leather-covered seating, is now produced by Tacchini. In addition to Cassina, Frattini created furniture and lighting for other manufacturers such as Bernini, Arteluce, Artemide, Knoll and more.
While many of his designs incorporate glass, tubular steel and other materials, Frattini loved working with wood. The sculptural Albero bookcase — an innovative floor-to-ceiling structure made in walnut that swings on a 360-degree vertical swivel axis — is a striking example of Frattini’s dedication to traditional woodworking techniques. In the early 1970s, he traveled to Japan with friend and collaborator Pierluigi Ghianda — a master Milanese cabinet maker — in order to study the work of artisans in Kyoto. The trip inspired his design of the Kyoto table, a work of solid beech with Canaletto walnut inserts that is part of the permanent collection of the Milan Triennale’s Design Museum. The Kyoto and Albero have been revived by Poltrona Frau.
Frattini’s designs are in the permanent collections of prestigious museums such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.
Find vintage Gianfranco Frattini furniture, lighting and decor on 1stDibs.
- Fine Carved and Ebonized Bar CabinetLocated in Milano, ITSplendid bar cabinet designed in the 1920s, of fine Italian craftsmanship, with great mastery of woodwork. The cabinet has two legs at the base that cover the entire depth of the base. The feet are made of wood and have a style that is, to say the least, classical, reminiscent of ancient Greek structures; they are made of white-painted grisaille wood. The central body has a very massive rectangular shape. Both the base and the top are bevelled and have a frame that protrudes, like the friezes on the columns. The top is framed by a very classical Greek fret in white painted wood. The base, on the other hand, is made entirely of ebonised wood, which gives an even more sumptuous effect. The cabinet at the front displays two doors that can be opened by means of a brass key in original patina. Each door is decorated with a rectangular antique Greek frame...Category
Vintage 1920s Italian Mid-Century Modern Cabinets
MaterialsMetal, Brass
- Gianfranco Frattini Mid-Century Armchairs in Light Leather 'Attr.'By Gianfranco FrattiniLocated in Milano, ITSplendid pair of wooden armchairs attributed to the great designer Gianfranco Frattini in the 70s, of fine Italian manufacture. The armchairs have a solid base made of solid dark wo...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Rare Set of Vintage Sofas by Gianfranco Frattini in Purple VelvetBy Gianfranco FrattiniLocated in Milano, ITWonderful set of sofas designed by Gianfranco Frattini in the 50's, of fine Italian manufacture. The three-seater sofa is composed of three seats and a small table inserted into the...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sofas
MaterialsIron
- Vintage Dry Bar Attributed to Pietro Chiesa for Fontana ArteBy Pietro Chiesa, Fontana ArteLocated in Milano, ITStep into the world of timeless elegance with this exquisite bar cabinet, attributed to the renowned Pietro Chiesa and crafted by Fontana Arte in the 1950s. Every aspect of this piec...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Dry Bars
MaterialsBrass
- Giorgio Tura Vintage Ice HolderBy TuraLocated in Milano, ITBeautiful beverage and ice holder made by Giorgio Tura in the 1950s. Entirely made of red parchment on the outside, with a wider cylindrical base. The in...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Pitchers
MaterialsParchment Paper
- Paolo Buffa Vintage Wooden Furniture and Glass by Fontana Arte 'Attr.'By Fontana Arte, Paolo BuffaLocated in Milano, ITSplendid wooden wall cabinet attributed to the great designer Paolo Buffa in the 1950s, with Fontana Arte manufacture for the glass. The cabinet has a base supported by 6 legs in Bu...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Dry Bars
MaterialsBrass
- Umberto Mascagni for Harrods London Midcentury Italian Bar Cabinet, 1950sBy Umberto MascagniLocated in Puglia, PugliaRare and highly collectible bar credenza designed in Italy by Umberto Mascagni from Bologna. Early 1950s three doors cabinet created with reverse painted glass door fronts, two doors...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsAluminum
$2,825 Sale Price20% Off - Great Quality Midcentury Modern Solid Teak Wood Drinks Cabinet or Dry Bar, 1960sLocated in Lisse, NLHandcrafted double tier credenza or dry bar. This beautiful and handcrafted midcentury drinks cabinet is another one of our recent great fi...Category
Early 20th Century European Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsBrass
- Osvaldo Borsani Mid-Century Modern Italian Sideboard with Bar Cabinet, 1950sBy Osvaldo BorsaniLocated in Puglia, PugliaSideboard with bar mobile Osvaldo Borsani for Furniture Varedo Borsani. The locker in the center has a limelight and four drawers, in the upper part 3 folding doors and inside the co...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Dry Bars
MaterialsBrass
$5,022 Sale Price30% Off - Midcentury Italian Gianfranco Frattini Two Tier Teak SideboardBy Gianfranco FrattiniLocated in Troy, MIFound in Italy, this circa 1960s teak sideboard is attributed to Gianfranco Frattini. Unusual two tier design with the tallest section consisting of a cabinet with a fold down door a...Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsTeak
- Gianfranco Frattini '809' sideboard for Bernini, 1960s, walnutBy Gianfranco Frattini, BerniniLocated in Milano, IT1960s walnut sideboard/Sideboard with hinged doors and drawers. Design by Gianfranco Frattini, Bernini production. Unrestored cabinet but in excellent overall condition.Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsNutwood
- Credenza Dry Bar Cabinet Tessellated Stone & Faux TravertineBy Maitland SmithLocated in Lake Worth, FLOffering one of our recent Palm Beach estate fine furniture acquisitions of a Two-Tone Tessellated stone with brass inlay and faux travertine Credenza dry bar...Category
Vintage 1970s Mid-Century Modern Credenzas
MaterialsStone, Brass