Seven pieces make up this collection, which in the sixties was one of the most striking cases of international design with these shapes covered in stretch fabric. The Up 5_6 is certainly the best known and became an undisputed icon in those years of great industrial ferment.
Its anthropomorphic womb-like forms, reminiscent of prehistoric votive statues of fertility goddesses, the sphere connected to the armchair by a cable that acts as a footrest, a metaphor for the female image of the woman with the ball and chain, "a prisoner of herself" as Gaetano Pesce himself declares, is the essence of the project that took shape in 1969. The provocative representation of the series is overlaid with a concept of industrial innovation, technology and commercial dynamics.
The Up armchair by B&B Italia picks up on the mutation of the shape of the sponge, which contracts and reduces its volume when squashed. This pioneered a new construction concept, reducing transport and storage costs by increasing quantities and facilitating impulse buying by consumers who could take it home themselves. In fact, the chair was vacuum-packed, resulting in a shrinkage that reduced its volume to 10% of the total. When the packaging was opened, the material, in contact with the air, silently resumed its shape without the need for any tools, thanks to polyurethane technology which at that time saw B&B Italia as a pioneer in its use and experimentation. This construction process was maintained until 1973.
In 2000 B&B Italia's Up armchairs were put back into production with a standard production process, renewing the materials the series acquired new life and comfort. The 'vacuum' process is replaced by new and further research into the material, which extends its durability.
The Up armchair by B&B Italia is available in the black version.
