Poltrona Frau made its outdoor debut only last year, but its offerings and vision were already clearly defined, intriguing and versatile, and totally fascinating. The outdoor furnishings are not just a counterpart for interiors; they provide a perfect continuation, an ideal scenario of year-round enjoyment. These are the principles around which Poltrona Frau has created the philosophy of “Boundless Living” that permeates all its creations for life en plein air. The idea translates into furnishings for complete lounge and dining zones, ready to interpret contemporary lifestyles in all their multiplicity, where elegance is always accompanied by high manufacturing quality.
The debut collections – Solaria, designed by Ludovica + Roberto Palomba, and The Secret Garden, by Roberto Lazzeroni – are joined this year by Souvenir d’Italie, a new interpretation of archetypal images and materials in outdoor settings, developed by the duo Palomba-Serafini. Souvenir d’Italie pays direct homage to joyful, carefree atmospheres, starting with the name borrowed from a famous film from 1957 directed by Antonio Pietrangeli, telling the story of a hitchhiking trip of three young foreign women through Italy and its cultural attractions.
The Souvenir d’Italie collection (composed of a two-seat sofa, also in a large version, and a table in two sizes) evokes positive ideals of artistic creativity, but also becomes an invitation to linger, to relax, to admire the view and to find new inspiration. The shape of the sofa itself – not by chance – is a reminder of traditional wooden benches: the classic slats have been replaced by woven belting to form the distinctive feature. These elastic belts add rhythm to the seat and back, in a game of full and empty zones, wrapping the aluminium support structure composed of three longitudinal L-shaped beams.
The rigor of the design is attenuated by the soft oval profiles of the structure, and the sense of great lightness provided by the combination of metal and belting (in ton-sur-ton or contrasting match-ups), as well as the cushions, big “mattresses” simply resting on the structure and culminating in double-cylinder armrests that heighten the horizontal impact of the sofa.
The Souvenir d’Italie table reprises the metal structure, which as in the sofa is 100% recyclable, combined here with a top in Arabescato marble with a natural finish.
Another new development for 2022 is Leplì Outdoor, the open-air version of the line of the same name designed by Kensaku Oshiro, composed of a bench, a stool and an ottoman. Weaving is the aesthetic earmark of the various pieces, connecting these seating elements with the Sparkler collection of lamps, also by Oshiro, which displays the same type of workmanship. Leplì Outdoor is like an outdoor sculpture, thanks to its sinuous lines and compact sizing.
The openings in the weave become increasingly dense on the seat, concealing the system of elastic belting support. The many available colors establish a dialogue between Leplì Outdoor and all the various series of the Boundless Living Collection: in the Ecru of Solaria, the Taupe color of the Sparkler lanterns, the Rust tone that returns in the various outdoor accessories.
