Entrepreneur Aurelio Zanotta founded Zanotta in 1954 in Nova Milanese, Italy. Originally called Zanotta Poltrona, it specialized in traditional furniture. By the early 1960s, however, Zanotta had established a reputation for edgy mid-century modern design. Today’s vintage furniture collectors know the brand well for its innovative and wholly sculptural chairs, coffee tables and more.
One of Zanotta’s earliest successes was the Mezzadro stool — better known as the Tractor stool — designed by Pier Giacomo Castiglioni and his brother Achille in the late 1950s. In 1965, Zanotta was among the first furniture companies to work with expanded polyurethane foam and frameless construction, such as for the Throw-Away sofas and armchairs designed by Willie Landels. Another popular design was the Blow chair — designed by Jonathan De Pas, Donato D’Urbino, Paolo Lomazzi and Carla Scolari — viewed by many as a physical expression of late '60s carefree culture.
In 1969, amid the provocative movement we now call Italian Radical Design, Zanotta’s Sacco chair garnered major attention. The boundary-pushing beanbag chair was the brainchild of designers Piero Gatti, Cesare Paolini and Franco Teodoro who presented it to Aurelio Zanotta as a transparent vinyl sack loosely filled with small polystyrene balls. He suggested its signature brightly colored leather.
The Sacco chair won the 1970 ADI Design Museum’s Compasso d’Oro award. In 1972, the Museum of Modern Art in New York included it in the landmark exhibition “Italy: The New Domestic Landscape” curated by designer Emilio Ambasz. In 2020, it received a Compasso d’Oro ADI Lifetime Achievement Award for 50 years of enduring popularity. It is now in museum collections around the world including the Triennale Design Museum of Milan, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, and London’s Victoria & Albert Museum.
After Aurelio Zanotta died in 1991, the company remained in his family and has been run by his three children since 2002. Zanotta continues to set the bar high for furniture design with trend-setting pieces.
On 1stDibs, find a collection of vintage Zanotta seating, tables and other furniture.
Customizable Zanotta Nena Chair by Lanzavecchia + Wai
By Lanzavecchia + Wai
Located in New York, NY
Armchair. Steel frame varnished orange, amaranth, espresso, graphite or black. Seat and backrest upholstered with polyurethane. Removable fabric or leather cover. A daily glimpse, a ...
Steel
Customizable Zanotta Arom Chair by Noé Duchaufour Lawrance
By Zanotta, Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance
Located in New York, NY
Price listed for starting fabric and exterior in cowhide. extra charge for exterior cover in leather. Armchair. Steel frame. Upholstery with self-extinguishing polyurethane foam/heat-bound polyester fibre with elastic strips suspension. Fixed internal nylon cover. Removable external fabric, Pied de poule or leather cover.The exterior body can be covered with cowhide 95, combined with fabric or leather. Cannot be covered with cowhide 95 in the shade white 0704. Arom is the latest armchair...
Leather, Fabric
Customizable Zanotta Calla Chair by Noé Duchaufour Lawrance
By Zanotta, Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance
Located in New York, NY
Price listed for starting fabric. Armchair. Steel frame. Upholstery with self-extinguishing polyurethane foam/heat-bound polyester fibre with elastic strips suspension. Fixed internal nylon cover. Removable external fabric, Pied de poule or leather cover.The exterior body can be covered with cowhide 95, combined with fabric or leather. Cannot be covered with cowhide 95 in the shade white 0704. Arom is the latest armchair...
Leather, Fabric
Customizable Zanotta Nellee Chair by Calvi Brambilla
By Zanotta
Located in New York, NY
Chair. Steel frame. Upholstery in self-extinguishing polyurethane foam with vegetable-based polyols. Removable fabric or leather cover.
Upholstery
Customizable Zanotta Swivel Kent Lounge Chair by Ludovica+Roberto Palomba
By Zanotta
Located in New York, NY
Armchair. Revolving base in varnished steel, colors: black or graphite. Steel frame. Upholstery in self-extinguishing graduated polyurethane foam/heat-bound polyester fiber. Fixed i...
Leather, Fabric
Customizable Acerbis Palla Swivel Lounge chair by Claudio Salocchi
By Acerbis
Located in New York, NY
Price listed for starting fabric, swivel and chrome base. At the forefront of both design and approach to seating, the Palla armchair by Claudio Salocchi is a manifesto of the creat...
Upholstery
Zanotta Giuno Swivel Chair by Calvi Brambilla in Stock
By Zanotta
Located in New York, NY
upholstered CAT30 BRUCIATO 032930 Small armchair. Steel frame. Frame upholstered with self-extinguishing polyurethane foam. Seat cushion upholstered with regenerated and regenerable ...
Fabric
Acerbis Palla Armchair by Claudio Salocchi
By Claudio Salocchi, Acerbis
Located in Brooklyn, NY
At the forefront of both design and approach to seating, the Palla armchair by Claudio Salocchi is a manifesto of the creative energy of the 1960s, stands out for its radical conce...
Upholstery
Vao Armchair by Paolo Castelli
By Paolo Castelli
Located in Boston, MA
Vao armchair is part of the new Greenkiss Eco-Luxury collection. Armchair and pouf with well-rounded lines, with legs made of discarded eco-friendly solid ash with an acetic finis...
Wool
Alky Armchair by Giancarlo Piretti
By Giancarlo Piretti
Located in Toronto, ON
The Alky armchair, created by Giancarlo Piretti in the late 1960s, continues to captivate with its distinctive lounge chair design, which remains unparalleled even today. This multif...
Wool
Opinion Ciatti Mammamia Non Stackable Chair with Armrests
By Marcello Zilliani, Opinion Ciatti
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Mammamia chair with armrest, made with die-cast aluminum shell and steel structure. For indoor use. Non-stackable. Available in gold structure with whit...
Metal
Brera Chair by Somaschini
Located in Geneve, CH
Brera Chair by Somaschini Dimensions: W 55 x D 55 x H 80 cm Materials: Solid wood and curved plywood structure padded with polyurethane foam in different densities. Pre-upholstery in...
Fabric, Upholstery, Wood
