Dining chair set Cab 412

Born in Milan in 1935 and trained as an architect under Gio Ponti at the Politecnico, Mario Bellini brought the discipline of Italian rationalism into dialogue with the looser, more sensual currents of late-20th-century design. His work for Olivetti, Cassina and B&B Italia earned him eight Compasso d'Oro awards and a permanent retrospective at MoMA New York in 1987. Few designers shaped Italian domestic life more decisively.

Designed in 1977 for Cassina, the Cab 412 inverted the conventional logic of the chair: rather than dressing a structure with upholstery, Bellini built the structure from the upholstery itself — saddle-stitched leather pulled over a slim steel skeleton and zipped shut like a second skin. The Cab series won the Compasso d'Oro in 1979 and is held in the permanent collection of MoMA New York.

Dimensions
H: 82 cm x W: 47 cm x D: 49 cm — Seat height: 45 cm