Vitra - Mezzadro miniature

On the occasion of the XIth Milan Triennial in 1957, Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni presented their first prototype for the Mezzadro. The stool went on show in its current form that same year in an interior setting displayed at the »Colori e forme nella casa d'oggi« exhibition in the Villa Olmo in Como.
The designers used a common tractor seat for the springy metal seat, fastening it with a wing nut to the spring-based arched steel strip utilized in tractors to absorb the shock of unexpected ground. They enhanced the stability of the cantilever structure by a wooden cross-strut that resembled the rungs of a wooden ladder.
Each of these parts clearly embodies its task as a part of a functional whole. And what strikes the eye is the recourse to an artistic method exemplified by Marcel Duchamp's found objects or Pablo Picasso's assemblages. The Castiglionis were considered a successful design only once they had managed to eliminate all the unnecessary components and an optimal formal expression had been found for this concentration on the essential.

Designer Achille Castiglioni, Pier Giacomo Castiglioni

Vitra

Vitra is a Swiss company that produces furniture and interior design. Known for producing the works of important designers and architects.The headquarters are located in Weil am Rhein, Germany, where the famous Vitra Design Museum is also located.This story starts in the post-war years, when two Americans, both architects, Charles and Ray Eames, decided to help a furniture dealer.The collaboration led them to design and then produce masterpieces for interior design, which are still very current today.