Alessandro Mendini, 'Kandissi' sofa

1978
Painted wood, burr birch-veneered wood, fabric, vinyl.
124 x 193 x 84.6 cm (48 7/8 x 75 7/8 x 33 1/4 in.)
Produced by Studio Alchimia, Milan, Italy. Together with a certificate of authenticity from the Atelier Mendini.

Provenance

Sydney and Frances Lewis, Richmond, Virginia, acquired directly from Studio Alchimia, Milan, 1980s
Friedman Benda, New York
Acquired from the above by the present owner

Literature

Andrea Branzi, The Hot House: Italian New Wave Design, Cambridge, 1984, p. 126
Barbara Radice, Memphis: Research, Experiences, Results, Failures and Successes of New Design, London, 1985, p. 24
Guia Sambonet, Alchimia: 1977–1987, exh. cat., Galleria Rocca, Turin, 1986, p. 26
La Collection de Design du Centre Georges Pompidou, exh. cat., The Centre Pompidou, Paris, 2001, p. 145
Alberto Fiz, Mendini: Alchimie. Dal Controdesign alle Nuove Utopie, Milan, 2010, n.p.
Cindi Strauss, Radical: Italian Design 1965 – 1985: The Dennis Freedman Collection, exh. cat., The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, 2020, pp. 29, 120
Fulvio Irace et. al., Io Sono un Drago: La Vera Storia di Alessandro Mendini, exh. cat., Triennale Milano, Milan, 2024, p. 263