Poltrona P40, Tecno
Osvaldo Borsani

1 March 2016

In 1953 Osvaldo Borsani founded Tecno Spa with his brother Fulgenzio, and the following year, on the occasion of the 10th Milan Triennale, presented the design of the D70 couch, for which he had worked on the idea of a mechanical joint that would allow the back to be adapted to different sitting positions. Later he tried to develop the potentialities of the classic chaise longue technologically, seeking to go beyond the concept of a fixed and cumbersome “chair for rest” to produce one of smaller size, but that could accommodate the body in increasingly relaxed positions with an easy-to-operate system of gradual inclination that would also allow it to be closed completely. The result was the P40, an easy chair with movable components: a stand that supports the seat and the back, hinged so that it can be placed in any inclination; a folding element under the seat that completes the supporting surface; a pull-out metal footrest; and arms made of steel and rubber. The padding is upholstered in fabric or leather. The whole structure is made of metal, painted a gunmetal gray or with a satin nickel finish. The P40 has become Tecno’s ideological manifesto, the expression of a “discreet elegance of technology” that was to characterize the next 50 years of the company’s production, and is still today the best-known and most highly appreciated piece in its catalogue.

D70, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

D70, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1954.

P40, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design di Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.

P40, design by Osvaldo Borsani, 1955.



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