Edited by Nicola Carbonara
An aesthetic journey towards a more sustainable tomorrow. Through Alessandro Stabile's years of dedication and exploration in shaping three-dimensional forms from two-dimensional surfaces, comes Tacothe new armchair for the brand laCividina. This work stands as a hymn to sustainability in all its facets, passionately embracing not only the materials it is made of, but also the production processes that shape its existence. Nor, of course, does it neglect its future fate, highlighting the importance of a conscious farewell.
At a time when the call for sustainability permeates our daily conversations, we rarely reflect on traditional upholstered armchairs and their lack of eco-sustainability. A core, often anchored to a metal bar, surrounded by polyurethane foam, one of the most popular upholstery materials, all covered with a glued fabric. Three distinct but inexorably connected elements, deprived of the possibility of being separated and destined for difficult repair in the event of damage. Their ultimate fate, disposal, results in a challenge to recycling, as their intricate composition makes them refractory to proper recyclability.
TacoInstead, it embodies a promise of change, an ode to sustainability that goes beyond aesthetic appearance. This armchair not only embraces a new vision of design, but also engages in an environmental mission, where care for materials and awareness in production processes converge towards a future where beauty coexists with environmental responsibility.
"The intention,' explained Alessandro Stabile, 'was first of all to create a high-quality armchair that was above all comfortable and functional, based on a completely different technology from that used in the production of most traditional upholstered furniture.. A simple concept, starting with a flat surface that is then developed into a three-dimensional structure through simple cutting and stitching, the result of the equally simple concept of pinching the edges of a sheet of paper between the fingers, like the one used by the designer in his study model. With a change of scale, felt was almost a natural choice when thinking of a flat fabric that had to be cut and sewn in a certain way to take the shape of an armchair.
"A natural choice, in a way,' explains Fulvio Bulfoni, president of the brand, 'because of our great production capacity in terms of fabrics, stitching and upholstery, but above all because of that aesthetic and formal relationship between the metal structure and the upholstery that has become a real strength of our products. This expertise has made it possible to transpose the ideas into a finished product that is completely faithful to the original concept: flat sheets of felt, shaped and sewn along the edges, so that their edges can be inserted into the cut that runs along the rear upright of the tubular metal structure, which thus plays an active role in the composition, closing and reinforcement of the shape of the seat.
Although it does not belong to the traditional world of upholstered armchairs, Taco rises to the level of comfort offered by classic seating, thanks to the fine composition of its materials.
Two 8 mm thick layers of felt not only serve as a covering, but also transform into a soft support, carefully wrapping a layer of technical material that retains its shape over time. Its essentiality translates into a few simple components, reducing the production stages to a minimum and thus contributing to a significant reduction in energy and material consumption. The seat's lightness, the result of this careful process, translates into lower CO2 emissions during transport, accentuating its positive impact on the environment. Furthermore, the total absence of adhesives facilitates the complete disassembly of Taco into its individual components, ready to be directed to the most appropriate recycling chain, thus underlining its commitment to a sustainable and responsible life cycle.
