Different Tendencies
Gaetano Pesce
UP 2
Scene design: Duyi Han
UP 2 armchair
Produced by C&B Italia (later B&B Italia)
1969
Polyurethane, stretch fabric upholstery
17.7 x 23.6 x 23.6 inches
45 x 60 x 60 centimeters
Price and detailed condition available upon request
In 1969, C&B Italia (now B&B Italia) invited Gaetano Pesce to experiment with a new polyurethane foam. As a result, Pesce’s UP Series was born. The new material allowed the seven numbered seating forms in the collection to be compressed and vacuum-packed. When the PVC wrapper in which it was stored was opened by the consumer, the seats jumped “up” into life. Thus, Pesce, whose early artistic career involved performance art, turned the act of purchasing into a “Happening.” There are two examples of the series in Different Tendencies. UP 2, shown here, is the most diminutive of the four armchairs in the series.
Images courtesy of Nilufar Gallery