Pedrali chairs becomes part of the so-called eighth wonder of the world: the new complex of Monte Bianco, located in Courmayeur, with the magnificent ropeway and its stations. It is a project that has involved engineers and design planners for over 10 years of work in the general coordination of engineering services , planning and construction management.

The careful choice of materials and technology has allowed the environmental insertion of the works in a harmonious and qualifying way for the territory, guaranteeing a leading result both engineering and design terms.

The new intermediate station at Pavilion was studied in order to fit elegantly into the alpine ground of Mont Frety. The place features allow the inclusion of a range of complementary services such as internal lifts, coffee bars, restaurants, all with a panoramic terrace, a multimedia conference room, commercial area, museums, thematic areas of communication, outdoor routes of approaching to nature, botanical gardens and outdoor solarium, all overlook by the view of Monte Bianco.

In the beautiful restaurant with a breathtaking view of the majestic mountains, among the design furniture made in Italy, you can find tables and chairs by Pedrali. The Malmö chairs with ash frame in light gray and plywood shell upholstered with grey fabric, dominate the room recalling colors of the surrounding nature.

The entire project was supervised and carried out by Dimensione Ingenierie, composed by a team of planner engineers, civil designers, mechanics, technicians and designers working in different professional fields. Their proven experience in cableway installations and Design of ski resorts, has made of this work a true wonder surrounded by nature…and Pedrali it’s part of it!

Arper with its products furnishes the Mercer Barcelona Hotel, a luxury hotel located in the heart of the gothic quarter of Barcelona. This hotel occupies a collection of buildings with a great architectural significance, built on top of the ancient roman city. It also has medieval arches and original XII century paintings.

Opened in 2012, it has spectacular spaces. The team of the prestigious architect, Rafael Moneo, Pritzker Prize (1996) and Prince of Asturias award (2012), was commissioned, in collaboration with the University of Barcelona, to rescue the architectural heritage, paying genuine respect to history and incorporating it into the contemporary design of the hotel.

In the Mercer Cocktail Bar, emerge the known stools Ply in black oak. With its triangular frame and its modular nature it gives life to shapes and colors that combine in unpredictable compositions. At the same time, at the Cocktail Bar tables, we find the chair design Leaf, with simple shape like the branches of a tree or the veins of a leaf. Moreover in the hotel we can find the wooden chairs Aava and Saya end some tables Gher.

Arper actively participates in the creation of the elegance of this magnificent hotel.

The online architectural database Architizer has announced the winners of their second annual competition for the most original architecture. The result was a total of 129 winners in 60 categories.

The winners were decided with the creation of two separate winners for each group, that were identified both by a jury and by popular vote. The jury was composed of “300 industry leaders,” while the popular vote was determined by governments, via online voting from more than 100 countries.

These are buildings that represent a clear break with the traditional architecture. The common denominator seems to be a conception of space that seeks to adapt to the specific use, whether offices or museums. This seems to suit the latest trends in the design of office furniture.

We’ve displayed some of our favorite winners here; see the full list at Architizer.com. 

Cayan Tower in Dubai was voted best residential high-rise.

BEST OFFICE HIGH RISE (Jury): Al Bahr Towers, Abu Dhabi, Aedas Architects

BEST OFFICE HIGH RISE (Popular): Magma Towers, Mexico, GLR ARQUITECTOS

BEST OFFICE INTERIOR (Popular): Heavybit Industries, San Francisco, IwamotoScott Architecture

BEST OFFICE LOW RISE (Jury): Huaxin Business Center, Shanghai, Scenic Architecture

BEST RELIGIOUS (Jury): Abbey of St. Maurice, Switzerland, savioz fabrizzi architecte

BEST RESIDENTIAL INTERIOR (Popular): Casa 103, Portugal, ultramarino

BEST RESIDENTIAL LOW RISE (Jury): Soft House, Germany, Kennedy & Violich Architecture

BEST RESIDENTIAL LOW RISE (Popular): TREVOX 223, Mexico, CRAFT Arquitectos

BEST RESTAURANT : L’angolino, Japan, GENETO

BEST RETAIL (Jury): Sokol Blosser Winery Tasting Room, Oregon, Allied Works Architecture

BEST RETAIL (Popular): Fuel Station + McDonalds, Georgia, Khmaladze Architects

BEST SINGLE FAMILY HOME (Jury): Hut on Sleds, New Zealand, Crosson Clarke Carnachan Architects

BEST SINGLE FAMILY HOME (Popular): Portable Home ÁPH80, Madrid, ABATON Architects

BEST SINGLE FAMILY HOME (Jury): Two Hulls House, Canada, MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects

BEST SINGLE FAMILY HOME > (Jury): Villa Kogelhof, Netherlands, Paul de Ruiter Architects

Italian office chairs Juno

 Juno and Saya by Arper, distributed by La Mercanti, just won the Interior Innovation Award 2014

Juno and Saya collections were proclaimed laureates of the German Interior Innovation Award 2014 in the furniture category.

The award, organized by the German Design Council in collaboration with IMM Cologne, now in its twelfth edition, is a prestigious award for design products that represent innovation and quality in different categories of home and office furnishings.

The price includes three levels of recognition : Selection , Winner and Best of Best.

Saya and Juno, presented at the Salone del Mobile in Milan in 2012, are very different in form, materials and functions : Saya,  designed by  , Lievore Altherr Molina, is an oak plywood chair with a comfortable backrest and iconic figure. Juno , one of the last projects of James Irvine, with a polypropylene seat  is characterized by the ability to use diverse and versatile interior and exterior spaces in the office or at home.

The jury was composed of experts and designers from various sectors, including the Sebastian Wrong, designer and co -founder of Established & Sons, London, Barbara Friedrich, editor of A & W Architektur und Wohnen, Hamburg and Andrej Kupetz, Managing Director, German Design Council, Frankfurt.

The products have been awarded as part of the opening of the IMM Cologne 2014 ceremony, the leading German trade fair dedicated to the world of interior design. The winners have been exhibited from 13 to 19 January 2014 in different areas within the fair and are present at the permanent exhibition of the Design Post Cologne .
Saya and Juno collections, as well as being visible in all showrooms and exhibition spaces of Arper in worldwide, will be featured in the www.interior-innovation- award.de portal and on an annual publication available from March 2014, with all the award-winning products with the Interior Innovation Award 2014.

For more information on the price, you can visit the website of the German Design Council.

Italian office chairs Saya

Another important international recognition has been awarded to italian sofas. The prestigious “GOOD DESIGN AWARD 2013”, awarded by the Chicago Athenaeum Museum of Architecture and Design, was assigned to the modular system of seating Kaleido, designed and produced by Kastel Driusso study in Italy. The award confirms the aesthetic and functional quality of this modular sofa ideal for contract spaces. See more photos here.

Kastel Kaleido sofas

Italian sofas Kastel

cookie shaped pillows

Now, everybody talks about it, everyone wants one, everyone chooses their favorite, he gives or requests it for gifts, this is one of the latest fashions: this year we talk about cookie shaped pillows, which resemble well the most popular cookies in Italy. A pillow -shaped cookie is soft to rest on one’s office chair, you can put a cookie-pillow at home, to get an even more comfortable sofa, everything is handmade.

The shape of the star cookie is certainly ther easiest to make: in a store we buy a foam pillow, round, and dark brown and cream fabric. First, we put the brown fabric face down on a table, we put above it the pillow and with chalk or a pencil we draw the outline, leaving it an inch taller, we repeat the same procedure twice and we cut to get two pieces of fabric around the same.

At this point, we begin to sew by hand, when half of it is sewn we will return it in the right direction, insert the foam pad and finish sewing. Once the pillow is finished, with fabric cream color, we can create stars of different sizes then apply them with hot glue, and get a pillow that looks like a delicious star cookie (Italian: Pan di Stelle). Yum ?

Design is not only an expression of aesthetic creativity, but also a gauge of social relations

In ancient times, the hierarchical domination of leaders was much stronger. Whether emperor, king  chieftain, head of city or local government, the executive desk and chair of the chief were aimed primarily at demonstrating his power and authority to the subjects. The design of the executive chair was the aesthetic expression of the almost absolute power of the chief at the time there was still no democracy, no team spirit . Often, this chair was not really comfortable, especially not ergonomic or practical. Indeed, his back at an angle of 90 ° with the seat was rather unpleasant, while its plush and high armrests formed a small cage for the chief’s body, preventing any movement of relaxation. Would you like to work one day at office sitting on a chair similar to the leadership throne right here ?

With the modern era, with democracy, equality (more or less!) of all before the law, leadership is pêrceived and exercised more if not as a service, which would be great, at least as a power of coordination rather than direction. Nowadays the executive desk and chair, rather than illustrating the power of the chief, wants to provide him maximum working comfort. The beautiful executive chair beneath is an example.

executive office desk and chair