Dine Out Outside Chair in Teak, Rope and Fabric by Rodolfo Dordoni

Innovative Dutch design icon Friso Kramer was an active member in many influential design associations and a driving force behind the development of the Dutch modernist aesthetic from the 1940s onward. Son of accomplished architect Piet Kramer (1881-1961), Friso Kramer was born in Amsterdam in 1922. He earned a degree in interior architecture from the Institute of Applied Art in Amsterdam under director and architect Mart Stam (1899-1986). After graduating, he sought positions to gain experience in the fields of architecture and industrial design, including work for Bureaus JP Kloos and Frans Paulussen. In 1948, Kramer began designing for the steel furniture manufacturer De Cirkel, a subsidiary of Ahrend, where he eventually became the Art Director (1971 to 1983).

During the 1950s, Kramer joined the Stichting Goed Wonen (Good Living Association), a design and industry partnership that was committed to postwar reconstruction and quality-of-life improvements through good design. The group forged many strong collaborations between artists, designers, architects, manufacturers, and customers, which resulted in widespread interest in modernist design principles and aesthetics in the Netherlands. Kramer, together with designers Wim Crouwel, Benno Wissing, and Paul and Dick Schwarz, founded the acclaimed Total Design Bureau in 1963. Their aim was to execute design ideas that would achieve “total design” or syntheses between the various design fields. This milieu had a profound influence on Kramer and inspired him to produce rational, minimalist furniture for the new age. Iconic designs from Kramer’s career include the Eames-inspired, steal and plywood Revolt Chair (1953), a true classic of midcentury Dutch industrial design and arguably Kramer’s most famous work; Straatlantaarn Streetlight (1960) for The Hague; Facet Table (1964); the ergonomic, modular MEHES office series (1972); AKD Chair (1973); and FKS Stackable Chair and Table (1998).

Throughout the course of his career, Kramer held many acclaimed positions, including member of the Amsterdam Art Council, the Dutch Industrial Design Council, and the International Design Consortium. Kramer’s designs have been exhibited in the Stedelijik Museum in Amsterdam and the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam. He is also the recipient of the title “Royal Designer for Industry” by the Royal Society of Arts in London.

Italian furniture manufacturing giant Cassina, originally named Amedeo Cassina, was founded by brothers Cesare (1909-1979) and Umberto (1910-1992) Cassina in Meda, Italy in 1927. Although initially specialized in bespoke woodworking and high-end interiors, by the 1950s the brothers took the company in a new direction, anticipating the growing demand for mass-produced home furnishings. Cassina is often credited with introducing industrial design to Italy and has built an international reputation for collaborating with some of the world’s most respected designers.

Notably, in 1964 (while famed architect Le Corbusier was still alive), Cassina signed the first exclusive licensing agreement covering the edition rights for designs by Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, and Charlotte Perriand. The company soon after launched the I Maestri Collection which over the decades has gathered major icons of design under the Cassina brand, such as the LC4 Lounge (1928) jointly designed by Le Corbusier, Jeanneret, and Perriand, as well as Dutch architect Gerrit Rietveld’s 635 Red & Blue Armchair (1918), Scottish architect-designer Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s Hill House Chair (1902), and many more.

With a focus more on partnering with the best designers rather than creating and maintaining a particular style, Cassina is responsible for some of the most recognized and beloved designs of the 20^th and 21^st centuries. Highlights include Italian architect-designer Gio Ponti’s Superleggera Chair (1957), German designer Konstantin Grcic’s Kanu Chair (2009), Iranian-British architect Zaha Hadid’s Zephyr Sofa (2013), and French designer Philippe Starck’s My World Sofa (2013).  Throughout its visionary collaborations with both design luminaries and cutting-edge experiments with new talents, Cassina has remained dedicated to the Italian design ideals of craftsmanship and quality, and the brand continues to excel in the fusion of industrial technology and artisanal production.

Cassina’s designs are included in permanent collections the world over, such as the Museum of Modern Art (New York), Vitra Design Museum (Weil am Rhein) and London Design Museum.

Cassina is now a part of the prestigious Poltrona Frau Group.

* All images courtesy of Cassina.