Pininfarina creates chaise longue with the “aerodynamic curves” of a sports car

Italian design studio Pininfarina has launched its first collectible furniture object – a chaise longue featuring a craggy, rock-like base and a smooth seat informed by the outline of a sports car.

Oksýs is a limited-edition furniture object created to complement Pininfarina‘s recent move into branded residential projects, such as its Cyrela development in the Brazilian city of São Paulo.

The company, which is best known for designing sports cars such as the Ferrari F40 and Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider, has a dedicated architecture and product design division that collaborates with partners on projects ranging from air-traffic control towers to electric snowmobiles.

The chaise longue was created by in-house architect Marco Becucci to embody the values that inform Pininfarina’s design approach, including its desire to balance beauty with technical innovation.

Oksýs is designed as an “oxymoronic” object, with its contrasting smooth upper part and rugged base intended to reflect the idea that, according to the company, “artificial and natural, man and nature, are not opposing elements but, rather, complementary and part of the same logic.”

The upper part of the seat features fluid, ergonomic lines designed to reference Pininfarina’s car designs, while the lower portion recalls a rough, crystal-like rock that touches the ground lightly.

“Seen from above, Oksýs is smooth and reflective and recalls the aerodynamic curves of a sportster: it reflects light with no aggressive angles and invites the user to touch it,” Becucci told Dezeen.

“Close up, you see the contrast of the lower part which was left coarse and milled to resemble an untouched rock, limited by a soft boundary which is the smooth, lip-like edge of the upper portion.”

Becucci explained that he wanted to replicate a classic furniture typology with an instantly recognisable function but adapt its appearance in order to “elicit a sense of surprise and awe”.

He added that the brief called for an object combining Pininfarina’s heritage of automotive design, with a clear connection to interior spaces built to enhance the everyday lives of their users.

The design was selected by a judging committee consisting of the gallery owner and design expert Rossana Orlandi, designer Giulio Cappellini and Pininfarina CEO Silvio Angori.

The product’s development followed a similar process to the one used to generate Pininfarina’s skyscrapers or car designs. This involved sketching, ergonomic testing, computer-aided modelling and finally physical model-making using CNC milling to realise the complex form.

The 1:1 scale prototype was made from polyurethane and finished with a shiny epoxy resin to produce a metallic effect. Pininfarina’s intention is to work with specialist metal foundries to find a way to cast the entire piece in steel or aluminium.

The prototype was displayed at Orlandi’s gallery space during Milan Design Week. Just three example of Oksýs will be produced and sold exclusively through the gallery.

The firm’s previous design projects include working with bicycle makers Diavelo to create a sporty electric bike and designing a Ferrari-like tractor for Czech manufacturer Zetor.

The photography is courtesy of Pininfarina.