When Knoll president Cornell W. Deckert learned of the opportunity to purchase Gavina SpA of Italy in 1968, it was an easy decision for him to make. Founded in Bologna by Dino Gavina in 1960, the small furniture company began offering furniture pieces from architects and designers both within and outside Italy. These architects and designers eventually included Cini Boer, Tobia and Afra Scarpa, Vico Magistretti, Roberto Sebastian Matta, Marcel Breuer, Mario Bellini and others.
The Knoll acquisition of Gavina made sense because of the shared reliance upon architects and designers for its product line and the prestige those names brought to their furniture. The offerings from Gavina could now be added to the 1969 Knoll catalog and sold worldwide.
Tobia Scarpa, the son of architect Carlo Scarpa, studied architecture at the University Institute of Architecture of Venice, where he met Afra Bianchin. They both graduated in 1957 with their architectural degrees and were married. During the 1960s, the couple were involved in architectural projects and furniture designs. They produced furniture designs for Cassina and Gavina.
The first design Tobia Scarpa created for Gavina was the Bastiano lounge chair with generous leather cushions and a supporting structure not of steel as one might expect, but dark stained wood introduced 1960—among the first pieces of furniture Gavina produced.1 The Bastiano settee and sofa were also offered. Knoll introduced the 53S1 lounge chair, 53S2 settee and 53S3 sofa as the Bastiano Seating Collection in 1969.2 This collection remained in the Knoll catalog until 1989.3 Knoll reintroduced the Bastiano Seating Collection in the early 2020s.
Scarpa, while designing for Ufficio Technico, also designed a collection of chrome steel and glass top tables in 1967.4 he gave the name Andre. An Andre table with smoke glass top was on display at the 1972 Knoll au Louvre exhibition. Five different tables were available in 1973.5 These tables remained in production until the late 1980s.6 The Andre tables were not listed in the 1990 KnollStudio Price List, so the last year of their production was 1988 or 1989.
1. Charlotte and Peter Fiell. 1000 Chairs. (Köln: TASCHEN GmbH, 2005), 349.
2. KnollStudio Price List 1988, 76-77.
3. “The Bastiano Seating Collection.” https://www.knoll.com/the-archive/
4. KnollStudio Price List 1988. 168.
5. Knoll International Furniture Price List 1973 .75-76.
6. KnollStudio Price List 1988. 168.