lina bo bardi’s vibrant bowl chair is revived by arper

described by rowan moore as ‘the most underrated architect of the 20th century,’ lina bo bardi’s brilliance in art and design wasn’t publicly recognized until after her death in 1992. in 1951, bo bardi designed the bowl chair with an adjustable semispherical form that rests on a metallic ring and four legs. in 2019, italian design company arper decided to bring the chair back to life and produce it for the public’s enjoyment.

the purposeful and playful design invites its sitters to lounge around freely and uninhibitedly within the bowl’s main structure, offering optimal relaxation and sparking imagination and creativity. arper, the treviso-based company identified itself in the design approach of lina bo bardi, her values and perspective, hence the decision to bring her work and contributions to light, by producing the bowl chair in collaboration with the instituto lina bo and p.m. bardi.

since its inception, arper has tackled the bowl chair’s industrialization process with a creative approach, balancing the original design with the contemporary advances in technique and production. this aims to reflect bo bardi’s original vision, while at the same time benefit from the abilities and advantages brought by a contemporary manufacturing process. from 2019, bo bardi’s bowl chair will be available in three new sophisticated color palettes: sand, shiny blue and iridescent brown, which can all be complemented by monochrome or color-block fabric cushions.

arper has been the main sponsor of the traveling exhibition ‘lina bo bardi: together’, curated by noemi blager. in the upcoming months, arper will present a publication dedicated to celebrate the project of the traveling exhibition and the legacy with the architect. the book will also include many unpublished contributions and an articulated photographic journey.

product info:

design: lina bo bardi

product name: bowl chair

production: arper

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: cristina gomez | designboom