In 1969, Gaetano Pesce designed Il Piede (Up 7) – the last object in his Up series, which included seven seating elements in total. The form was inspired by the human foot, which, when enlarged to six times its normal size, becomes as much a sculpture as it is seating. Isolating, monumentalizing, and altering the proportions of everyday items were among the Pop Art strategies to be applied to furniture design, too. Newly developed plastics and foaming techniques made the practical realization of these designs possible, and C&B was a trailblazer in using these production methods for large-scale objects. Il Piede is created by pouring the fluid, reactive raw materials of polyurethane into a mould where they expand as foam. In a further optional step, the object can then be coated with a dyed polyurethane elastomer, which results in a leather-like finish.
Text: Luise Sand
