The Fratelli Boffi is a company that possesses two strong souls: the first one is dedicated to the research and it goes through all possible ways, and the second one expresses itself with prestige in the world of public spaces and contract realizations more in general, also with turnkey projects, which forms the backbone of the catalogue.
The story begins in 1928 with Carlo Boffi, who as an artisan, achieved the reputation as one of the best chair carvers, capable of reproducing the typical French style of the Louis XV – Louis XVI period.
In 1953 the second generation Federico, Roberto and Michele started working, and in 1968 the new plant in Lentate was constructed.
From integrated factory, in which the production of the solid wood, the panels, the paddings up to the lacquering expanded, came thereafter the time of technology and in every department new machines were integrated.
At the same time, came the decision to exit from the small world of Brianza and open up to the world with the curiosity of who knows how to, but also of who wants to explore and impose new things for merging them in their own business: thus begins the internationalization and partnerships with the great American department stores.
In the 80s began the first encounter with the world of avant-garde design and collaboration with Aldo Cibic, which gave birth to the collection “Antologia”, which has grown over the years and has become so distinctive that the name “Antologia” is almost inseparable with the corporate brand.
Later on, there was a meeting with Giorgio Pulici, the image consultant for major companies in the fashion industry, who initially addressed Fratelli Boffi for creations on the design of special displayer, scenic designs related to the booths and fashion shows and to the exhibition spaces. The relationship has gradually consolidated and collaborations have intensified, thus forming many of the collections which Fratelli Boffi has developed over the years.
From the 2000s onwards, the company has intensified its collaboration with the designers from around the world, presenting each year new and eclectic products in the framework of beautiful and fascinating booths: from Nigel Coates, Ferruccio Laviani, passing through Philippe Bestenheider, Martino Berghinz, Giopato & Coombes, Marc Krusin, Christophe de la Fontaine, to the latest collections signed by Archer Humphryes Architects and Analogia Project.
This need arises from the fact that the contract division of Fratelli Boffi works in parallel with the international designer names in the development and creation of large projects such as hotels, private homes, villas, residences or offices around the world.
While maintaining their own personal style and not compensating on its quality standards, the company is now well known in the world for its great ability to combine quality, ease in solving problems and professionalism to meet the demands of the so-called “tailor made”: unique capabilities which allows to develop a complete project.
A design culture, rather than the product that comes from historical experience and which does not renounce to the Italian craftsmanship, but rather as the flagship of Fratelli Boffi. Today the company boasts of a long series of references which include the development and the creation of such works as hotels, private houses, villas, residences or offices around the world, among wich RAMPOLDI RESTAURANT in Monte-Carlo, Monaco (project by Casamanara – Arch. Piero Manara), HOTEL BAINS DE SAILLON in Saillon, Switzerland (project by Arch. Boas Construction), LE JIMMY’Z in Monte-Carlo, Monaco (project by Arch. Piero Manara), SOFITEL ST. JAMES SPA in London, UK (project by Nigel Coates), HOTEL MIRABEAU in the Principality of Monaco (project by Arch. Piero Manara), PARKHOTEL EUSKIRCHEN in Euskirchen, Germany (project by IHF Studio), RESTAURANT MAYA BAY in The Principality of Monaco (project of Arch. Piero Manara), HEAD OFFICE OF ISTANBUL STOCK EXCHANGE in Istanbul, Turkey (project of Arch. Aldo Cibic), HOTEL CHATEAU MONFORT in Milan, Italy (project by FZI Interiors), GREAT NORTHERN HOTEL in London, UK (project by YOO Furnishings – Arch. Archer Humphryes Architects), MUSANA OFFICE in London, UK (project by Arch. David Draier), HOTEL LA MAISON DES CENTRALIENS in Paris, France (project by Studio di architettura Maison Martin Margiela), THE GALLERY RESTAURANT in London, UK (project by AKD Studio), and more.
Iris Van Herpen Exhibition at Louvre Museum
The exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, from November 29, 2023, to April 28, 2024, pays homage to one of the most forward-thinking and astonishing fashion designers of our time.
A pioneer in her field, Iris Van Herpen, transcends conventional norms of clothing by conceiving fashion as an interdisciplinary language between art, chemistry, dance, physics, architecture, biology, and design. The exhibition explores the place of the body in space, its relationship with clothing and the environment, and its future in a rapidly evolving world.
Featured within the exhibition are Fratelli Boffi’s Gothik-A sideboard and Good Vibration storage unit, the latter of which has been part of the Louvre’s Musée des Arts Décoratifs permanent collection since 2022.
The fine woodworking skill of Fratelli Boffi and the creativity of Ferruccio Laviani have given life to these two pieces of design with an innovative and majestic appearance that resonate with the theme of the body evoked in organic and architectural networks. Good Vibration recalls Eastern aesthetics through a “shattered” design that gives the furniture an anomalous and irregular appearance, overturning the parameters of classic design understood as purity and symmetry of lines.
The Gothik-A sideboard, also designed by Ferruccio Laviani, features an oak decoration that wraps around the glass cabinet like a cobweb, creating an eclectic piece of furniture that perfectly echoes one of Iris Van Herpen’s dresses, inspired by the façade of a Gothic cathedral.
Much more than a fashion exhibition, Iris Van Herpen: Sculpting the Senses allows visitors to enter a unique and hybrid universe between fashion, design, experimentation, and technology.
