Airport Design. Or How Not to....
...A shopping oasis strewn with the cheapest Le Corbusier LC2 copies we believe we have ever seen...
Product type | Sofa |
Dimensions | Dimensions in cm |
Weight | 41 / 56 kg |
Colours | Leather Scozia Metal |
Material | Frame: metal, chrome plated or matt lacquered Cover: leather Scozia Padding: polyurethane foam and polyester wool Many other cover materials and colours available on request. |
Variants | Available as a two- or three-seater The LC2 armchair is available separately |
Function & properties | From the collection „Cassina I Maestri“ Authenticity identification via stamp with signature of the designer and identification number |
LC50 Anniversary | |
Care | Fabric: dust and lint can be easily vacuumed. To treat stains, use a damp cloth and a mild, neutral detergent. Professional cleaning should be performed in the assembled state and with the use of upholstery foam or using a mobile washing-extraction device. Leather: Please maintain and clean the leather according to the booklet included. Steel: For removal of impurities from polished gloss, matt chrome plated and aluminium surfaces, you can use any glass cleaner with a clean, soft cloth and then wipe dry the surface with a soft cloth. Do not use solvents or abrasives. |
Awards & museum | MoMA Collection, New York |
Certificates & Sustainability | Certified through the "I Maestri" stamp and signature of the author Greenguard certificate |
Warranty | 24 months |
Product family | All products from the LC Collection |
Product datasheet | Please click on picture for detailed information (ca. 0,7 MB). |
Each piece of furniture from the "Cassina i Maestri Collection" is authenticated by a stamp with the designer's signature and a unique identification number.
In September 2022 the LC10-P table was renamed Fauteuil Grand Confort, petit modèle, deux places (twp-seater) and trois places (three-seater) by Cassina.
On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Cassina iMaestri collection in 2023, it was agreed with the heirs and foundations of Le Corbusier®️, Pierre Jeanneret®️ and Charlotte Perriand®️ to return to the objects original French names.The prefix "LC" has therefore be removed from the affected products, and now onlw the number is listed together with the product name (e.g. 2 Fauteuil Grand Confort, petit modèle, deux/trois places).
The Cassina LC2 sofa is part of a group of avant-garde furniture realised by Le Corbusier in collaboration with the designer Charlotte Perriand and his cousin and colleague Pierre Jeanneret for the 1927 Paris Salon d'Automne: where the designs caused a genuine sensation, and greatly divided opinions. Today it is for all on account of these furniture designs that the three designers are globally known and occupy a prominent position within modern design history. Given the importance and status of the LC collection works it is no surprise that they are amongst the most copied furniture designs and thus Cassina attaches great importance to the accurate identification of all objects. In contrast to the LC3 sofa the LC2 sofa has a narrower seat and is supplemented by a matching LC 2 armchair. Especially exciting is the strong contrast to the LC1 armchair which simply consists of the characteristic tubular steel frame and non-upholstered, high quality covers: the Cassina LC2 coming with oversized cushions, which are simply placed into the graceful steel tube frame and in doing so form solid backrest, seat and armrests. The Le Corbusier LC2 armchair and the other members of the Cassina LC collection are characterised by their combination of different materials, and the interplay of the ratio of their lightness, monumentality and aesthetics which results from the strict, function-oriented appreciation of the subject.
Although Le Corbusier did not design the Cassina LC2 sofa and the other furniture objects of the LC collection alone, he is generally credited with having done such, probably because he was unquestionably one of the most important designers of his time. Born in 1887 in the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel as Charles-Edouard Jeanneret-Gris, the future Le Corbusier completed an apprenticeship as engraver before under the influence of his teacher Charles L'Eplattenier he increasingly turned to painting and architecture. In the early years of his career Le Corbusier undertook many journeys, especially through Europe, during which he witnessed many cities, including, amongst others, Milan, Florence and Paris: cities where he studied and sketched the local architecture. The contact with diverse architects and emerging artists greatly influenced his work and these numerous impressions and influences ultimately flew into Le Corbusier's architectural work. In addition to architecture Le Corbusier was also active as a painter, draughtsman, architectural theorist, city planner and furniture designer. His work displays his penchant for purism and thus was controversial and particularly critically debated. Just as unmistakable as Le Corbusier's works was Le Corbusier's character - many critics describing him as arrogant or megalomaniac, but there was one thing he definitely was: one of the most important protagonists of design history.
The Cassina LC2 sofa is, as with all objects in the LC collection, produced by the Italian Design Manufacturer Cassina according to the authentic designs of Le Corbusier. Despite the industrial standards, artisanal furniture production is still very much at the forefront of the company's focus. The combination of traditional manufacturing art with the latest technology and machinery make Cassina products so unique, define the Cassina company philosophy and also guarantee their longevity. Within the production process nothing is left to chance - a bar code accompanies each piece of furniture through the individual production stages and also allows the end user, at any time to view the state of his order and thus to verify the timely delivery. The Le Corbusier LC2 sofa is a quality product, characterized, in addition to its stable, steel tube frame, through the high quality materials employed in the upholstery. Once again here Cassina combines modern technology with proven craftsmanship: fabrics and animal skins are checked by hand for defects before the precise forms are cut using high precession computer controlled cutting technology.
The 1920s were not only politically and socially turbulent times, but also culturally, and especially in art and architecture, it was a period marked by upheaval and new Zeitgeist. Arguably the most famous point of contact for artists who were no longer satisfied with conventional shapes and patterns was the Bauhaus, initially in Weimar and subsequently in Dessau. Under the Bauhaus roof were united architects, designers and artists with the vision to manufacture industrially producible furniture for the masses and who wanted to combine this aim with a return to handicraft traditions. Le Corbusier contributed to this development just as much as the Bauhaus; in addition his designs always followed unprecedented forms and unconventional patterns. In the centre of his work stands a break with the ornate decoration of buildings, furniture or other objects and instead movement towards logic, clarity and reduced functional products, which present a rather simple aesthetic. As a counter movement to Art Deco Le Corbusier developed the Sofa LC 2 and the LC Collection according to his ideas of purism: and as objects which poetically remind one of the connection between industrial mass production and traditional crafts.
The Italian manufacturer Cassina, headquartered near Milan, was founded in 1927, i.e. 2 years before the first public exhibition of the LC collection at the Paris Salon d'Automne. There are arguably only very few terms which so completely define Italian design as the name Cassina: a company globally acknowledged for its exclusive use of high quality materials and range of timeless design classics and innovative aesthetic products. Having made a name for itself with the furnishings for luxury liners and cruise ships Cassina remained a very successful manufacturer, before in the 1950s they began to move increasingly into the field of contemporary furniture design. At first the customer base of the traditional Italian company expanded to include a number of luxury hotels and boutiques, before the possibilities offered by industrialisation and the combination of traditional craftsmanship and cost-effective mass production made Cassina a global player and one of the world's leading furniture manufacturers. Around the same time the company began the production of the first Corbusier furniture, a collection which today features objects such as the LC2 armchair, LC2 sofa or the LC1 armchair. Cassina holds the exclusive rights to the Le Corbusier furniture collection, and confirm the originality of every piece through stamping their own logo, the signature of the designer and a unique identification number onto every piece. The designs of Le Corbusier are included in the Cassina "I Maestri" collection, a collection which contains works of numerous furniture design masters and which stands besides the "I Contemporanei" series, which, as its name suggests, consists of furniture by contemporary artists.
...A shopping oasis strewn with the cheapest Le Corbusier LC2 copies we believe we have ever seen...
...Among the most famous of these collaborations are the from Cassina produced LC4 Chaise Longue, LC2 Armchair and LC7 Swivel Chair which Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret and Charlotte Perriand originally created for their "Maison la Roche" in Paris...
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