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El Greco Gallery

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Chester, Poltrona Frau’s icon par excellence, and its contemporary version, the Chester Line. With a stately, sculpturesque, representative aura, and an open architecture, you can freely configure the line’s furniture for a more casual social setting. Chester Line maintains the impeccable elegance and iconic workings of its predecessor: the capitonné, stitching with buttons, and spiral on the armrest. But in updating itself to contemporary habits and ways of living the home, it lightens up, breaks up and multiplies in its combinations. It is now a system offering five different elements: chaise longue and armchair, both with armrests, poufs, and two corner sofas. Thecapitonné was kept on the backrest, precious and recognizable, but disappears from the sofa base. The emphasis on tradition comes with a delicate job of removing details, in a quest for a modern lightness accentuated by the blade-shaped, nearly invisible metallic feet. Unlike the historic model, the two-seater sofa has just one just one, much larger cozy cushion, in harmony with the atmosphere of a contemporary living room. The elements without an armrest and backrest let you add accessories that enrich the functions of the various configurations. For an elegant way to complete the system, add the Fidelio side tables and lamp. With their architectural purity they go naturally with the various Chester Line modules and increase your furnishing arrangement options. The tops in place of the armrests and backrests can be used in various ways. The Chester Line’s supporting structure is made out of solid aged beech wood. The seat spring system, backrests, and armrests are made using hand-tiedbiconical springs laid on jute belts. Vegetable horsehair padding shaped by hand has been used for the backrest and armrest on the corner sofa. The goose down seat cushion includes an extra stabilizing insert made out of polyurethane foam. Upholstery comes in Pelle Frau® leather from the Color System, Nest, Heritage, Century and Cuoietto, which can be mixed and matched with the Poltrona Frau fabrics. Feet come in the blade-shaped aluminium variant with burnished brushed finish by request alongside the Dark Walnut dyed beech or lacquered black classic version (high or low).

About Designer
Renzo Frau

Lorenzo Frau, known as ‘Renzo’, was born in Cagliari in 1881. He left Sardinia for military service in Milan, which he completed successfully earning the title of lieutenant. He married SavinaPisati and moved to Turin, at the time a real hub of Italian culture. He initially worked as a sales representative for Gribaudi and then for Dermoide Patent, manufacturer of faux leather. Having moved to Great Britain for work, he was able to discover the Chesterfield model armchairs and immediately imagined its potential, successfully starting to import it into Italy. At the same time, however, he was also attracted by the models of French and Central European style. He therefore decided to create his own artisan production laboratory. It was 1912: Poltrona Frau was created. From the initial work ‘in style’, Frau quickly moved onto direct design. Poltrona Frau became not only a production pole, but also a meeting point for artists and intellectuals. Renzo Frau used these relations to consolidate the brand image: successful models ensued quickly, one after the other. As the First World War broke out, Frau was called to fight for his country and his wife Savina bravely took up the reins of the company. Frau’s armchairs thus began entering the most important buildings, also used by the royal family. Renzo Frau met an early death in 1926. He left an extensive archive of projects that would allow his wife to coherently pursue Poltrona Frau production in the years to come.