Gala, designed by Franco Albini in 1951, is an instant classic of Italian design. The curvature of the elements of Indian cane is designed to give elastic support to the body following the forms. The light self-supporting structure is an exemplary tribute to the tradition of popular craftsmanship, that of the canestrai (basket weavers). Albini utilized the refined engineering device of tensile structure to revive the original principle, creating an aerial seat that is not based on the concept of a structure to be covered, but rather makes the covering itself a structural system.
Museum exhibitions:
Gold Medal at the IX Triennale di Milano
MoMA, New York
Vitra Design Museum