Happenings - Zanotta SpA

Happenings
no.3/06 p.6
FROM DESIGN TO PRODUCT
Sober flowing lines distinguish
Christophe Pillet’s new Yuki
CHRISTOPHE PILLET
He attended the Institute of
Decorative arts, Nice, and
graduated in industrial design at
the Domus Academy of Milan.
He worked with Philippe Stark in
Paris till ’93. In ’94 he was
acclaimed the French Createur
de l’année, hence many
exhibitions were dedicated to
him both at the Centre
Pompidou and at the Villette.
Today luxury is removal of the
superfluous.» Christophe Pillet, the
famous French designer, adopts
this paradigm to sum up his vision
of the project. His idea of available “luxury”
(considered as a combination of top quality
furniture and items) is based on the use both
of new technologies and materials, which can
best apply to them. «I do not wish to sound
like an elitist minimalist - he adds - but I mean
to convey the need to produce elements that
are both simple and refined for timeless
contemporary homes.» Yuki, his armchair for
Praise to
simplicity
Zanotta, is an example of this concept - a firm
rotating varnished steel base with four legs
converging onto a single central joint and a
flowing hollow stiff polyurethane unitised
body, which holds padded cushions
upholstered with removable fabric or leather.
«I designed Yuki with CAD following a line
that is dear to me: a cosy rounded seat fitted
to a central pin. Zanotta’s staff instantly liked
the model and I refined the details with them
by e-mail. It was all very easy and we soon
created the prototype, which was virtually
perfect. Every step was checked with the
technical team and perfected without hitches
as, for instance, the choice of the right density
for the polyurethane sheet, which had to be
both solid and flexible: Zanotta succeeded in
realising this wish of mine. Yuki’s first version
had a more “playful” design that was almost
pop; its evolution was more classical and the
last leather upholstered version achieved a
highly refined result». The “elective” affinity
between Pillet and Zanotta was the starting
point to achieve quality production in optimal
times. «I always decide to work with firms I
have an instant understanding with. This
occurred with Zanotta and with the firms
producing accessories and complements for
cars that preceded it. Yuki was the result of a
study track I began with my previous chair -
Y’s - to which I applied modern car seat
technology for the first time (I have worked for
years for Renault). I like to investigate
different worlds to convey and merge technical
findings. I have designed taps starting from
hifi and microwave oven ignition systems,
which exploit the technology used for thermal
glass casseroles». Pillet’s study involves
experts for every detail, ranging from the
unitised body of seats to fabric seams, from
electronic systems to ergonomic ones and
from ophthalmology to computer science. It is
the so-called “Starck system”, which the
French designer learnt when he worked with
his colleague and which he refined in the USA
and in Japan. «My next dream? To create a
design, which offers people an alternative
lifestyle in terms of wellness and happiness».
Portrait of the designer and CAD drawing of the
armchair Yuki designed for Zanotta