Broken Bench Gray polyurethane bench seat by Snarkitecture / L 190 cm - Gufram
Date : 2020
Designer: Snarkitecture (Daniel Arsham, Alex Mustonen)
Brand: Gufram
Color: gray
Material: polyurethane (PU)
Dimensions: L 190 cm x D 70 cm x H 43 cm
Availability: Delivery within 3 weeks
Learn more about this product
Gufram, the Italian design brand which always stands out for its radical and revolutionary approach, continues its partnership with the famous New York firm Snarkitecture (Daniel Arsham, Alex Mustonen).
Since the release of the Broken Mirror in 2017, the Broken series has been enriched with 2 new products released in 2020: the Broken Square Mirror and the new Broken Bench.
The objective of the Broken series is the development of a radical contemporary idea working on the versatility of polyurethane, the material made famous by Gufram through its various ready-to-use projects.
Alex Mustonen and Daniel Arsham, using (soft) polyurethane to imitate concrete, play between the real softness of the material and its appearance.
The polyurethane used for the collection is entirely refined by hand by Gufram artisans, the Guflac® paint is also applied entirely by hand. Each object is slightly different and therefore unique, and also entirely made in Italy.
Between design object and works of art, the pieces from The Broken Series are available in black, white - in a limited edition of 77 pieces each - or gray.
The Broken Bench is an irregular slab of polyurethane “soft concrete”.
It appears to be the detached missing part of the great Broken Mirror.
The bench is supported by beams made of very resistant plastic chipboard which highlights the industrial appearance of the room.
Learn more about the designer
Snarkitecture is a New York-based collaborative practice founded by Daniel Arsham and Alex Mustonen.
Snarkitecture's work focuses on designing existing spaces or collaborating with other artists and designers.
They aim to reuse or abuse existing architecture to make the architecture perform the unexpected.
Arsham and Mustonen met while studying at Cooper Union in New York and established Snarkitecture as a formal practice in 2008.
American artist Daniel Arsham combines sculpture, drawing, architecture and cinema in the design of his works. He imagines futuristic works retracing the history of our present. Thus, he adds crystals to fragments of his works to give them this precious and priceless appearance. Our history and its vestiges are therefore a source of inspiration and richness in his eyes. The materials he uses support his point: sand, selenite and volcanic ash are worked to appear ancient.
Daniel Arsham now carries out numerous partnerships with luxury brands such as the latest collaboration with Dior.
Learn more about the brand
Gufram is an Italian furniture manufacturer based in Barolo (Piedmont region). Founded in 1966 by the Gugliermetto brothers, Gufram, acronym for "Gugliermetto Fratelli Arredamenti Moderni", takes the form of a creative laboratory: they combine their knowledge of local craftsmanship with emerging architects and artists of the time. Their sculptured art objects revolutionized the aesthetics of 1960s furniture. From 1965, Gufram followed the artistic direction of designer Giuseppe Raimondi, who associated the company with emerging artists and architects of the time.
They study new choices of materials and mainly choose polyurethane foam to pad and structure their sculptural creations. Polyurethane will become their trademark. In addition to mastering the processing of flexible polyurethane, Gufram has developed and patented a special finish: Guflac®, the true essence of the company's artisanal spirit: this special and unique paint job makes surfaces more uniform, consistent and elastic . Soft, elegant shapes are thus created, innovative shapes that would otherwise be impossible to cover.
Gufram icons, regardless of the collection they are part of, are made by sculpting flexible polyurethane foam which is then finished or decorated by hand with the Guflac® backing.
Their creations, in the wake of pop art, are anchored in the avant-garde movement of the 1960s.
In 1968, Gufram presented its products under the name Multipli: industrially reproduced art objects in limited edition. Gufram then enjoyed considerable success with the public and the international press. Among their most remarkable creations: the Bocca sofa, originally designed by Salvador Dali, the Cactus coat rack, the majestic Pratone seat or even more recently the grotesque stools in the shape of a tombstone The End from the Toiletpaper collection, or the Broken Mirror imagined by Snarkitecture.
These “domestic sculptures” now appear in the most beautiful homes and the most renowned museums in the world.
The Gufram company was bought in 2012 by entrepreneur Sandra Vezza and her son Charley as artistic director. They were able to breathe new life into the company, notably on the occasion of the company's 50th anniversary celebrations in 2016 but also with new collaborations such as that with Moschino “Moschino kissed Gufram”.
