When Paola Lenti and Francesco Rota met for the first time, they were little more than teenagers. It was the end of the 1990s: The company founded by Paola at that time was still a small reality. Francesco had recently completed his degree in architecture at the Art Center College of Design in La Tour-de-Peilz, Switzerland. It’s been 25 years, and the partnership of that time is stronger today than ever.
To celebrate this anniversary, we asked them to revisit together the milestones that have marked these 25 years of professional understanding while getting comfortable on a sofa, one of the products that have defined the success of this long-lasting collaboration. However, both of them preferred to sit on the floor. This gave birth to an informal, two-part narrative, which was summarized in an interview revealing a strong affinity of thought. Their bond is founded on mutual respect and freedom, as well as a shared vision of work: a ‘serious amusement‘, as they both like to describe it.
Please click on the “CC” key on the bottom right.
This brings us back to their first ‘official’ encounter. It was 1998 when they began to think together about a project that would enhance and give three-dimensional shape to felt, the material that had been used for the production of rugs already for some years.
«I was very shy and Paola kept to herself a bit», he says with a smile. «I did not know who he was nor what he would have done», she replies. «But when he brought me his drawings at the next meeting, I thought: We’re on the right track.»
The understanding between the two was immediate and at once translated into the essential and linear features of the Atollo sofa and Linea, the indoor chaise longue that over the years has become one of the most iconic products in the collection.
Thus began a collaboration that gave shape and function to furniture elements characterized by an unconventional design and originating from a strong propensity to research and innovation.
« At the end of the 1990s, many companies were incline to proposing a vision, so to speak, bourgeois», recalls Francesco Rota. « We, instead, chose to stand out from the ranks: we exaggerated with colour, embarked on intensive research on materials, privileged an informal comfort by designing low and soft seats. We worked on ideas, always keeping in mind that new things arise when there are different views that, however, succeed in finding a point of convergence. »
Some years later, new territories are being explored. The challenge is then to design outdoor upholsteries that are as welcoming and pleasant to the touch as those traditionally used in the interiors. The research focused on polypropylene, a light and waterproof fiber. While she was studying the materials, he was working on the forms: The success of Linea was renewed with Wave, the first of a long and articulated series of products designed specifically for outdoor life.
The rest is the story of a creative partnership punctuated by dozens of furnishings, innovative and original, that thanks to their understated elegance have survived unscathed over time – seats, tables, side tables, cabinets and complements such as Frame, Cove, Ami, Smile, Harbour, just to name a few –, many of which have been awarded prestigious accolades. In the meantime, the two “teenagers” have kept the same enthusiasm they had 25 years ago and still enjoy sitting on the floor.
Due sopra il divano
Author Anna Vullo
Director Maurizio Natta
Filmed by Maurizio Natta, Fabrizio Polla Mattiot, Gianlorenzo Bernabò
Editor Mattia Cutaia
Colorist Michele Ricossa
Audio Editor Matteo Fusi
Soundtrack Universal Music Publishing Ricordi srl
© 2023 Paola Lenti srl, all rights reserved