Window to the world

Stepping into the world of Flexform and looking through the many projects, both public and private, that the company has furnished can be compared to receiving an invitation to the Nobel party. Flexform is a third-generation family-owned company and royalty among the many companies in the province of Brianza, the heart of furniture-producing Italy north of Milan.

Upholstered furniture, and especially sofas, are Flexform's most distinctive feature, and the furniture feels at home in suites, lounges and living rooms with a generous turning radius. In the beautiful baroque palace Bozzi Corso in Lecce in southern Italy, for example, which the Fiermonte family, with a sure eye for aristocratic romance and the beauty of different eras, has transformed into an intimate ten-suite luxury hotel. Similarly, Flexform's furniture can be found in many other hotels at the front of the queue such as London's Bulgari, St Petersburg's W, Miami's Shore Club, New York's Americano, Seoul's Four Seasons, Milan's Mandarin Oriental and the reopened legendary Lutetia in Paris. Restaurants, showrooms and indeed a fair number of yachts are other settings where the same good taste and excellent seating comfort prevail. And you can sink into the furniture in everything from Courchevel to the Sahara Desert and Bora Bora, in addition to the world's metropolises.

"The three-by-three metre square windows let in copious amounts of light and open up to breathtaking views of Central Park and the Manhattan skyline."

The representation in private homes is, if possible, even higher. The most fascinating of the recent examples is the Park Avenue floor of New York's tallest residential skyscraper - 426 metres and 96 floors. The building was designed by Rafael Viñoly and completed in 2015. It is already one of Manhattan's distinctive landmark buildings and a divider of opinion. Those in favour love it for its consistently chiseled, minimalist grid pattern from top to bottom. The naysayers complain that it's too tall for the cityscape and far too narrow - skinny as a chopstick. Those who live there (which costs money - the top penthouse was sold in 2016 for $87.7 million, according to Business Insider) enjoy all the facilities and services you would expect. The apartments are characterised by the three-by-three metre square windows that let in copious amounts of light and open up staggering views of Central Park and the Manhattan skyline.

The ceiling height and size of the rooms are generous, the surfaces are clean and perfectly suited for hanging art. Our penthouse apartment owner, a passionate collector of modern art, has recognised this. Throughout the home are works such as sculptures by Sir Tony Cragg and Richard Deacon, paintings by Idris Khan and Cerith Wyn Evans' neon installation 'Just play me two bars of stardust'.

"The architecture, furniture and atmosphere are luxurious, but I want to use them to create a sense of simplicity and beauty, a sense of lightness."

When art takes centre stage in both scale and expression, the rest of the furniture is wise to support, not compete. The many pieces of furniture from Flexform – the Grandemare bed, the Magi daybed, the Guscioalto Soft armchairs and the Groundpiece sofa, among others – have a typically sober, restrained colour scheme in natural tones.

London-based Nebihe Cihan was hired as an interior designer. Before starting her own studio, she worked for many years with fashion designer Michael Kors as a senior designer responsible for the design of all stores. She has since continued in the high-end segment, designing both stores and homes in cities such as Paris, Los Angeles, London and New York.

– Flexform is in line with both my own approach to interior design and the character of the floor,' says Nebihe Cihan. The architecture, furniture and atmosphere – sometimes I am even involved in the choice of art – are luxurious, but I want to use them to create a sense of simplicity and beauty, a sense of lightness.

– The craftsmanship, detailing and materials used in this project are of an exceptionally high quality, summarises Nebihe Cihan, emphasising the timeless aspects. It is an achievement to exude chronic modernity without overstretching itself. Nebihe Cihan points out that the building is already an integral part of an iconic skyline, as if it had always belonged to its context, and that it is likely to remain highly relevant for the foreseeable future.

It is a feat of exuding chronic modernity without overstretching itself. Nebihe Cihan points out that the building is already an integral part of an iconic skyline, as if it had always belonged to its context, and that it will probably remain highly relevant for the foreseeable future. She attributes exactly the same timeless elegance to Flexform's furniture – and is joined by Flexform. The company emphasises craftsmanship and an understated, subtle luxury, citing fashion references such as a perfectly reduced blue blazer and talking in terms of "well-behaved". It is not only about designer furniture of the highest quality, but also about a way of behaving and relating to life itself.

Written by: Rikard Lind och Linn Wiklund Wandrup
Photo: Matt Harrington

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