Early Vico Magistretti for Mario Luigi Comi 'Carimate' Dining Chairs in Wood

Vico Magistretti for Fratelli Mario e Luigi Comi, First Edition set of twelve 'Carimate' dining chairs, beech, straw, Italy, design 1959

This first-edition set of dining chairs belongs to the “Carimate” series, one of Vico Magistretti’s best-known furniture designs. The chairs were originally created in 1959 for the clubhouse of the Carimate Golf Club near Como, Italy, a building also designed by Magistretti.

The earliest examples were handcrafted by the artisan workshop Fratelli Mario e Luigi Comi in Meda, Italy. Production was later taken over by Cassina in 1963, when the design entered larger-scale manufacture.

The chair was specifically designed for the restaurant, made of red aniline-dyed wood and straw, embracing a rustic flavor. Magistretti focused on small yet significant details, such as the anatomical curvature of the backrest and the attachment of the seat to the legs. The present chairs have a woven straw seat with a wooden beech framework.