Sedia chairs, Autoprogettazione, Enzo Mari, 1974

Production Piacé le Radieux

A committed Italian designer inspired by Marxist ideology and a pioneer of the "do it yourself" concept, in 1974 Enzo Mari exhibited a series of affordable pieces of furniture designed to revolutionise the production system. He offered visitors to the exhibition free plans for the furniture on display - plans that were later compiled in catalogues - so that they could make his creations themselves. The furniture is easy to make using standard boards and common DIY tools. In no more than two days, you can completely furnish a flat with chairs, beds, desks, tables, bookcases, wardrobes and benches. As Enzo Mari himself explains: "I thought that if people were encouraged to build a table with their own hands, they would be able to understand the thinking behind it".

In this way, the designer also hopes to develop the viewer's critical eye on contemporary production, freeing them from ideological conditioning and the standardisation of their tastes and behaviour. He also encourages buyers to send him photos of their furniture, so that he can see their choices and their contribution to his original plans. In this way, he gave everyone the opportunity to create a unique and personal piece of furniture, giving them back a degree of control over the design of their environment. In fact, Enzo Mari staged this exhibition in 1974 and proposed this approach under the title "Proposta per autoprogettazione", a word coined by the designer that could be imperfectly translated as "personal design".

The Sedia chair (model 1123 xP) is a fine example of this type of furniture, which is equally well suited to both indoor and outdoor use, and which is not the result of plastic research per se, but of a desire for pure functionality. Drawing on the design of carpenters' benches and scaffolding, Enzo Mari proposes furniture that is resistant and stable (a badly cut plank does not make the piece wobbly), as well as an aesthetic alternative to standardised good taste. This search for a humanist and revolutionary design that simplifies the relationship between designer and buyer to the point of bypassing the network of different players in industry and distribution - unfortunately misappropriated and distorted by major companies over the following decades - makes Enzo Mari the precursor of Radical Design.

Text by Roma Lambert