Blow thumbnail 1
Blow thumbnail 2
Not currently on display at the V&A

Blow

Armchair
1967 (designed), 1968-69 (manufactured)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

PVC film welded by radio frequency. The chair is inflated through a valve at the centre of the back; the separate seat cushion has its own valve and fits onto the chair on a membrane to form the seat. Another membrane lies across the underneath of the seat, for additional stability.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Armchair
  • Cushion for Armchair
TitleBlow (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
PVC film seam-welded by radio-frequency
Brief description
'Blow' inflatable armchair and cushion, PVC, Zanotta SpA, Italy, 1967
Physical description
PVC film welded by radio frequency. The chair is inflated through a valve at the centre of the back; the separate seat cushion has its own valve and fits onto the chair on a membrane to form the seat. Another membrane lies across the underneath of the seat, for additional stability.
Dimensions
  • Height: 74cm
  • Width: 120cm
  • Depth: 103cm
taken for Cold War Modern exhibition (summer 2008)
Style
Gallery label
Blow chair Jonathan De Pas (1932-91), Donato D'Urbino (born 1935), Paolo Lomazzi (born 1936) and Carla Scolari Designed 1967, manufactured 1968-9 The Blow chair was the first inflatable seat to be manufactured and marketed on a mass scale. Cheap and disposable, the chair was intended to counter the expensive and cumbersome nature of traditional furniture. Italy Manufactured by Zanotta SpA, Italy PVC film seam-welded by radio-frequency V&A: Circ.100:1-1970(September 2008)
Object history
Purchased in 1970 from Aram Designs Ltd [70/1273]
Association
Bibliographic reference
p. 106 Katz, Sylvia. Classic Plastics: From Bakelite to High Tech (Thames & Hudson, London: 1984)
Collection
Accession number
CIRC.100:1, 2-1970

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Record createdMay 25, 2005
Record URL
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