FCI London Launches Driade

In 1968, Enrico Astori with his sister Antonia Astori and his wife Adelaide Acerbi founded Driade together. These three founders were great patrons of art and never restricted themselves in any way while in pursuit of the most innovative and intriguing furniture designs.
Enrico worked as the art director and gave the brand its sense of direction and cemented its policies, Antonia’s unique taste laid the foundation for Driade products, and Adelaide Acerbi helped establish the brand image through marketing. They sought to revolutionise the process of industrial design by letting creativity roll out through to mass production.

Driade: Successful Italian Brand with a Rich History

The early years of Driade saw almost immediate success due to designs that were not only stunning but functional and sometimes multifunctional as well. Some of the notable contributions in design were made by Enzo Mari, Giotto Stoppino and Rodolfo Bonetto, Nanda Vigo and De Pas – D’Urbino – Lomazzi. Antonia Astori designed the Oikos – a wardrobe that doubles up as a partition wall.

Over the years, several other designs gained attention worldwide. The Due Cavalli chair of 1969 makes use of minimally designed angles that provide optimum relaxation. The Sof Sof and Delfina chairs and tables designed by Enzo Mari turned heads for their completely bare appearance. Moreover, the stackable and innovative Delfina chair went on to win the Compasso d’Oro in 1979. Alessandro Mendini started his journey of collaborations with Driade with the Sabrina Chair, which used subtle angling to create a fluid form. In 1988, the Art of Objects collection was initiated by Borek Sipek, who uses glass blowing mixed with other materials to create sculptural art-works. Over time the other designers at Driade followed this art-like approach to produce stunning accessories that became an identifying mark for the company.

In 1996, the Box Chair by Enzo Mari kept with the trend of assembling and disassembling furniture by placing the chair in a box – to be assembled with love. His simplified square table won a Compasso d’Oro again in 2001. The sensually curved Tokyo Pop collection designed by Yoshioka in 2002 becomes an experimentational masterpiece. The futuristic MT3 by Ron Arad won the company’s third Compasso d’Oro. The revolutionary two-toned rocking chairs were made possible through rotational moulding. In 2010, Fabrio Novembre designed an armchair in the shape of a human face that combined abstract art with functional furniture.

By 2013, the company was acquired by the Italian Creation Group which appointed David Chipperfield as the art director. He helped establish the brand’s presence in international markets. In 2016, Konstantin Grcic designed the Mingx series which won the Wallpaper Award. The award was won again by Driade in 2018 for the geometrically patterned Ziqqurat cabinet. In 2019, Fabio Novembre was appointed as the brand’s art director after years of collaborating as a designer with it. In 2020 he designed the LOVE cupboard which features these four large letters in a simplified and sleek font on a cabinet. He says, “Love is a faithful guardian of shared dreams, a container of possibilities.”

Today the company has been a regular star at the Milan Design week, has acted as a great contributor to the Made in Italy concept, and is one of the most sought after furniture manufacturers for lovers of contemporary art and design. Driade’s designs are exceptionally eclectic and daring – an almost bohemian collection of inspirations. This is in part, thanks to the diverse team of designers that has never been restricted to any nationality, right from the company’s conception.

Their talented team of designers includes Antonia and Miki Astori, Francesco Bolis, Guiseppe Chigiotti, Rodolf Dordoni, Mann Singh, Tokujin Yoshioka, Borek Sipek, Ed Annink and Xie Dong amongst an impressive list of others. These designers are always at work at the Driade Aesthetic laboratory where they play with different sources of inspiration; dabble in different techniques, methods and concepts to create one-of-a-kind results. Despite being daring, Driade products always have a classy elegance that will stay trendy through years of different styles due to their originality. Driade designs almost have a childlike imagination behind them – the will to make the impossible, possible.
Driade has a vast range of products including seats, sofas, chairs, table, beds, bookcases, and accessories such as vases, centrepieces, jugs and outdoor furniture items. Their products are classified into four collections: Indoor, Outdoor, Art of the Object and Art of the Table.

Their Indoor collection features models that handle bold concepts with a grace made possible through Driade’s skilled designers. Several impressive collections have won recognition for the company across the world such as the subtly textured Didymos tables by Antonia Astori, the angular Zagazig collection, the chic and minimal Megara sofas, the iconic Nemo collection, the pyramid inspired Ziqqurat cabinets, the No frame mirrors and the bare Edward bed.
Driade is one of the few furniture companies whose Outdoor collection is just as widely – if not more – appreciated as their interior furniture. This is made possible through their collection of outdoor-friendly materials such as polypropylene, polyester fiber, and more. Notable collections include the funky Roly Poly chairs, the sci-fi looking MT collection, and the languid Tokyo collection.

Art of the Table has numerous intriguing accessories that will add an eclectic allure to your tabletops. These include stunning blown glassworks, delicate porcelain jars, creative jugs and glasses as well as elegant table accessories. This collection is an excellent choice if you’re looking to add Driade’s stylish statement pieces and improve your tables.
Art of The Object has a wide range of accessories that are the best possible way not only to fill up empty-looking spaces but also improve them with Driade’s signature artistic touch. These include centrepieces, vases, candelabras and decorative items that range from classic elegance to more avant-garde options.
Almost all Driade products come in many different color combinations, each more stunningly vibrant than the other. This makes it easier for the clients to pick out items that will adjust to their surroundings smoothly.

The secret behind Driade’s success lies in the diverse team of designers who never fail to think out-of-the-box. Driade makes a point of accrediting the designer behind each product and values and respects them as the biggest assets of the brand. Talented designers are the backbone of every furniture company, and Driade has ensured that they maintain the high standards for their creative team.