Polyurethane makes for a unique seating experience

The “Shadow” easy chair by Gaetano Pesce was one of the most eye-catching exhibits at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile 2007 in Milan. For more than 40 years now, the world-famous architect and designer has been making a name for himself all over the world with his individual and unconventional creations.

What’s more, Shadow also reflects his love of innovative materials. The easy chair’s outer shape and high degree of comfort is down to Bayfit®, the flexible polyurethane foam system from Bayer MaterialScience. Back in the 1960s, Pesce designed his “Il Piede” seat in the shape of a human foot. This seat – and many other objects in the legendary UP series – was manufactured using flexible polyurethane foam technology, which was a relatively new development back then.

The Shadow production process is quite unique – instead of manufacturing the seat upholstery in a fixed mold in the usual way, the chair’s textile covering is filled directly with the liquid polyurethane mixture. The furniture is given its individual shape by filling out the seat surface with a life-size doll. In doing so, the polyurethane flexible foam encases the silhouette of the dummy, thus forming the seat of the easy chair and creating the “shadow”. Therefore, every model that leaves the workshop is unique. The Bayfit® system is supplied directly by the Italian polyurethane systems house BaySystems Italia. Since March 2007, Bayer MaterialScience has been operating its entire global polyurethane systems business under the BaySystems® umbrella brand.

Besides the systems houses, this network also includes product brands such as Bayfit®. Manufacturer and distributor of the finished product is Meritalia S.p.A. in Mariano Comense, which has already marketed many other furnishings by Gaetano Pesce and other well-known designers such as Mario Bellini. The Shadow is available in a variety of colors and fabrics. In addition to the standard model, which measures approximately 130 x 110 x 100 centimeters, a Mini Shadow is also available for children. This smaller model measures 65 X 60 X 55 centimeters.