Poltrona Frau Brings Italian Savoir-Vivre Outdoors

May 24, 2023

To mark the 2022 Salone del Mobile, Poltrona Frau has expanded its offering for outdoor spaces with Lepli Outdoor, along with the successful family of poufs designed by Kensaku Oshiro, now redesigned for furnishing outdoor spaces.

A delightful collection consisting of a pouf, stool and bench for indoors, Lepli is a passe-partout series with a strong identity. Kensaku Oshiro created the outdoor version with Poltrona Frau by combining the shapes that have made the collection so distinctive with the recognizable woven motif that characterizes the Sparkler lamp collection, also designed by Oshiro, and winner of the 2022 the Wallpaper Design Award in the Best Outdoor Living category.

Lepli Outdoor is a collection of three casual and easy to move seats that enrich the outdoor environment with sculptural accents; well-rounded volumes, with an iconic design versatile enough to harmonize with the most diverse outdoor spaces.

The collection maintains the organic shapes of the indoor version and the sartorial suggestions taken from women's fashion. These are clearly recognizable in the circular stool, tightened by a thin belt to emphasize the waist, which here becomes a flat braid made with yarns for the outdoors. The sinuous profile of the seats is further emphasized by the upholstering in 4mm polypropylene string, taken from the Sparkler series and hand-woven on the aluminum structure. 

As with the lamps, the gradient weaving gives the shape transparency, lightness and ever-changing chiaroscuro effects. Rising upwards, the openings in the weave become increasingly dense until they come together on the seating surface, creating a solid covering that hides the spring system of elastic belts within, while revealing an unexpected and pleasant comfort. This complex handcrafting, which conveys the same softness and plasticity of the indoor version, is exemplary of Poltrona Frau's Leathership, that is, its ability to work with different materials with the same precision and mastery as with leather, emphasizing their uniqueness and expressive beauty.

The polypropylene string is available in three color variants (Taupe, Ecru and Rust), while the aluminum rod supporting structure is lacquered in Gesso and Basalt shades. The color palette is designed so that Lepli Outdoor matches not only with the new Souvenir d'Italie collection, but also with the other collections in the Boundless Living Outdoor Collections launches in 2021. For example, Solaria in the Ecru, the Sparkler lanterns in the Taupe color or in the Rust shade that recurs in some accessories and outdoor furnishing accessories. The matching of materials and colors displays the possibility of creating personal outdoor environments through a substantial catalogue offering and in the Poltrona Frau style.

The three Lepli Outdoor products measure 39x39xh46cm for the stool, 106x106xh37cm for the pouf with larger dimensions and 45x121xh37cm for the bench.

"While the Lepli indoor family," explains Kensaku Oshiro, "draws inspiration from the elegance of women's fashion and a reinterpretation of the Poltrona Frau artisan tradition, the outdoor collection was born from a different approach, starting from a material that was durable and suitable for outside use. The body is obtained by weaving polypropylene string on an aluminum structure, varying the density of the mesh to emphasize the sinuous curves of the silhouette. The result is light seats with refined breathability, suitable for open spaces."