Description

Legendary Italian designers Afra and Tobia Scarpa created the Africa Chair as a love letter to traditional cabinetmaking, and this stunning re-edition by Tacchini proves why it recently earned a spotlight in Architectural Digest. The dining chair’s sculptural silhouette centers on a tour-de-force canaletto walnut veneer frame, but it’s the backrest that steals the showcrafted as a single piece, then meticulously refined into two mirrored sections that reveal layers of contrasting wood essences through delicate hand-finishing. The result is a play of chromatic depth that shifts as you move around it, turning functional seating into living art.

The Africa Chair’s structural ingenuity sets it apart. The backrest and rear legs meet only at the base, creating a dramatic gap that adds subtle flex to the seat while evoking a totemic presence. This is furniture as sculpture, where Tobia Scarpa’s philosophy of perfect balance between form and function reaches its apex. The Compasso d’Oro winner brings decades of design mastery to every detail, marrying classical Italian craftsmanship with modern structural coherence. Each chair is a testament to slow, considered makingthe kind of heirloom piece that belongs in museum collections and discerning homes alike.

The Tacchini Africa Chair transforms any dining room into a gallery-worthy space, equally stunning around a walnut live-edge table or juxtaposed against contemporary minimalism. Use it as statement dining seating where guests can appreciate the backrest’s artistry, anchor a home office with sophisticated warmth, or place a pair flanking a console in an entry hall for dramatic first impressions. This is timeless Italian design for collectors who understand that exceptional furniture transcends trends and celebrates wood’s expressive power.