Serralunga

With a passion for innovation and craftsmanship, Serralunga is renowned for pushing the boundaries of materials, technologies, and aesthetics to create groundbreaking outdoor furnishings that inspire and delight. The company’s eye-catching designs – whether a sculptural planter, a geometric table, or a minimalist daybed – are conceived to be highly functional and beautiful, a testament to the brand’s mastery of new synthetic polymers and cutting-edge molding processes.

Serralunga perpetuates the excellence that has long been associated with the “made-in-Italy” label. Exuding understated luxury, its products – which produce a seamless visual progression from indoor to outdoor – are marked by a rare sense of harmony that enables them to be grouped into intriguing and dramatic arrangements. By combining color, height, proportion, and lighting, the products communicate among themselves and with the spaces around them, adding character and identity to any environment. Serralunga products are lightweight, durable, and dirt, smog, and weather-resistant, and they are available in varietal colors with illuminated options.

History

Serralunga is the surname of the family that has been at the helm of the outdoor furniture brand for six generations. The company was founded in 1825 in Biella – a small city in Italy’s Piedmont region – as a tannery before it moved into leather processing for industrial purposes. The company’s design revolution occurred in two phases: The first was in 1959 with the introduction of plastic, the raw material that makes up most of the brand’s products today. The second was in 1976 when Serralunga became the first company in Europe to adopt the rotational molding technique, an innovative technology imported from the U.S. that allowed for the production of large hollow objects. In the years that followed, Serralunga continued to explore plastic in new ways, turning a once-industrial material into engaging, collectible outdoor products.

At the turn of the 21st century, Serralunga experienced another major brand milestone; it revolutionized the flowerpot by presenting a never-before-seen overscaled version and then, not long after, the first-ever illuminated flowerpot! The new direction began via partnerships with notable designers Paolo Rizzatto, Alberto Meda, and Denis Santachiara. Over the next decade, the company’s president, Marco Serralunga, worked with more than 20 international designers to produce a collection with new shapes and functions, ultimately becoming a reference point and trendsetter in the field. From there, it was only a small leap from pots into other outdoor furniture items such as chairs, tables, and lamps, which were reimagined by Serralunga to give outdoor spaces the same importance as indoor environments. To this day, Serralunga’s pots and planters remain among its most sought-after products. They can be found adorning both exclusive properties and prominent public parks and plazas around the world.

Materials

Plastic created from linear polyethylene powder is the principal material from which most of Serralunga’s products originate. The material undergoes a rotational molding process before it is poured into aluminum molds that are subsequently placed in an oven. Thanks to fusion and the rotary action caused by mechanical arms and the force of gravity, the plastic distributes uniformly on the walls. Once the mold has cooled, the solidification process begins. The object is then manually extracted from the mold. Its surfaces are finished with artisan techniques, followed by the painting process.

Designers

Serralunga has commissioned a star-studded array of nearly 50 leading architects and designers to create original pieces distinguished by their elegant yet modern forms. They include:

• the late British-Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid (Flow)
• French industrial architect Philippe Starck (Holly All)
• French architect, inventor, and designer Jean-Marie Massaud (Missed Tree)
• Israeli artist Arik Levy (Zuff and Meteor)
• Spanish architect and designer Patricia Urquiola (Luba and Cassero)
• Egyptian-British designer Karim Rashid (Plomb and Kronik)
• Finnish interior designer Eero Aarnio (Paloma, Doggy, Pulcino, and Primavera)
• Israeli industrial designer Ron Arad (Top Pot)
• The late Italian architect and designer Ettore Sottsass (Faituttotu)
• Italian architect and designer Michele De Lucchi (Bonheur)
• Japanese industrial designer Naoto Fukasawa (Cone, Cork, and Cup)
• French architect and designer Christophe Pillet (June, Loop, Princess, Scarlett, Toy)

Projects

Serralunga outdoor design products can be found in cities all over the world, from public parks and plazas to shopping centers, ports of call, cruise ships, hotels, restaurants, stadiums, museums, universities, and more. They include: London’s Wembley Stadium; the Burj Khalifa in Dubai; the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice; Hotel Adlon Kempinski Berlin; the University of Milan; Villa Olmo in Lake Como; Bulgari Hotel Milano; the Los Angeles Convention Center; and many others.

“Serralunga has always created culture and invested in innovation. Choosing Serralunga means being able to recognize and appreciate originality.”