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True Heritage
100+10 Years of True Evolution
The Chester sofa is an icon of style, ele-
gance and manufacturing skills. It has lived
through fashions and generations, entering
the collective imagination. Designed in 1912
by Renzo Frau, it stands out for its rich capi-
tonnée workmanship, done entirely by hand,
and the dense pleat motif on the front of
the armrests. Its shape draws its inspiration
and elaborates a classic model traditionally
found in exclusive clubs and English country
houses in Edwardian England. Chester is a
masterpiece of upholstery, incorporating the
uniform height of the backrest and armrests
of the original model, as well as the volu-
minous capitonnée workmanship, fi nished
with elegant buttons that create a diamond
pattern on the surface, and wide armrests
with a curled line.
Chester was an expression of a way of
relating to and living in domestic environ-
ments that was typical of its era. In the same
way, its recent evolution, Chester Line, re-
presents the changing needs of contempo-
rary living, which require modular seating
systems that can be confi gured according to
the space, and compact elements juxtaposed
or integrated with corner pieces for a more
relaxed way of sitting. Chester Line adapts to
the new need for customisation of the seat
without compromising on those aesthetic
and manufacturing characteristics that have
made it so famous.
Chester Line can have multiple arrange-
ments and lay-outs. The system includes a
chaise lounge and an armchair, both without
armrests, ottomans, two corner sofas and
two curved elements with and without arm-
rests that can be used alone, in combination
with linear solutions, or combined to create
sinuous serpentine forms. The interior is
made with the same materials as in 1912: the
load-bearing structure is in seasoned solid
beech wood, the springs are made with hand-
tied biconical springs supported on jute belts,
and the padding is in hand-moulded vegeta-
ble horsehair. Even the processing of the fi ne
Pelle Frau® leather upholstery continues to
be done in the traditional way, which has seen
generations of expert craftsmen pulling each
stitch by hand and arranging the folds of the
coat one by one to produce the extraordinary
eff ect of softness and volume.
(1912) — 2019
Renzo Frau
Chester Line
versions of the support
feet: spherical in
lacquered beech;
rectangular 12 cm high
in lacquered beech;
rectangular beech wood
upholstered in leather;
in blade aluminium
with burnished e� ect
One of the possible
layouts of the modular
sofa Chester Line
displayed in the Flagship
Store in Milan.
seating elements make
up the new system
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