piero gatti, designer of the iconic sacco 'beanbag' chair dies aged 77

piero gatti, one of the three italian designers who created the iconic ‘sacco’ beanbag has passed away at the age of 77. back in 1968, together with cesare paolini and franco teodoro, architect piero gatti pioneered the pear-shaped, soft chair filled with thousands of polystyrene beads.

piero gatti, left, cesare paolini and franco teodoro: the three creators of iconic sacco ‘beanbag’
image here courtesy of klatmagazine / top image courtesy of triennale design museum milan

the unusual yet very functional chair captured the attention and comfort from people all around the world to become a symbol in media culture and the spirit of the 1960s. ever since 1986, the sacco beanbag has been manufactured by zanotta and to this day, the easily transportable, comfortable and versatile beanbag chair has become one of the most copied designs in history. it was recently exhibited as part of the ‘italian design icons’ exhibition at the triennale design museum in milan.

‘sacco’ chair, 1968 / polystrene filling by zanotta

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