Today in Milan (15 April 2026), Italian design brand Zanotta announced that it has secured the exclusive rights to produce a series of designs by Carlo Mollino (1905-73), marking a significant addition to the company’s historical archive. Granted by the Italian State following a public tender, the acquisition comprises the licence to produce 30 works by the Turin-born polymath, alongside the tens of thousands of original drawings and sketches in his archive.
The ‘Vertebra’ enters production with Zanotta for the first time, debuting at Milan Design Week 2026
The move builds on a long-standing relationship (since 1981) between Zanotta and Mollino’s estate and archive, which the brand has helped bring to wider attention through carefully researched re-editions over several decades. Now, for the first time, a larger body of his designs intended for industrial production will be developed and manufactured under a single licence.
Only two examples of the sinuous design were previously produced, both sold at auction three years ago
Active across architecture, photography and design, Mollino remains one of the more singular figures in 20th-century Italian culture, known for furniture defined by organic, almost anatomical forms and a surreal design language. He did not typically design furniture for mass production during his lifetime, preferring to use artisans and small-scale manufacturers. As a result, many of his pieces have become highly prized collectors’ items.
Zanotta's acquisition includes 30 drawings of designs intended for mass production as well as an archive of tens of thousands of drawings, sketches, photographs, hand written notes and typed documents
To coincide with Milan Design Week 2026, Zanotta will present the first industrially produced piece from this newly acquired archive: the ‘Vertebra’ table from 1950. Previously realised in just two examples that were sold at auction, the sinuous design now enters serial production for the first time. Its skeletal structure and flowing lines demonstrate how Mollino regarded furniture as an extension of the body – an interest shaped by his parallel pursuits as a skier, racing driver and aviation enthusiast.
The table's skeletal structure and flowing lines exemplify how Mollino regarded furniture as an extension of the body
The launch forms part of a wider exhibition staged at the brand’s Via Durini, Milan showroom, curated by studio Calvi Brambilla, Zanotta’s art director. Alongside ‘Vertebra’, which will be located within a dedicated dining setting, the display revisits key Mollino designs including the ‘Ardea’ armchair, ‘Fenis’ chair, ‘Gilda’ armchair and ‘Arabesco’ table – pieces that have previously been reissued by the company as part of its ongoing archival programme.
Other Mollino designs, including the ‘Ardea’ armchair, pictured here, have previously been reissued by the company as part of its ongoing archival programme
The installation's design, Zanotta teases, is inspired by ‘organic forms of the human body combined with the dynamism of movement across snow, track, and sky’, but will also draw on Mollino's interiors, where curtains were used to loosely define a space.
During Milan Design Week other pieces designed by Carlo Mollino and produced by Zanotta, such as the ‘Gilda’ armchair, shown here, will be presented in the showroom
In addition to the 30 design drawings, Mollino’s professional archive comprises nearly 17,000 graphic plates, technical drawings and sketches. It also includes approximately 15,000 photographs, over 70 handwritten and typewritten documents, and an extensive collection of personal and professional correspondence, all currently housed at the Polytechnic University of Turin’s Faculty of Architecture, where he served as Professor of Architectural Composition.
Mollino's ‘Denis’ chair will be among the pieces on show at the exhibition, which is curated by Calvi Brambilla
The announcement comes at a moment of renewed momentum for the brand, following its acquisition by Cassina in 2023, a move that signalled a new chapter for Zanotta and its positioning within a broader Italian design ecosystem. The company has increasingly positioned archival research as an active part of its operations by bridging historic material with present-day production – reissued designs by Giuseppe Terragni and Gabriele Mucchi are also part of its collection.
A drawing of the ‘Arabesco’ table, designed by Mollino in 1949 and now in production with Zanotta as part of its 'Mollino Collection 2020’
More broadly, Zanotta notes that the acquisition marks ‘an important milestone in the exchange between public and private entities’ in the stewardship of design heritage – one that extends beyond preservation to questions of authorship, production and relevance today.