Architect and Designer

Cini Boeri in her studio (Courtesy Cini Boeri Archive)

Born in Milan in 1924, Cini Boeri graduated in Architecture from the Polytechnic University in 1951.

She began her career collaborating with Gio Ponti and Marco Zanuso, key figures in Italian design. In 1963 she opened her own studio and embarked on a successful independent career.

Cini Boeri distinguished herself in the Italian design landscape with her innovative and functional approach, placing a strong emphasis on ergonomics and users’ needs.

Cini Boeri and Gio Ponti (1954)

Among her iconic works are the “Bobo” armchair (1967), the “Serpentone” sofa (1971), and the “Ghost” chair (1982).

Sofa “Bobo” (Courtesy Arflex)

Sofa “Serpentone” (Courtesy Arflex)

Armchair “Ghost” (Courtesy Fiam)

Active also as a professor, Boeri holds courses at the Politecnico University of Milan and at other prestigious international universities. Her influence extends beyond design, encompassing architecture, urban planning and cultural debate.

In 1967, Boeri designed for Franzi a collection of work suitcases called “ABS Partner”.

With an extremely innovative approach, she inverted the canonical positions of the materials, making the suitcases’ outer shell with synthetic resin (“ABS”), and their inner lining with the best Franzi leathers.

For these suitcases, Boeri even redesigned the Franzi logo that was engraved on them and printed it on the cardboard packagings.

Some pieces of the collaboration between Franzi and Cini Boeri are now part of the permanent exhibition of the MoMA in New York and the Triennale in Milan.

Moreover, in 1968, she designed the Franzi store in Rome,

perfectly embodying the modernist spirit of those year for a space dedicated to showcasing Franzi’s luxury creations, which were becoming more and more popular among the international jet set of the time.

The Franzi store in Rome, designed by Cini Boeri (1968) (Courtesy “Cini Boeri, architetto e designer”, Silvana Editoriale (2004))

Assistenza Clienti

Custom interiors of the Franzi store in Rome (1968) (Courtesy Cini Boeri Archive)