Nobu by Raffaella Mangiarotti for Alf DaFrè | A light, functional complement for a nomadic home
Created for a home in constant transformation, Nobu can be placed next to an armchair or a sofa in the living area, but it can also become a bedside table. It is made of three stackable parts for different combinations: cabinet, cushion and tray. Small objects can be stored at its base. Just add a cushion and you can transform it into an ottoman for sitting or for resting your legs. The addition of the tray makes it a table, on which to place a remote control or a book. Raffaella Mangiarotti for Alf DaFrè has designed it as a small passe-partout for houses where space is limited, with a pressing need for functional quality. “In the living area, near sofas, we often need small ‘servants’ that respond to our desires. A surface on which to rest your feet, a storage unit, a tray for a glass of water or a cup of tea. At the end of the evening, you can stash a blanket or newspapers. Order creates a sense of wellbeing.”
The various configurations take on impact thanks to three freely combined colors, with no limits on the imagination, selecting from fabrics in different hues and different finishes – natural or lacquered – for the wood.
At a glance
What is it?
Nobu is a versatile object. It is a cabinet, a table and an ottoman. A light functional complement, ideal for many spaces in the home.
What is the design concept?
To develop a simple object for intuitive use capable of switching its function and image in a flash.
How is it made?
Nobu is composed of three stackable parts. The cabinet (which is the trunk) is padded like the cushion, while the tray comes in wood or metal. All the elements can be separated.
How and where is it manufactured?
NOBU is 100% Made in Italy, by Alf DaFrè.
What are the technical features?
Its simplicity of form becomes special thanks to the workmanship: the stitching by the upholsterers, the coating of the trays, the forming of the particular super-elliptical profile. Everything contributes to the quality of the finished product.
What’s special?
The triple nature as cabinet, tray and ottoman makes it a dynamic object that adapts to a wide variety of situations, also in the same domestic space.
What’s it like?
Useful, versatile, playful.
What does the designer say?
“I wanted to put compact size, usefulness and function together. At the same time, I wanted to make a table, a cabinet and an ottoman. I like the idea of a return to useful, compliant objects that act as complements for more important furnishings, bringing color and good cheer.”
