Let’s face it, Italian furniture’s not cheap. Tag on a renowned designer’s name and it’s downright unaffordable. Fortunately, EMU (their Advanced Collection in particular) fills a design void; their Italian outdoor furniture is moderately priced, well-designed, long-lasting, and contemporary – and they share some of the same talent roster of companies such as B&B Italia (including Patricia Urquiola and Jean Marie Massaud). New for this year, and debuted at Maison et Objet 2010, is the Cantilever collection by Italian designer Alessandro Andreucci and German designer Christian Hoisl.

Cantilever. Designed by EMU Alessandro Andreucci and Christian Hoisl.

It’s in line with the powder-coated metal masterpieces debuted at NeoCon last year – a collaboration with Coalesse coined the Emu Advanced Collection and consisting of five lines created by world-renowned designers: Jean-Marie Massaud, Patricia Urquiola, Paola Navone, Rodolfo Dordoni and Christophe Pillet. The Advanced Collection and the new Cantilever collection both exploit the natural properties of metal: flexibility, lightness and strength – and follow Emu’s one mandate: “leap to the next level”. “Elegant yet tough. Airy yet serious. Collected intelligence sculpted for life.”

Cantilever is inspired, in an original manner, by the typical, comfortable, oscillating office chair. “The result is an extremely comfortable chair, which gives an oscillating effect, almost as if gently rocking whoever sits in it”  – now presented for the first time in the garden. It is constructed entirely from steel rods, molded into contours, and tubular steel which forms the frame. The Cantilever collection is marked by lightness and transparency (as is Emu’s Advanced Collection of last year and consists of an armchair and low armchair, a large rectangular table and a lounger. The chairs and lounger are completed with cushions in the new Emu outdoor fabrics (sold and stripes). Cantilever exemplifies Emu’s manufacturing tradition and vocation toward experimental design.