If you're among the fortunate few who've attended April's annual Salone del Mobile, than you know the intractable pull of Milan. Perhaps your most recent stroll through the annual springtime rites of A & D has inspired a late summertime visit to this sunny, sultry city. If so, try to time your re-visit with the upcoming preview of manufacturer Plinio il Giovane's Pik Nik Indoor/Outdoor folding table. The intricate, many-limbed, and lightweight picnic table was inspired by what designer and Plinio founder Mario Prandina refers to as "the furniture trip of the century." The sentence is never fully explained, but it is expounded on via the collection of whimsical photos that show Prandina on a fetching red scooter in the company of a colleague–the material for Pik Nik’s construction apparently in tow.

Pik Nik. Designed by Plinio il Giovane.

Though Plinio il Giovane doesn't give us the entire story, they do offer up the goods: the Pik Nik table itself, exhibited during the hours of 3 to 8 pm from August 2 to 12 and 23 to 31 outside the Plinio showroom on the corner of Via Cernuschi and Premuda Avenue in Milan. And, Prandina adds temptingly, "all exhibits will be sold for the occasion, at attractive prices."

If the process photos of Pik Nik's construction are any indication, the designers at Plinio il Giovane certainly enjoy their jobs-and a bit of spirited disagreement seems to be par for the course. But that genial tomfoolery shouldn't belie the quality construction and compelling mechanized aesthetic of Pik Nik. The table, made–as are all Plinio pieces–from "1975 solid oak from managed reforestation crops," is a spiritual cousin of both the Brave New World Lamp and The Itomaki Folding Coffee Table; all three share a fondness for structure on display while evoking the network of lattice and scaffold one might see in a roller coaster frame.

Even so, the design of Pik Nik emphasizes functionality above all. The table's ultra-thin and lightweight top makes fold-down and transport a piece of cake. And speaking of cake, you must be sure to bring some along when you strap Pik Nik to the back of your Vespa and head off into the Tuscan countryside for a relaxing Sunday repast.

Via AtCasa.