Apparently if you ask a skilled Italian manufacturing company and a couple of famous French designing brothers to come up with something splendid, the result may be a “piece” with enough modern for Milano, enough natural for Bretagne, and the perfect twist of neighboring competition that has it soaring in a league of its own. Although not always the case, for the Bouroullec brothers (Ronan and Erwan) and Mattiazzi, the Osso chair has CNC-cut its way into the spotlight.

Osso. Designed by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec. Manufactured by Mattiazzi.

Eco-friendly Manufacturing by Mattiazzi and High Tech, Modern Seating Design by the Bouroullec Brothers Set Apart the Osso Chair.

With or without arms, you can decide. The Osso is confident enough to stand on its own or as a part of a set, with a rich stain or naturally light and woody. French designers Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec presented this Osso wooden chair for the Italian brand Mattiazzi in Milan earlier this year. Since its release, the four sculpted wooden pads that make up its seatback and base have earned the modern chair design a massive positive response. Made from oak, maple or ash – and sourced close to Mattiazzi’s factory in Udine, Italy – each seat is manufactured with a mixture of CNC tooling and handcraft. Once fully developed, they say that the Osso collection will include a chair, armchair and child’s chair plus high and low stools.

Thrilled by the performance and quality of Mattiazzi’s work, the well-known Bouroullecs commented on the final product, saying: “Working with Mattiazzi is comparable to working with an organic farm. While being a small, family-owned company that has been manufacturing chairs for others since about forty years, Mattiazzi decided to do less, yet better. By using sophisticated CNC set of tools and at the same time a greatly refined manual know-how, Mattiazzi has a hybrid way to consider furniture production… We were particularly interested by the fact that all the equipment is powered by solar energy and that the wood is coming from the surrounding areas to be carefully selected without the use of any chemical treatments.”

Caring for the environment while using high tech manufacturing procedures not only sets apart the Mattiazzi family from other competitors, it also sets apart the innovative design by the Bouroullecs and the destiny of a beautiful chair they call Osso.

About the Designers: Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec design for numerous manufacturers, namely Vitra, Kvadrat, Magis, Kartell, Established and Sons, Ligne Roset, Axor, Alessi, Issey Miyake, Cappellini and more recently Flos and Mattiazzi. At the same time, they maintain an experimental activity which is essential to the development of their work at Galerie kreo, Paris, where four exhibitions of their designs have been held between 2001 and 2010.

About the Manufacturer: Among contemporary furniture manufacturers, Mattiazzi, the family owned producer of wooden furniture in Udine, Italy, is uncommon. While many producers in that region rely on third party factories and work in diverse materials, Mattiazzi operates with their own machines and hands, and has developed a healthy obsession for woodworking. Since 1978, when brothers Nevio and Fabiano Mattiazzi founded the company, Mattiazzi has steadily cultivated its local manufacturing culture. Their network of wood shops is diverse enough to support any manufacturing process the brand may need. Every shop has its own focus, from milling to lacquering, and a particular process always belongs to a specific part of town.