Califfo

by Ettore Sottsass jr.

The Califfo sofa, designed in 1962 by Ettore Sottsass for Poltronova, returns to production in 2025 after a long absence. Califfo is one and threefold: its supporting structure is a bench with a backrest and side sections made of wooden slats. It comes with soft, upholstered cushions for the seat, backrests, and armrests; it can serve as a living room sofa, a daybed for an unexpected guest, or a spot for an afternoon nap. More than just a sofa, it is a versatile piece, free from the mechanisms typical of commercial sofa beds, and it shows how Sottsass’s design effortlessly merges aesthetics and function with simplicity and elegance.

To request information, please write to info@poltronova.it, for a quote to sales@poltronova.it.

...

Chart

year1964
typologysofa
dimension200[l] x 83[w] x 63[h] cm
materials[frame] solid ash wood with aniline finish
[cushions] polyurethane foam
[cover] regenerated cotton or chenille or cotton-linen blend
colors[frame] black, cinnabar red, ivory white, mud grey, plum pink, leaf green
[cover] black, midnight blue, powder blue, aquamarine blue, new york grey, goldenrod yellow, apple green, old rose

...

Exhibitions

- - 1970Eurodomus 3, Palazzo dell’Arte, Milan
  - 1971Domus Italian Design, Harrods, London
  - 1991Mobili Italiani 1961-1991. Le varie età dei linguaggi, Triennale, Milan
  - 1999Ettore Sottsass, Salone Internazionale del Mobile, Milan
  - 20031945–2000 Il Design In Italia: 100 Oggetti della Collezione Permanente del Design Italiano, Triennale di Milano, Milan / La Fabbrica Bella, Centro Cultural Justiça Federal, Rio de Janeiro / La Fabbrica Bella, Altman Building, New York
  - 2004I Maestri: Design Italiano, Triennale di Milano travelling exhibition / Radical Design, Casa Masaccio, San Giovanni Valdarno, Italy
  - 2005Sottsass Progetti 1946—2005, MART, Museo di Arte Moderna di Trento e Rovereto, Rovereto, Italy
  - 2006Italy Made In Art: Now, Contemporary Arts and Industrial Design, Museum Of Contemporary Art, Shanghai / Ettore Sottsass Architect And Designer, LACMA, Los Angeles
  - 2007Plexiglass: Werkstoff in Architektur und Design = material in architecture and design, Institut Mathildenhöhe, Darmstadt, Germany / Ettore Sottsass: Vorrei Sapere Perché, Salone degli Incanti, Ex Pescheria, Trieste
  - 2008Abitare il tempo, Verona Fiere, Verona, Italy
  - 2010Biennale Internazionale del Design, Palazzo dei Capitani, Ascoli Piceno, Italy
  - 2011Creative Junctions, National Museum of China, Beijing / Meet Design: An Italian Story, Museo dei Fori Imperiali, Rome / Meet Design: An Italian Story, Palazzo Bertalazone, Turin / Le Fabbriche Dei Sogni, Triennale di Milano, Milan
  - 2012Pop Art Design, Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein, Germany / Pop Art Design, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Humlebæk, Denmark
  - 2013Pop Art Design, Moderna Museet, Stockholm / Pop Art Design, Barbican Art Gallery, London
  - 2015Creativa Produzione: La Toscana e il design Italiano 1950–1990, Fondazione Ragghianti, Lucca, Italy / Firenze 4 ever, 11th edition, LuisaViaRoma, Florence / Pop Art Design, EMMA Espoo Museum of Modern Art, Henie Onstad Kunstsenter, Høvikodden, Norway
  - 2017Radical Utopias: Beyond architecture: Florence 1966—1976, Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi, Florence
  - 2018Joeuts à Jouer: Oggetti nella foresta, Istituto Italiano di Cultura, Brussels, Belgium / Italiana: L’Italia vista dalla moda 1971–2001, Palazzo Reale, Milan / Radical Utopias: Beyond architecture: Florence 1966–1976, CCA Canadian Centre for Architecture, Montréal
  - 2019Museo del Design Italiano, Triennale, Milan / I–Made: Italian Manufacture Art & Design exhibition, Saatchi Gallery, London / Porto Design Biennale, Palácio das Artes Fundação da Juventude, Porto
  - 2020Poltronova. La casa non domestica, Contemporary Cluster, Rome

...

@poltronova on Instagram

The Dream Factory, the dream team 🤝

Our products wouldn’t be what they are without our Head of Textiles, Laura. Every piece is handcrafted and upholstered by our small team of artisans, all under her expert guidance, all done right here in Italy. 🇮🇹✨

🎥 Filmed by @emmabyvanck.dvd

#Poltronova #MadelnItaly #Tuscany #ItalianDesign #FurnitureDesign #BehindTheScenes #Craftsmanship #Saratoga #Design

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The Dream Factory, the dream team 🤝

Our products wouldn’t be what they are without our Head of Textiles, Laura. Every piece is handcrafted and upholstered by our small team of artisans, all under her expert guidance, all done right here in Italy. 🇮🇹✨

🎥 Filmed by @emmabyvanck.dvd

#Poltronova #MadelnItaly #Tuscany #ItalianDesign #FurnitureDesign #BehindTheScenes #Craftsmanship #Saratoga #Design

The Dream Factory. The Dream Team. Our team is not behind the scenes. It is the scene. Every product we make carries their expertise, their care, their hands.
Always close, always by us, always with our CEO by our side, during every phase.

🇮🇹 Made in Italy.
🌎 Loved all over the world.

📸 Ph. @fabio_bortot_dop

#Poltronova #MadeInItaly #MadeInTuscany #ItalianDesign #FurnitureDesign #BehindTheScenes #Craftsmanship #Ultrafragola #Design

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The Dream Factory. The Dream Team. Our team is not behind the scenes. It is the scene. Every product we make carries their expertise, their care, their hands.
Always close, always by us, always with our CEO by our side, during every phase.

🇮🇹 Made in Italy.
🌎 Loved all over the world.

📸 Ph. @fabio_bortot_dop

#Poltronova #MadeInItaly #MadeInTuscany #ItalianDesign #FurnitureDesign #BehindTheScenes #Craftsmanship #Ultrafragola #Design

✨ Margherissima is open at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2025!

We’re thrilled to share our collaboration with @nigelcoates_projects and the Architectural Association @aaschool for this visionary exhibition, curated by Carlo Ratti @crassociati and focused on the urban revitalization of Marghera.

Poltronova contributed to the large-scale model on display at the Polveriera Austriaca, Forte Marghera, crafting a miniature park designed by Coates—leather-covered foam hills shaped with artisanal care and precision.

This marks a new chapter in our long-standing creative dialogue with Nigel Coates, whose iconic works for Poltronova include the Gallo series and the Plasma armchair, which remains a celebrated part of our catalog.

📍Margherissima runs until November 23, 2025 – Venice Architecture Biennale, Forte Marghera open daily (except Mondays)
⏰ 10.00 until 19.00, easily reached on tram T1 from Piazzale Roma   @labiennale @grymsdykefarm 

#Poltronova #NigelCoates #Margherissima #BiennaleArchitettura2025 #CarloRatti #ArchitecturalAssociation #ForteMarghera #DesignCraftsmanship #UrbanRegeneration #Design

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✨ Margherissima is open at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2025!

We’re thrilled to share our collaboration with @nigelcoates_projects and the Architectural Association @aaschool for this visionary exhibition, curated by Carlo Ratti @crassociati and focused on the urban revitalization of Marghera.

Poltronova contributed to the large-scale model on display at the Polveriera Austriaca, Forte Marghera, crafting a miniature park designed by Coates—leather-covered foam hills shaped with artisanal care and precision.

This marks a new chapter in our long-standing creative dialogue with Nigel Coates, whose iconic works for Poltronova include the Gallo series and the Plasma armchair, which remains a celebrated part of our catalog.

📍Margherissima runs until November 23, 2025 – Venice Architecture Biennale, Forte Marghera open daily (except Mondays)
⏰ 10.00 until 19.00, easily reached on tram T1 from Piazzale Roma   @labiennale @grymsdykefarm 

#Poltronova #NigelCoates #Margherissima #BiennaleArchitettura2025 #CarloRatti #ArchitecturalAssociation #ForteMarghera #DesignCraftsmanship #UrbanRegeneration #Design

➡️ Swipe through a few moments with the things—and the people—that make it all happen.
360° and 365 days a year.

We love what we do.
We love what we make.
And most of all—we love being part of it.
From design to logistics, from creative to production—everyone plays a role.

Because great design isn’t just built.
It’s lived.
🇮🇹 Made in Italy.
🌎 Loved all over the world.

@simone_capaccioli @gianlucagaru @senza.rancore @giadacovri @francescotoselli @sarrimeloni @emmabyvanck

#Poltronova #MadeInItaly #Design #InteriorDesign #Furniture #ItalianDesign #UnconventionalDesign #DesignLovers #HomeDecor #FurnitureDesign #ModernInteriors #InteriorLovers #LuxuryInteriors #InteriorDesigner #Decor

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➡️ Swipe through a few moments with the things—and the people—that make it all happen.
360° and 365 days a year.

We love what we do.
We love what we make.
And most of all—we love being part of it.
From design to logistics, from creative to production—everyone plays a role.

Because great design isn’t just built.
It’s lived.
🇮🇹 Made in Italy.
🌎 Loved all over the world.

@simone_capaccioli @gianlucagaru @senza.rancore @giadacovri @francescotoselli @sarrimeloni @emmabyvanck

#Poltronova #MadeInItaly #Design #InteriorDesign #Furniture #ItalianDesign #UnconventionalDesign #DesignLovers #HomeDecor #FurnitureDesign #ModernInteriors #InteriorLovers #LuxuryInteriors #InteriorDesigner #Decor

Bold. Bright. Iconic.
Crafted from radical visions, these design pieces weren’t made to follow rules.
They wrote them.

— 📐 Mies armchair by Archizoom Associati, 1969
— 💭 Rumble sofa by Gianni Pettena, 1967 — ⚾️ Joe armchair by De Pas, D’Urbino, Lomazzi, 1970
— ⭕️ Mitzi sofa by Hans Hollein, 1981
— 🛋️ Saratoga sofa by Lella and Massimo Vignelli, 1964
— 🍓Ultrafragola mirror/lamp by Ettore Sottsass jr., 1970

📸 Photo credits @serenaeller : @ellerstudio

#Poltronova #JoeArmChair #MiesArmchair #DDL #ArchizoomAssociati #DePasDUrbinoLomazzi #Design #Furniture #InteriorDesign #HansHollein #Vignelli #GianniPettena #RumbleSofa #Saratoga #MitziSofa

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Bold. Bright. Iconic.
Crafted from radical visions, these design pieces weren’t made to follow rules.
They wrote them.

— 📐 Mies armchair by Archizoom Associati, 1969
— 💭 Rumble sofa by Gianni Pettena, 1967 — ⚾️ Joe armchair by De Pas, D’Urbino, Lomazzi, 1970
— ⭕️ Mitzi sofa by Hans Hollein, 1981
— 🛋️ Saratoga sofa by Lella and Massimo Vignelli, 1964
— 🍓Ultrafragola mirror/lamp by Ettore Sottsass jr., 1970

📸 Photo credits @serenaeller : @ellerstudio

#Poltronova #JoeArmChair #MiesArmchair #DDL #ArchizoomAssociati #DePasDUrbinoLomazzi #Design #Furniture #InteriorDesign #HansHollein #Vignelli #GianniPettena #RumbleSofa #Saratoga #MitziSofa

testing the last samples w/ @francescotoselli
for
Regolo, armchair by Gianfranco Fini, 1975

available soon

—

#Poltronova #GianfrancoFini #Armchair #InteriorDesign #MadeInItaly

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testing the last samples w/ @francescotoselli
for
Regolo, armchair by Gianfranco Fini, 1975

available soon

—

#Poltronova #GianfrancoFini #Armchair #InteriorDesign #MadeInItaly

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Ettore Sottsass jr.

1917 — 2007

Designed for Poltronova:
Califfo, Crazy Horse, Ultrafragola, Asteroide, Barbarella, Superbox, Mobili grigi, Pranzo aromatico, Yantra, Nefertiti, Malatesta