Regarding curved wood techniques, which were firstly led by Gebrüder Thonet in  Wien, the Friulian company Società Antonio Volpe had an original and unique role.

It found the perfect synthesis between creative genius and “justice and progress” as industrial values. From this industrial project originated Italian design in the world of furnishing.

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MILESTONES

1882

(some documents are dated 1881 or 1883)

Antonio Volpe, institutional figure in town and also President of the Chamber of Commerce of Udine, founded his Società.  At the headquarters of Via Grazzano n.20 began the manufacture of chairs thanks to 20 male workers, 7 busboys, 15 female workers and 4 apprentices. Caning the chairs was contracted out to women working at home, the best to do this job.

1889

Società Antonio Volpe participated to the Expo in Verona. The production of the company had been of 100,000 pieces per year with 252 factory workers and 40 homeworkers. At his first expo with curved beech wood furniture, the factory was rewarded with an award.

1893

Antonio Volpe died and the company passed leadership to Giovanbattista, called Tita, the most brilliant of Volpe’s sons. He was an enlightened and visionary entrepreneur, precursor of the “communitary factory” theorized later by Adriano Olivetti. He made possible the introduction of electric light inside the factory in 1894. The same year, the patent for the production of bicycle wheels was granted: the company produced also furniture and two-wheeled carts (“sulkies”) for harness racing.

What is this community factory? It is a place where there is justice and where progress dominates above anyone. It is a place of enlightened beauty, where love, charity and tolerance are not meaningless words.

(Adriano Olivetti)

1908

The company Antonio Volpe changed its business name to Società Anonima Antonio Volpe and became one of the most prominent firm in the Region: hence, an acceleration to differentiate its models from the ones of Gebrüder Thonet and Jacob & Josef Kohn, often anticipating them of 15-20 years.

1901

Workers were enrolled at the expense of the company in the National Health Fund for invalidity and old-age. In 1904, it was the only rewarded company, as well as the company Bocconi in Milan, for being one of the few, in Italy, to make those kind of social choices above-mentioned.

Being the only company to be recorded in the wood processing industry in the Italian statistical records of the beginning of the 20th century, the Società Anonima Antonio Volpe was also the only company that had a representative for furniture manufacturers as chairman of a fascist corporation.

 

Sources:

Il dondolo n. 267 Egg Rockingchair

Le Fabbriche di Bene: la Società Antonio Volpe, Legno curvato

1939

In 1923 Giovanbattista Volpe died.
After various vicissitudes the company went to liquidation and finally closed.