The Compasso d’Oro Product Lifetime Achievement Award: an award for the products with a successful and long “lifetime”, such as Nathalie, by Flou
For the very first time, the 2020 edition of the Compasso d’Oro Awards assigned 3 Product Lifetime Achievement Awards. Three products that have left an indelible mark on the history of Made in Italy production. There is a moment when even objects start having an intrinsic value as objects, regardless of their function. This happens particularly with objects that form part of the furniture of our home and, as a consequence, of our daily life. We establish with them a sort of emotional relationship, which becomes more and more exclusive over the years. Some products are even able to stand the test of time and trends, and become classics with eternal life, still successful after many years.
The Compasso d’Oro Lifetime Achievement Award becomes an award that acknowledges the multiple aspects of a product: design, development, production, duration over time. To all these elements we must add “uniqueness” (if we can even say uniqueness, speaking of an industrial product), which turns a product into an icon, an object with a long “lifetime”.
See all the winners of the Compasso d’Oro Awards 2020 here
The ancestor of modern fabric beds
The jury of the Compasso d’Oro Awards 2020 awarded the Nathalie bed, a project by Vico Magistretti for Flou, 1978, recognizing its role as “ancestor of modern fabric beds.” Nathalie was the first bed that combined bed, mattress and bedding into a single project. As Magistretti explained, “In that period, there was the trend of the duvet. I simply extended it to cover the bed base.” Nathalie’s revolution involved also distribution, because with that fabric bed it was possible to buy everything you needed in the same store – bed, mattress, pillows and linen.
Of course, also the look of the Nathalie bed played an important part. It became a piece of furniture that made it possible to change the interior design of the bedroom, opening up new horizons in this field. Last but not least, the bow that closes the pillowcases, Nathalie’s distinctive feature.
Discover everything about the Nathalie bed by Flou here
