Tobia and Afra Scarpa Soriana sofa

Tobia Scarpa was born in Venice, Italy in 1935. Both he and his sister Afra, siblings of the renowned Italian architect Carlo Scarpa earned degrees in architecture from the Università Iuav di Venezia in 1957. From 1957 to 1961 Tobia worked as a glass designer at the prestigious Murano glassworks of Venini, before the two designers opened their own design office in Montebelluna.

The Soriana sofa won the Compassa D’Oro for design in 1970. The external chromed metal work, featuring front and back, pinches the fabric into place, creating interesting seams and folds. It sits pretty low to the ground and is incredibly comfortable. The size is practical and it would work well both against a wall and floating in the middle of a space. We have had it reupholstered in a high quality aniline (a more naturally dyed) leather and it is in excellent condition.

H63 W173 D95cm

D180