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Using nature to inspire design is a well-known practice. Bruno Munari once said that nature in its vegetable form – such as a rose, pea or orange – provides the perfect template for creating simple, essential industrial design objects. Noctis took Munari’s musings quite literally, choosing a natural mineral as the inspiration for its Stones collection, which features a ‘bed with stones’ that’s been etched into the collective imagination of the design sector since 2010.

The bed’s standout feature is a pantograph-cut wooden headboard comprising rounded shapes that look like pebbles smoothed by flowing river water before being expelled onto the riverbank. The headboard is incredibly visually striking and is carefully covered in a layer of soft rubber by skilled upholstery experts, allowing each individual component to look like a real-life pebble. The bed’s hard (visual appearance) and soft (tactile coating) components are a nod to well-known binary concepts such as raw/cooked, and hot/cold, which the anthropologist Lévi Strauss interprets as symbolic systems that help shine a light on the progression of homo sapiens from the natural to the cultural world.

Of course, there exists some artifice. In fact, it’s not nature but a human hand that has moulded this collection into being. And yet, what Stones achieves is the unprecedented association of two symbols that represent a visual oxymoron in the real world, even when they coexist in a single element, such as an upholstered bed. Here’s how it all began.

Stones redefines the concept of softness with a design that defies perception. A timeless icon in the world of textile bed, the ‘bed with stones’ sculpts an idea of aesthetic and functional comfort. The headboard, made of pantograph-cut wood and covered with soft rubber, acquires the look and charm of real stones thanks to meticulous craftsmanship. Now also available in single sizes of 120 and 90, it can be customised in all the fabrics of the collection. A symbol of originality and sartorial care.

A cult object, Stones evokes a sculptural severity, softened by the irregularity, the welcoming generosity of the decorative form. It is strength and lightness. Like stones, yes, but from a river: the water flowing through them makes them soft, vital in the accentuation of colour.

The Stones bed is distinguished by its ability to transform itself through the combination of different materials and colors, lending unique personalities to any room. Available in both double and single versions, it offers a wide range of covers, including fabrics, faux leather and Lycra, allowing for customization ranging from classic to contemporary.

Design Studio V7