Chiavari's 'Il Salotto Buono' Exhibition Reimagines the Iconic Chiavarina Chair

In Chiavari, the exhibition 'Il Salotto Buono' runs until September 13, curated by Mario Commone, Lara Conte, and Raffaella Fontanarossa at the Laboratorio della sedia leggera 'Guido e Anna Rocca'. The show pays homage to Guido Rocca, a postwar artisan who preserved the tradition of the chiavarina chair, a lightweight straw-seated seat produced for two centuries. Designer Valentina Giovando repurposes second-hand objects with studs, crystals, and industrial fragments, while painter Elena Carozzi creates painted panels and screens. Together they reinterpret the 'salotto buono'—the formal, overstuffed living room of Italy's economic boom, often preserved under plastic covers. The chiavarina, originally crafted in 1807 by Giuseppe Gaetano Descalzi and later reimagined by Gio Ponti as the Superleggera for Cassina in 1957, appears here as a cat scratcher. The venue is the future Museo della sedia leggera, currently activated through temporary exhibitions by the Società Economica di Chiavari, an Enlightenment-era institution promoting arts and crafts.