Paco Muñoz, Riaza seat for Darro

PACO MUÑOZ (Santander, 1925-2009) for Darro.
Riaza" armchair, model S-195, 1960s.
Walnut wood and hand-sewn natural leather with straps and buckles.
Very good condition. Vintage product without structural defects but it may show signs of use, especially in the leather, which gives it a nice patina.
Measurements: 75 x 57 x 52 cm; 40 cm (seat height).

Paco Muñoz was inspired by the traditional 18th century Spanish friar's chair to create the Riaza series, originally designed in 1958 for the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid and later produced by Darro during the 1960s.

The chair is composed of a walnut wood structure on which a single piece of hand-sewn leather forms the seat and backrest, tightened by means of a cinch fastened at the bottom with two buckles. The Riaza series stands out for the honesty of its materials, the purity of its lines and the contemporary reinterpretation of the Spanish artisan tradition. Now an icon of Spanish design, it represents the balance between modernity, functionality and sober, timeless elegance.

The emblematic designer Paco Muñoz created the famous decoration studio Casa&Jardín in 1951, together with Fernando Alonso Martínez, who had been his classmate and friend at the School of Architecture. This studio became a resounding success and Paco Muñoz collaborated in projects for the homes of heads of state, millionaires, artists and celebrities, and was also one of the decorators of the Pavilion of Prince Felipe de Borbón. In 1959 he founded Darro as a movement against the recently fallen Franco regime and to break the cultural isolation. Paco Muñoz conceived the Darro space as a showroom where furniture dialogued, showing potential clients different combinations that could be installed in their homes. In short, Muñoz was a pioneer and outstanding creator who broke the mold of Spanish design at the time.