The products in the Quaderna Series are the result of a highly industrialised process
Zanotta starts producing Quaderna in 1972 with the courage of a brand that always wants to experiment and has an eye for staying ahead of the times: it will follow the Neomodern and Postmodern wave with Alchimia and Memphis between the 70s and80s.
The products in the Quaderna Series are the result of a highly industrialised process and - at the same time - impeccable craftsmanship skills. The furniture is made from hollow core wood surfaced with white Print laminate with an isotropic chequered design with a 3 cm centre distance. The mesh is produced using digital printing that causes a slight variation in the centre distance of the lines and thus means it is necessary to create a body to cover that is not perfectly orthogonal in order to make all the lines on each side line up optically. The laminate pieces are applied individually according to a specific sequence: first the legs are covered, together with the thickness of the top, then the external faces and lastly the upper surface. This manual task requires extreme artisanal precision and uses the in laying technique which takes about eight hours of work to produce a single item of furniture. Every Quaderna object comes from a single sheet of laminate so that the centre distance is the same, albeit slightly misaligned by a few tenths of a centimetre: this is the only way the chequered surfaces prove continuous in the three dimensions guided by the Cartesian axes in keeping with the original project. The convergence of the lines of the mesh determines the total homogeneity of the surfaces and lends the furniture a strong styling personality, as they are visually marked in their corners. The difficulty inensuring all the joints line up to the nearest millimetre makes it impossible to detach the legs from the table top even during transport. An additional complexity, however, an essential one to preserve the uniqueness of the original idea.
The Quaderna Series by Zanotta Now comprises eleven ‘architectural shapes’ designed by Superstudio - three tables (square or rectangular), a writing desk, a console, a low table; in 2022 new additions are a new desk and a new coffee table - plus a special piece, the carpet. In 2023 the new mirror, cubboard and low storage unit have been added.
Quaderna Desk - New for 2022
The desk stands outfor its concealed retractable drawer, carved out of the thickness of the top. The drawer compartment is in scratch resistant embossed wood painted black. The internal drawer compartment features two side spaces for pens and pencils. The capacious drawer can store a laptop computer and A3 sheets of paper. The drawer is fitted with a retraction mechanism making sure it shuts perfectly, as well as a recess grip on the underside of the middle of the drawer to make sure it can be opened easily.
Quaderna Coffee Table - New for 2022
Square top supported by two side panels forming a continuous orthogonal bridge structure. At the front, the profiles of the side panels are covered together with the thickness of the top using a single piece of laminate to have joints only on the corners.
Quaderna Carpet - New for 2022
Hand-tufted carpet made with 0.9 cm high 100% wool yarn with a velvety feel. Perimeter edging finished by hand with black wool thread on all six sides. The design faithfully replicates a sketch of an unprecedented Architecture Istogramma provided by the Cristiano Toraldo di Francia Archives, with white background and grayand black lines, depicting an isometric Axonometric projection.
Quaderna Mirror - New for 2023
It is inspired by the 'Measuring Mirror' sculpture module that the group's architects used to study the effect of the continuous and potentially infinite super surface. A 5 mm thick plate glass is perimetrically contained by a 51x15x195 cm frame in white Print laminate wood, digitally printed with black squares at 3 cm spacing. The mirror is floor-standing and fastened to the wall.
Quaderna storage element - New for 2023
It is designed for the living area, ideal as a TV cabinet measuring 204x51x54 cm. It has a structure in white Print laminate wood, digitally printed with black squares with 3 cm spacing. The cabinet has four hinged doors. Internal black laminate plating. Adjustable internal shelves in 10 mm thick tempered plate glass. On the back panel, the sideboard is equipped with cable entries.
Quaderna cupboard - New for 2023
It is a service unit for the dining room. It has a structure in white Print laminate wood, digitally printed with black squares with 3 cm spacing. The cupboard has 2 hinged doors. Internal black laminate plating. Adjustable internal shelves in 10 mm thick tempered plate glass. Sizes: 102x42x105 cm.
