Once upon a time, the sofa belonged to the “good room”. You know the one. The lounge that stayed immaculate, slightly intimidating, and only opened for guests you were trying to impress. Real life happened elsewhere.
Now the house is more fluid. Living, dining, cooking, scrolling, hosting, working, and collapsing are all happening in one open-plan sweep. And that’s exactly why the sofa matters more than ever. It’s not just seating. It’s the anchor. The sculpture you live on. A style totem with cushions.
What’s also changed is how the classics show up today. Those golden-era Italian and Scandinavian icons from mid-century design haven’t gone anywhere. They’ve been updated quietly, with smarter mechanisms, cleaner production, and materials that take sustainability seriously. Same silhouettes, better conscience, and usually more comfort.
Here are the sofas that define eras and still define rooms.
Designer sofas
Soft, cocooning shape: Cassina’s Soriana
A proper Made in Italy icon from the late 60s into the 70s, Soriana was designed in 1969 by Afra and Tobia Scarpa for Cassina, winning the Compasso d’Oro in 1970. The look is unmistakable: one continuous, enveloping curve, wrapped in upholstery and held in place by an oversized metal clamp that creates those signature soft folds, finished with buttoned stitching.
The contemporary version is where it gets interesting. The structure is built from a series of pouches filled with BioFoam® microspheres, a patented, plant-based biopolymer foam that’s designed to be durable, biodegradable and compostable at end of life. Comfort is boosted with blown fiber made from 100% recycled PET sourced via Plastic Bank®, also used inside the lining, which wraps the body like a padded quilt.
The Blockbuster: Cassina’s Maralunga
New sofas launch every year, but a few models designed over 50 years ago are still bestsellers. Maralunga, designed in 1973 by Vico Magistretti for Cassina and awarded the Compasso d’Oro, is one of them.
Its genius is the backrest: it folds forward, changing height with a simple movement. It’s one of those ideas that looks obvious only after someone has thought of it. In today’s version, the hidden mechanism has been strengthened to offer better back support and more comfort. Upholstery comes in leather or fabric, although the leather version is still the one that carries the full 70s swagger.
Contemporary Sculpture: Parka by Poltrona Frau (Draga & Aurel)
Poltrona Frau has a long history with upholstered icons, think Vanity Fair levels of recognizable form and craftsmanship. That workmanship remains, but the brand has also been collaborating with contemporary artists and designers to push the mood forward.
Enter Parka, a modular seating system by Draga & Aurel. Generous volumes, soft lines, and a name borrowed from the jacket: a versatile piece that works across styles but still has real character. The elliptical back morphs into armrest and seat in one continuous gesture, creating a concave or convex shape that feels genuinely welcoming. Made in Italy, it can be upholstered in leather or leather-textile combinations, with a birch structure and polyurethane foam padding.
Tailored to Perfection: Riley by Minotti (Hannes Peer)
Minotti is practically a synonym for understated Italian excellence: calm elegance, serious comfort, and that tailored finish that makes everything feel considered. The modular Riley sofa by Hannes Peer has a slightly recessed metal base, giving it a lightness among all that comfort.
The seats and backrests are defined by vertical stitching running across backs and arms, and the signature detail is a leather profile, contrasting or tone-on-tone, forming a continuous line with a 45-degree teardrop cut between armrest and seat. Comfort continues in seat cushions offered in two depths, plus “relax” cushions with a moldable aluminum inner structure, layered with polyurethane to act as a headrest. It’s very composed, but it’s also designed to be lived in properly.
For Generous Spaces: Amama by Natuzzi Italia (Andrea Steidl)
A more recent Made in Italy icon, but hugely popular in newer markets, Natuzzi Italia has earned its place among the Italian heavyweights. For generous spaces, Andrea Steidl designed Amama, an island system modular sofa with double-sided configurations that can redefine a room.
It’s dynamic: elements in different textures and materials overlap in a play of geometry, letting you build the sofa around how you actually live. Upholstery options include leather or fabric.
The Surrealist Icon that Became a Sofa: Gufram’s Bocca (Studio 65)
Designed by Studio 65 in 1970 for a grand entrance, Bocca later went into production with Gufram and became the rare thing: an icon that literally is a sofa.
Inspired by a surrealist image associated with Salvador Dalí, it’s built from polyurethane foam and upholstered in a soft fabric that follows those unmistakable curves. Today it comes in multiple colors and even wool bouclé, but the original red remains the cultural shorthand.
Infinite Modularity: Camaleonda by B&B Italia (Mario Bellini, 1970)
Designed in 1970 by Mario Bellini for B&B Italia, Camaleonda is a sofa with a face you can spot instantly and a flexibility that’s basically endless. The name merges “chameleon” and “wave”, pointing to its ability to adapt to different rooms and layouts while keeping that soft, undulating profile.
The base module is 90 × 90 cm, and backrests and armrests attach via a system of cables, rings, and hooks. The modern version updates materials to allow full recyclability at end of life. Its sandwich structure combines wood panels with differentiated-density polyurethane padding for comfort, while remaining fully disassemble so it can be recycled properly.
East Meets West: Lian by HC28 (Yabu Pushelberg)
A sign of the times. In September 2025, Chinese brand HC28, one of the more progressive names in contemporary furniture, presented new pieces created with an international roster of designers. Canadian studio Yabu Pushelberg designed the Lian collection: a generously proportioned modular sofa with endless configurations, plus lacquered wooden tables with similarly flexible layouts.
It’s contemporary and confident, mixing Western design language with an Eastern sensibility in how it handles proportion, comfort, and presence.
A Soft Hug: Bread and Butter by Tacchini (Faye Toogood)
British designer Faye Toogood, named Designer of the Year at Maison & Objet in Paris in 2024, is known for objects that feel like future classics the moment you see them. For Tacchini, she created Bread and Butter, an upholstered system inspired, quite literally, by its name.
The Butter sofa recalls a melting block of butter. The bread tables look like sliced loaf forms. The idea could be silly, but the execution is smart: generous, soft padding wraps block-like structures that can be moved and reconfigured, paired with ash wood tables stained and inlaid with maple. Comfort-first, but with a proper perspective.
The Cinematic Limited Edition: Roche Bobois’ Lounge x Almodóvar
A sofa with film-star energy. The Lounge by Hans Hopfer for Roche Bobois, famous for its presence on screen over the years, returns in a special edition: 50 numbered and signed pieces.
Upholstered in textiles from the El Deseo collection, created by Pedro Almodóvar for the French house and inspired by his film posters. The Lounge Pedro Almodóvar El Deseo version is built from nine quilted fabric elements sitting on white lacquered platforms. It’s collectible, colorful, and unapologetically theatrical.
The 70s Icon that Still Feels Current: Togo by Ligne Roset (Michel Ducaroy, 1973)
Another 70s legend that refuses to date: Togo, designed in 1973 by Michel Ducaroy for Ligne Roset. It’s the classic deconstructed sofa, built without a rigid frame and made entirely from polyurethane foam in three different densities.
The cover is quilted with substantial polyester wadding support, giving it that slouchy, inviting shape. Some versions are removable-cover, although Ligne Roset recommends going through the company for full stripping and reupholstery. It remains one of the most contemporary-looking pieces from the decade, which is exactly why it’s never really left.
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Last Updated on May 28, 2026 by Editorial Team