The House Beautiful team pick a design classic we think you'll love forever - this time, the Ligne Roset Togo sofa.
Michel Ducaroy (1925-2009) who was born into a family of industrialists and furniture designers and later trained at Lyon's École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts.
The sofa was released in 1973, after Ducaroy introduced new materials and techniques into the brand's manufacturing process.
The Togo sofa's curved silhouette surprised visitors and left some of them feeling bemused when it was first revealed at a trade exhibition in Paris. Ligne Roset, though, felt it was on to a winner. The company was soon proved right when the sofa was awarded a prize for democratic design. In a further vote of confidence, Ligne Roset decided to schedule the release of the Togo to coincide with the opening of its first retail store.
Chiming with the times, the confident design of the sofa came at a moment when social attitudes were changing and consumers wanted a more relaxed approach in their homes and furniture. Traditional and austere was out, and the Togo was in. The rebellious spirit of the design ensures the sofa is the centrepiece of any room, and this sense of cool has endured through the decades.
With its cocooning curves, low-to-the-ground format and lightweight foam structure, the Togo is arguably one of the most comfortable sofas around. Dreamt up for 'afternoon siestas and lazy evenings', it's a joy to sit on. In its armless configuration, it is modular too. A corner seat can be added to create a bigger sofa and there is a matching ottoman.
While undoubtedly a statement, the sofa's unconventional shape takes on a versatility depending on the fabric that covers it - a saturated yellow velvet, for example, will create a much bolder piece of furniture than an elegant taupe leather. As each Togo is hand-upholstered in one of Ligne Roset's more than 900 house fabrics, you're pretty much spoilt for choice.
What makes a design icon?
For a piece to be truly iconic to the HB editors, it needs to:
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