Milestones of their age
The year is 1964. In the pretty town of Nagold in Germany's Black Forest, a professional upholsterer named Rolf Benz, inspired by the atmosphere of change in the air at this time, sets to work revolutionising the furniture market. The young entrepreneur scores a coup with his very first sofa and armchair range, "Addiform". The seat elements are completely modular and break with the traditional arrangement of seating furniture. Addiform is fully in keeping with the zeitgeist and goes down as a design icon in the annals of furniture history. And the success story of the Rolf Benz brand begins.
AWARD-WINNING DESIGN
Half a century on from Addiform, in the company's anniversary year of 2014, it presented the Rolf Benz 50 sofa at the International Furniture Fair in Milan: the piece is a successful further development of, and homage to, the classic Addiform. Visually speaking, Rolf Benz 50 draws on its legendary forebear. Yet with 50 years of research and experience under the company's belt, the new sofa stands out thanks to the luxurious comfort it offers when sitting, and to the innovative details of its finish, such as pleated quilt seams and extravagant felled seams. It also features a relaxation function, with an adjustable backrest angle up to 23 degrees thanks to a gas-pressured spring system. Rolf Benz 50 is available as a single, sectional or corner sofa. Flexibility is also the name of the game when it comes to covers: you can choose from over 200 fabrics and 100 types of leather. One year on from the première, it's clear – Rolf Benz 50 is itself set to become a classic. The sofa has now become an international best-seller.
Yet the name "Rolf Benz 50" stands for more than just a follow-up model of the Addiform: it's a complete living space, which includes not only the sofa but also an armchair of the same name; the Rolf Benz 955, 956 and 958 couch tables; the Rolf Benz GRANO carpet; and the Rolf Benz 950 floor cushion. These perfectly matched individual pieces come together to form an ensemble which takes the atmosphere of change from or company's early years and transfers it to the present era. The Rolf Benz 50 living space is thus not only the celebration of an anniversary, but also a new milestone. The Danish photographer Heidi Lerkenfeldt, one of the leading interior photographers, has shot the Rolf Benz 50 living space in style in Ibiza. She has created images which impressively showcase the special spirit inherent in this furniture.
And by the way: the Rolf Benz 50 sofa was nominated for the German Design Award 2015 and won the 2015 interior innovation award. 50 years ago, the winner would most likely have been the Addiform.