Tulu Side Chair

The Tulu side chair is a stack­able sled-base chair designed in 1968 by Kazuhide Taka­hama on commis­sion from Dino Gavina’s Simon company, which was acquired by Cassina in 2013. The Tulu chair offers an early example where, rather than bending a metal tube to make the frame, a thin rod was elec­tric induc­tion-welded before being given a chrome finish. This inno­va­tion made tighter curves possi­ble, while leading to the use of multi­ple welding heads, enabling a piece to be made in one single process. 

When Simon Inter­na­tional became part of the Cassina universe, the Tulu’s manu­fac­tur­ing process was revis­ited and stream­lined further. The seat and back have now been rein­forced by the addi­tion of elastic straps, while the padded cover was given a zip fasten­ing, so it can be removed for cleaning.