There’s something of an art about designing an accent chair just right. It needs to make a statement and have a distinct character of its own, but also be comfortable and pleasant to sit on for longer stretches of time. You don’t want it to be too matchy matchy with the rest of your furniture, but equally it needs to be versatile enough that it makes sense in the overall design scheme. All in all, not the easiest pieces of furniture to find.
However, at this year’s Milan Design Week I was pleasantly surprised to find numerous accent chairs that tick all the boxes. As we’re currently celebrating the best of Italian design with our Italian Issue for Spring 24, it was pure joy to see so many iterations of this staple piece at Salone del Mobile, and I struggled to pick favorites (even after sitting in most of them to check they truly were as comfortable as they looked – verdict: yes, they are!). Here are eight of the most exciting accent chairs I saw and loved.
