In this Design Dreams video produced by Dezeen for Moooi, Italian designer Cristina Celestino explains how her Aldora sofa, which was launched today at Milan design week, combines aesthetics and ergonomics.

Aldora is a two-seater sofa with a tall backrest that emerges from the base in the shape of two wings. Celestino, who established her own studio in Milan in 2013, explained that she referenced the natural world when designing the sofa in the exclusive video interview.

"Aldora is a Greek name that means 'winged gift,'" she said. "The design is focussed on the back."

"I often find inspiration in natural things. Each product has a narrative behind it, there's a story behind it," she continued.

"The two big wings refer to the botanic world. You can see the wings of a butterfly or the petals of a flower."

Celestino approached the design with both comfort and extravagant aesthetics in mind.

"The big challenge was to keep the aesthetic of the sofa and to work on the comfort on the ergonomic aspect of the sofa," she said. "It's a sculptural sofa with a comfortable attitude."

Describing her process to Dezeen, Celestino explained the way in which she draws inspiration from her home city as well as nature when working.

"Design is my main tool to investigate the world around me," she stated. "I live here in Milan, where I started to work as an architect, but I also cultivated design as my passion, in a free way, with a free approach."

"Milan has a sort of silent beauty. I often take long walks around to discover this hidden beauty."

The sofa is upholstered in a new soft velvet fabric by Moooi called 'Palette'.

"Aldora was born out of a reflection on the theme of upholstery," said Celestino. "It has, I think, a bourgeois attitude, it adds something emotional. I think it's a perfect sofa."

The Aldora sofa launched today as part of Moooi's A Life Extraordinary exhibition at Milan design week. You can register to visit the show on Moooi's website. The sofa can also be viewed as part of an online version of Moooi's Milan showcase.

Dezeen's Design Dreams video series has profiled a number of the designers who have created products for Moooi, including Simone Bonanni, Kranen/Gille and Joep van Lieshout.

Milan design week 2022 takes place from 6-12 June 2022. See our Milan design week 2022 guide on Dezeen Events Guide for information about the many other exhibitions, installations and talks taking place throughout the week.

Partnership content

This video was produced by Dezeen for Moooi as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen's partnership content here.