Amanta Sofa 1960s sofa | Mario Bellini

As part of its commitment to breathing new life into iconic designs from the past, HAY is excited to present the Amanta Sofa – an iconic 1960s sofa by renowned Italian designer Mario Bellini.

First designed in 1966, the Amanta’s modular, low-slung silhouette was radical for its time. For Rolf Hay, co-founder of HAY, it embodies the essence of innovative mid-century Italian design. “After the great achievements of the 1950s and 60s, Danish and Scandinavian design entered a time of uncertainty,” he says. “In that period, Italian design stepped forward, offering new ideas, new energy and a fresh understanding of modern life. Mario Bellini was one of the figures who defined that shift.”

Born in Milan in 1935 and trained as an architect, Bellini blurred the lines between disciplines from the start of his career. For the Amanta, one of his early designs, he drew upon the structural logic of Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona Chair, creating a modular seating system defined by floating cushions and a seamless shell. Its impact was immediate and enduring. The design has even earned a place in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, cementing its status as a landmark in 20th-century design history.

Now, nearly 60 years later, HAY has reissued Bellini’s Amanta with subtle but significant updates. The original fiberglass shell has been replaced with 99% post-consumer recycled ABS plastic, while the cushions are crafted from 94% biobalanced foam. The entire sofa is designed for disassembly, enabling future upkeep and extending its lifespan, and is available as a single module or in 2, 3 or 4-seater variants. HAY’s version has also been refreshed with new shell colours and a variety of fabric and leather upholstery options.

The Amanta Sofa is particularly significant as it marks HAY’s first reissue of an Italian design – a reflection of how deeply the country’s design history has shaped the brand’s international outlook. “From the beginning, Mette and I insisted that HAY should be an international brand, not just Danish,” says Hay. “The Italian design of this period has had a huge impact on the way we look at design today.”