Every year, the AZ Awards trophy takes a distinctive new form. From a Murano glass sculpture by Luca Nichetto to a Carrara marble study by Michael Anastassiades and a serene wooden orb by Marie-Christine Dorner, each edition of the annual awards has boasted a singular design. In 2025, however, our annual program revealed arguably its most audacious trophy yet. Cut from columns of inflated stainless steel, the two elegantly contoured volumes — artfully representing an A and a Z — are polished to perfection and finished with the AZURE logo. To discerning eyes, it’s instantly recognizable as the work of acclaimed Polish designer Oskar Zięta.
The multihyphenate founder of Wrocław-based Zieta Studio stands at the fluid intersections of art, design, technology and nature. Building on a fascination with constructivism honed at ETH Zurich, Zięta has continuously innovated the use of a fabrication technique known as “free inner pressure forming,” or FiDU. Flat sheets of metal are first carefully edge welded together, then pressurized air is pumped into the volume, creating an inflated three-dimensional form. Inspired by the biological process of a dragonfly’s wings — which pump body fluid into narrow channels of the wing tissues — the result is a sort of metal balloon. At once rigorously scientific and surprisingly poetic, the movement of air shapes the design through a process that Zięta describes as a “volumetric expansion” and a “controlled loss of control.”
The outcomes are striking. Over the past 20 years, Zięta’s eponymous studio has evolved into a global presence. It started with the Plopp stool, an early icon that established the designer’s commitment to sustainability through mono-material design. Now available in various sizes and colourways, the stainless- steel form leverages FiDU production to create an exceptionally durable yet lightweight seat. While the unique forming process lends each piece a varied and individual presence, the FiDU system also maximizes material efficiency, and the rigorous use of stainless steel allows for closed-loop recycling.
The same principles define the whole of Zieta Studio’s eclectic and evolving portfolio, which spans from seating and furniture to lighting, mirrors, wall decor and public sculptures. Through ongoing refinement of the FiDU process, Zięta continues to push boundaries, and designs like the Ultraleggera chair — which reinterprets a seminal 1957 Gio Ponti work in ultralight steel — have quickly become contemporary classics. It’s a métier shaped by a rare blend of rationalist minimalism and bold expression. As Zięta puts it, “We give our objects a utilitarian dimension and still allow them to be art, a manifesto of our fascination with the material.”
Lead image: Blade lamp, Chippensteel chair and Parova table. This content was published by Azure on behalf of Zieta Studio.
Zieta Studio Blows Everything into Proportion
Polish designer Oskar Zięta imbues the science of sustainable metallurgy with poetic grace and eye-catching flair.