Ettore Sottsass Furniture

An architect, industrial designer, philosopher and provocateur, Ettore Sottsass led a revolution in the aesthetics and technology of modern design in the late 20th century.
Sottsass was the oldest member of the Memphis Group — a design collective, formed in Milan in 1980, whose irreverent, spirited members included Alessandro Mendini, Michele de Lucchi, Michael Graves and Shiro Kuramata. All had grown disillusioned by the staid, black-and-brown “corporatized” modernism that had become endemic in the 1970s. Memphis (the name stemmed from the title of a Bob Dylan song) countered with bold, brash, colorful, yet quirkily minimal designs for furniture, glassware, ceramics and metalwork. They mocked high-status by building furniture with inexpensive materials such as plastic laminates, decorated to resemble exotic finishes such as animal skins. Their work was both functional and — as intended — shocking. Even as it preceded the Memphis Group's formal launch, Sottsass's iconic Ultrafragola mirror — in its conspicuously curved plastic shell and radical pops of pink neon — embodies many of the collective's postmodern ideals.
Sottsass's most-recognized designs appeared in the first Memphis collection, issued in 1981 — notably the multihued, angular Carlton room divider and Casablanca bookcase. As pieces on 1stDibs demonstrate, however, Sottsass is at his most imaginative and expressive in smaller, secondary furnishings such as lamps and chandeliers, and in table pieces and glassware that have playful and sculptural qualities.
It was as an artist that Ettore Sottsass was celebrated in his life, in exhibitions at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, in 2006, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art a year later. Even then Sottsass’s work prompted critical debate. And for a man whose greatest pleasure was in astonishing, delighting and ruffling feathers, perhaps there was no greater accolade. That the work remains so revolutionary and bold — that it breaks with convention so sharply it will never be considered mainstream — is a testament to his genius.
1990s Italian Post-Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Burl, Lacquer
1990s Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
Early 2000s Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Glass
2010s Italian Post-Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Italian Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
1990s Italian Post-Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Laminate, Wood
2010s Italian Post-Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Metal
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
1980s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Laminate
Late 20th Century Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Porcelain
1980s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Steel
1990s European Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Brass, Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Porcelain
Early 2000s Italian Post-Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
1980s Italian Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Marble
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Glass
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Oak
2010s Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Metal
Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Glass, Mirror
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Metal
1980s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Plastic, Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Aluminum, Steel
1970s Italian Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Aluminum
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Mirror
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Plastic
Early 2000s Italian Post-Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Plywood
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Plastic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Metal
2010s Italian Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Metal, Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Plastic
1980s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Blown Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Metal
1990s Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Murano Glass
1970s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Metal, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Mirror, Plastic
1980s Italian Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Aluminum
1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Satinwood
1990s Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Murano Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Ceramic
2010s Italian Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Enamel
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Ettore Sottsass Furniture
Glass
Ettore Sottsass furniture for sale on 1stDibs
More Ettore Sottsass Inspiration
Interiors Featuring Ettore Sottsass
From the Magazine
We Dare You Not to Smile at These Whimsical Italian Designs
Creators Similar to Ettore Sottsass
- Where is Ettore Sottsass from?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertApril 5, 2022Ettore Sottsass was from Innsbruck, Austria. He was born there on September 14, 1917, but he moved to Turin, Italy, as a child. The Italian architect and designer died in Milan, Italy, on December 31, 2007. You'll find a variety of Ettore Sottsass furniture and decorative objects on 1stDibs.