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. He was a wild man of the Radical Design movement that swept Italy in the late 1960s and ’70s, rejecting rationalism and modernism in favor of ever-more outrageous imaginings in lighting and furniture such as mirrors, lamps, chairs and tables.
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.
The Memphis Group 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 created innovative furnishings for the likes of Artemide, Knoll, Zanotta and Poltronova, where he reigned as artistic director for nearly two decades beginning in 1958. His 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 inspired and expressive in smaller, secondary furnishings such as lamps and chandeliers, and in table pieces and glassware that have playful and sculptural qualities.
Sottsass left the Memphis Group in 1985 in order to concentrate on the growth of Sottsass Associati, a design and architecture consultancy he cofounded in 1980.
It was as an artist that 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.
Find Ettore Sottsass lighting, decorative objects and furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
$1,600Sale Price / set|20% Off
Ettore Sottsass “Mandarin” Black Eco Leather Dining Chairs for Knoll, a Pair
By Knoll, Ettore Sottsass
Located in Miami, FL
Memphis Postmodern Mandarin chairs rendered in black lacquered steel frame with black Naugahyde cushioned seats designed by Ettore Sottsass for Knoll.
Steel
Teodora Chair by Ettore Sottsass, 1986
By Ettore Sottsass
Located in DE KWAKEL, NL
An iconic Teodora chair designed in 1986 by Ettore Sottsass. This striking piece represents a mature moment in Sottsass’ postmodern practice, where radical form, symbolism, and refin...
Laminate, Plexiglass, Wood
1986 Set of Four Knoll Mandarin Armless Dining Chairs by Ettore Sottsass
By Knoll, Ettore Sottsass
Located in Philadelphia, PA
This is a set of 4 Mandarin Chairs, designed by Ettore Sottsass and produced by Knoll in 1986. The listed price includes the set of 4. Their design features an upholstered seat & bac...
Steel
1970, Ettore Sottsass for Olivetti Synthesi in Brown Plastic
By Ettore Sottsass, Olivetti
Located in Amsterdam IJMuiden, NL
This chair is part of the private collection of Casey Godrie and is situated in his private house. Ask him for competitive shipping quotes. His incredible Dune Villa, Amsterdam Beac...
Metal
$4,111 / item
H 31.11 in W 33.86 in D 31.5 in
Post Modern Design by Ettore Sottsass for Knoll Set East Side Lounge Club Chairs
By Ettore Sottsass, Knoll
Located in Antwerp, BE
Post Modern Design Iconic 1980s lounge chairs featured with original soft leather upholstery in high quality of leather in the colors grey, black seat and aubergine red, designed by ...
Chrome
$5,899 / set
H 30.32 in W 22.05 in D 20.48 in
‘Strip’ Chairs with Armrests in Dark-Brown Ashwood by Gijs Bakker for Castelijn
By Castelijn, Gijs Bakker
Located in Voorburg, NL
Very rare set of ‘Strip’ dining chairs with armrests, designed in 1974 by Gijs Bakker for Castelijn in the Netherlands (marked). Only a limited amount of these chairs were made with ...
Wood
$3,200 / set
H 31.5 in W 18 in D 16 in
Kai Kristiansen Set of Four Dining Chairs in Teak for K.S. Mobler Denmark, 1960s
By Kai Kristiansen, Niels Otto Møller, K.S. Mobler
Located in Bridgeport, CT
Fantastic set of four dining chairs in teak with wool seats designed in the 1960s by Kai Kristiansen for K.S. Mobler of Denmark. The style of these Kai Kristiansen chairs is often mi...
Teak
6 Steel Gastone Rinaldi Dining Chairs for Rima, Italy, 1970
By RIMA, Gastone Rinaldi
Located in Chicago, IL
6 Steel Gastone Rinaldi Dining Chairs for Rima, Italy 1970. Original upholstery.
Steel
$2,967
H 33.47 in W 31.5 in D 31.5 in
East Side Lounge Chair by Ettore Sottsass for Knoll, Italy, 1980's
By Ettore Sottsass, Knoll
Located in Oud Beijerland, NL
Wonderful lounge chair with its original soft leather upholstery in great condition. This suburb lounge chair features gray lacquered steel feet with translucent plastic end pieces. ...
Metal
Pair of Jens Risom 666 Side Chairs for Knoll
By Knoll, Jens Risom
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Rare Jens Risom chairs made in the 1940s, model “666” of the 600 series from 1941.
Birch
Donald Knorr Chair for Knoll Associates, 1948
By Donald Knorr, Knoll
Located in BROOKLYN, NY
For your consideration to of six Knorr chairs. Comprised of sheet metal bolted to steel rod legs. This chair is exceptionally rare (a set of six in simply unheard of) Model #132 cha...
Metal
$2,979 / set
H 29.53 in W 23.63 in D 19.69 in
1970s Borge Mogensen Set of Six Model 3241 Dining Chairs in Oak
By Frederecia Furniture, Børge Mogensen
Located in Knebel, DK
Set of six model 3241 dining chairs in oak designed in 1968 by Børge Mogensen for Frederecia Stolefabrik. The chairs and upholstery are in very good condition.
Oak
$2,240Sale Price / set|20% Off
H 30.25 in W 21 in D 20.5 in
Set of 6 Harry Bertoia for Knoll International Black Wire Dining Chairs, 1970s
By Knoll, Harry Bertoia
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This set of six wire dining chairs, designed by Harry Bertoia for Knoll, represents one of the most iconic and enduring designs of mid-century modern furniture. Introduced in the ear...
Metal
$12,000
H 35 in W 20.5 in D 21 in
T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Saridis Klismos Chairs in Walnut with Leather Thongs
By T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Saridis
Located in St. Louis, MO
Single T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings Klismos chair for Saridis of Athens, Greece in Greek walnut and leather woven seats. This chair was part of the collection he designed for Saridis of Athens in 1961, inspired by the drawings he saw on ancient Greek vases. The Klismos chairs features a graceful curving back and sable curved legs. The woven seat is made of leather straps / thongs which are tight around the walnut frame. The design beholds Robsjohn-Gibbings’ philosophy of furniture design that is independent of time. Manufacturer's metal label DESIGNED BY T.H.ROBSJOHN-GIBBINGS / Manufactured by saridis of athens. Serial # 9544 &. Please note that the item has been lightly restored by restoration atelier. Some signs of age and use are still visible. This chair model is notably documented on the cover of "Furniture of Classical Greece," written by Robsjohn-Gibbings and Carlton W. Pullin in 1963. We love what Pilar Viladas said about this iconic design in the New York Times in 2010: "T. H. Robsjohn-Gibbings’s Klismos chair looks ancient and modern at the same time — because it is. Based on ancient Greek models, which had been widely copied in the 18th and 19th century, Robsjohn-Gibbings’s version made the klismos shape famous again in the 20th century. Obsessed with its elegant lines, he designed versions of the chair throughout his career, but the most recent examples have been made by Saridis in Athens since the early 1960s, when the designer met the company’s owners and settled in the Greek capital. Its simple but opulent curves hint at sleek penthouses with butlers who serve cocktails on the terrace at sunset. (Indeed, Robsjohn-Gibbings’s Saridis...
Leather, Walnut
$828
H 32.29 in W 23.63 in D 23.63 in
Italian modern steel & leather office chairs by Ettore Sottsass, Poltronova 1970
By Ettore Sottsass
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Armchair or office chairs with armrests and aluminum structure. The seat and backrest are swivel, padded and covered in brown leather and furthermore, the seat of the chair is heigh...
Leather
Set of Four Chrome Dining Chairs by Bertoia for Knoll
By Knoll, Harry Bertoia
Located in New York, NY
Set of matching Bertoia side, or dining, chairs in chrome with original white pad seat covers. This nice set is in very fine, original, clean and ready to use condition, the only cav...
Chrome
Ettore Sottsass "Mandarin" Chair
By Ettore Sottsass
Located in Long Island City, NY
Ettore Sottsass "Mandarin" chair Ettore for Knoll Studio designed in 1986.This chair features a steel frame and legs cylindrical wooden arms.
Steel
Pair of 1980s Ettore Sottsass Mandarin Side Chairs for Knoll
By Knoll, Ettore Sottsass
Located in Lafayette, IN
This awesome pair of of Manadarin side chairs is were designed by Ettore Sottsass for Knoll, chairs feature curvaceous tubular steel arms finished in gloss black, matte-black straigh...
Steel