He died tragically young, and his career as a designer lasted little more than 10 years. But through the 1960s, Joe Colombo proved himself one of the field’s most provocative and original thinkers, and he produced a remarkably large array of innovative chairs, table lamps and other lighting and furniture as well as product designs. Even today, the creations of Joe Colombo have the power to surprise.
Cesare “Joe” Colombo was born in Milan, the son of an electrical-components manufacturer. He was a creative child — he loved to build huge structures from Meccano pieces — and in college he studied painting and sculpture before switching to architecture.
In the early 1950s, Colombo made and exhibited paintings and sculptures as part of an art movement that responded to the new Nuclear Age, and futuristic thinking would inform his entire career. He took up design not long after his father fell ill in 1958, and he and his brother, Gianni, were called upon to run the family company.
Colombo expanded the business to include the making of plastics — a primary material in almost all his later designs. One of his first, made in collaboration with his brother, was the Acrilica table lamp (1962), composed of a wave-shaped piece of clear acrylic resin that diffused light cast by a bulb concealed in the lamp’s metal base. A year later, Colombo produced his best-known furniture design, the Elda armchair (1963): a modernist wingback chair with a womb-like plastic frame upholstered in thick leather pads.
Portability and adaptability were keynotes of many Colombo designs, made for a more mobile society in which people would take their living environments with them. One of his most striking pieces is the Tube chair (1969). It comprises four foam-padded plastic cylinders that fit inside one another. The components, which are held together by metal clips, can be configured in a variety of seating shapes (his Additional Living System seating is similarly versatile).
Vintage Tube chairs generally sell for about $9,000 in good condition; Elda chairs for about $7,000. A small Colombo design such as the plastic Boby trolley — an office organizer on wheels, designed in 1970 — is priced in the range of $700.
As Colombo intended, his designs are best suited to a modern decor. If your tastes run to sleek, glossy Space Age looks, the work of Joe Colombo offers you a myriad of choices.
Find vintage Joe Colombo lamps, seating and other furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
Set of 6 Joe Colombo "Smoke" Glasses for Riedel, 1964 (With Original Labels)
By Joe Colombo
Located in Vienna, AT
This exceptional set of six "Smoke" glasses was designed in 1964 by the visionary Italian architect Joe Colombo and produced by the prestigious Austrian manufacturer Riedel. A master...
Glass
Set of 6 Joe Colombo "Smoke" Glasses small, Riedel, 1964 (With Original Labels)
By Joe Colombo
Located in Vienna, AT
This exceptional set of six "Smoke" glasses was designed in 1964 by the visionary Italian architect Joe Colombo and produced by the prestigious Austrian manufacturer Riedel. A master...
Glass
5-in-1 Drinking Glass Set by Joe Colombo, Mouth-Blown Crystal, Italy
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
5-in-1 Drinking Glass set by Joe Colombo, 1970 Italian industrial designer Joe Colombo pursued a career in painting and sculpture before he transiti...
Crystal
Set of Six Joe Colombo 'Sferico' Glass Tableware by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Glass tableware designed by Joe Colombo in 1968. Joe Colombo believed in democratic and functional design. In his lifetime he designed a wide ran...
Glass
Complete Set of Thirty-Six Joe Colombo 'Sferico' Glass Tableware by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Glass tableware designed by Joe Colombo in 1968. Joe Colombo believed in democratic and functional design. In his lifetime he designed a wide range of different drinking glasses....
Glass
6 Glasses Cognac Smoke Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio
By Arnolfo di Cambio, Joe Colombo
Located in Milano, IT
6 Glasses Cognac Smoke Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio
Glass
6 Bicchieri Smoke Joe Colombo per Arnolfo di Cambio altezza 14 cm.
By Arnolfo di Cambio, Joe Colombo
Located in Milano, IT
6 Bicchieri Smoke Joe Colombo per Arnolfo di Cambio
Glass
Red 4630 Roto Ashtray by Joe Colombo for Kartell
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Originally designed in 1970 and produced by Kartell in 1973 two years after designer Joe Colombo's death, the Kartell 4630 Roto/Rotocenere ashtray is Colombo at his finest. Red plast...
Plastic
Set of Six Joe Colombo 'Sferico' Glass Tableware by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Glass tableware designed by Joe Colombo in 1968. Joe Colombo believed in democratic and functional design. In his lifetime he designed a wide range of different drinking glasses. S...
Glass
Set of Six Joe Colombo 'Sferico' Glass Tableware by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Glass tableware designed by Joe Colombo in 1968. Joe Colombo believed in democratic and functional design. In his lifetime he designed a wide range of different drinking glasses. S...
Glass
Set of Six Joe Colombo 'Sferico' Glass Tableware by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Glass tableware designed by Joe Colombo in 1968. Joe Colombo believed in democratic and functional design. In his lifetime he designed a wide range of different drinking glasses....
Glass
6 Bicchieri Smoke Joe Colombo per Arnolfo di Cambio altezza 12 cm.
By Arnolfo di Cambio, Joe Colombo
Located in Milano, IT
6 Bicchieri Smoke Joe Colombo per Arnolfo di Cambio
Glass
Italian modern smoke glasses by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1960s
By Arnolfo di Cambio, Joe Colombo
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian modern smoke glasses by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1960s Dinnerware of four set consisting of three smoke glasses with different heights, all made of glass. The cylin...
Glass
Italian modern smoke glass by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1960s
By Joe Colombo, Arnolfo di Cambio
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian modern smoke glass by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1960s Smoke glass all made of glass. The cylindrical bowl is made of transparent glass, while the side stem and round...
Glass
Blue Ashtray "Biglia" Design Joe Colombo for Arnoldo Di Cambio, 1970s
By Arnolfo di Cambio, Joe Colombo
Located in taranto, IT
"biglia" ashtray produced by Arnolfo di Cambio to a design by Joe Colombo, 1970s It measures 10 cm in diameter by 7.5 cm in height, in perfect storage conditions exactly the on...
Glass
White 4630 Roto Ashtray by Joe Colombo for Kartell
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Originally designed in 1970 and produced by Kartell in 1973 two years after designer Joe Colombo's death, the Kartell 4630 Roto/Rotocenere ashtray is Colombo at his finest. White pla...
Plastic
Italian modern smoke glass by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1960s
By Arnolfo di Cambio, Joe Colombo
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian modern smoke glass by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1960s Smoke glass all made of glass. The cylindrical bowl is made of transparent glass, while the side stem and round...
Glass
Italian modern smoke glass by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1960s
By Joe Colombo, Arnolfo di Cambio
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian modern smoke glass by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1960s Smoke glass all made of glass. The cylindrical bowl is made of transparent glass, while the side stem and round...
Glass
Vintage Ashtray by Joe Colombo, 1970s
By Joe Colombo
Located in Bastia Umbra, IT
Vintage ashtray by Joe Colombo, Made in Italy, 1970s. Ashtrays / Empties by Joe Colombo for Stilnovo. Gray and chocolate brown color. Design object suitable for furnishing study/m...
Plastic
Italian Modern Bowl Ashtray Biglia by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1970s
By Arnolfo di Cambio, Joe Colombo
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian modern Bowl Ashtray Biglia by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1970s Ashtray mod. Biglia in violet-blue alexandrite. The semi-round shaped bowl features thick glass. Prod...
Glass
$650 / set
H 4.5 in Dm 3.63 in
Set 12 Blown Bubble Glass Mid-Century Modern Drinking Glasses Glassware, Italy
Located in Miami, FL
Set of 12 Mid-Century Modern heavy blown bubble glass drinking glasses, glassware, stemware made in Italy. In excellent condition. A-976-335
Blown Glass
$200 / set
H 7.09 in Dm 3.15 in
Lilì and Lulù Oil and Vinegar Set in Mouth Blown Glass by Matteo Cibic
By Matteo Cibic
Located in Milan, IT
Lilì and Lulù make up a set of oil and vinegar dispensers, this couple of characters is made in mouth blown glass with a grooved finishing. Lilì and ...
Blown Glass
$1,553 / set
H 3.94 in Dm 3.55 in
Black Forest Set of Six Glass Tumbler Amber Sofina Boutique Kitzbuehel
By Sofina Boutique Kitzbühel
Located in Kitzbühel, Tirol
Set of six handblown amber crystal tumblers with hand-edged hunting scene in the style of Black forest. The decor is an antique hunting scene dec...
Crystal
$170 / set
H 2.76 in Dm 3.55 in
Tipì and Tidò Salt and Pepper Shakers Set in Mouth Blown Glass by Matteo Cibic
By Matteo Cibic
Located in Milan, IT
Tipì and Tidò are two small creatures that make up a salt and pepper set, this product is made in mouth blown glass with a grooved finishing. Tipì and Tidò set is part of Table Joy, a collection designed by Matteo Cibic whose items are a family of bizarre creatures in glass, inspired by some otherworldly menagerie. Thanks to these sophisticated objects, the table becomes an animated stage of zoomorphic and joyful elements. Tipì and Tidò set is perfect if accompanied by Lilì and Lulù, an oil and vinegar dispensers...
Blown Glass
$1,553 / set
H 3.94 in Dm 3.55 in
Country Style Set of Six Glass Tumbler Skier Decor Sofina Boutique Kitzbuehel
By Sofina Boutique Kitzbühel
Located in Kitzbühel, Tirol
Set of six hand blown tumbler in blue crystal with a hand-edged skier decor. The country decor shows a skier boy, trees and mountains and a chalet...
Crystal
$468
H 12.21 in W 10.44 in D 5.52 in
Sergio Asti Silverplated and Glass Jug "Onde Series", Arnolfo di Cambio 1968
By Sergio Asti, Arnolfo di Cambio
Located in Firenze, IT
Exclusive Jug designed by Sergio Asti from the “Onde” series Manufactured by Arnolfo di Cambio, 1968 Silver-plated and glass. Cooling conteiner inside. H 31 cm - 26.5 x 1...
Silver Plate
$1,553 / set
H 3.94 in Dm 3.55 in
Black Forest Set of Six Glass Tumblers Red Sofina Boutique Kitzbuehel
By Sofina Boutique Kitzbühel
Located in Kitzbühel, Tirol
Set of six handblown red crystal tumblers with hand-edged hunting scene. The decor is an antique black forest hunting scene decor with deers, trees and bambis all around. Completely ...
Crystal
Set of six Baccarat crystal wine glasses - Hyeres model
By Baccarat
Located in GRENOBLE, FR
Set of six Baccarat glasses, pink overlay hand-cut crystal, Hyeres model. Antique glasses circa 1920, not signed. Hyeres is a very sophisticated cut pattern listed in 1916 tableware ...
Crystal
$376 / item
H 3.55 in Dm 3.94 in
Plume Set Of Four Wine Glass in Mouth Blown Glass Designed by Aldo Cibic
By Aldo Cibic
Located in Milan, IT
Wine glass in mouth blown glass. Plume is a handcrafted glassware collection designed by Aldo Cibic, in his style characterized by the love for it...
Blown Glass
$1,871 / set
H 0.4 in Dm 8.27 in
Country Set of Six Glass Plates Blue Skier Decor Sofina Boutique Kitzbühel
By Sofina Boutique Kitzbühel
Located in Kitzbühel, Tirol
Set of six plates in blue crystal with a skier decor all around. The charming country decor is hand.-engraved and shows sladder, skier, ice skater with t...
Glass
$1,553 / set
H 3.94 in Dm 3.55 in
Country Style Set of Six Glass Tumbler Fern Decor Sofina Kitzbuehel Kitzbühel
By Sofina Boutique Kitzbühel
Located in Kitzbühel, Tirol
Set of 6 hand blown tumblers in clear crystal with a country style fern decor hand-engraved all around. A matching carafe can be ordered in addition. Can be ordered in different colo...
Crystal
Calypso Flute Glasses / Amber + Smoke Grey
By Serena Confalonieri
Located in Milano, MI
Calypso collection investigates new ways of conviviality: fed by imaginary worlds, this tableware pieces make possible to dream of exotic and uncontaminated landscapes. Calypso synth...
Glass
Sold
H 3.54 in Dm 5.51 in
1960s Gorgeous "Biglia" in Crystal by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo Di Cambio. Made in
By Joe Colombo
Located in Milano, IT
1960s Astonishing green ashtray or catch-all By Flavio Poli for Seguso in Murano glass Sommerso Glass. The item is in excellent condition. Dimension: diameter 4,72 x 2,36 H inches d...
Murano Glass
Joe Colombo Asimmetrico Smoke Drinking Glass by Riedel, Austria, 1960s
By Joe Colombo, Riedel
Located in Vienna, AT
One (1) beautiful and fine sculptural midcentury drinking glass, designed by Joe Colombo in 1964 to hold the glass and a cigarette with the same hand. Made of handblown lead crystal ...
Crystal
Sold
H 5.91 in Dm 2.72 in
Set of 4 Joe Colombo glasses 'Smoke' 'Assimetrico' Riedel Austria 1960s original
By Joe Colombo, Riedel, Claus Josef Riedel
Located in Malmö, SE
A set of six cool original 1960s modernist drinking glasses. Designed by Joe Colombo in 1964 and made of handblown crystal glass by C.J. Riedel, Austria. Joe Colombo called them 'A...
Crystal
6 Smoke Joe Colombo glasses for Arnolfo di Cambio height 9 cm.
By Joe Colombo, Arnolfo di Cambio
Located in Milano, IT
6 Smoke Joe Colombo Glasses for Arnolfo di Cambio
Glass
Set di 6 bicchieri Old Fashion Smoke, Joe Colombo, anni '70
By Joe Colombo, Arnolfo di Cambio
Located in Rivoli, IT
The Smoke collection was born out of the original idea of a great Italian designer, a set of glasses designed to blend different pleasures in a single gesture. The asymmetrical foot...
Crystal
Joe Colombo Asimmetrico Smoke Drinking Glasses, 1960s By Riedel, Austria
By Joe Colombo, Riedel
Located in Vienna, AT
Two beautiful and fine sculptural midcentury drinking glasses, small size, to be used for liqueur or spirits. Designedby Joe Colombo in 1964 to hold the glass and a cigarette with th...
Crystal
Sold
H 3.55 in Dm 2.76 in
Blue/violet Glass "Smoke" by Joe Colombo per Arnolfo di Cambio, 1964, set of 12
By Joe Colombo, Arnolfo di Cambio
Located in Varese, Lombardia
Designed by Ignazia Favata e Joe Colombo in 1964. Produced by Arnolfo di Cambio, Forlì. its glass, blue or violet, presents a different color depending on whether it is exposed to li...
Glass
Rare Glass Coffee/Tea Set with Creamer Plate by Joe Colombo for Arno
By Joe Colombo, Arno Fassi
Located in San Diego, CA
Great set for 4 designed by Joe Colombo for Arno Italy. Great condition no chips or cracks. with a creamer
Glass
Rare Glass Coffee/Tea Set with Dessert Plate by Joe Colombo for Arno
By Joe Colombo, Arno Fassi
Located in San Diego, CA
Great set for 2 designed by Joe Colombo for Arno Italy. Great condition no chips or cracks.
Glass
Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio Smoke Set of Glasses, 1970s
By Joe Colombo, Arnolfo di Cambio
Located in Parma, IT
Rare set of six two-color glasses designed by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio 1960s. In hand blown and hand finished crystal and alexandrite crystal foot that changes color accord...
Glass
Sold
H 7.09 in W 2.37 in D 2.37 in
Set of Four Glasses and Ice bucket in Alexandrite Glass by Joe Colombo 1960s
By Joe Colombo
Located in Milano, MI
Set of 4 glasses with ice bucket in Alexandrite glass (variation in color from purple to light blue depending on the type of light exposed), made by Joe Colombo in the 1960s. The ...
Glass
Sold
H 2.37 in Dm 5.91 in
Italian Mid Century Glass Ashtray by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1969,
By Joe Colombo, Arnolfo di Cambio
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian Mid-Century Modern violet alexandrite glass ashtray by Joe Colombo for Arnolfo di Cambio, 1969. Alexandrite glass ashtray, with a rou...
Glass