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.
Joe Colombo 'Multichair' in Orange 'Sprinkles Kvadrat' for B-Line
By Joe Colombo
Located in Tilburg, NL
Joe Colombo 'Multichair' in orange 'Sprinkles Kvadrat' for B-Line Multichair is a convertible system consisting of two individual elements that can easily turn into a conversation/r...
Fabric
$3,743 / item
Joe Colombo 'Multichair' in Red for B-Line
By Joe Colombo
Located in Tilburg, NL
Joe Colombo 'Multichair' designed 1970 in Red for B-Line Multichair is a convertible system consisting of two individual elements that can easily turn into a conversation/relaxation...
Fabric
$3,743 / item
Joe Colombo 'Multichair' in Black for B-Line
By Joe Colombo
Located in Tilburg, NL
Joe Colombo 'Multichair' designed in 1970 in black for B-Line Multichair is a convertible system consisting of two individual elements that can easily turn into a conversation/relax...
Fabric
$14,600
H 36.82 in W 39.77 in D 37.01 in
Joe Colombo for Comfort Lounge Chair 'Elda' in Black Leather and Fiberglass
By Comfort, Italy, Joe Colombo
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Joe Colombo for Comfort, lounge chair ‘Elda’, fiberglass, leather, Italy, 1963 The ‘Elda’ chair is one of the most well-known designs of Italian designer Joe Colombo. This lounge ch...
Leather, Fiberglass
$18,400
H 35.83 in W 37.41 in D 37.8 in
Joe Colombo 'Elda' Swivel Lounge Chair in Black Leather and Fiberglass
By Joe Colombo, Comfort Design Furniture
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Joe Colombo for Comfort, lounge chair ‘Elda’, fiberglass, leather, Italy, design 1963 The ‘Elda’ chair is one of Italian designer Joe Colombo’s best-known designs. This particular b...
Leather, Fiberglass
Kartell Joe Colombo Chair in Crystal by Joe Colombo
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A true symbol of Sixties design, famous also for being the only piece by Kartell made entirely of wood. Contemporary technology has made it possible to create the same product using ...
Plastic
Joe Colombo Elda swivel chair in original condition.
By Joe Colombo
Located in Greensboro, NC
Iconic swiveling "Elda Chair" by Italian designer Joe Colombo. This chair was designed in 1963, and put into production in 1965. Our chair is an early production in original condit...
Leather, Fiberglass
Elda Lounge Chair by Joe Colombo for Comfort, Italy 1960s
By Comfort, Italy, Joe Colombo
Located in bruxelles, BE
Swivel armchair in beige canvas and black shell by Joe Colombo. Elda model. Seat height 40 cm. Wear due to time and age of armchair. FOR SHIPPING, REQUEST US FOR RECEIVE THE BEST PRICE
Fiberglass, Canvas
$17,450
H 36.42 in W 37.21 in D 38.39 in
Joe Colombo for Comfort 'Elda' Lounge Chair in Red Leather and Fiberglass
By Comfort, Italy, Joe Colombo
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Joe Colombo for Comfort, lounge chair ‘Elda’, fiberglass, leather, Italy, design 1963 The ‘Elda’ chair is one of the most well-known designs of Italian designer Joe Colombo. This lo...
Leather, Fiberglass
$11,373
H 36.62 in W 38.98 in D 36.62 in
Italian Design Classic Elda Lounge Chair by Joe Colombo, 1970s Italy
By Comfort, Italy, Joe Colombo
Located in Renens, CH
The Elda Chair by Joe Colombo (1963) is a post-war design masterpiece: The design is still today considered futuristic, with its moulded fiberglass shell and swivelling base, offer...
Leather, Fiberglass
$15,500
H 37 in W 39 in D 35 in
Vintage Joe Colombo Elda Chair, Comfort Fratelli Longhi, Black Leather
By Joe Colombo, Comfort, Italy
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Original Elda Chair, designed by Joe Colombo and manufactured by Comfort Fratelli Longhi. The Elda Chair’s futuristic design reflects Colombo’s interest in space exploration and mode...
Leather, Fiberglass
$11,948Sale Price|5% Off
H 36.62 in W 37.41 in D 36.23 in
Vintage iconic Joe Colombo Elda armchair, Italian Space Age 1960s, Black Leather
By Comfort, Italy, Joe Colombo
Located in Milano, IT
Iconic Armchair , Vintage Italian Armchair , Joe Colombo , Elda It’s 1963, Space Age is at its dawn, and Italian architect Joe Colombo designs a piece that will define the aestheti...
Leather, Fiberglass
$5,950 / item
H 23.23 in W 27.56 in D 25.99 in
Joe Colombo Chair No. 4801, Black Plywood, Kartell, Italy, 1960s, One of Two
By Kartell, Joe Colombo
Located in Hausmannstätten, AT
One of two "interlocking" lounge chairs designed by Joe Colombo for Kartell, Italy, manufactured in midcentury. Joe Colombo's iconic 4801 armchair was designed in 1963-1964. A modern chair with striking visual appeal by the master of Italian Space Age design. A limited number of wood 4801 chairs...
Plywood
$11,900 / set
H 23.23 in W 27.56 in D 25.99 in
Pair of Joe Colombo Chairs No. 4801, Black Plywood Wood, Kartell, Italy, 1960s
By Kartell, Joe Colombo
Located in Hausmannstätten, AT
A pair of "interlocking" lounge chairs by Joe Colombo for Kartell, Italy, manufactured in Mid-Century, circa 1963. Joe Colombo's iconic 4801 armchair was designed in 1963/1964. A mod...
Plywood, Wood, Bentwood
$11,201 / set
H 27.56 in W 27.96 in D 29.93 in L 27.56 in
Pair of Nastro Lounge Chairs by Joe Colombo for Bonacina 1889, Re-edition
By Joe Colombo, Bonacina 1889
Located in Hellouw, NL
Few designers captured the optimism of post-war Italian design quite like Joe Colombo. Known for his forward-looking vision and unconventional approach to furniture and interiors, Co...
Rattan
$12,041
H 36.62 in W 37.41 in D 38.59 in
Joe Colombo 'Elda' Lounge Chair, White Leather and Fibreglass, by Comfort, Italy
By Joe Colombo, Comfort, Italy
Located in Wargrave, Berkshire
Joe Colombo ‘Elda’ Lounge Chair, Black Leather and White Fibreglass Shell, Produced by Comfort, Italy. 93cm high, 95cm wide, 98cm deep. The Elda Chair was designed by Joe Colombo in...
Leather, Fiberglass
$10,914
H 37.41 in W 36.62 in D 36.62 in
Vintage Elda Chair in Grey Leather and Black Shell by Joe Colombo, Italy
By Joe Colombo
Located in Buggenhout, Oost-Vlaanderen
Stylish color combination on this vintage Elda chair. Still 100% original. Great patinated grey leather with a black fiberglass shell. This iconic “Elda” armchair was designed...
Leather
Kartell Joe Colombo Chair in Crystal by Joe Colombo
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A true symbol of Sixties design, famous also for being the only piece by Kartell made entirely of wood. Contemporary technology has made it possible to create the same product usin...
Plastic
Multi Chair by Joe Colombo, B-Line Production
By Joe Colombo, B-Line
Located in Athens, Attiki
Joe Colombo’s transformable Multichair proposes a new conceptual approach to the genre of seating furniture. It is composed of two pillows covered in stretch fabric and held together...
Metal