Entrepreneur Aurelio Zanotta founded Zanotta in 1954 in Nova Milanese, Italy. Originally called Zanotta Poltrona, it specialized in traditional furniture. By the early 1960s, however, Zanotta had established a reputation for edgy mid-century modern design. Today’s vintage furniture collectors know the brand well for its innovative and wholly sculptural chairs, coffee tables and more.
One of Zanotta’s earliest successes was the Mezzadro stool — better known as the Tractor stool — designed by Pier Giacomo Castiglioni and his brother Achille in the late 1950s. In 1965, Zanotta was among the first furniture companies to work with expanded polyurethane foam and frameless construction, such as for the Throw-Away sofas and armchairs designed by Willie Landels. Another popular design was the Blow chair — designed by Jonathan De Pas, Donato D’Urbino, Paolo Lomazzi and Carla Scolari — viewed by many as a physical expression of late '60s carefree culture.
In 1969, amid the provocative movement we now call Italian Radical Design, Zanotta’s Sacco chair garnered major attention. The boundary-pushing beanbag chair was the brainchild of designers Piero Gatti, Cesare Paolini and Franco Teodoro who presented it to Aurelio Zanotta as a transparent vinyl sack loosely filled with small polystyrene balls. He suggested its signature brightly colored leather.
The Sacco chair won the 1970 ADI Design Museum’s Compasso d’Oro award. In 1972, the Museum of Modern Art in New York included it in the landmark exhibition “Italy: The New Domestic Landscape” curated by designer Emilio Ambasz. In 2020, it received a Compasso d’Oro ADI Lifetime Achievement Award for 50 years of enduring popularity. It is now in museum collections around the world including the Triennale Design Museum of Milan, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, and London’s Victoria & Albert Museum.
After Aurelio Zanotta died in 1991, the company remained in his family and has been run by his three children since 2002. Zanotta continues to set the bar high for furniture design with trend-setting pieces.
On 1stDibs, find a collection of vintage Zanotta seating, tables and other furniture.
$4,892 / item
Zanotta Joy Roating Shelf by Achille Castiglioni
By Zanotta
Located in New York, NY
Five or seven shelves. Rotating shelf bookcase. Uprights and shelves in medium density fiberboard with internal steel corner reinforcing, finished with scratch resistant embossing in...
Steel
$7,202 / item
Zanotta Joy Roating Shelf by Achille Castiglioni
By Zanotta
Located in New York, NY
Five or seven shelves. Rotating shelf bookcase. Uprights and shelves in medium density fiberboard with internal steel corner reinforcing, finished with scratch resistant embossing in...
Steel
Hanging Shelf by Pierre Cruége
By Rene Gabriel
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Solid oak bookcase designed by Pierre Cruége Located in NY. Original condition.
Oak
Grow Shelf
By Durame
Located in Milan, IT
This striking TOTEM can be used to display objects and books and features the perfect fusion of two materials: the shaped solid larch wood of the structure and the iron shelves with ...
Iron
Stairs Glass Shelf
Located in Paris, FR
Shelf Stairs Glass with all structure in clear glass With 6 inclined shelves. Shelf on swivel base.
Glass
Shelf Bookcase by Pol Quadens
Located in Geneve, CH
Shelf Bookcase by Pol Quadens Limited Edition Of 8+4 Pieces. Dimensions: D 25 x W 75 x H 200 cm. Materials: Patinated rust steel. Pol Quadens was born in Brussels. His father was a...
Steel
$1,470 / item
H 59.06 in W 41.34 in D 11.82 in
Achille Castiglioni & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni 'Libreria Pensile' by Karakter
By Achille Castiglioni, Pier Giacomo Castiglioni
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Shelve designed by Achille Castiglioni and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni in 1957. Originally designed in 1957, perfected over the years, and produced by Bernini in 1966. Seeking to pa...
Wood
Proportions of Stone Shelf 01 by Lee Sisan
Located in Geneve, CH
Proportions of stone shelf 01 by Lee Sisan Dimensions: W 110 x D 35 x H 150 cm Materials: Stainless steel, natural stone Each piece is made to order a...
Stone, Steel
Proportions of Stone Shelf 03 by Lee Sisan
Located in Geneve, CH
Proportions of Stone Shelf 03 by Lee Sisan Dimensions: W 120 x D 40 x H 200 cm Materials: Stainless steel, natural stone Each piece is made to order and u...
Stone, Steel
49 White Frame Box with Shelf by Lassen
Located in Geneve, CH
49 White frame box with shelf by Lassen Dimensions: D 49 x W 42 x H 49 cm Materials: finér, melamin, melamin, melamine, metal, veneer, ash. Also available in different colours an...
Metal
Parade 1 Shelf Extention Warm White by Warm Nordic
Located in Geneve, CH
Parade 1 shelf extention warm white by Warm Nordic Dimensions: D 100 x W 30 x H 39cm Material: Powder coated steel Weight: 4 kg Also available in different colours and dimensions...
Steel
Meritalia Cross Shelf, Black by Carlo Contin
By Carlo Contin, Meritalia
Located in Toronto, ON
Bookcase in ashwood, supported and structured by the primary design geometry of a diagonal cross. Current production. Includes Certificate of Authenticity.
Wood
49 Sand Frame Box with Shelf by Lassen
Located in Geneve, CH
49 sand frame box with shelf by Lassen Dimensions: D 49 x W 42 x H 49 cm Materials: Finér, Melamin, Melamin, Melamine, Metal, Veneer Also available in different colors and dimens...
Metal
$7,940 / item
H 47.25 in W 37.8 in D 11.82 in
Zanotta Joy Rotating 7 Shelf Unit in Black Medium Density Fiberboard
By Achille Castiglioni, Zanotta
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Zanotta Joy Rotating 7 Shelf Unit in Black Medium Density Fiberboard by Achille Castiglioni Uprights and shelves in medium density fiberboard, finished wi...
Steel