"Robot" chest of drawers by Mario Botta, Ed.Alias 1989

About the Item

"Robot" chest of drawers by Mario Botta, Ed.Alias 1989. In 1989, the world famous Italian architect and designer Mario Botta designed the Robot 619 chest of drawers. Since then it has become a postmodern design icon. Conceived as a stylized Robot, this highly practical cabinet features a foldable writing desk and nine drawers. The nine drawers which seem like floating in the air offer generous storage space and slide in and out effortlessly. The heavy black lacquered cast steel structure and base serves as a spine which effectively counterbalances the weight of the drawers and the foldable writing desk. Every component, from the metal spine to the drawer hinges, is designed with the utmost attention to quality using premium materials. The drawers and foldable desk are coated with a specialized matte lacquer. Due to its limited production run, this amazing piece is rarely seen, having been available for only a short period. Codition is excellent, there is just a little blemish close to the metal hanlde of one of the lower drawers (see picture)

Creator:

Mario Botta (Designer),Alias (Manufacturer)

Dimensions:

Height: 47.64 in (121 cm)Width: 14.18 in (36 cm)Depth: 15.36 in (39 cm)

Materials and Techniques:

Steel,Wood,Cast

Place of Origin:

Italy

Period:

1980-1989

Date of Manufacture:

c.1989

Condition:

Wear consistent with age and use. Minor losses. just a little blemish close to the metal hanlde of one of the lower drawers (see picture).

Seller Location:

Renens, CH

Reference Number:

1stDibs: LU5599237994292

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Mario Botta

Swiss architect Mario Botta may be renowned for his impressive postmodern architecture projects such as the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, but the chairs, lighting and other furniture he created reflect a mastery of geometrically rich forms and an elegant application of simple symmetry.

Born in Mendrisio, Switzerland, in 1943, Botta gained an interest in architecture at an early age. He apprenticed at the architectural firm Carloni and Camenisch and designed his first building — a two-family house at Morbis Superiore in Ticino — at age 16. During the early 1960s, Botta attended the Liceo Artistico in Milan and then studied at the University Institute of Architecture in Venice under art historian Giuseppe Mazzariol and influential Italian architect Carlo Scarpa.

While studying in Venice, Botta worked for Swiss-born French architect Le Corbusier — whose career spanned hundreds of architecture projects — and gained inspiration from Estonian-American architect Louis Kahn, who was known for his modern and brutalist architectural style. In 1969, Botta completed his studies and established his practice in Lugano, designing and building single-family homes.

Throughout the 1970s, Botta gained fame for his innovative, geometrical designs and deceptively simple forms, such as his first large-scale building project in 1977 — the Middle School in Morbio Inferiore, Switzerland. Botta later established himself as one of the masters of 1980s postmodern design in his architecture and his furniture. His postmodern ideas characterize the dining room tables and seating he designed for companies such as Alias, as well as his table lamps and floor lamps for Artemide.

Botta’s noteworthy architectural projects designed during the 1990s and 2000s include the Cymbalista Synagogue and Jewish Heritage Center in Tel Aviv, Israel; the Monastery of the Holy Apostles Saint Peter and Andrew in Lviv, Ukraine; and the Theater of Architecture in Mendrisio, in 2018.

On 1stDibs, discover a range of vintage Mario Botta lighting fixtures, seating, tables and decorative objects.