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Caori Coffee Table / Dry Bar by Vico Magistretti for Gavina, Italy, 1970s

About the Item

Rare multifunctional coffee table designed by Vico Magistretti, model Caori, produced in Italy during the 1970s. This ingenious design perfectly reflects Magistretti’s ability to combine clean architectural lines with practical everyday functionality. At first glance, the piece appears as a minimalist low coffee table with a sculptural square pedestal base and contrasting metal top. Hidden beneath its sleek exterior lies an integrated storage system designed for records, magazines, and bottles. The table can be opened from multiple sides, revealing cleverly concealed compartments and transforming it into a compact dry bar or media storage unit. The restrained geometric design, combined with its innovative functionality, makes the Caori a highly versatile piece suitable for both contemporary and vintage interiors. Its understated elegance allows it to function equally well as a coffee table, cocktail table, or conversation piece in a living room setting. Presented in original vintage condition with signs of age and use consistent with its period. The wear contributes to the authentic character of this rare design. Dimensions Height: 41.5 cm Width: 127 cm Depth: 95.5 cm

Creator:
Vico Magistretti (Designer),Gavina (Maker)
Dimensions:
Height: 16.34 in (41.5 cm)Width: 50.01 in (127 cm)Depth: 37.6 in (95.5 cm)
Style:
Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Metal,Wood
Place of Origin:
Italy
Period:
Mid-20th Century
Date of Manufacture:
1970s
Condition:
Repaired. Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
Boom, BE
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU8353250545042

Shop All Vico Magistretti

Vico Magistretti

As one of the founding fathers of modern Italian design, prolific architect and industrial designer Ludovico Magistretti (known by his nickname Vico) was guided by his philosophy, “There is no excuse for bad design.” His architectural projects are widely revered, and an ingenious meld of form and function can be found in his stylish and deceptively simple table lamps, sofas, armchairs and other mid-century furnishings.

Born in Milan, Magistretti followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather (both architects) to study architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan. At the outbreak of World War II, he fled to Switzerland, and it was there he met his role model and mentor, renowned humanist architect Ernesto Nathan Rogers. Magistretti was inspired by Rogers’s vision to revive postwar Italy, and they collaborated on several reconstruction projects. Among Magistretti’s first architectural designs is a “poetic” round church, which he created for the QT8, an experimental Milanese neighborhood.

When Magistretti returned to Milan in 1945, he worked at his father’s architectural firm. It wasn’t until the early 1950s that he expanded his talents into design while working with furniture artisans.

In the 1960s, Magistretti began his 30-year working relationship with famed entrepreneur Cesare Cassina of the Cassina furniture manufacturing company. In their design approach, the two men shared a vision of the relationship between modernity and tradition and enjoyed a close bond (Magistretti designed Cassina’s luxurious villa in 1965). However, their friendship was not without contention.

Legend has it that upon seeing the prototype for Magistretti’s Maralunga sofa, Cassina hated it so much that he punched it, breaking the back of the sofa, which crumpled into itself.

“Right, great, it looks perfect to me like that,” an unfazed Magistretti allegedly responded, and the Maralunga’s slumped, adjustable-height backrest was born. Incidentally, the Maralunga sofa won Italy’s Compasso d’Oro award as did his Eclisse lamp for Artemide and his Atollo lamp for Oluce.

Magistretti died in 2006, but his designs live on in galleries, museums and private residences and offices around the world.

Find a range of vintage Vico Magistretti furniture and lighting on 1stDibs.