Ettore Sottsass : Architect and Designer

Labaco, Ronald T. and others. Ettore Sottsass : Architect and Designer. London: Merrell, 2006. First edition. Quarto (11″ x 10″). 160pp. Index. Color photo dust jacket, white spine lettered in black and blue. White boards patterned in black. Illustrated with 155 color photographs and a black & white frontispiece portrait. A fine, as new copy.

“… The first significant study of the work of Sottsass for over a decade – emphasizes the continuing diversity and innovation of his professional life while illuminating his personal design philosophy, his belief in the intimate relationship between design and the individual, and his fundamental humanity and joie de vivre. Drawing in particular on the work of the two decades since Sottsass left the Memphis collective, this book reassesses his relationship to Modernism and Postmodernism, analyzes the increasing importance to Sottsass of his own architectural practice, and considers both his acceptance and his rejection of the traditional use of materials. In a series of interviews specially undertaken for this book, Sottsass reflects on the cross-currents of ideas and influences that have guided his long career.”– (Jacket)

Contents: Ettore Sottsass, a modern Italian designer / Penny Sparke — Humanist for the modern age / Ronald T. Labaco — Catalysts of perception: material considerations / Dennis P. Doordan — Imagining utopia: the figurative universe of Ettore Sottsass / James Steele — Instruments of life: conversations with Ettore Sottsass / Emily Zaiden — Maker biographies and company profiles / Emily Zaiden. Fine in as new dust jacket. Hardcover. (51097) $95