Post-Modern "Carlton" bookcase, designed by Ettore Sottsass in 1981, Italy.
This is the top piece of the Carlton bookcase part of the first-ever collection by the Memphis Group.
Ettore Sottsass’s Carlton bookcase epitomizes the spirit of the 1980s Memphis collective. With co-founders who included George Sowden and Nathalie due Pasquier, Sottsass aimed to challenge the less-is-more restraint of Italian design. Memphis wares – mirrors, lighting, ceramics, glass – fused references to Ancient Egypt or Pop Art with clashing colours and anthropomorphic shapes for radical effect. Today, the Carlton is the group’s most recognizable design.