ETTORE SOTTSASSEttore Sottsass, who died on 31 December, 2007, aged 90, was an Italian designer with an irreverent touch who was best known for designing Olivetti’s red plastic typewriter.An architect by training, Sottsass’s creations for Olivetti over the course of a decades-long collaboration and an edgy style – marked by use of colourful plastic laminates and unusual shapes – established him as an innovator in post-war design. His work has been displayed in some of the world’s most prestigious museums.He later formed the radical Memphis group of Italian and international designers and architects to challenge mainstream design. "If anything will save us, it is beauty," he once said.Mr Sottsass was born in Innsbruck, Austria, on 14 September, 1917. He studied architecture in the northern Italian city of Turin.He opened his first studio in Milan in the late 1940s. A decade later, in 1958, he joined the design team at Olivetti, bringing colour and informality to grey office environments over several decades. The iconic "Valentine" red portable typewriter, released in 1969, was among works that transformed office design.Mr Sottsass – who designed everything from office equipment and lighting to ceramics, furniture and jewellery – saw good design as a "way to build a metaphor for life". "To me, design is a way to discuss life," he said. "It is a way to discuss society, politics, eroticism, food – even design itself."With the Memphis group, which he formed in 1981, Mr Sottsass created some of his trademark work, such as the Casablanca and Carlton units. The group shook up the Milanese design scene, and eventually was seen as highly influential.Mr Sottsass, who also designed items for Alessi and Artemide, kept up his work until his death which was confirmed by the Italian Culture Ministry. He died from heart failure after battling with flu. Italy’s Culture Minister Francesco Rutelli praised him as an eclectic artist with a "tirelessly creative" vision.
Keep me informed of updates
