Ettore Sottsass, Westside armchair for Knoll

ETTORE SOTTSASS (Austria, 1917 - Italy, 2007) for Knoll.
Westside" armchair, 1980s.
Metal and fabric in blue, green, gray and white.
Showing signs of wear typical of its age and use. The fabric shows slight wear. Original upholstery.
Measurements: 77 x 98 x 70 cm; 36 cm (seat height).

The Westside sofa by Ettore Sottsass (designed in 1983 for Knoll) is important because it represents his transition to a more mature and structured design, integrating the idea of modularity and freedom of use in contemporary furniture. This model consolidated a new way of understanding the sofa not as a fixed object, but as a system adaptable to the space and life of the user, influencing the subsequent design of high-end modular furniture. This is a piece of furniture with a low and very horizontal modular system, composed of simple rectangular volumes -seats, backrests and side tables- that are freely combined, with clean lines, generous proportions and upholstery in neutral or intense colors. Unlike the exuberant character of Memphis, here Sottsass adopts a more restrained but equally conceptual language, where the sofa functions almost as a flexible "domestic architecture".

Ettore Sottsass was an influential Italian architect and designer, considered one of the key figures of 20th century design, known for breaking with traditional functionalism and opting for a more emotional, symbolic and expressive approach; He worked for years for Olivetti designing iconic objects such as the Valentine typewriter, and in the 1980s he founded the Memphis group, with which he revolutionized postmodern design through the use of bright colors, bold geometric shapes and unconventional materials, advocating that objects should not only be useful, but also communicate, provoke and generate experiences.