Ultrafragola Luminous Mirror by Ettore Sottsass for Poltronova, 1980s

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Iconic Ultrafragola illuminated mirror designed by Ettore Sottsass for Poltronova, 1980.
Perspex structure, neon lamps, mirrored glass, painted wood. Excellent … Read more Iconic Ultrafragola illuminated mirror designed by Ettore Sottsass for Poltronova, 1980.
Perspex structure, neon lamps, mirrored glass, painted wood. Excellent condition, first production with painted wood panel and neon lighting.

Sottsass was the first in Italy to express, through his creations, the emerging ideas of counter design or radical design. These movements represented social criticism expressed through objects characterized by a strong experimentalism in materials, techniques and forms, in clear opposition to the rationalist style and common taste of the time. In an era dominated by the modernist movement, known for order, rigidity and the use of straight, clean lines, the Ultrafragola mirror marked a clear break with the past. with this piece, Ettore Sottsass manages to summarize a design philosophy that celebrates the beauty of imperfection and formal diversity.

Ultrafragola belongs to the series of so-called 'grey furniture', a collection of furnishings for the living and sleeping areas designed for Poltronova. The name derives from the color that Sottsass had chosen for this furniture, grey, a color that for him represented neutrality and lack of emotion. By contrast, the designer had incorporated light within the structures of the objects, made with thermo-molded fibreglass, to 'bring life' to his creations. None of the pieces were ever developed beyond the prototype, except Ultrafragola, which saw the light in 1970 and as we know left an indelible mark in the history of design. The 'grey furniture' series represents a provocative manifesto with which the designer criticizes the predominant modernist movement of the time, taking on the role of defender of the new values ​​emerging in the era of post-modernism.

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