I just want to say one word to you. Just one word. Yes, sir. Are you listening? Yes, I am. Plastics! Exactly how do you mean? There’s a great future in plastics. Think about it. Will you think about it? (quote from The Graduate 1967)………….And this iconic chair designed by Joe Columbo, also in the1960’s, is proof…There was/is a great future in plastics! Designed for Kartell and called the Sedia Universale #4867 Chair it took two years from 1965-1967 to design and was the first chair to be made with a single shot injection moulding process. In the 1960s that was the holy grail of furniture design…to be made of a single piece of material. Joe Columbo designed this chair according to his belief that in the current culture its strong colors, curving edges, and pop sensibility would appeal to the masses; where the way of the future was one where television would rule, technology would progress, and people would both work and play in their living spaces; which, with populations expanding would become smaller and more multifunctional, resulting in the need for furniture to be more multi-functional, movable, and pleasing to the senses. He hit the nail on the head with this Universale chair. I could go on and on describing the wonderful attributes of this fun, funky, and iconic chair; its cutting-edge manufacturer, Kartell; its extraordinary designer, Joe Columbo; and its USA entrepreneurial representative, Beylerian LTD; but, I will stop and leave you with one word……..Plastic! Make it yours.
