Patrick Favardin and Guy Bloch-Champfort, Les Décorateurs des Années 60-70, Paris, 2007, p. 140 Gabriella Crespi: The Sign and the Spirit, Multiple Furniture, Sculptures and Jewelry, exh. cat., Palazzo Reale di Milano, Milan, 2011, pp. 30, 63-65
Catalogue Essay
The present lot has been authenticated by the Archivio Gabriella Crespi and is recorded under archive number 200436000.
A quiet pioneer in postwar furnishings, Italian designer Gabriella Crespi united earnest functionalism with pure opulence. Crespi studied architecture in the 1940s at the Politecnico di Milano (the Polytechnic University of Milan), where she was one of few women in the department. A multidisciplinary designer, Crespi started her career creating sculptures, later collaborating with Maison Dior to produce table accessories and home furnishings. The present lot was designed as part of the Plurimi series, a group of furnishings developed between 1970 and 1982, inspired by the Italian painter-sculptor Emilio Vedova. A significant series in Vedova’s oeuvre was the Plurimi/Binari (Multiple/Binary) series, multi-media works that defied simple categorization.
In a similar vein, Crespi embraced a plurality of purpose, engineering each piece of her Plurimi series to serve uses beyond their appearance. In the present lot, two leaves extend from the body of the brass-covered-wood coffee table, offering a greater surface area for entertaining, exhibiting wares, or more simply for the enjoyment of the table’s sumptuous nature. Although Crespi enjoyed a long life, her tenure in design lasted only three decades; her works were produced in Milan in small editions, furthering the individuality of her oeuvre.
“2000” extendable coffee table, from the "Plurimi" series
designed 1970, executed 1970-1982 Brass-covered wood. As shown: 15 x 82 x 35 1/4 in. (38.1 x 208.3 x 89.5 cm) Fully extended: 15 x 117 x 35 1/4 in. (38.1 x 297.2 x 89.5 cm) Closed: 15 x 47 x 35 1/4 in. (38.1 x 119.4 x 89.5 cm) Produced by Gabriella Crespi, Milan, Italy. One side with plaque impressed with artist's facsimile signature and BREV ®. The other side further impressed with artist's facsimile signature. Together with a certificate of authenticity from the Archivio Gabriella Crespi.
