Italian furniture brand Kartell has updated Anna Castelli Ferrieri’s round Componibili storage unit with an expanded colour palette and changes to its production process. Measuring 42 centimetres in diameter, the latest version revisits an Italian design classic that has combined everyday practicality with a timeless, internationally recognisable form for more than half a century.
Anna Castelli Ferrieri’s approach to everyday design
Anna Castelli Ferrieri was one of Italy’s leading designers and architects of the 20th century. She studied at Politecnico di Milano, graduating in architecture in 1943. Her work increasingly focused on industrial design, with plastics and the possibilities they offered becoming central to her practice.
In 1949, she founded Kartell with her husband, Giulio Castelli. Over the following decades, the company became one of the best-known Italian furniture manufacturers worldwide. Castelli Ferrieri spent many years as the brand’s art director, shaping its design direction and the development of its production methods. Her approach centred on using new technologies to make objects for everyday use.
Her best-known work is Componibili, a modular storage system she designed in 1969. Its cylindrical shape and sliding doors quickly made it an icon of Italian design. The simple, compact form provides storage for bedrooms, bathrooms, living rooms and offices. Its appeal also lies in Castelli Ferrieri’s direct approach to the material: plastic allowed her to make a lightweight, easy-to-maintain unit with a bold, almost sculptural form.
Available at the Kartell Warsaw showroom, Componibili demonstrates how an everyday object can be both practical and visually appealing.
A new finish and six colours
Changes to the production process improve the finish of the 42-centimetre-diameter version and give the familiar form a new look. The palette includes shades from the 32-centimetre-diameter version alongside new colours with a contemporary feel and subtle references to past decades. Componibili Big New Colors comes in burgundy, dove grey, orange, green, petrol and white.
Each unit has two or three storage compartments in a fixed configuration. The units can be used as stationary storage or fitted with optional castors. The new version retains Castelli Ferrieri’s original emphasis on simple construction and everyday practicality.
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See also:
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