Gae Aulenti for Knoll 'Jumbo' Carrara Marble Coffee Table, Italy, circa 1964

The 'Jumbo' Carrara marble coffee table by the famed female Italian architect Gae Aulenti, (Italy, 1927-2012) made for Knoll.
Literature: Gramigna, Giuliana. Repertorio Dell'Arredo Domestico 1950-2000 Allemandi: Torino, 2003, p. 111.
Size: 14 1/2" high x 44 3/4" square just table top x 67" square total

The iconic design constitutes a spectacular and grand square slab of Carrara marble with a total of six pieces including the sculpted and canted corner legs; It is one of the first tables where marble, a material removed for years from the world of furniture, makes its reappearance where the material in itself has a striking and expressive aesthetic and not used as a decorative element but used constructively according to its technological characteristics. One of Aulenti's most significant designs, an impressive and grand, yet minimalist and bold addition to any home interior.

Gae Aulenti (born December 4, 1927, Palazzolo dello Stella, Italy–died December 31, 2012, Milan, Italy). Gae (or Gai) Aulenti was a prominent postwar Italian designer and architect who lent her fluid approach to media and material to some of the most important architectural and interior designs of the late 20th century. Aulenti attended Politecnico di Milano in the mid 1950's and established her design practice in the same city shortly after graduation. She rose to prominence while serving as the art director for Casabella, a leading avant-garde architectural journal of the era. It was during these early years that Aulenti’s unique design philosophy emerged, one that centered on the ultimate freedom of the designer from the limitations of practice to a singular medium.

Rather than selecting one style and imposing it upon a space, Gae Aulenti believed instead that the space and its inhabitants should inform the design around them. What resulted was a body of work that spanned all realms. From smaller furnishings designs to her larger architectural projects later in the century, Aulenti defined her style as one that was untethered to a specific aesthetic or method. This novelty resulted in her rapid creative recognition and success, a point echoed in the bevy of international exhibitions that showcased her work between the 1960's and 1970's.

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