“One of New York’s most
striking shops, the Olivetti showroom is a particularly interesting example of
Italian display design.
Extravagant and exuberant, its sensuous and imaginative use of
expensive, exotic materials makes it one of the showplaces of Fifth Avenue…
Because Italian taste
characteristically eschews understatement for the spectacular (even the
handsome entrance door of Italian walnut is 17 feet high and of incredible
craftsmanship) there is a disturbing lack of restraint in the intricately
designed special details.
Arbitrarily shaped stands and tables of contrasting rich marbles,
elaborate displays and self-conscious devices hamper the integration of the
whole. Although this calculated unconventionality
often stretches creative imagination to the breaking point, the results are
notable in a field marked by increasing standardization of design.”
- “Four Walking Tours of Modern Architecture in
New York City,” The Museum of Modern Art and the Municipal Art Society of New
York, Prepared by Ada Louise Huxtable; Distributed by Doubleday & Company,
Inc., Third Printing 1966.
Image courtesy Olivetti.
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