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Willy Rizzo Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass

Italian, 1928-2013

Renowned Italian furniture designer Willy Rizzo is celebrated for having produced eye-catching, sensational showpieces that merged plush fabrics with wood, metal and glass. Influenced by European modernists and drawing on the spare forms and clean lines of the American mid-century modern style, Rizzo prized functionality and simplicity in his dazzling work.

Born in Naples, Rizzo never intended on designing furniture. Instead, he began pursuing photography at the age of 12. By the 1960s, he had become a notable photographer, having captured images of such celebrities as Marilyn Monroe, Fred Astaire and Spanish artist Salvador Dalí. His experience with furniture design came about inadvertently when he moved to Rome in 1966. There, Rizzo rented an apartment with his wife Elsa that he described as "practically uninhabitable." Dissatisfied with the Scandinavian furniture options on offer, Rizzo built sofas, coffee tables and other furniture to suit the space's strong modern vibe. When his friends saw what he had accomplished, they were enamored by his furniture creations and commissioned him to build similar items for them.

The demand for Rizzo’s furniture grew from there. He established a production facility and workshop in Tivoli, just outside of Rome, which grew to house over 150 employees. There, finding inspiration in the work of iconic architects including Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier, he created more than 30 unique furniture designs. Over the years he opened boutiques around the world to showcase and sell his furniture.

Rizzo prided himself on seamlessly blending the contemporary with the classic. “It was about creating something new for a traditional setting,” he said of his work. From his sleek sideboards to his low-profile side tables, elegant chairs and entire living room sets, Rizzo's style sensibility is evident throughout every detail of his designs.

Rizzo sold his company in 1978 and returned to photography. However, the presence of his furniture resonated into the new century and is sure to impact interior décor enthusiasts into the next. Over the years, high-profile collectors of Rizzo’s work have included French actress Brigitte Bardot, Salvador Dalí and American musician Lenny Kravitz.

On 1stDibs, find a range of vintage Willy Rizzo tables, lighting, seating and storage pieces.

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Creator: Willy Rizzo
Willy Rizzo Drink Trays, Brass, Polished Stainless Steel, Signed
By Willy Rizzo
Located in New York, NY
Willy Rizzo drink trays, brass, polished stainless steel, signed. Great quality large scale handled trays in brass and polished stainless steel, perfect for entertaining. Willy Rizzo...
Category

2010s Italian Modern Willy Rizzo Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass

Materials

Brass, Stainless Steel

Willy Rizzo Trays, Stainless Steel, Brass, Signed
By Willy Rizzo
Located in New York, NY
Willy Rizzo trays, stainless steel, brass, signed. Set of 3 polished stainless steel nesting trays with brass inlay. The graduated measurements are: 5.5 inches 8.5 inches, and 11 inc...
Category

2010s Italian Modern Willy Rizzo Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass

Materials

Brass, Stainless Steel

Square Brass and Faux Black Marble Ashtray in the style of Willy Rizzo, Italy
By Willy Rizzo
Located in Bresso, Lombardy
Made in Italy, 1970s. This ashtray is made in brass and faux black marble. It is vintage, therefore it might show slight traces of use, but it can be considered as in excellent origi...
Category

1970s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Willy Rizzo Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass

Materials

Marble, Brass

Vintage Tortoiseshell Lucite & Chrome Serving Tray by Willy Rizzo, Italy ca.1970
By Willy Rizzo
Located in Geneva, CH
Tortoise shell and chrome serving tray by Willy Rizzo made in Italy ca. 1970 Good vintage condition L 54 x D 35 x H 8 cm
Category

1970s Italian Vintage Willy Rizzo Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass

Materials

Tortoise Shell

Willy Rizzo Nesting Trays Serving Pieces in Steel and Brass 1970s
By Willy Rizzo
Located in Paris, IDF
Beautiful Willy Rizzo set of three nesting trays in polished stainless steel and brass, signed, from the 1970s. The graduated measurements are 5.15 inches then 7.9 inches and 10.65 i...
Category

1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Rizzo Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass

Materials

Brass, Steel

Stylish Chrome and Burl Wood Italian Bar Cart
By Willy Rizzo
Located in Montreal, QC
Stylish chrome and burl wood two-tier Italian bar cart
Category

1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Willy Rizzo Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass

Materials

Burl

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Midcentury Cubic Chromed Steel, Wood and Glass Dry Bar, Italy 1970s
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Unique midcentury cubic dry bar in lacquered ash wood, mirrored steel and glass dry bar with hidden wheels. This gorgeous Willy Rizzo style dry bar was produced in Italy during the 1970s. The wheeled bar cart's four sides are in mirrored chromed steel, while the top is in dark smoked glass. It moves thanks to four hidden wheels, and the structure is veneered black lacquered oak. A design masterpiece that will become a cult furniture element in a midcentury bar or living room. Italian designer and photographer Willy Rizzo (1928-2013) first came to prominence in the 1960s as both a chronicler of and participant in La Dolce Vita, the glamorous, jet set lifestyle enjoyed by many international celebrities and socialites in the postwar era. While photography was Rizzo's first love, in the 1970s he developed a passion for interiors and launched a second successful career as a luxury furniture designer. Rizzo was born in Naples in 1928 but moved to France early. After expressing an interest in photography at the age of 12, Rizzo's mother gifted him an Agfa Box camera; soon he was shooting portraits of his classmates at Paris's Istituto Statale Italiano Leonardo Da Vinci. In the 1940s, Rizzo began his career as a photojournalist, working for several French publications, including Ciné Mondial, Point de Vue, and Image du Monde. In the aftermath of the Second World War, Rizzo notably covered the Nuremberg Trials and travelled to Tunisia for Point de Vue to photograph the conflict in North Africa, later published in Life Magazine. As his reputation grew, he was hired by France Dimanche to take portraits of the rich and famous at flashy events like the Cannes Film Festival. Rizzo's charm won the trust of royalty, dignitaries, and movie stars, allowing him to capture these public figures in unusually candid moments. Hoping to advance his career further, Rizzo travelled to New York with Black Star Agency in 1947 to photograph American starlets. When he returned to Paris two years later, he was invited to join Jean Prouvost’s newest publication in colour, Paris Match, as head photographer—a position that he held for 20 years and, along the way, sparked a new culture of celebrity photographers who were as intriguing and fashionable as their subjects. In 1959, he became the artistic director of Marie Claire and collaborated with other fashion magazines, such as Vogue. Throughout his career, Rizzo photographed dozens of stars, including Brigitte Bardot, Maria Callas, Salvador Dalí, Marlene Dietrich, Jane Fonda, Gene Kelly, and Gregory Peck, as well as striking up close friendships with famous personalities like Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, and Jack Nicholson. In 1962, Rizzo famously captured some of the last moments of Marilyn Monroe’s life on film before tragically committing suicide a few weeks later. In 1968, Rizzo married Italian actress Elsa Martinelli, and the pair relocated to Rome. It was here that Rizzo began his work in furniture design, starting with his newly-leased, run-down Roman apartment. Just for personal use (at first), Rizzo created a series one-of-a-kind pieces inspired by modernist icons, such as Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier. But as his glitterati friends—Rodolfo Parisi, Gigli Rizzi, Franco Rapetti, Salvador Dalí, Brigitte Bardot, and the like—became admirers of his work, Rizzo was flooded with design commissions. Rizzo went on to furnish apartments for Italian aristocracy in the Palazzo Borghese and Palazzo Ruspoli that same year and quickly earned an international reputation as a designer to the rich and famous. In response to ever-growing demand, he launched his own Tivoli-based company dedicated to contemporary furniture design handmade in lux materials such as wood, marble, stainless steel, brass, and wild boar. Over time, his team of eight grew to 150, and he was able to open shops in France and throughout Europe, as well as in New York, Miami, and Los Angeles. With an emphasis on clean lines and geometric forms, Rizzo's tables, chairs, and accessories combined contemporary shapes with traditional materials—in contrast to many of his contemporaries, like Ettore Sottsass and Vico Magistretti, who were popularizing plastic, foam, and other synthetics in furniture production. Rizzo's most successful designs are many low, box-like tables in granite, metal, glass, or burled wood, often embellished with brass or chrome accents or built-in liquor cabinets or trays. Two examples of his most celebrated designs include the Alveo Coffee Table (1970s) for Mario Sabot and the circular Yin Yang Coffee Table...
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Previously Available Items
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2010s Italian Modern Willy Rizzo Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass

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Willy Rizzo Trays Stainless Steel and Brass Signed Italy, 2000s
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Willy Rizzo trays stainless steel and brass signed Italy, 2000s. Polished stainless steel nesting trays with brass inlay. Trays in graduated sizes: 5 ...
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2010s Italian Modern Willy Rizzo Serveware, Ceramics, Silver and Glass

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Italian 60's Brown Leather & Chrome Trays By: Willy Rizzo
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Italian 60's Brown Leather & Chrome Trays by the Signor: Willy Rizzo! Surely the most snazzy smoking trays ever. OR for nuts? Anything is possibile wi...
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Willy Rizzo serveware, ceramics, silver and glass for sale on 1stDibs.

Willy Rizzo serveware, ceramics, silver and glass are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of metal and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Willy Rizzo serveware, ceramics, silver and glass, although black editions of this piece are particularly popular. Many of the original serveware, ceramics, silver and glass by Willy Rizzo were created in the modern style in europe during the 1970s. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider serveware, ceramics, silver and glass by Ugo La Pietra, Tomaso Buzzi, and Cleto Munari. Prices for Willy Rizzo serveware, ceramics, silver and glass can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $300 and can go as high as $5,800, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $4,066.

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