Thursday, February 5, 2009

Olivetti Showroom in Switzerland, 1957


I recently posted information about the former Olivetti Showroom on Canal Street that is now threatened by the LSU/VA Medical Corridor Development. Yesterday, I came across a wonderful 1957 photographic reproduction of the St. Gallen, Switzerland Olivetti Showroom. The picture credits are spartan, so I don't know who designed it. Olivetti does maintain a historical archive in its hometown of Ivrea, which is available to researchers on a limited basis.

The Museo dell'Architettura Moderna di Ivrea has amassed a wonderful collection of Olivetti typewriters, some of which are assembled chronologically on its website. At left is the first Olivetti typewriter,Model 1, designed by Camilo Olivetti in 1911. The idea for the M1 came to Camilo after a visit to U.S. factories in 1908.

Image upper: Olivetti Showroom, St. Gallen, Switzerland, 1957. As it appears in G. Prölss, Schriften für Architekten (Stuttgart: Karl Krämer, 1957), p. 76.

Image lower: C. Olivetti, M-1, 1911. Museo dell'Architettura Moderna di Ivrea. URL: http://www.maam.ivrea.it/visita/visita.htm. Viewed 05-02-2009.

2 comments:

Breathing said...

Hi KR! I hope all is well with you. I noticed the second photo in this post is missing. Just thought I would alert you to it. This is an awesome blog, btw! Nice work.

Keli Rylance said...

Thanks Chris! Gosh, the photo shows up for me... not sure??