Travertine & Brass Pedestal Column by Willy Rizzo, France circa 1970

Willy Rizzo — the Paris-based Italian designer whose name became synonymous with a particular brand of luxurious, material-rich modernism in the 1970s — is perhaps best known for his coffee tables and furniture. Less frequently encountered are his architectural accessories, of which this travertine and brass pedestal column is a particularly refined example, produced around 1970 at the height of the designer’s creative output.

The column is constructed as a tapering square plinth clad on all four sides and the top in travertine, the creamy fossil-veined stone that Rizzo deployed throughout his œuvre for the warmth and natural authority it brings to a composition. Along each vertical edge and at the crown, polished brass banding terminates in a line of neat brass studs — a detail that recurs throughout Rizzo’s work and functions as both structural joinery and decorative punctuation, unifying the natural and the industrial in a single gesture.

At 28 × 28 × 61 cm, the column is well proportioned for use as a pedestal for a sculpture or plant, or as a side table or drinks stand. Its compact footprint makes it highly versatile — equally at home in a narrow entrance hall or as a corner accent in a drawing room. The natural variation of travertine ensures that no two examples are identical, giving each piece an inherently bespoke quality.

The condition is excellent: the stone clean and uncracked, the brass retaining its warm original patina. Rizzo’s travertine and brass pieces have attracted sustained collector interest, and examples in this condition represent a sound acquisition in the market for 1970s French and Italian design.