The typewriter designed by Ettore Sottsass for Olivetti reveals the great cultural transformations of 68

After more than 50 years, the mythical Rossa Portatile Valentine typewriter designed by Ettore Sottsass and Perry A. King for Olivetti isnt just an icon of Italian design, but a symbol of the historic moment in which it was created, between deep social, political, and cultural fractures.

The Olivetti typewriter immediately became a cult object. Introduced on the market in 1969, it won the Compasso DOro ADI just one year later, and entered the prestigious MoMA collection the year after that.

The Valentine was the first typewriter built entirely in plastic (injection molded ABS). The model's main feature was its portability and the integration of the object within its own case: the backside of the machine itself could close the machine, which included a handle. With two simple rubber safety devices, it was fixed to a shell that protected the machine from external blows, ready to be transported like a briefcase.

With Valentine, the idea was to renew not only the success of the Olivetti Lettera 22, but also the image of the entire company. The typewriter wasnt marketed towards technicians and experts, but rather conceived as a pop piece for all. After its released, it wasnt long before we spotted it in the arms of silver screen stars like Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor, or in the room of a young Alex, the main character in Kubricks A Clockwork Orange (1971).

Today, the typewriter has become an object youd carry with you, much like a jacket, shoes, or a hat things that come and go, and that we tend to downplay more and more, Sottsass told the magazine Notizie Olivetti in 1969.

Together with the typewriter, Sottsass would also design the products ad campaign, which called on noted artists like Roberto Pieraccini and Milton Glaser. Sottsass showcased Valentine in diverse places and situations, depicting its travels like a photo story.

Perhaps the graphics we used to announce the Valentine werent perfect: perhaps they stray quite a bit from the old, famous, fabulous, classic cadence of Olivetti, but I hope the presumption which certainly isnt irreverence will be forgiven for having tried to embrace new times and new structures of industry projects that face greater responsibilities and more conscious societies every day, added Sottsass.

The impact of the Valentine went well beyond its functionality, coming to represent the desire for freedom in a unique historic period.