Brionvega’s Mario Bellini reissue is the ultimate 1970s hi-fi design
Brionvega reissues RR231 Totem by Mario Bellini, a beautiful reminder of the heyday of immersive, freestanding audio systems
Italian audio specialist Brionvega has taken a step back with its latest product, a reissue of a modernist classic. The RR231 Totem was originally designed by Mario Bellini in 1970, at the height of the interaction between electronics, pop art and high design. Conceiving the freestanding architectural piece, Bellini created a purist white half-metre cube that unfolded into a cutting-edge (for the era) stereo system, incorporating a turntable and AM/FM radio, with concealed controls revealed by unfolding the wings.
The Totem went into production the following year, garnering an appropriate cult following and finding its way into MoMA’s permanent design collection, one of 23 objects it holds by the Italian designer. Bellini’s approach to tech was also recently celebrated at the Cooper Hewitt; he is one of a select group of designers who paved the way for a more ascetic and human relationship with technology.
Although Bellini’s electronics designs, most notably for the Italian manufacturer Olivetti, were constrained by the limits of period technology, he still brought a strong graphic and sculptural sensibility to the genre. To celebrate 50 years of Totem, Brionvega has reissued the RR231 in a new, updated edition. Sold through the MoMA Design Store, the new model retains the exact same shape but finds space for DAB, a USB output, and revised and upgraded speakers (three on each ‘wing’).
Numbered and signed by Bellini, the Brionvega RR231 Totem is a beautiful reminder of the heyday of immersive, freestanding audio systems. We’ve seen several elegant attempts at reviving the physical presence of music in interiors, from new stereo consoles to bold sculptural speakers that act as a centrepiece for a room.
Thanks to Brionvega’s ongoing focus on reviving its impressive archive, you can now return to the source with Bellini’s brilliant original. In its heyday, the RR231 could be bought alongside Marco Zanuso and Richard Sapper’s folding TS502 radio, and the proto-Memphis shapes of the RR126 stereo system by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni.
The company is still working with contemporary designers, offering products like Michael Young’s ts217 WeariT portable speaker.
INFORMATION
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Brionvega RR231 Totem Stereo System, $18,800, available from MoMA Design Store
Jonathan Bell has written for Wallpaper* magazine since 1999, covering everything from architecture and transport design to books, tech and graphic design. He is now the magazine’s Transport and Technology Editor. Jonathan has written and edited 15 books, including Concept Car Design, 21st Century House, and The New Modern House. He is also the host of Wallpaper’s first podcast.
-
Explore Cornwall's cosiest coffee shops
Cornwall is known for its natural beauty and stunning landscape, here is our pick of coffee shops to enjoy the views and refuel
By Tianna Williams Published
-
Maude’s Brâncuși-inspired sex toys go on display in a new Paris exhibition
Maude’s design-led vibrators are now on display at Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, as part of ‘Private Lives: From the Bedroom to Social Media’. Brand founder Éva Goicochea talks to Wallpaper* about partnering with the museum and opening up cultural conversations around sex
By India Birgitta Jarvis Published
-
‘I was captivated by the idea of merging two iconic brands’: Nigo on his 1990s-inspired collaboration with Moncler and Mercedes-Benz
Unveiled at Moncler’s ‘The City of Genius’ event in Shanghai this past weekend, Japanese fashion designer Nigo unpacks his three-way collaboration with Moncler and Mercedes-Benz, which includes a play on the G-Class alongside a fashion collection in his eclectic style
By Jack Moss Published
-
Aarke has created the ultimate collection for caffeine lovers, the Aarke Coffee System
The new Aarke Coffee System consists of three elegant components, part of the Swedish company’s ongoing quest to reshape the world of appliances
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Huawei’s new MatePad Pro 12.2-inch tablet is a game-changer for digital artistry
With pro-level creative features, from delicate brushwork to myriad surface choices, the Huawei MatePad Pro 12.2-inch makes extraordinary art a possibility and a pleasure
By Simon Mills Published
-
All-new Nothing Ear (open) offers up a different kind of listening experience
If you find traditional earbuds cancel out too much of the outside world, Nothing has got you covered. We get down with the company’s new Ear (open) to experience this transparent new soundscape
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Lasting impressions: the latest Beoplay H100 headphones from B&O are for keeps
Bang & Olufsen’s head of design, Tiina Karjalainen Kierysch, talks us through the new Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H100, headphones designed to last a lifetime
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Nine new ways to game, from far-out furniture to cute consoles
Well-crafted gaming machines are all the rage, for both analogue classics as well as digital distractions
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Norway's tech supremo reMarkable reveals all about its new reMarkable Paper Pro
The reMarkable Paper Pro is the company's first foray into a colour e-ink tablet. We delve into the new device
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Huawei’s new Mate XT is the first triple-folding smartphone on the market
Three screens, three grand: the Huawei Mate XT is making a lot of waves
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Compact creativity: the best pocketable tech tools show that small is still beautiful
These dimunitive devices offer up functionality and portability in every field, from capturing every kind of sound, vision and imagery as well as ways to edit, write and play it all back
By Jonathan Bell Published