Modular furniture pieces were all the rage in Italy in the '70s, think about the "Leonardo" stars and stripes modular sofa designed by Studio65 and produced by Gufram that revolved around the modular theme.
Designed in 1969 by Franco e Nanà Audrito, the piece was the Pop Art parody of the popular modular sofas from the '60s: it was indeed possible to assemble it like a sofa or bed or dismantle it completely and stack it in a corner.
The modular trend was popular in the '70s also in fashion. An example? This belt from the '70s (from my family's archive) was made with snakeskin (it is a bit damaged as it was used a lot) and vaguely recreated in its construction and shape the configuration of a reptile.
The best thing about the belt was the fact that it was divided into nine identical segments, each of them with six metal pressure buttons that allowed the wearer to shorten or expand the accessory, using the buttons or simply removing one of the elements. Once worn, the belt looked like a perfect circle without any interruption caused by big buckles. This feature instantly turned it into the distinctive focal point of any outfit.
It was also possible to use the belt as a headband and it was possible to disassemble the accessory completely for storage purposes. The belt was bought from a souvenir shop at a zoo near the Garda Lake, in Italy, so it wasn't a designer item at all, yet that's definitely what I call design.
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