Meret Oppenheim Traccia sculptural table Manufactured by Cassina in Italy In 1971, Dino Gavino launched what he called “l’opera d’arte funzionale”, or functional artworks, in so doing inaugurating a new approach of furnishing where surreal objects were adapted for everyday use. This led to the creation of the Ultra Mobile collection. These pieces, that went beyond (ultra) furniture (mobile) engaged the imagination, complementing rational intelligence with a sense of wonder, where geometry interacted with fantasy. One of these pieces was the low table that the Swiss artist Meret Oppenheim designed in 1929 for Leo Castelli’s avant-garde gallery, dubbing it the “Bird Leg Table”, for fairly obvious reasons. The slim-line legs, and the taloned feet in polished cast bronze pay homage to the claw-foot furniture of the past. This piece is attributed to the mentioned designer/maker. It has no attribution mark and no official proof of authenticity, however it is well documented in design history. I take full responsibility for any authenticity issues arising from misattribution