If you know the name Ettore Sottsass, you’re likely to associate it with Memphis—the design collective he spearheaded in the 1980s, which remains one of his most well-known achievements. But the true force of the designer’s character is much bigger than any single movement and was refined throughout various moments of his career. Sottsass was always motivated by a desire to reach deeper beneath the surface of the objects he designed, and to bring out their poetry.

On the occasion of a major retrospective of his work at the Met Breuer, we look back on his career and reflect on the wide-ranging impact he’s had on the design world.