Egon Riss (1901-1964)
Penguin Donkey, Mark 1
birch plywood
60cm wide, 43cm high, 42cm deep

This original Isokon Penguin Donkey Mark 1 was designed by the architect Egon Riss in 1939 and made by Isokon, probably the most forward-thinking British furniture manufacturer of the 1930s, whose founder Jack Pritchard worked with the leading modernist designers and architects of the day to produce innovative furniture which have become design icons. Isokon furniture exploited the strength and lightness of bent plywood, and the Donkey is no exception. It was named the Donkey because of its organic, curvilinear shape with four legs and two ‘panniers’. Books were stacked in the panniers while the space between them could be used for magazines and newspapers.

In the late 1930s, the Penguin Donkey bookcase by Egon Riss was set to be a best seller, but the Second World War broke out at exactly the time that the Donkey was launched, causing production to cease. Only about 100 Donkeys were made and it is rare to find an original example today, particularly in such good condition – an equivalent piece is held in the Collection of the V&A Museum, London