Zanotta launches "shelves on legs" by Frank Rettenbacher
Milan 2014: Italian manufacturer Zanotta has launched two lightweight and versatile tables by Amsterdam designer Frank Rettenbacher (+ slideshow).
![Side tables by Frank Rettenbacher for Zanotta](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/05/Side-tables-by-Frank-Rettenbacher-for-Zanotta_dezeen_7.jpg)
Austrian-born Frank Rettenbacher designed the Mina and Emil tables with slender surfaces and legs braced with thin steel wires that loop around each other to form a sturdy frame.
![Side tables by Frank Rettenbacher for Zanotta](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/05/Side-tables-by-Frank-Rettenbacher-for-Zanotta_dezeen_2.jpg)
Mina is intended as an impromptu work surface, while the smaller Emil is designed to stand next to a sofa or bed. "My idea was to create a family of tables for lightweight living," said Rettenbacher. "Their simple and stable wire-frame construction uses minimal material and gives the products their slender identity."
![Side tables by Frank Rettenbacher for Zanotta](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/05/Side-tables-by-Frank-Rettenbacher-for-Zanotta_dezeen_4.jpg)
Rettenbacher was intent on making the elements of the tables as thin as possible. "Throughout the project I have pushed for the slimmest possible dimensions," he revealed. "The tabletops are only three-millimetres thick and appear to float upon their supporting wire bases."
![Side tables by Frank Rettenbacher for Zanotta](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/05/Side-tables-by-Frank-Rettenbacher-for-Zanotta_dezeen_11.jpg)
The linear frame and top of both tables come in black or white glossy lacquered steel, while Emil is also available in "glam finishes": burgundy, or a pink top on a white frame.
![Side tables by Frank Rettenbacher for Zanotta](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/05/Side-tables-by-Frank-Rettenbacher-for-Zanotta_dezeen_6.jpg)
"While serving as practical tables, Mina and Emil also work as 'shelves on legs' for displaying personal objects," said Rettenbacher. "I have given the surfaces a high-gloss lacquered finish to reflect those little things that make you feel at home."
![Side tables by Frank Rettenbacher for Zanotta](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/05/Side-tables-by-Frank-Rettenbacher-for-Zanotta_dezeen_9.jpg)
The tables were presented on Zanotta's stand at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan last month.