Tseui was the last empress of China (1835-1908). Tseui consists of the elegant combination of three forms and colors. Their geometries and equilibrium evoke the architectural and graphic signature of the iconic Italian artist and the Memphis movement he initiated.

Each part of the piece is hand-crafted on turn-wheels by the master-ceramicists of Sèvres. The depth of the Sèvres colors is obtained through painstaking methods perfected by the French porcelain manufacture; the deep layers of the colors are insufflated in high temperature while the lighter tones are later applied over meticulous layering. Ettore Sottsass visited the Manufacture Nationale de Sèvres in 1993. He created a series of 14 pieces in collaboration with the revered ceramicists, each of which carries the name of a historical woman figure. In 1994, the 14 pieces were exhibited at the Centre Pompidou in Paris as part of a retrospective exhibition. Later in 1996, the artist completed his collaborative series with Sèvres with a set of white porcelain and gilded gold pieces. The body of work resulting from the collaboration between Ettore Sotsass and Sèvres embodies both the porcelain mastery carried on by the centuries-old Manufacture de Sèvres and the iconic designs of the 20th Century Memphis movement.