Memphis Group

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A collection of objects by Memphis

The Memphis Group was an Italian design and architecture group founded in Milan by Ettore Sottsass in 1981 that designed Post Modern furniture, fabrics, ceramics, glass and metal objects from 1981 to 1987.[1]

The Memphis group's work often incorporated plastic laminate and was characterized by ephemeral design featuring colourful decoration and asymmetrical shapes, sometimes arbitrarily alluding to exotic or earlier styles.[2]

Origins

The group was inspired by Pop Art

On 11 December 1980, Ettore Sottsass organized a meeting with designers and formed a design collaborative named Memphis.[1] The name was taken after the Bob Dylan song "Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again" which had been played repeatedly throughout the evening's meeting.[1] They drew inspiration from such movements as Art Deco and Pop Art including styles such as the 1950s Kitsch and futuristic themes.[1]

The group produced and exhibited furniture and design objects, annually from 1981 until 1988. The result was a highly-acclaimed debut at the 1981 Salone del Mobile of Milan, the world's most prestigious furniture fair.[citation needed]

The group counted among its members Alessandro Mendini, Martine Bedin, Andrea Branzi, Aldo Cibic, Michele de Lucchi, Nathalie du Pasquier, Michael Graves, Hans Hollein, Arata Isozaki, Shiro Kuramata, Matteo Thun, Javier Mariscal, Luciano Paccagnella, George Sowden, Marco Zanini, and the journalist Barbara Radice.[3][4] Sottsass left the movement in 1985 and it disbanded in 1988.[3]

Impact

The group's colourful furniture has been described as "bizarre", "misunderstood", "loathed", and "a shotgun wedding between Bauhaus and Fisher-Price".[5]

Memphis designs served as inspiration for the Fall/Winter 2011–2012 Christian Dior haute couture collection fashion show,[6] and fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld collected Memphis pieces.[7]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/dsgn4/hd_dsgn4.htm
  2. ↑ Justin McGuirk (13 September 2011). "Has postmodernist design eaten itself?". Guardian. Retrieved 20 July 2013. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://designmuseum.org/design/memphis
  4. ↑ Möbel, Memphis
  5. ↑ Pellegrin, Bertrand (January 15, 2012). "Collectors give '80s postmodernist design 2nd look". San Francisco Chronicle. 
  6. ↑ Fox, Imogen (July 4, 2011). "Christian Dior shows first haute couture collection since John Galliano sacking". The Guardian (London). 
  7. ↑ "The Memphis group - love it or loathe it?". The Guardian (London). March 22, 2002. 

Further reading

  • Sparke, Penny (1988). Italian Design: 1870 to the Present. London: Thames & Hudson. ISBN 0-500-23531-7

External links

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