Memphis Group

Last updated
A collection of objects by The Memphis Group Memphis-Milano Movement.jpg
A collection of objects by The Memphis Group
Memphis Group furniture featured within a living room space. Memphis-Milano Design Collection.jpg
Memphis Group furniture featured within a living room space.

The Memphis Group, also known as Memphis Milano, was an Italian design and architecture group founded by Ettore Sottsass. It was active from 1980 to 1987. The group designed postmodern furniture, lighting, fabrics, carpets, ceramics, glass and metal objects.

Contents

The Memphis group's work often incorporated plastic laminate and terrazzo materials and was characterized by ephemeral design featuring colorful and abstract decoration as well as asymmetrical shapes, sometimes arbitrarily alluding to exotic or earlier styles and designs. [1]

Background

Memphis was born on the evening of December 11, 1980, when Sottsass invited a group of young designers and architects to discuss the future of design. Together, they wanted to change the concept of what design had been focused on, which had been Modernism and aimed to do so by creating and forming a new design collective. After their initial meeting, the group went away to brainstorm different ideas and concepts, and three months later, came back together ready to share over a hundred drawings they had produced during that time. [2]

The inspiration behind naming themselves "Memphis" came about during their first meeting when Bob Dylan's record "Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again" had been playing repeatedly in the background. [3] For Sottsass, the name "Memphis" represented two things: a city in Tennessee, and ancient Egypt's capital city. The group of designers then went ahead and used the ambiguity behind the name "Memphis" to represent and symbolise their ambiguous design philosophies of furniture, objects and textiles. In Sottsass' case specifically, he showed great interest in the middle-class taste, the traditions of the Third World and the East, and unspoiled nature. [4]

Sottsass left the group in 1985 to focus on his design and architecture firm, Sottsass Associati. [5]

The group disbanded in 1987 because its members found it difficult to sustain their commercial success after the hype of their new movement had faded.[ citation needed ]

Impact

Carlton room divider by Ettore Sottsass for Memphis, 1981 Ettore sottsass per memphis srl., libreria carlton, milano 1981.jpg
Carlton room divider by Ettore Sottsass for Memphis, 1981

Memphis' colorful furniture has been described as "bizarre", "misunderstood", "loathed", and "a shotgun wedding between Bauhaus and Fisher-Price". [6]

During their active years, the group designed a series of non-conformist furniture. One of their most popular and well-known designs is the "Carlton" Room Divider, a totemic pole incorporating a variety of bright colours, solid shapes and voids. The structure itself is constructed using cheap plastic laminates, though designed to be sold by a luxury market, and incorporates a series of equilateral triangles, both real and implied. [7]

The mid-1980s to early 1990s design of furniture, architecture, household items, and clothes was heavily influenced by Memphis Design. Surfing, skateboarding, skiing and BMX companies were quick to adopt the aesthetic into their designs. Television shows such as Miami Vice showcased many architectural examples. Nickelodeon used the style as the basis for their Double Dare set design. [8]

Memphis designs served as inspiration for the Fall/Winter 2011–2012 Christian Dior haute couture collection fashion show, [9] for the Winter 2015 Missoni collection, [10]

Notable Memphis design collectors included fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld [11] and musician David Bowie. After Bowie's death in 2016, his collection was auctioned off at Sotheby's for a total of £1,387,000. [12]

A "flat, geometric, figurative" illustration style "usually made up of solid colours", popular in the late 2010s, particularly with startups, was dubbed "Corporate Memphis" by Wired Magazine for its resemblance to Memphis designs. [13]

Designers

Being the founder of the group, Ettore Sottsass became the leader of the Memphis Group and is now one of the most well known Italian post-War designers. [14]

Martine Bedin, a French designer, was also a member of Memphis. She first joined the group when she was in her twenties and was deemed in charge of over-looking all Memphis lighting that was produced. Her father had been an engineer and she was also continuously 'playing with forbidden things', all of which contributed to her designated position. During her time in Memphis, Bedin designed and thought of numerous ideas. Her design of the Super lamp placed on wheels, first designed in 1978, supposedly represented, along with a group of other objects, 'friend-like' items. Bedin's lamp was later produced in an artisanal workshop, where all Memphis products were manufactured, and her first prototype is now featured in the Victoria & Albert Museum, in London, England. [14]

Peter Shire, a sculptor, designer and potter originally from California, was another figure who formed the Memphis Group. He was first discovered thanks to Wet: The Magazine of Gourmet Bathing, a lifestyle publication on the west coast that Sottsass' partner on occasion would contribute to. In one article featuring Shire's teapots in 1977, he quoted "I'm not much of a tea-drinker [...] Actually my first impulse is to put Coke in teapots. I'm a big Coke drinker and I'd love to see Coke flowing out of the teapots and foaming on the ground." His unique approach and attitude later secured him a spot as a member of Memphis. [14]

After Memphis' disbandment in 1987, members went their separate ways. Some like Nathalie Du Pasquier, a French-born ex-member of the group, have collaborated with brands and companies in recent years. In 2013, she and the Danish company HAY collaborated where she designed and created Memphis-esque patterned bags. She later on also collaborated with American Apparel, a Canadian-founded fashion company that moved to California, where she designed one of their collections. [2]

The designs of the Memphis Group have acted as an inspiration to many other fashion companies, like Dior and Missoni, who both were inspired to design fashion collections based on Memphis' original work. [2]

Memphis included contributions from many international architects and designers. [15]

Notable members include:

Related Research Articles

Alessi is a housewares and kitchen utensil company in Italy, manufacturing and marketing everyday items authored by a wide range of designers, architects, and industrial designers — including Achille Castiglioni, Richard Sapper, Alessandro Mendini, Ettore Sottsass, Wiel Arets, Zaha Hadid, Toyo Ito, Tom Kovac, Greg Lynn, MVRDV, Jean Nouvel, UN Studio, Michael Graves, and Philippe Starck.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ettore Sottsass</span> Italian architect (1917-2007)

Ettore Sottsass was a 20th century Italian architect, noted for also designing furniture, jewellery, glass, lighting, home and office wares, as well as numerous buildings and interiors — often defined by bold colours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karim Rashid</span> American industrial designer

Karim Rashid is an Egyptian-born and Canadian raised industrial designer. His designs include luxury goods, furniture, lighting, surface design, brand identity and packaging. Time magazine has described him as the "most famous industrial designer in all the Americas" and the "Prince of Plastic". He is based in New York City, as well as Belgrade, Miami and India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen</span> Art museum in Rotterdam, Netherlands

Municipal Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen is an art museum in Rotterdam in the Netherlands. The name of the museum is derived from the two most important collectors of Frans Jacob Otto Boijmans and Daniël George van Beuningen. It is located at the Museumpark in the district Rotterdam Centrum, close to the Kunsthal and the Natural History Museum.

Shiro Kuramata is one of Japan's most important designers of the 20th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ottavio Missoni</span> Founder of Missoni

Ottavio "Tai" Missoni was the founder of the Italian fashion label Missoni and an Olympic hurdler who competed in the 1948 Summer Olympics. Along with his wife Rosita, he was part of the group of designers who launched Italian ready-to-wear in the 1950s, thereby ensuring the global success of Italian fashion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matteo Thun</span> Italian architect and designer

Matteo Thun is an Italian architect and designer.

George J. Sowden is a designer and product developer.

Peter Shire is a Los Angeles-based artist. Shire was born in the Echo Park district of Los Angeles, where he currently lives and works. His sculpture, furniture and ceramics have been exhibited in the United States, Italy, France, Japan and Poland. His work includes a sculpture in Elysian Park to honor the work done by Grace Simons and Peter Glass which kept the park open as green space.

David Shaw Nicholls is a Scottish architect and designer based in New York City, Italy and Glasgow. He became internationally known by his minimalist ASFLEXI settee, conceived while in school.

Italian design refers to all forms of design in Italy, including interior design, urban design, fashion design, and architectural design. Italy is recognized as a worldwide trendsetter and leader in design. The architect Luigi Caccia Dominioni claimed, "Quite simply, we are the best. We have more imagination, more culture, and are better mediators between the past and the future". Italy today still exerts a vast influence on urban design, industrial design, interior design, and fashion design worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Museum für Angewandte Kunst (Cologne)</span> Applied art museum in Cologne, Germany

The Museum für Angewandte Kunst Köln is a decorative arts museum in Cologne. The collections include jewellery, porcelain, furniture, weaponry and architectural exhibits. Until 1987 it was called the Kunstgewerbemuseum.

Jane Dillon is a British designer, educator and artist. She made significant contributions to furniture and Architectural lighting design across America and Europe. One of the few female international designers of her generation, Dillon's work encompassed contract and domestic furniture, lighting, textiles and glassware.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rolf Fehlbaum</span>

Rolf Fehlbaum is chairman emeritus and active member of the board of directors of Vitra, a family-owned furniture company with headquarters in Birsfelden, Switzerland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aldo Cibic</span> Italian designer

Aldo Cibic is an Italian designer.

Nathalie Du Pasquier is a Milan-based artist and designer mostly known for her work as a founding member of the Memphis Group. Her early body of work includes furniture, textiles, clothing designs and jewelry in addition to iconic work in decoration and patterns. Since 1987, she has consistently dedicated herself to painting.

Barbara Radice is an Italian design critic, writer, and editor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Massimo Iosa Ghini</span>

Massimo Iosa Ghini is an Italian architect, designer and professor known for pioneering the Bolidist Movement, and for his involvement with the Memphis Group featuring others architects including Ettore Sottsass, Michael Graves. Iosa Ghini is known for his streamlined and organic designs, and is praised for his “visionary ability to blend disciplines, forms and dimensions crossing boundaries in art, design, and architecture.” He has worked prolifically throughout the world and has designed a large collection of furniture that mirrors the futuristic designs of his architectural work. In 1990 he started the Iosa Ghini Associati (Associates) Firm which today operates out of Milan, Bologna, Moscow and Miami.

Johanna Grawunder is an American architect, artist, and designer known for her work in lighting.

Martine Bedin is a French architect and designer. She was a member of the Memphis Group.

References

  1. ↑ Barnes, Sara. "How the Memphis Movement Went Against ‘Good Taste’ to Inspire Designers Today". My Modern Met, April 27, 2018. https://mymodernmet.com/what-is-memphis-design/.
  2. 1 2 3 Q42, Fabrique &. "Memphis Group: awful or awesome?". Design Museum. Retrieved 2021-03-01.
  3. ↑ "History".
  4. ↑ Rewald, Sabine; Hambourg, Maria Morris; Lieberman, William S.; Sims, Lowery S.; Davis, Elliot Bostwick; Messinger, Lisa M.; Rosenheim, Jeff L.; Holcomb, Melanie; Voorsanger, Catherine Hoover; Le Corbeiller, Clare; Johnson, J. Stewart (1993). "Twentieth Century". The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin. 51 (2): 62–83. doi:10.2307/3269024. ISSN   0026-1521. JSTOR   3269024.
  5. ↑ Alexa, Alexandra (2017-07-17). "What You Need to Know about Design Icon Ettore Sottsass". Artsy. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
  6. ↑ Pellegrin, Bertrand (January 15, 2012). "Collectors give '80s postmodernist design 2nd look". San Francisco Chronicle.
  7. ↑ Adlin, Jane; Goss, Jared D.; Rewald, Sabine; Messinger, Lisa M.; Lieberman, William S.; Loveman, Jennifer A.; Johnson, J. Stewart; Sims, Lowery Stokes; Hambourg, Maria Morris; Fineman, Mia; Eklund, Douglas (1998). "Twentieth Century". The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin. 56 (2): 61–68. doi:10.2307/3269046. ISSN   0026-1521. JSTOR   3269046.
  8. ↑ Klickstein, M.; Summers, M. (2013). Slimed!: An Oral History of Nickelodeon's Golden Age. Penguin Publishing Group. p. 92. ISBN   978-1-101-61409-9 . Retrieved September 17, 2022.
  9. ↑ Fox, Imogen (July 4, 2011). "Christian Dior shows first haute couture collection since John Galliano sacking". The Guardian. London.
  10. ↑ Blanks, Tim (1 March 2015). "Missoni Fall 2015 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
  11. ↑ Glancey, Jonathan (March 22, 2002). "Love it or loathe it?". The Guardian. London.
  12. ↑ "Bowie/Collector Part III: Design: Ettore Sottsass and the Memphis Group". Sotheby's. November 11, 2016. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
  13. ↑ "Why does every advert look the same? Blame Corporate Memphis". Wired UK.
  14. 1 2 3 ADAMSON, GLENN (2011). "Recent acquisitions of postmodern design at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London". The Burlington Magazine. 153 (1302): 597–600. ISSN   0007-6287. JSTOR   23055425.
  15. ↑ "Designers - Ettore Sottsass and the Memphis Group".

Further reading

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.