Dublin Couch by Marco Zanini for Memphis Milano Collection
About the Item
- Creator:Memphis Milano (Manufacturer),Marco Zanini (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 31.5 in (80 cm)Width: 72.84 in (185 cm)Depth: 29.93 in (76 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:Plastic,Laminated
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:Contemporary
- Production Type:New & Custom(Current Production)
- Estimated Production Time:15-16 weeks
- Condition:
- Seller Location:La Morra, IT
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU4830124109292
Memphis Milano
To many people, postmodern design is synonymous with the Memphis Group. This Italian collaborative created the most radical and attention-getting designs of the period, upending most of the accepted standards of how furniture should look. Today, the Memphis Milano brand, which is managed by Alberto Bianchi Albrici, still produces designs created by the group between 1981 and 1988.
The Memphis story begins in 1980, when Ettore Sottsass, then a beacon of Italian postmodernism, tapped a coterie of younger designers to develop a collection for the Milan Furniture Fair the next year, determined that all the new furniture they were then seeing was boring. Their mission: Boldly reject the stark minimalism of the 1970s and shatter the rules of form and function. (Sottsass’s Ultrafragola mirror, designed in 1970, embodied many of what would become the collective’s postmodern ideals.)
The group decided to design, produce and market their own collection, one that wouldn’t be restricted by concerns like functionality and so-called good taste. Its debut, at Milan’s 1981 Salone del Mobile, drew thousands of viewers and caused a major stir in design circles.
So as a record of Bob Dylan’s “Stuck Inside of Mobile” played on repeat, they took their name from the song, devised their marketing strategy and plotted the postmodern look that would come to define the decade of excess — primary colors, blown-up proportions, playful nods to Art Deco and Pop art. A high-low mix of materials also helped define Memphis, as evidenced by Javier Mariscal’s pastel serving trays, which feature laminate veneer — a material previously used only in kitchens — as well as Shiro Kuramata’s Nara and Kyoto tables made from colored glass-infused terrazzo.
An image of Sottsass posing with his collaborators in a conversation pit shaped like a boxing ring appeared in magazines all over the world, and Karl Lagerfield furnished his Monte Carlo penthouse entirely in Memphis furniture. Meanwhile, members like Andrea Branzi, Aldo Cibic, Michele de Lucchi, Nathalie du Pasquier, Kuramata, Paola Navone, Peter Shire, George Sowden, Sottsass and his wife, journalist Barbara Radice, went on to enjoy fruitful careers.
Some people think of the Milan-based collective as the design equivalent to Patrick Nagel’s kitschy screenprints, but for others Memphis represents what made the early 1980s so great: freedom of expression, dizzying patterns and off-the-wall colors.
Eventually, the Reagan era gave way to cool 1990s minimalism, and Memphis fell out of fashion. Sottsass left the group in 1985, and by 1987, it had disbanded. Yet decades later, Memphis is back and can be traced to today’s most exciting designers.
“As someone who was born in the 1980s, Memphis at times feels like the grown-up, artsy version of the toys I used to play with,” says Shaun Kasperbauer, cofounder of the Brooklyn studio Souda. “It feels a little nostalgic, but at the same time it seems like an aesthetic that’s perfectly suited to an internet age — loud, colorful and utilizing forms that are graphic and often a little unexpected.”
Find a collection of Memphis Milano seating, tables, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: La Morra, Italy
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Amazon Cabinet, by Marco Zanini for Memphis Milano CollectionBy Memphis Milano, Marco Zanini, Memphis GroupLocated in La Morra, CuneoThe Amazon Cabinet in reconstituted veneer and lacquered wood, was originally designed in 1985 by Marco Zanini for Memphis Milano. Marco Zanini was born in Trento in 1954. He gradu...Category
2010s Italian Modern Console Tables
MaterialsWood
- Roma Green Armchair, by Marco Zanini for Memphis Milano CollectionBy Memphis Milano, Marco Zanini, Memphis GroupLocated in La Morra, CuneoRoma Green Armchair in fiberglass with iridescent finish, designed by Marco Zanini in 1985. Marco Zanini was born in Trento in 1954. He graduated in architecture at the University o...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Armchairs
MaterialsFiberglass
- Rigel Glass Bowl, by Marco Zanini for Memphis Milano CollectionBy Memphis Milano, Marco Zanini, Memphis GroupLocated in La Morra, CuneoThe Rigel Glass Bowl was originally designed by Marco Zanini in 1982. The piece features blue, black, green, red and clear glass with lid and ste...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Decorative Bowls
MaterialsGlass
- Baykal Flower Vase, by Marco Zanini for Memphis MilanoBy Memphis Milano, Marco Zanini, Memphis GroupLocated in La Morra, CuneoBaykal Flower Vase was originally designed by Marco Zanini in 1982. Marco Zanini was born in Trento in 1954. He graduated in architecture at the University of Florence and perfects...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Vases
MaterialsCeramic
- Beltegeuse in Yellow Blown Glass by Marco Zanini for Memphis Milano CollectionBy Memphis Milano, Marco ZaniniLocated in La Morra, CuneoBeltegeuse in yellow blown glass by Marco Zanini for Memphis Milano collection Additional information: Glass in blown glass. Collection: Memphis Milano Designer: Marco Zanini ...Category
2010s Glass
MaterialsBlown Glass
- Alpha Centaury Glass Flower Vase, by Marco Zanini for Memphis Milano CollectionBy Memphis Milano, Marco Zanini, Memphis GroupLocated in La Morra, CuneoThe Alpha Centaury Glass Flower Vase was designed by Marco Zanini in 1982. Signed on the base, please see below for further information. Marco Zanini was born in Trento in 1954. He ...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Vases
MaterialsGlass
- Lucrezia Armchair by Marco Zanini for Memphis MilanoBy Memphis Milano, Marco ZaniniLocated in Brooklyn, NYAn aluminum arm chair designed by Marco Zanini for Memphis Milano in 1984 and upholstered in Letraset, a cotton fabric designed by Ettore Sottsass. Signed on underside of the sea...Category
Late 20th Century Post-Modern Side Chairs
MaterialsAluminum
- Memphis "Juan" Settee/Chaise by Marco ZaniniBy Aldo CibicLocated in Brooklyn, NYA beautiful, serene MEMPHIS chaise longue upholstered in dark gray & cobalt blue Alcantara (Ultrasuede), constructed of solid wood covered in ABET plastic laminate, hand-milled metal...Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Settees
MaterialsMetal
- Lido Sofa by Michele De Lucchi For Memphis Milano, 1982.By Michele de Lucchi, Memphis MilanoLocated in Kansas City, MO"Lido" sofa / loveseat / settee designed by Michele De Lucchi For Memphis Milano, 1982. This early example retains the original fabric and finish in very good condition. An icon of...Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Loveseats
MaterialsMetal
- Kim Chair by Michele de Lucchi for Memphis-Milano, 1980sBy Memphis Milano, Michele de LucchiLocated in Renens, CHThe Kim chair was designed by the Italian architect Michele de Lucchi in 1987: De Lucchi was one of the co-founders of the Postmodern design group Memphis, headed by Ettore Sottsass....Category
1990s Italian Post-Modern Chairs
MaterialsSteel
- 1980ies Palace chair designed by George Sowden for Memphis MilanoBy Memphis Milano, George SowdenLocated in Offenburg, Baden Wurthemberg1980ies Memphis Milano Palace chair in colored lacquered wood designed by George Sowden, 1983. George Sowden studied architecture at Glouc...Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Chairs
MaterialsPlywood
- Glam Sofa Tribeca Collection by Marco and Giulio MantellassiBy Mantellassi 1926Located in Milan, ITThe Glam sofa represents the quintessence of the modern modular sofa, creating a warm feel in the living room with its deep red fabric upholstery. Pairing a ...Category
2010s Italian Modern Sofas
MaterialsMetal