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Postmodern Memphis Style Table Lamp by Brilliant Leuchten, Germany, 1980s
Postmodern Memphis Style Table Lamp by Brilliant Leuchten, Germany, 1980s

Postmodern Memphis Style Table Lamp by Brilliant Leuchten, Germany, 1980s

By Brilliant Leuchten AG, Memphis Milano

Located in Lyon, FR

Beautiful and very elegant postmodernist table lamp by Brilliant Leuchten, made in Germany in the

Category

Vintage 1980s German Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Lamp in Ceramic, style of Memphis Milano or Olivier Villatte, 1980s.
Postmodern Lamp in Ceramic, style of Memphis Milano or Olivier Villatte, 1980s.

Postmodern Lamp in Ceramic, style of Memphis Milano or Olivier Villatte, 1980s.

By Ettore Sottsass, Memphis Milano

Located in Lille, FR

Postmodern Lamp in Ceramic, style of Memphis Milano or Olivier Villatte, 1980s. Good condition.

Category

Vintage 1970s French Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Ceramic

Postmodern Lamps in Ceramic, style of Memphis Milano or Olivier Villatte, 1980s.
Postmodern Lamps in Ceramic, style of Memphis Milano or Olivier Villatte, 1980s.

Postmodern Lamps in Ceramic, style of Memphis Milano or Olivier Villatte, 1980s.

By Ettore Sottsass, Memphis Milano

Located in Lille, FR

Set of 2 Postmodern Lamps in Ceramic, style of Memphis Milano or Olivier Villatte, 1980s. Good

Category

Vintage 1980s French Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Ceramic

Geometric Postmodern Torchiere Italian Floor Lamp
Geometric Postmodern Torchiere Italian Floor Lamp

Geometric Postmodern Torchiere Italian Floor Lamp

By Memphis Group

Located in San Diego, CA

Great design, circa 1980s on this torchiere floor lamp grey powder coated metal tubular frame with

Category

Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Memphis Style Table Lamp by Antonangeli
Postmodern Memphis Style Table Lamp by Antonangeli

Postmodern Memphis Style Table Lamp by Antonangeli

By Antonangeli

Located in Antwerp, BE

Memphis style ceramic table lamp, Antonangeli, Italy, 1970s. Would fit well in a Postmodern

Category

Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Aluminum

Memphis Style Postmodern Squiggle Table Lamp, 1990s
Memphis Style Postmodern Squiggle Table Lamp, 1990s

Memphis Style Postmodern Squiggle Table Lamp, 1990s

By Underwriters Laboratories

Located in View Park, CA

A squiggle table lamp by Underwriter’s Lab, circa late 1980s or early 1990s. Memphis Milano

Category

1990s Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Flourescent Floor Lamp
Postmodern Flourescent Floor Lamp

Postmodern Flourescent Floor Lamp

By Ettore Sottsass, Memphis Milano

Located in London, GB

A highly unusual and beautifully proportioned floor lamp. The Memphis influence and patina suggest

Category

Vintage 1980s Dutch Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Memphis Era Multidirectional Desk Table Lamp
Postmodern Memphis Era Multidirectional Desk Table Lamp

Postmodern Memphis Era Multidirectional Desk Table Lamp

By Ron Rezek

Located in San Diego, CA

Colorful and beautiful desk lamp freshly rewired and refinished desk table lamp, enameled metal

Category

Late 20th Century North American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Memphis Era Floor Torchère Italian Lamp
Postmodern Memphis Era Floor Torchère Italian Lamp

Postmodern Memphis Era Floor Torchère Italian Lamp

By Koch & Lowy

Located in San Diego, CA

Nice Halogen floor lamp with dimmer switch, black mate finish, circa 1980s.

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Memphis Era Floor Torchère Italian Lamp
Postmodern Memphis Era Floor Torchère Italian Lamp

Postmodern Memphis Era Floor Torchère Italian Lamp

By Koch & Lowy

Located in San Diego, CA

Nice Halogen floor lamp with dimmer switch, black matte finish base with a yellow enameled accent

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Memphis-Style Angled Metal Table Lamp
Postmodern Memphis-Style Angled Metal Table Lamp

Postmodern Memphis-Style Angled Metal Table Lamp

Located in Chicago, IL

Well made and designed post modern table lamp. Three angled iron bars fixed to iron plate base

Category

Late 20th Century American Table Lamps

Postmodern Neon and Ceramic Sculpture Lamp
Postmodern Neon and Ceramic Sculpture Lamp

Postmodern Neon and Ceramic Sculpture Lamp

By Ettore Sottsass, Memphis Group

Located in Miami, FL

Unique Postmodern neon and matte speckle glazed ceramic lamp with pink and blue interlocking neon

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Glass, Ceramic

Postmodern Memphis Style Sculptural Curved Wave Table Lamp, 1980s
Postmodern Memphis Style Sculptural Curved Wave Table Lamp, 1980s

Postmodern Memphis Style Sculptural Curved Wave Table Lamp, 1980s

Located in Lambertville, NJ

1980s Postmodern Memphis style table lamp. Sculptural design features a series of curved metal

Category

Vintage 1980s Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Italian Postmodern Memphis Murano Glass Tulip Floor Lamp, 1980s
Italian Postmodern Memphis Murano Glass Tulip Floor Lamp, 1980s

Italian Postmodern Memphis Murano Glass Tulip Floor Lamp, 1980s

Located in Zagreb, HR

Italian Postmodern Memphis Vintage Italian Murano Glass Tulip Floor Lamp, 1980s Italy. We try our

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Memphis Style Sculptural Curved Wavy Lamps by Alsy, 1980s
Postmodern Memphis Style Sculptural Curved Wavy Lamps by Alsy, 1980s

Postmodern Memphis Style Sculptural Curved Wavy Lamps by Alsy, 1980s

By Alsy Manufacturing 1

Located in Philadelphia, PA

1980s Postmodern Memphis style table lamps. Sculptural design features a series of curved metal

Category

Vintage 1980s American Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Iron

Postmodern Brushed Steel Memphis Era Brushed Steel Sculptural Table Lamp
Postmodern Brushed Steel Memphis Era Brushed Steel Sculptural Table Lamp

Postmodern Brushed Steel Memphis Era Brushed Steel Sculptural Table Lamp

By George Kovacs

Located in San Diego, CA

finial made for this lamp. incredible piece of art. Memphis postmodern design.

Category

20th Century American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Cut Steel

1980s Postmodern Memphis Era Torchiere Lamp by Robert Sonneman, 1987
1980s Postmodern Memphis Era Torchiere Lamp by Robert Sonneman, 1987

1980s Postmodern Memphis Era Torchiere Lamp by Robert Sonneman, 1987

By Robert Sonneman

Located in San Diego, CA

work on this field. Great 1980s look Postmodern, industrial Memphis era.

Category

20th Century American Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Metal, Brass

Postmodern Be Yang Table Desk Lamp by Kovacs Memphis Era
Postmodern Be Yang Table Desk Lamp by Kovacs Memphis Era

Postmodern Be Yang Table Desk Lamp by Kovacs Memphis Era

By George Kovacs

Located in San Diego, CA

Postmodern Memphis era look table amp, in metal and wood lacquer finish. working condition.

Category

20th Century American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Be Yang Table Desk Lamp by Kovacs Memphis Era
Postmodern Be Yang Table Desk Lamp by Kovacs Memphis Era

Postmodern Be Yang Table Desk Lamp by Kovacs Memphis Era

By George Kovacs

Located in San Diego, CA

Postmodern Memphis era look table amp, in metal and wood lacquer finish. working condition.

Category

20th Century American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Pair 77" Memphis-Style Postmodern Torchieres
Pair 77" Memphis-Style Postmodern Torchieres

Pair 77" Memphis-Style Postmodern Torchieres

By Stilnovo

Located in Chicago, IL

Two postmodern floor lamps having square black metal bases supporting four silver tubular columns

Category

Late 20th Century Italian Floor Lamps

Materials

Metal

Rare Postmodern Memphis Era Desk Lamp in Chrome Enamel Metal and Glass
Rare Postmodern Memphis Era Desk Lamp in Chrome Enamel Metal and Glass

Rare Postmodern Memphis Era Desk Lamp in Chrome Enamel Metal and Glass

By Robert Sonneman

Located in San Diego, CA

**Unique 1980s Desk/Table Lamp with Memphis Postmodern Flair** Discover a truly unique desk/table

Category

20th Century American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal, Chrome

Pair of Italian Red Postmodern Gooseneck Adjustable Table Desk or Task Lamps
Pair of Italian Red Postmodern Gooseneck Adjustable Table Desk or Task Lamps

Pair of Italian Red Postmodern Gooseneck Adjustable Table Desk or Task Lamps

By Ettore Sottsass, Memphis Milano

Located in Miami, FL

Unique pair of adjustable goose neck table desk or task lamps rendered in Red metal and plastic

Category

Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Kreo-Lite "Model Na-862" Postmodern Articulating Table Wall or Floor Lamp
Kreo-Lite "Model Na-862" Postmodern Articulating Table Wall or Floor Lamp

Kreo-Lite "Model Na-862" Postmodern Articulating Table Wall or Floor Lamp

By Kreo-Lite, Nanbu Ind. Co. LTD, Memphis Group

Located in Miami, FL

Infinitely versatile Postmodern lamp, multiple articulating joints make this unique piece great for

Category

Late 20th Century Japanese Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

1980s, Postmodern Teal and Black Table Lamp
1980s, Postmodern Teal and Black Table Lamp

1980s, Postmodern Teal and Black Table Lamp

Located in Brooklyn, NY

A stunning 1980s postmodern table lamp in the Memphis Milano style. A black metal base, black stem

Category

Late 20th Century Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

XXL Mirrored Glass Wall Lamp Postmodern Memphis Style Made In Italy, 1970s
XXL Mirrored Glass Wall Lamp Postmodern Memphis Style Made In Italy, 1970s

XXL Mirrored Glass Wall Lamp Postmodern Memphis Style Made In Italy, 1970s

Located in Montecalvoli, IT

XXL mirrored glass wall lamp Postmodern Memphis Style Made in Italy, 1970s This rare vintage wall

Category

20th Century Italian Post-Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Materials

Murano Glass

1987 Memphis Table Lamp by Robert Sonneman for George Kovacs
1987 Memphis Table Lamp by Robert Sonneman for George Kovacs

1987 Memphis Table Lamp by Robert Sonneman for George Kovacs

By Robert Sonneman

Located in San Gabriel, CA

1980s Postmodern, Memphis lamp by Robert Sonneman for Geroge Kovacs. Metal conde shade base with

Category

Vintage 1980s American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

1980s Memphis Multicolored Wooden Postmodern Children's Lamp
1980s Memphis Multicolored Wooden Postmodern Children's Lamp

1980s Memphis Multicolored Wooden Postmodern Children's Lamp

By Memphis Milano

Located in San Gabriel, CA

1980s Memphis Milano-style postmodern lamp. Some minor paint chipping. Light wood construction

Category

Vintage 1980s American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Custom Postmodern Robert Sonneman Memphis Lamp for George Kovacs, 1980s
Custom Postmodern Robert Sonneman Memphis Lamp for George Kovacs, 1980s

Custom Postmodern Robert Sonneman Memphis Lamp for George Kovacs, 1980s

By Memphis Milano, Robert Sonneman, Memphis Group, George Kovacs, Ettore Sottsass

Located in Miami, FL

Postmodern library desk table or task lamp rendered in hand painted metal and glass in the Memphis

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Ettore Sottsas Bay Memphis Milano Postmodern
Ettore Sottsas Bay Memphis Milano Postmodern

Ettore Sottsas Bay Memphis Milano Postmodern

By Ettore Sottsass, Memphis Group

Located in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo

Ettore Sottsass's Bay lamp. Upper is plexiglass twin shades and body. Bottom is painted steel.   

Category

Vintage 1980s European Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Stainless Steel

Postmodern Torchiere Floor Lamp
Postmodern Torchiere Floor Lamp

Postmodern Torchiere Floor Lamp

By Memphis Group

Located in Miami, FL

Black Postmodern floor lamp, with a marble base and light sources from the rear and top.

Category

Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Marble, Metal

Postmodern Articulating Desk or Task lamp
Postmodern Articulating Desk or Task lamp

Postmodern Articulating Desk or Task lamp

By Memphis Group, Memphis Milano

Located in Miami, FL

Desk or task lamp with an articulating arm and weight system rendered in white steel, 1980s.

Category

Late 20th Century Italian Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Steel

Pop Art Postmodern Table Lamp, in the Style of Ettore Sottsass and Memphis
Pop Art Postmodern Table Lamp, in the Style of Ettore Sottsass and Memphis

Pop Art Postmodern Table Lamp, in the Style of Ettore Sottsass and Memphis

By Ettore Sottsass, Memphis Group

Located in London, GB

Pop Art table lamp, circa 1970 Wood, lacquered in red, yellow, white and blue. Fiberglass shade

Category

Vintage 1970s Italian Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Fiberglass, Wood

Postmodern Memphis 'Haba' Table Lamp, 1980s
Postmodern Memphis 'Haba' Table Lamp, 1980s

Postmodern Memphis 'Haba' Table Lamp, 1980s

Located in Hastings, GB

Memphis style "Haba" table lamp, Habermaaß, 1980s The lamp has a wooden arm of multiple red and

Category

Vintage 1980s German Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Rare Postmodern Double Headed Memphis Style Desk Lamp
Rare Postmodern Double Headed Memphis Style Desk Lamp

Rare Postmodern Double Headed Memphis Style Desk Lamp

Located in Brooklyn, NY

Rare, postmodern, black cast metal, double-headed, desk lamp circa 1980s in the manner of Memphis

Category

Vintage 1980s American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Memphis Style 1980s Articulating Table Lamp, 1980s-1990s Postmodern
Memphis Style 1980s Articulating Table Lamp, 1980s-1990s Postmodern

Memphis Style 1980s Articulating Table Lamp, 1980s-1990s Postmodern

Located in New York, NY

Memphis style 1980s articulating table lamp, 1980s-1990s Fantastic articulating Postmodern desk

Category

Vintage 1980s American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Iron

Postmodern Memphis Era Rare 1980s Metal Enameled Table Lamp
Postmodern Memphis Era Rare 1980s Metal Enameled Table Lamp

Postmodern Memphis Era Rare 1980s Metal Enameled Table Lamp

Located in San Diego, CA

Beautiful elegant table lamp in black and white enameled finish accents, circa 1980s perfectly

Category

20th Century American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Italian Floor Lamp, iGuzzini, Italy, 1972
Postmodern Italian Floor Lamp, iGuzzini, Italy, 1972

Postmodern Italian Floor Lamp, iGuzzini, Italy, 1972

By Memphis Group, Ettore Sottsass

Located in London, GB

A floor lamp produced in Italy in 1972 by iGuzzini. The weighted metal base supports chrome rods

Category

Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Memphis Era Table/Desk Lamp by Robert Sonneman
Postmodern Memphis Era Table/Desk Lamp by Robert Sonneman

Postmodern Memphis Era Table/Desk Lamp by Robert Sonneman

By Robert Sonneman, George Kovacs

Located in San Diego, CA

1987 Designed by Robert Sonneman for George Kovacs table desk lamp, with dimmer switch freshly

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Brass, Chrome

Postmodern Memphis Era Table/Desk Lamp by Robert Sonneman
Postmodern Memphis Era Table/Desk Lamp by Robert Sonneman

Postmodern Memphis Era Table/Desk Lamp by Robert Sonneman

By Robert Sonneman, George Kovacs

Located in San Diego, CA

1987 designed by Robert Sonneman for George Kovacs table desk lamp, with dimmer switch freshly

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Brass, Chrome

Postmodern Memphis Style Sculptural Curved Wave Floor Lamp by Alsy, 1980s
Postmodern Memphis Style Sculptural Curved Wave Floor Lamp by Alsy, 1980s

Postmodern Memphis Style Sculptural Curved Wave Floor Lamp by Alsy, 1980s

By Alsy Manufacturing 1

Located in Philadelphia, PA

1980s Postmodern Memphis style table lamp. Sculptural design features a series of curved metal

Category

Vintage 1980s American Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Iron

Postmodern Italian Ettore Sottsass Table or Desk Lamp for Stilnovo Memphis
Postmodern Italian Ettore Sottsass Table or Desk Lamp for Stilnovo Memphis

Postmodern Italian Ettore Sottsass Table or Desk Lamp for Stilnovo Memphis

By Stilnovo, Ettore Sottsass

Located in Philadelphia, PA

A fun and playful Postmodern design by Ettore Sottsass for Stilnovo lamp company. Fully working in

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Italian Ettore Sottsass Table or Desk Lamp for Stilnovo Memphis
Postmodern Italian Ettore Sottsass Table or Desk Lamp for Stilnovo Memphis

Postmodern Italian Ettore Sottsass Table or Desk Lamp for Stilnovo Memphis

By Ettore Sottsass, Stilnovo

Located in Philadelphia, PA

A fun and playful Postmodern design by Ettore Sottsass for Stilnovo lamp company. Fully working in

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Steel

Marco Zanuso Attr. Prototype Memphis Era, Postmodern Table Lamp, Italy, 1980s
Marco Zanuso Attr. Prototype Memphis Era, Postmodern Table Lamp, Italy, 1980s

Marco Zanuso Attr. Prototype Memphis Era, Postmodern Table Lamp, Italy, 1980s

By Marco Zanuso Jr.

Located in London, GB

Castiglioni, before collaborating with Memphis Milano from 1987- 1988, creating pieces such as the Antonio and

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Wood

Pair of Postmodern Torchiere Floor Lamps by Koch & Lowy
Pair of Postmodern Torchiere Floor Lamps by Koch & Lowy

Pair of Postmodern Torchiere Floor Lamps by Koch & Lowy

By Robert Sonneman, Memphis Group, Koch & Lowy

Located in Miami, FL

Koch & Lowy Postmodern torchiere floor lamps with a weighted base holding four rods supporting an

Category

Late 20th Century American Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Steel

Stunning Postmodern Italian Torchere, Memphis Style, signed Milano, Italy
Stunning Postmodern Italian Torchere, Memphis Style, signed Milano, Italy

Stunning Postmodern Italian Torchere, Memphis Style, signed Milano, Italy

By Koch & Lowy

Located in Buffalo, NY

Stunning postmodern Italian torchere, Memphis Style, dimmer floor switch signed Milano, Italy

Category

Vintage 1970s Italian Post-Modern Floor Lamps

Materials

Iron, Steel

Postmodern Memphis-Style Pendant Lamp, Italy, 1980
Postmodern Memphis-Style Pendant Lamp, Italy, 1980

Postmodern Memphis-Style Pendant Lamp, Italy, 1980

Located in Madrid, ES

White Memphis-Style pendant lamp. The lamp is composed of a semi translucent conic top and the

Category

Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Chandeliers and Pendants

Materials

Metal

Rare Pair of Vintage Postmodern Ikea Wall Sconces or Wall Lights or Lamp, 1980
Rare Pair of Vintage Postmodern Ikea Wall Sconces or Wall Lights or Lamp, 1980

Rare Pair of Vintage Postmodern Ikea Wall Sconces or Wall Lights or Lamp, 1980

By IKEA, Ettore Sottsass, Verner Panton, Memphis Group

Located in Miami, FL

Pair of geometric postmodern wall lights lamps or sconces rendered in metal wood and plastic in red

Category

Late 20th Century Swedish Post-Modern Wall Lights and Sconces

Materials

Metal

Postmodern Memphis Style Wavy Squiggle Table Lamp
Postmodern Memphis Style Wavy Squiggle Table Lamp

Postmodern Memphis Style Wavy Squiggle Table Lamp

By Memphis Group

Located in Los Angeles, CA

Three parallel black tubular bars form a wavy squiggle on this 80's table lamp. Matte black coated

Category

Late 20th Century Unknown Post-Modern Table Lamps

Materials

Marble, Metal

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Postmodern Memphis Lamp For Sale on 1stDibs

Find many varieties of an authentic postmodern memphis lamp available at 1stDibs. Frequently made of metal, glass and plastic, every postmodern memphis lamp was constructed with great care. If you’re shopping for a postmodern memphis lamp, we have 68 options in-stock, while there are 2 modern editions to choose from as well. There are many kinds of the postmodern memphis lamp you’re looking for, from those produced as long ago as the 20th Century to those made as recently as the 21st Century. A postmodern memphis lamp, designed in the Mid-Century Modern or Modern style, is generally a popular piece of furniture. Many designers have produced at least one well-made postmodern memphis lamp over the years, but those crafted by Memphis Group, Martine Bedin and Ettore Sottsass are often thought to be among the most beautiful.

How Much is a Postmodern Memphis Lamp?

A postmodern memphis lamp can differ in price owing to various characteristics — the average selling price 1stDibs is $1,750, while the lowest priced sells for $275 and the highest can go for as much as $7,500.

A Close Look at Post-modern Furniture

Postmodern design was a short-lived movement that manifested itself chiefly in Italy and the United States in the early 1980s. The characteristics of vintage postmodern furniture and other postmodern objects and decor for the home included loud-patterned, usually plastic surfaces; strange proportions, vibrant colors and weird angles; and a vague-at-best relationship between form and function.

ORIGINS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN

  • Emerges during the 1960s; popularity explodes during the ’80s
  • A reaction to prevailing conventions of modernism by mainly American architects
  • Architect Robert Venturi critiques modern architecture in his Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture (1966)
  • Theorist Charles Jencks, who championed architecture filled with allusions and cultural references, writes The Language of Post-Modern Architecture (1977)
  • Italian design collective the Memphis Group, also known as Memphis Milano, meets for the first time (1980) 
  • Memphis collective debuts more than 50 objects and furnishings at Salone del Milano (1981)
  • Interest in style declines, minimalism gains steam

CHARACTERISTICS OF POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGN

  • Dizzying graphic patterns and an emphasis on loud, off-the-wall colors
  • Use of plastic and laminates, glass, metal and marble; lacquered and painted wood 
  • Unconventional proportions and abundant ornamentation
  • Playful nods to Art Deco and Pop art

POSTMODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW

VINTAGE POSTMODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS

Critics derided postmodern design as a grandstanding bid for attention and nothing of consequence. Decades later, the fact that postmodernism still has the power to provoke thoughts, along with other reactions, proves they were not entirely correct.

Postmodern design began as an architectural critique. Starting in the 1960s, a small cadre of mainly American architects began to argue that modernism, once high-minded and even noble in its goals, had become stale, stagnant and blandly corporate. Later, in Milan, a cohort of creators led by Ettore Sottsass and Alessandro Mendinia onetime mentor to Sottsass and a key figure in the Italian Radical movement — brought the discussion to bear on design.

Sottsass, an industrial designer, philosopher and provocateur, gathered a core group of young designers into a collective in 1980 they called Memphis. Members of the Memphis Group,  which would come to include Martine Bedin, Michael Graves, Marco Zanini, Shiro Kuramata, Michele de Lucchi and Matteo Thun, saw design as a means of communication, and they wanted it to shout. That it did: The first Memphis collection appeared in 1981 in Milan and broke all the modernist taboos, embracing irony, kitsch, wild ornamentation and bad taste.

Memphis works remain icons of postmodernism: the Sottsass Casablanca bookcase, with its leopard-print plastic veneer; de Lucchi’s First chair, which has been described as having the look of an electronics component; Martine Bedin’s Super lamp: a pull-toy puppy on a power-cord leash. Even though it preceded the Memphis Group’s formal launch, Sottsass’s iconic Ultrafragola mirror — in its conspicuously curved plastic shell with radical pops of pink neon — proves striking in any space and embodies many of the collective’s postmodern ideals. 

After the initial Memphis show caused an uproar, the postmodern movement within furniture and interior design quickly took off in America. (Memphis fell out of fashion when the Reagan era gave way to cool 1990’s minimalism.) The architect Robert Venturi had by then already begun a series of plywood chairs for Knoll Inc., with beefy, exaggerated silhouettes of traditional styles such as Queen Anne and Chippendale. In 1982, the new firm Swid Powell enlisted a group of top American architects, including Frank Gehry, Richard Meier, Stanley Tigerman and Venturi to create postmodern tableware in silver, ceramic and glass.

On 1stDibs, the vintage postmodern furniture collection includes chairs, coffee tables, sofas, decorative objects, table lamps and more.

Finding the Right Lighting for You

The right table lamp, outwardly sculptural chandelier or understated wall pendant can work wonders for your home. While we’re indebted to thinkers like Thomas Edison for critically important advancements in lighting and electricity, we’re still finding new ways to customize illumination to fit our personal spaces all these years later. A wide range of antique and vintage lighting can be found on 1stDibs.

Today, lighting designers like the self-taught Bec Brittain have used the flexible structure of LEDs to craft glamorous solutions by working with what is typically considered a harsh lighting source. By integrating glass and mirrors, reflection can be used to soften the glow from LEDs and warmly welcome light into any space.

Although contemporary innovators continue to impress, some of the classics can’t be beat. 

Just as gazing at the stars allows you to glimpse the universe’s past, vintage chandeliers like those designed by Gino Sarfatti and J. & L. Lobmeyr, for example, put on a similarly stunning show, each with a rich story to tell.

As dazzling as it is, the Arco lamp, on the other hand, prioritizes functionality — it’s wholly mobile, no drilling required. Designed in 1962 by architect-product designers Achille & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni, the piece takes the traditional form of a streetlamp and creates an elegant, arching floor fixture for at-home use.

There is no shortage of modernist lighting similarly prized by collectors and casual enthusiasts alike — there are Art Deco table lamps created in a universally appreciated style, the Tripod floor lamp by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Greta Magnusson Grossman's sleek and minimalist Grasshopper lamps and, of course, the wealth of mid-century experimental lighting that emerged from Italian artisans at Arredoluce, FLOS and many more are hallmarks in illumination innovation

With decades of design evolution behind it, home lighting is no longer just practical. Crystalline shaping by designers like Gabriel Scott turns every lighting apparatus into a luxury accessory. A new installation doesn’t merely showcase a space; carefully chosen ceiling lights, table lamps and floor lamps can create a mood, spotlight a favorite piece or highlight your unique personality.

The sparkle that your space has been missing is waiting for you amid the growing collection of antique, vintage and contemporary lighting for sale on 1stDibs.