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.
Italian modern table clock Metropole by George J. Sowden for Memphis, 1982
By George Sowden, Memphis Milano
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian modern table clock Metropole by George J. Sowden for Memphis, 1982 Metropole table clock made of wood covered in colored Formica. The rectangular dial, made of plastic and ye...
Plastic, Formica, Wood
Iconic George Nelson for Howard Miller Mid-Century Modern Starburst Clock
By George Nelson, Howard Miller
Located in Wheat Ridge, CO
An iconic and authentic George Nelson for Howard Miller Mid-Century Modern Starburst Clock with its original stamp / maker’s mark intact. Measurements: 19.5ʺ wide, 2.5" deep and 19....
Metal
MELA Ceramic by George J. Sowden for Post Design Collection/Memphis
By George Sowden
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
MELA ceramic by George J. Sowden for Post Design collection/Memphis Additional Information: Ceramic Collection: Materialism Designer: Geor...
Ceramic
$569 / item
H 13.78 in W 5.12 in D 5.12 in
AGOSTO Ceramic by George J. Sowden for Post Design Collection/Memphis
By George Sowden
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
AGOSTO ceramic by George J. Sowden for Post Design collection/Memphis Additional Information: Ceramic Collection: Materialism Designer: George J. Sowden Year: 2018 Dimensions...
Ceramic
$611 / item
H 10.04 in Dm 6.3 in
ARANCIO Ceramic by George J. Sowden by Post Design Collection/Memphis
By George Sowden
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
ARANCIO ceramic by George J. Sowden by Post Design collection/Memphis Additional Information: Ceramic Collection: Materialism Designer: George J. Sowden Year: 2018 Dimensions...
Ceramic
Postmodern Pyramid Desk or Table Clock by Makiko Taniguchi, Japan, 1980s
By Memphis Milano
Located in Vienna, AT
A beautiful post-modern black and red triangle desk / table / mantel clock from the 1980s. Designed by Makiko Taniguchi, Japan. Made of metal and plastic...
Metal
$569 / item
H 13.78 in W 5.12 in D 5.12 in
Giugno Ceramic by George J. Sowden for Post Design Collection/Memphis
By George Sowden
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
Giugno ceramic by George J. Sowden for Post Design collection/Memphis Additional Information: Ceramic Collection: Materialism Designer: George J. Sowden Year: 2018 Dimensions...
Ceramic
$569 / item
H 13.78 in W 5.12 in D 5.12 in
Luglio Ceramic by George J. Sowden for Post Design Collection/Memphis
By George Sowden
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
Luglio ceramic by George J. Sowden for Post Design collection/Memphis Additional Information: Ceramic Collection: Materialism Designer: George J. Sowden Year: 2018 Dimensions...
Ceramic
Neos Wall Clock 2 George Sowden Nathalie du Pasquier Postmodern
By George Sowden, Memphis Milano, Lorenz, Nathalie du Pasquier
Located in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
Neos clock designed by George Sowden and Nathalie du Pasquier in the 80s. Neos is the brand run by Lorenz clock company in Italy. They were designed a lot o...
Plastic
George Nelson Tripod Table Clock
By George Nelson
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Scarce large tripod table clock, Model 4764, designed by George Nelson and Associates for Howard Miller Clock Company. Satin brass dial encased in plexiglass bubble, with signature b...
Brass
$948 / item
H 20.48 in W 7.88 in D 11.82 in
Italian Ceramic Vase Red Model by George Sowden for Superego Editions.
By Superego Editions, George Sowden
Located in Milan, Italy
Red ceramic vase of the RedYellowBlack collection designed by George Sowden and produced by Superego Editions. Limited edition of 50 pieces. Signed and numbered. Biography George J. Sowden is a designer with experience in various fields of Industrial Design activity. These range from the development of mass-produced electronic products, to handmade low volume artisan objects, including ceramics glass textiles and carpets. His first working experience in Italy was with Ettore Sottsass. He collaborated with Olivetti for more than 20 years and was one of the founder members of Memphis. He has been consultant to Olivetti, Alessi, Bodum, Fratelli Guzzini, Lorenz, Memphis, Moulinex, Post Design, Pyrex, Rancilio, Steelcase, Swatch, Segis, Tefal, Telecom Italia, IPM, and others. He established SowdenDesign in 1981 through which he develops his consultant activities as an Industrial designer, whilst maintaining collaborators in the studio with which he develops his experimental/research work. SowdenDesign products have been published in many books on design...
Ceramic
$10,000 / item
H 31.89 in W 9.45 in D 9.45 in
Metropole Clock, by George Sowden for Memphis Milano Collection
By Memphis Milano, George Sowden, Memphis Group
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
Metropole Clock in plastic laminate, designed in 1982, George Sowden. George Sowden was born in Leeds, UK in 1942. He studied architecture at Gloucestershire College of Art in the 1...
Plastic
George Nelson Brass Table Clock for Howard Miller, Mid-Century Modern
By George Nelson, Howard Miller
Located in Los Angeles, CA
George Nelson for Howard Miller brass clock. A round brass clock on a tri-legged brass pedestal with a thick plexiglass face. The clock has b...
Metal, Brass