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.
Matteo Thun "Manitoba" Italian Porcelain Tray Set for Memphis Milano
By Matteo Thun, Memphis Milano
Located in Varedo, Lombardia
The Concept & Inspiration Designed by Matteo Thun in 1982 for Memphis Milano, the "Manitoba" tray set is a brilliant representation of the movement's typical humorous anti-functional...
Porcelain
Memphis Milano "Tomato" Ceramic Serving Plate by Michele De Lucchi
By Memphis Milano, Michele de Lucchi
Located in Varedo, Lombardia
The Concept & Inspiration Designed by the renowned Italian architect and Memphis co-founder Michele De Lucchi in 1985, the "Tomato" serving plate is a brilliant exploration of geomet...
Ceramic
Vaso Bianco, Ceramic White Vase by Michele De Lucchi
By Produzione Privata, Michele de Lucchi
Located in Roma, IT
This vase represents the beginning of a new design era for De Lucchi beyond Memphis. This new beginning is best illustrated by inadvertedly abandoning all the critical features of wh...
Ceramic
$435 / item
H 4.73 in W 3.94 in D 2.76 in
Onega White Porcelain Cup, by Matteo Thun from Memphis Milano
By Matteo Thun, Memphis Group, Memphis Milano
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The kitchen took a new revolutionary appeal when Matteo Thun designed its series of white decorated porcelains for Memphis Milano. The rite of the quickie espresso changed forever wi...
Porcelain
Chad Teapot, by Matteo Thun from Memphis Milano
By Memphis Group, Memphis Milano, Matteo Thun
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The Chad teapot was originally designed by Matteo Thun for Memphis, in 1982. The decorated white porcelain pot's shape is more interested in its fo...
Porcelain
$680 / item
H 1.19 in W 16.54 in D 12.6 in
Celery Serving Plate, by Michele De Lucchi from Memphis Milano
By Memphis Group, Memphis Milano, Michele de Lucchi
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The Celery serving plate was originally designed by Michele De Lucchi in 1985. Michele De Lucchi was born in 1951 in Ferrara and graduated in architecture in Florence during the period of radical and experimental architecture he was a prominent figure in movements like Cavart, Alchymia and Memphis. His architectural designs have been mainly for office buildings in Japan, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. He has taken care of numerous art and design exhibitions and has planned buildings for museums as Triennale di Milano, Palazzo delle Esposizioni di Roma and Neues Museum...
Ceramic
Rucola Ceramic Plate, by Ettore Sottsass from Memphis Milano
By Memphis Group, Memphis Milano, Ettore Sottsass
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The Rucola ceramic dinner plate was originally designed by Ettore Sottsass, in 1985, as part of a series of decorative plates. The playful names of the design items are a reminder of...
Ceramic
$585 / item
H 2.37 in W 13.78 in D 11.03 in
Tomato Ceramic Serving Platter, by Michele De Lucchi from Memphis Milano
By Michele de Lucchi, Memphis Milano, Memphis Group
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
Tomato Serving platter was originally designed in 1985 by Michele De Lucchi in ceramic, for Memphis Milano. Here we are offering this item by Memphis Group themselves. Michele De L...
Ceramic
$1,377
H 1.5 in W 17.5 in D 12.5 in
1980's Italian Futura Silver-Plate, Wood, Resin Tray By Larry Laslo For Towle
By Towle Silversmiths, Larry Laslo
Located in North Miami, FL
This fabulous vintage 1980's postmodern Italian tray was designed by Larry Laslo for Towle Silversmiths in Italy. It is rectangular of silver-plate, wood handles with red resin. This...
Silver Plate
$2,230 / item
H 1.19 in W 16.93 in D 11.03 in
Manitoba White Porcelain Tray, by Matteo Thun from Memphis Milano
By Memphis Group, Matteo Thun, Memphis Milano
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
Tray in white porcelain. The Manitoba tray was originally designed in 1982 by Matteo Thun, and belongs to the Memphis Milano Collection 1981-1988. The white porcelain tray...
Porcelain
Potato Ceramic Tray, by George Sowden from Memphis Milano
By Memphis Group, Memphis Milano, George Sowden
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
Potato Ceramic tray with metal handles, was originally designed in 1985 by George Sowden for Memphis Milano. Red and white porcelain for a roun...
Ceramic
$2,290 / item
H 9.06 in W 11.42 in D 11.82 in
Colorado Ceramic Teapot, by Marco Zanini from Memphis Milano
By Memphis Milano, Marco Zanini, Memphis Group
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The Colorado teapot in ceramic was originally designed by Marco Zanini in 1983. Marco Zanini was born in Trento in 1954. He graduated in architecture ...
Ceramic
Vintage Viners Alpha Silver Plated Gallery Serving Tray
Located in Sheffield, MA
A wonderfully charming and elegant small vintage Viners Alpha Silver Plated Gallery Serving Tray. Use it for an intimate 2 person occasion or center piec...
Silver Plate
Indivia Ceramic Plate, by Ettore Sottsass from Memphis Milano
By Memphis Group, Memphis Milano, Ettore Sottsass
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The Indivia ceramic dinner plate was originally designed by Ettore Sottsass, in 1985, as part of a series of decorative plates. The playful names of the design items are a reminder o...
Ceramic
$925 / item
H 9.85 in W 3.94 in D 3.94 in
Ladoga White Porcelain Cocktail Glass, by Matteo Thun from Memphis Milano
By Memphis Group, Matteo Thun, Memphis Milano
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The Ladoga vase or goblet, was originally designed by Matteo Thun for Memphis in 1982, and it takes its name from the biggest European lake. Decorated in white porcelain, a complex s...
Porcelain
$415 / item
H 0.79 in Dm 11.82 in
Lettuce White Ceramic Dinner Plate, by Ettore Sottsass from Memphis Milano
By Memphis Group, Memphis Milano, Ettore Sottsass
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The Lettuce ceramic dinner plate was originally designed by Ettore Sottsass, in 1985, as part of a series of decorative plates. The playful names of th...
Ceramic
Kariba Fruit Bowl, by Matteo Thun from Memphis Milano
By Memphis Group, Memphis Milano, Matteo Thun
Located in La Morra, Cuneo
The Kariba fruit bowl was originally designed by Matteo Thun in 1982 for Memphis. Born 1952 in Bolzano, Italy. Matteo Thun studies under Oskar Kokoschka at the Salzburg Academy of A...
Porcelain