1981, Matteo Thun, "Nefertiti" Grey and Gold Ceramic Tea Set for Memphis Milano
View Similar Items
1981, Matteo Thun, "Nefertiti" Grey and Gold Ceramic Tea Set for Memphis Milano
About the Item
- Creator:Memphis Group (Designer),Matteo Thun (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 8.27 in (21 cm)Width: 8.27 in (21 cm)Depth: 8.27 in (21 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 5
- Style:Post-Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:Ceramic,Glazed
- Place of Origin:
- Period:1980-1989
- Date of Manufacture:1981
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Paris, FR
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2741325518092
Memphis Group
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.
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 vintage Memphis Group seating, tables, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.
- Jacques and Dani Ruelland, "Japanese Vase", 1970By Jacques and Dani RuellandLocated in Paris, FRJacques and Dani Ruelland 'Japanese Vase', c. 1970 Execution: Ceramic, red Signed: Ruelland H : 15.5 cm (5.9") Overall Very good condition In 1955, Jacques and Dani Ruelland ...Category
Vintage 1970s French Post-Modern Vases
MaterialsCeramic
- Berndt Friberg, Ceramic Vase, 1960'sBy Berndt FribergLocated in Paris, FRBerndt Friberg Ceramic vase, 1960's Marked: Friberg Measures: H : 10 cm (3.9") Overall very good condition Berndt Friberg (1899-1981) was a Swedish ceramic artist particularly activ...Category
Vintage 1960s Swedish Mid-Century Modern Vases
MaterialsCeramic
- Fulvio Bianconi, Private Collection, Glass Vase Set with Glass Balloons, 1960By Fulvio BianconiLocated in Paris, FRFulvio Bianconi Bianconi's private collection, c. 1960 Execution: Blown glass, clear and blue, with glass bubbles inside. Signed: Bianconi H : 23 cm (9.05") Overall Very good co...Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Post-Modern Vases
MaterialsGlass
- Fulvio Bianconi, "A Spicchi", 1953By Fulvio BianconiLocated in Paris, FRFulvio Bianconi 'A Spicchi' Vase, c. 1953 Execution: Venini, blown glass, purple, pink and blue. Signed: Original label and signature (Picture 4) H : 36 cm (14.17") Overall Ver...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Post-Modern Vases
MaterialsGlass
- Archimede Seguso, "Merletto", 1980By Archimede SegusoLocated in Paris, FRArchimede Seguso 'Merletto' Vase, c. 1980 Execution: Blown glass, white. H : 23.5 cm (9.6") Overall Very good condition Archimede Seguso, one of the great glass artists work...Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Vases
MaterialsGlass
- Fulvio Bianconi, "Epipedos" Vase, Venini Artist Proof, 1989By Fulvio BianconiLocated in Paris, FRFulvio Bianconi 'Epipedos' Vase, c. 1989 Execution: Venini, blown glass, red. Signed: Venini murano, Artist proof H : 17.5 cm (6.7") Overall Very good condition This a rare ...Category
1990s Italian Post-Modern Vases
MaterialsGlass
- Nefertiti Teapot Matteo Thun for Memphis-Milano Original, 1980sBy Matteo Thun, Memphis GroupLocated in Shibuya-ku, TokyoVintage original 1980s Nefertiti tea pot. Red is vintage color which is no longer production now. There is signature on bottom. Designed by Matteo Thun for Memphis Milano.Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Ceramics
MaterialsCeramic
- Matteo Thun Memphis Milano Pair of 'Onega' Cocktail CupsBy Memphis Milano, Matteo Thun, Memphis GroupLocated in Fort Lauderdale, FLA pair of white porcelain 'Onega' cocktail cups, designed by Matteo Thun in 1982 for the Memphis group. Memphis Milano formed in the 1980s as a response to the rather formulaic de...Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Ceramics
MaterialsPorcelain
- Matteo Thun Whimsical Memphis Tea PotBy Matteo ThunLocated in New York, NYTea Pot “Columbina Superba” Designed for Alessio Sarri, Sesto Fiorentino Printed to underside “MTH 020”. Object # 3174 Literature: Barbara Radice, Memphis, Munich, 1988, p. 165 (...Category
20th Century Italian Ceramics
MaterialsCeramic
- Memphis Style Porcelain Cocktail Accessories by Matteo ThunBy Memphis Milano, Matteo Thun, Memphis GroupLocated in Fort Lauderdale, FLA contemporary manufacture set of porcelain Memphis-style cocktail accessories after designs by Matteo Thun in 1982 for the Memphis group. The pair comprises the 'Michigan' oil holde...Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Ceramics
MaterialsPorcelain
- Matteo Thun Memphis Milano Hors d'oeuvre SetBy Memphis Milano, Matteo Thun, Memphis GroupLocated in Fort Lauderdale, FLA Memphis style porcelain tray set for hors d'oeuvres, designed by Matteo Thun in 1982 for the Memphis group. The set comprises the 'Manitoba' tray, 'Michigan' oil holder, 'Erie' sal...Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Platters and Serveware
MaterialsPorcelain
- Chad Teapot, by Matteo Thun from Memphis MilanoBy Memphis Milano, Matteo Thun, Memphis GroupLocated in La Morra, CuneoThe 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...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Tea Sets
MaterialsPorcelain