Tableware Set Matteo Thun for Memphis-Milano
View Similar Items
Tableware Set Matteo Thun for Memphis-Milano
About the Item
- Creator:Matteo Thun (Designer),Memphis Group (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 0.79 in (2 cm)Width: 10.95 in (27.8 cm)Depth: 16.93 in (43 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 7
- Style:Post-Modern (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:1980-1989
- Date of Manufacture:1980s
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Shibuya-ku, JP
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2163310255203
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.
- 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
- Santa Monica Matteo Thun for Memphis MilanoBy Matteo Thun, Memphis GroupLocated in Shibuya-ku, TokyoSanta Monica by Matteo Thun for Memphis Milano. Ceramic pendant lamp. Light is E26 or E27. Shade size is f 30/H 12 cm. cable 120cm.Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
MaterialsCeramic
$1,300 / item - Squash Limited Color Edition Violet Ashtray Maria Sanchez for Memphis-MilanoBy Memphis Milano, Maria SanchezLocated in Shibuya-ku, TokyoLimited color edition Squash violet by Maria Sanchez for Memphis-Milano. Brand new item.Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Ceramics
MaterialsCeramic
- Squash Limited Color Edition Gold Ashtray Maria Sanchez for Memphis-MilanoBy Memphis Milano, Maria SanchezLocated in Shibuya-ku, TokyoLimited color edition Squash gold by Maria Sanchez for Memphis-Milano. Brand new item.Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Ceramics
MaterialsCeramic
- Ettore Sottsas Tahiti Memphis Milano PostmodernBy Ettore Sottsass, Memphis GroupLocated in Shibuya-ku, TokyoEttore Sottsass's Tahiti lamp. Materpiece of 1980s design.Category
Vintage 1980s European Post-Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsStainless Steel
- Michele de Lucchi Oceanic Memphis Milano PostmodernBy Michele de Lucchi, Memphis GroupLocated in Shibuya-ku, TokyoMichele de Lucchi's oceanic lamp. Materpiece of 1980s design.Category
Vintage 1980s European Post-Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsStainless Steel
- Matteo Thun Memphis Milano Pair of 'Onega' Cocktail CupsBy Memphis Milano, Memphis Group, Matteo ThunLocated 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
- Memphis Style Porcelain Cocktail Accessories by Matteo ThunBy Memphis Milano, Memphis Group, Matteo ThunLocated 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, Memphis Group, Matteo ThunLocated 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
- 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
- Chad Teapot, by Matteo Thun from Memphis MilanoBy Memphis Milano, Memphis Group, Matteo ThunLocated 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
- Kariba Fruit Bowl, by Matteo Thun from Memphis MilanoBy Memphis Milano, Memphis Group, Matteo ThunLocated in La Morra, CuneoThe 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...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Serving Bowls
MaterialsPorcelain