Pair of Dramatic Italian Steel Floor Lamps, 1980s
View Similar Items
Pair of Dramatic Italian Steel Floor Lamps, 1980s
About the Item
- Creator:Memphis Group (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 72 in (182.88 cm)Width: 16.5 in (41.91 cm)Depth: 14.2 in (36.07 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Place of Origin:
- Period:1980-1989
- Date of Manufacture:1980s
- Condition:
- Seller Location:London, GB
- Reference Number:Seller: M43301stDibs: LU840712435371
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.
- Unique 1980s Sculptural Floor LampBy Memphis GroupLocated in New York, NYA sculptural rocket shaped floor lamp done in a purple and blue lacquered metal rocket with three smoked glass trays, a beige, pink and yellow lacquered wood base. Three shelves. Lon...Category
Late 20th Century American Memphis Group Floor Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- Italian Designer, Floor Lamp, Steel, Glass, Italy, 1980sLocated in High Point, NCA steel and yellow glass floor lamp, designed and produced in Italy, c. 1980s. E-26 bulb - 3 socketsCategory
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Floor Lamps
MaterialsSteel
- Pair of Philips Floor Lamps, 1980sBy PhilipsLocated in Lisboa, LisboaThis pair of post-modern floor lamps from Philips' "Manhattan" series are iconic lighting fixtures, epitomizing the adventurous spirit of mid-1980s design. Their slim, vertical statu...Category
Vintage 1980s British Mid-Century Modern Floor Lamps
MaterialsPlexiglass
$834 Sale Price / set20% Off - Italian Halogen Floor Lamp, 1980sBy Mario Barbaglia and Marco ColomboLocated in Den Haag, NL1980s floor lamp inspired by manufacturing robot arms. Featuring a two-stage dimmer and a telescoping upper arm. The light can fully rotate on its arm making it very flexible.Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Modern Floor Lamps
MaterialsPlastic
- 1980s Floor LampLocated in Saint-Ouen, FR1980s floor lamp in white metal and red, orange, green and blue plexiglass. Signature difficult to read (Joël Donjon ?), numbered 16/250.Category
Late 20th Century French Floor Lamps
MaterialsMetal
$4,000 - Floor Lamp, 1980sLocated in Ljubljana, SIVintage floor lamp. Style: industrial. Production: 1980s.Category
Vintage 1980s Slovenian Mid-Century Modern Floor Lamps
MaterialsChrome, Metal, Aluminum