Memphis design

Memphis is one of the most influential and most polarizing design movements of the late 20th century. Founded in Milan in 1981 by Italian architect and designer Ettore Sottsass with a collective of younger collaborators, Memphis produced furniture and objects that violated every modernist design principle: wildly bright colors, jarring patterns, "wrong" proportions, cheap materials presented as luxury, and a refusal to take any of it too seriously. The movement lasted only about six years (officially disbanding in 1987) but its influence on graphic design, fashion, architecture and interiors continues today.

Origin and the original collective

The Memphis Group emerged from frustration with mid-century modernism's austere good taste. Ettore Sottsass, already established as a senior designer at Olivetti, gathered a group of younger designers in 1980 to create something different. The first Memphis exhibition opened at the 1981 Milan Furniture Fair and produced immediate cultural shock. The original collaborators included:

• Ettore Sottsass (founder)
• Michele De Lucchi
• Aldo Cibic
• Andrea Branzi
• Nathalie du Pasquier (the most-recognized Memphis pattern designer)
• George Sowden
• Martine Bedin
• Matteo Thun
• Marco Zanini
• Peter Shire

The name "Memphis" came from a Bob Dylan song ("Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again") playing during the founding meeting.

Signature characteristics

• Bright primary and acid colors, pinks, turquoise, electric yellow, neon green, magenta
• Bold geometric patterns, squiggles, dots, checkerboards, asymmetric grids
• Plastic laminate as primary material, particularly Abet Laminati from Italy
• Asymmetric and apparently unstable proportions, chairs that look impossible
• Tropical and natural references, references to coral, tropical fish, palm leaves filtered through abstract pattern
• Postmodern historical reference, classical motifs combined with kitsch
• Cheap industrial materials presented as luxury furniture

Famous Memphis pieces

• Carlton bookcase (Ettore Sottsass, 1981), the most iconic Memphis piece; a sculptural laminate bookshelf in bright colors that doesn't really store books well
• Tahiti lamp (Sottsass, 1981), sculptural bird-shaped lamp
• Plaza dressing table (Sottsass, 1981), laminate vanity with neon accents
• First chair (Michele De Lucchi, 1983), geometric primary-colored chair
• Casablanca sideboard (Sottsass, 1981), laminate buffet with asymmetric proportions
• Patterns by Nathalie du Pasquier, many of the most-recognized Memphis fabric and laminate patterns

Cultural impact

Despite producing furniture few people actually bought, Memphis was hugely influential:

• David Bowie was a famous Memphis collector, his Lausanne apartment was decorated almost entirely in Memphis pieces; his collection was auctioned for nearly $2 million in 2016
• Karl Lagerfeld bought, sold, and famously photographed himself with Memphis pieces
• The aesthetic appeared throughout 1980s pop culture, music videos, fashion, graphic design
• The "Memphis pattern", bright squiggles and dots on bright backgrounds, defined 1980s visual culture from Saved by the Bell title cards to Trapper Keeper covers
• Most furniture mass-marketed as "1980s style" today is actually Memphis-influenced rather than true Memphis

Memphis vs general postmodernism

Memphis is a specific manifestation of broader postmodernism, but with distinct characteristics:

• Memphis, specifically Italian, primarily 1981-1987, primarily Sottsass-led collective; very specific visual vocabulary (bright laminates, asymmetric pieces, geometric patterns)
• Postmodernism, broader theoretical movement spanning architecture and design from 1960s onward; many designers and styles within it; less specific visual vocabulary

All Memphis is postmodern; not all postmodern is Memphis.

Memphis revival in contemporary design

Memphis is having a sophisticated comeback in the 2020s:

• Original 1981-1987 pieces are increasingly collectible, auction prices have risen substantially
• Reissues by Memphis Milano (the company that owns the rights to original designs) make pieces available again
• Contemporary designers reference Memphis without literal reproduction. Camille Walala, India Mahdavi, Studio Job
• Graphic design and fashion have embraced Memphis-influenced pattern more openly than ever
• Children's rooms and creative spaces use Memphis-influenced decor freely

How to use Memphis influence today

Strict Memphis rooms work for very few homeowners. But Memphis-influenced moments work in:

• One vintage Memphis piece as a single statement in an otherwise restrained room
• Memphis-pattern wallpaper or rug as a single accent
• Color-mixing in upholstery inspired by Memphis palettes
• Creative workspaces, kids rooms, powder rooms, places where playfulness is welcome
• Hospitality design (Memphis influence is huge in hotel lobbies, restaurants)

Common mistakes

The biggest mistake is treating Memphis as period costume, turning a whole room into a 1985 reproduction. Memphis pieces work best as single accents, not as the entire design. The second mistake is buying cheap "Memphis style" products that lack the craft and material quality of real Memphis; the original pieces work despite their wildness because they're actually well-made. The third is forgetting that Memphis was deliberately ironic; rooms that treat Memphis too seriously lose the original spirit.

Related movements

Memphis is part of broader postmodernism, alongside the Italian "Anti-Design" movement of the 1960s-70s, the Radical Architecture movement, Pop Art (artistic predecessor), and the Y2K aesthetic of the late 1990s-early 2000s (Memphis revival kid). Contemporary designers influenced by Memphis include Camille Walala, Studio Job, and contemporary "design-art" producers.