Since founded in Milan in 1981, Memphis has never lost its cachet. Its strong stylistic colorful aesthetics has gone in and out of fashion, but the program, the ideology of the group, which was led by the godfather of Italian design of the last quarter of the 20th century Ettore Sottsass, has become timeless. The group, its members, and the products they created are still as intriguing as on the day the Group was formed. A new exhibition Memphis: Plastic Field at Musée des Arts décoratifs et du Design in Bordeaux (through January 2020) comes to tell the story of one of the most intriguing initiatives in the story of modern design.
When Sottsass opened the first exhibition of Memphis in 1981 in Milan, it was so sensational and radical, that it immediately gained international reputation, and came to change rules and conventions, affecting design culture of the 80s across the globe. Such icons as Carlton Bookcase, the First chair, and the Super Lamp became blockbusters overnight.
And there is the legacy story. This exhibition is perceived as a revisit of the legendary first show of Memphis, which Musée des Arts décoratifs et du Design in Bordeaux opened in 1983, which was the first time Memphis was shown in France. All images courtesy of
