Early to Mid 20th Century Decorative Arts Auction
Thursday, 5 - Thursday, 12 October 2023
1981 Ettore Sottsass Memphis of Italy “Tahiti” desk lamp
Current Bid $1,500 (11 bids, reserve met)
This lot is now closed 12 Oct 8:22 PM (NZST)
Buyer premium and GST is additional to your bid.
All bids are subject to our buyer terms and conditions
Lot Details
1981 Ettore Sottsass Memphis of Italy “Tahiti” desk lamp. An exceptional example in pristine order. Consisting of a brightly coloured upper metal body in pink, yellow, burnt orange, chocolate and black. Mounted on a contrasting angular composite base finished in white with black squiggles… A design known as “Bacterio” (Bacteria) The upper head can be rotated from a downward pointing position as a desk lamp, right through to fully vertical, and as such then used as an accent lamp. Full Sottsass label with date as shown. In line on / off switch with a New Zealand plug. Measuring 715mm tall fully extended. The "Memphis Milano" catalogue includes icons designed by the famous Memphis collective between 1981 and 1988. True works of art, these collector's items revolutionised the creative and commercial logic of design in the 80s. Founded in Milan in 1981 by Ettore Sottsass, the Memphis group brought together international architects and designers such as Michele De Lucchi, Matteo Thun, Martine Bedin, Nathalie Du Pasquier, Shiro Kuramata, George J. Sowden ... A true cultural phenomenon, Memphis really shook up the design codes by voluntarily placing itself outside the canons of "good taste" of the time. Out went the pure, hard functionalism and austerity Bauhaus-style, and in came fantasy with colourful and eccentric creations. The first Memphis collection hit like a bombshell: a proliferation of exuberant patterns, explosive colours, intrepid asymmetries, geometric shapes stacked up like totems, new use of plastic laminate considered "cheap" until then... Soon, Memphis became THE subversive label of Italian design with its wacky, colourful world inspired by comics, Pop Art, cinema, Kitsch and Art Deco. It was a revolution: design, until then confined to the showrooms, invaded the media and inflamed passion. Considered symbols of Anti-design and New Design, the Memphis creations such as the Tahiti table lamp are above all the manifestation of an unlimited creativity which breaks free of the constraints dictated by industry and the law of the market. Within the confines of design, architecture, art and post-modernism, these exceptional pieces are now sought after by collectors around the world and exhibited in the most prestigious museums.
