The Bold and the Beautiful

April 2015, By Nicole Langelier.

You may have noticed a recent surge of all things Memphis lately. For those of you that are not yet familiar, Memphis was a 1980’s pop art inspired furniture, homeware and graphic design movement spearheaded by Italian designer Etore Sottsass.

Memphis appealed to the lino loving, colour block barracking, amoeba print-supporting fan of all things overstated. This was form over function on a heavy dose of hallucinogens.

As with many other styles of the 80’s (like mullets, high wasted jeans and acid washed denim) Memphis is making a surprise and unexpected comeback that is seeping quickly into pop culture (no pun intended).

Most people have pretty strong feelings towards the eye-popping style – either they love it or they hate it. But if you ask me, Memphis, and Memphis inspired designs (unlike mullets, high wasted jeans and acid washed denim) can be quite stylish when carefully mixed into your interior in moderation.

If you are inspired to give it a go but are too intimidated by the combinations of strong angular shapes, bold colours and asymmetry – then take baby steps. My approach to incorporating Memphis is to deconstruct it.

The first and most obvious element of Memphis is colour, followed by form, followed by print. For the beginner, I suggest starting with small objects and soft furnishings – if you find you don’t like them you can put them in the cupboard (not to be seen for another 30 years when Memphis has its second revival). If you DO like them and they leave you feeling bold and beautiful, try bringing in some larger swathes of colour – maybe in the form of a quilt cover or a bedspread. You can also get some really fun Memphis inspired amoeba printed bed sheets from many different retailers these days, which mix well with the solid bold colours. I would only suggest painting or tiling in these pop colours in small doses and if you have always had a penchant for the bold. If you’re just jumping on the fad wagon than best to stick to smaller things that are easy to change.

When it comes to Memphis inspired furniture (the real stuff will set you back a pretty penny and is really only accessible to collectors with deep pockets), there is not that much on the market yet but let’s face it, that may be a good thing.