California Rug - / By Nathalie Du Pasquier, 1983 - 250 x 180 cm / Hand-made by Memphis Milano Multicoloured

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 stepping outside of the lines of "good taste" of the time. It was out with the pure, hard functionalism and austerity Bauhaus-style, and in came fantasy with colourful and eccentric creations. The first Memphis collection landed in the design world 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 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. More than 20 years after the end of the movement, the "Memphis Milano" company continues to produce around fifty hand-crafted historical pieces designed by Memphis between 1981 and 1988. These original models are collector's items all bearing the "Memphis" seal, a guarantee of authenticity. In addition, each piece has its own paper certificate of authenticity, itself bearing the "Memphis" seal. Some models bear the designer's signature. The Arizona rug was designed by Nathalie Du Pasquier in 1983. This famous plastic artist is one of the founding members of the Memphis collective, created in the 1980s. During these years, she designed numerous textiles, rugs, objects and items of furniture, as well as motifs for the furniture of other designers in the group. From her travels in Africa and Asia, which she undertook at the end of the 1970s, this striking style resulted which would permeate the Memphis creations. We can immediately recognise Nathalie Du Pasquier's style: an explosive, harmonious mix of exuberant patterns and vibrant colours. A world that evokes travel, African waxes with a quirky rockstar touch. His work bears the geometric, colourful, daring imprint of the Memphis movement. The creative force of the Arizona rug certainly makes its mark on a space and defines it. The woollen Arizona rug is hand-made by various Nepalese artisans. The long production process starts with shearing traditionally-raised sheep. The wool is then spun and dyed, and the wool fibres are carefully selected and then washed. The knotting technique used by the artisans is called Tibetan "Senneh", different from any Persian and Turkish methods. As the rug is hand-made, there may be slight variations in its dimensions from one rug to the next.