Cao Zhen caozhen006@126.com “Dopamine dressing” is seen as the trend of 2022 by style publications, since fashionists believe the rich sensory input (such as bright colors) of clothes can trigger dopamine release and bring you joy. If clothes can alter how we feel, can furniture and household items also boost our mood? You may find an answer at “The Previous and Present Lives of Memphis Style” exhibition at the Shenzhen UCCN Center inside the Sea World Culture and Arts Center in Nanshan District. The exhibition hall is filled with the cheerfully colored designs of the Memphis Group, presenting intriguing furniture, lamps and bowls that may evoke strong feelings. The Memphis Group, also known as Memphis Milano, was an Italian design and architecture group founded by Ettore Sottsass in Milan in 1981. Sottsass was in his 60s when he brought together a collective of young architects and designers eager to break away from the dictates of functionalism. The group’s name was inspired by the Bob Dylan song “Stuck Inside of Mobile With the Memphis Blues Again,” which was played at the group’s gathering. The Memphis Group disregarded the conformist adherence to routine shapes, hues, and geometries of products, while drawing inspiration from such developments as Art Deco and Pop Art, and postmodernism styles. Bold colorways and wild shapes in their groundbreaking designs established an instantly recognizable aesthetic in the 1980s. The group sent shockwaves to the design world that used to be dominated by gray or black minimalist designs that seemed lacking in personality and humor. The Shenzhen exhibition gives an insight into the Memphis Group’s rule-breaking and playful universe. Among the exhibits, visitors should not miss some iconic pieces, such as the Super lamps, the Carlton Room Divider and the Bel Air chair. The Super lamps, designed by Martine Bedine, are made of fiberglass painted in primary colors. The semi-circle body with six light bulbs on the top and four wheels on the bottom make it resemble a toy car or a cute pet that can move around. The lamps created in 1981 showcase the warm and funny nature and playfulness in the Memphis style. Another signature piece is the Bel Air chair, an armchair comprised of irregular shapes in clashing colors. Designed by Peter Shire in 1982, the armchair challenges the traditional idea of how a chair should be by replacing one chair leg with a neon orange wooden ball and making the chair back look like a shark fin. Sottsass’ Carlton Room Divider and Tahiti lamp are also Memphis icons. The room divider or book shelf in a tiered, anthropomorphic form is like a robot greeting people with open arms. The Tahiti table lamp in a bird shape consists of a long neck and a pink head holding the light bulb in its red beak. The lamp was named after the heavenly island and Sottsass’ memory of Paul Gauguin’s paintings. Although the Memphis designs have been depicted as dynamic and decorative, they did receive backlash, being criticized as superficial. After seven years’ together, the Memphis Group members went their separate ways, but the Memphis style has long been served as an inspiration in design and fashion fields, and its pieces today are valued by collectors. “Sottsass believed that design is for a lifestyle, therefore it doesn’t need certainty but possibility; it doesn’t have eternity, but matters in every instant,” reads the Shenzhen exhibition profile. Dates: Until July 31 Hours: 10 a.m.-7 p.m. (Mon.-Fri.), 10 a.m.-9 p.m. (Sat.-Sun.) Tickets: 88 yuan Venue: Shenzhen UCCN Center, 2/F, Sea World Culture and Arts Center, Nanshan District (南山区海上世界文化艺术中心二楼联合国教科文组织展馆) Metro: Line 2 to Sea World Station (海上世界站), Exit A | 