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still based in Kilkenny (National Craft Gallery, no date). The workshops were closed by the
government because the deemed that it had served its purpose. Many of the original staff have
since worked in many different parts of the globe and aspects of Kilkenny Design Workshops’
organisational model has been replicated all over the world (Marchant Associates, no date).

Memphis
Memphis group

The Memphis group was founded in Milan by Ettore Sottsass in the 1981. The groups’ name was
inspired by the Bob Dylan song: “Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again”. The group
consisted of product designers, architects, and writers. Memphis challenged people’s perception of
what was known to be “good design” (Italy Chronicles, 2010). The group made their first big
appearance to the world in the 1981 Milan Furniture Fair where it was one of the main attractions
(Glancey, 2001). They produced a variety of different products, from tables and chairs to clocks and
bookshelves. Memphis design was unusual to what had come before hand. Their products usually
were finished with very bright, colourful laminates and their shape and style and flamboyancy was
vastly different to the minimalist style which was popular beforehand. The Memphis style took a lot of
influence from art deco, pop art and kitsch. Memphis design was considered by many other
designers to be of bad taste. It was a reaction to the sleek, boring, minimalist design of buildings and

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