FIRST' CHAIR by MICHELE DE LUCCHI for MEMPHIS MILANO

Designer: Michele De Lucchi

Maker: Memphis Group - Italy

Year: 1983

Size: H 900 x D 500 x W 500 - seat height 560

Condition Report: Good original vintage condition. Frame shows paint chipping in areas, with small rust spots on the underside. Seat, backrest and armrests show slight wear inline with age, most noticeably some scratches to the black armrests (only visible up close). We have decided to keep this in its original condition. The frame could be re-painted or powder-coated if desired. Original Memphis label attached to the underside. Reach out for detailed images.

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The ‘First’ Chair is a characteristic design of the Memphis movement, founded by Michele De Lucchi and Ettore Sottsass. The Memphis designers explored geometric forms and colour in their response to the more rational, unemotional, functionalist approach to design at the time.

Sitting on the boundaries of both furniture and sculpture, the First chair has remained an icon since it’s creation in 1983. In a playful way, the Chairs geometric form mimics the sitter. A flat disc seat in black wood, edged in tubular metal, rests on four metal legs. A circular hoop rises from the front legs, tilting backward and and supporting both a blue disc at the top of the hoop, serving as a backrest, and two black balls that serve as armrests.