Francesco Vezzoli presents KARL GOES TO MEMPHIS. Tribute to an Historic Encounter in Monte Carlo, his third solo exhibition at Almine Rech Monaco, running until May 24, 2025. The exhibition honors the meeting between Karl Lagerfeld and the Memphis collective led by Ettore Sottsass. In the early ’80s, Lagerfeld furnished his apartment in Monte Carlo entirely with Memphis pieces, creating a visionary and provocative space.

The exhibition recreates that environment with original pieces such as Sottsass’s Carlton bookshelf, Masanori Umeda’s Tawaraya Ring, and Martine Bedin’s Super lamp. Vezzoli, in turn, presents eight embroidered portraits of Lagerfeld, inspired by photographs from the time, framed in baroque-style frames, offering an intimate and unseen glimpse into the designer.

The exhibition is accompanied by a catalog curated by the graphic duo M/M (Paris, which adds further depth to Vezzoli’s tribute. «This exhibition celebrates the unique encounter between Lagerfeld and Memphis, which redefined the boundary between art, fashion, and design,» says Francesco Vezzoli in the press release accompanying the exhibition. On the other hand, Charley Vezza, CEO of Memphis, states that «for Memphis, this project closes a circle that started in Monte Carlo. Vezzoli reinterprets its audacity with his contemporary language».

© Francesco Vezzoli – Courtesy of the Artist, Memphis and Almine Rech – Ph. Nicolas Brasseur