Alessandro Mendini is an Italian artist and architect known for his eclectic, Postmodern style. At the forefront of contemporary design, his multidisciplinary practice encompasses buildings, furniture, and decorative objects, in addition to paintings and installations. Often whimsical and always avant-garde, Mendini excels at reinventing the ordinary, and his Poltrona di Proust (1978) chair is a famous example. Combining Baroque ornament with pointillist decoration, the visionary said he “connect[s] shapes with the pattern of painters in a very methodic way.” Born on August 16, 1931 in Milan, Italy, the artist studied at the Polytechnic University in the city before joining the Nizzoli Associati architectural firm. In 1979, he co-founded the Alchemia group, which included Ettore Sottsass and Michele De Lucchi. They went on to establish the highly influential Memphis Group in 1980. Also a publisher and critic, Mendini worked as an editor at Domus, Modo, and Casabella magazines throughout the 1970s and 1980s, shaping design discourse and theory. He currently lives in Milan, and works at Atelier Mendini, the studio he co-operates with his brother, Francesco.