George Sowden b. 1942
As the only British member of the Memphis group, George Sowden made a name for himself with his structural, colorful and humor-inflected designs and illustrations. Born in Leeds, United Kingdom in 1942, Sowden studied architecture at the Gloucestershire College of Art, graduating in 1968, and moved to Milan in 1970 to work for Sottsass Associati and Olivetti. In Milan, he met his to-be wife, artist and designer Nathalie du Pasquier, who would join Memphis along with Sowden in 1981. That same year, he established his own firm, SowdenDesign, developing products for the likes of Olivetti, Swid Powell, Alessi, Swatch and Pyrex, among others. His diverse designs range from consumer electronics and appliances to wallpaper and textiles. In 1991 he received the Compasso d’Oro Award and established his own name brand, SOWDEN in 2010 to continue designing objects of integrity in his striking and tactile postmodern style.
Auction Results George Sowden
George Sowden
d'Antibes cabinet
estimate: $3,000–5,000
result: $8,437
George Sowden
Metropole clock
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $3,750
George Sowden
Metropole clock
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $3,640
George Sowden
Palace chair
estimate: $700–900
result: $3,000
George Sowden
Metropole clock
estimate: $2,000–3,000
result: $2,000
George Sowden
Glastonbury table lamp
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $1,995
George Sowden
box from Objects for the Electronic Age
estimate: $1,500–2,000
result: $1,560
George Sowden
mirror for La Donna magazine
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $956
George Sowden
Finkelstein clock from Objects for the Electronic Age
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $938
George Sowden
Luna table lamp
estimate: $400–600
result: $937
George Sowden
Potato tray
estimate: $200–300
result: $875
George Sowden
Untitled
estimate: $1,000–1,500
result: $445
George Sowden
Heisenberg clock from Objects for the Electronic Age
estimate: $1,000–1,500
George Sowden
Oppenheimer table clock from Objects for the Electronic Age
estimate: $3,000–5,000
George Sowden
Alhambra chair
estimate: $5,000–7,000