'This is actually my childhood desk seat,ā says jeweller Sabine Getty, tapping the colour-blocked arms of a Memphis āPalaceā chair, designed by George Sowden in 1983 and now installed in her new Mayfair studio-cum-showroom. āWhen I was a child, my home in Beirut had a ton of Memphis pieces,ā Getty recalls. āIt was the 1980s,ā she smiles, pointing to a pair of asymmetric Memphis āKristallā and āFlamingoā side tables (designed by Michele De Lucchi in 1981 and 1984 respectively) that once flanked her bed. A āTahitiā duck lamp, designed by Memphis founder Ettore Sottsass in 1981, completes the childhood haul. Its enamelled metal head was still covered with kidsā stickers when she fished it out of storage. āI kind of forgot about it all, and then as I was designing [a new jewellery collection], I looked at my drawings and thought, āThat reminds me of something I know!āā Getty swiftly put in a call to her mother, Egyptian interior designer Karine Ratl ā who still has a penchant for āMemphis meets Louis XIVā furnishings ā followed by another to gallerist Keith Johnson of Urban Architecture, who sourced her officeās piĆØce de rĆ©sistance, an original 1981 Peter Shire āBrazilā desk for Memphis, tracked down in Milan. āIt was dying in storage so it was great to give it a life!ā says Getty. The daughter of Lebanese financier Charbel Ghanem, Getty grew up between Geneva, Beirut and the south of France, with aspirations of becoming an opera singer or an actress before she enrolled at New Yorkās Gemological Institute of America (GIA). There, Getty found her true vocation and upon her graduation her debut pieces were picked up by Los Angeles design destination Maxfield. In 2012 she founded Sabine G, which became Sabine Getty this year, following her lavish nuptials ā for which the bride wore Schiaparelli couture ā to Joseph Getty, son of Getty Images co-founder Mark Getty, and the great-grandson of oil tycoon Jean Paul Getty. The jewellerās fourth collection is a bold departure from its predecessors, which were far finer and more delicate in their old-world intricacies. āI was looking at Sonia Delaunay paintings with these circular, colourful shapes and zigzags and thatās where I started from,ā she says of the new seasonās linear forms. āBut then I looked back [at the work in progress] and thought, āNo wait, it looks more 1980s, itās taking another direction.āā That new course was Memphis. āBut itās not a pure imitation. Itās more of a vibe,ā she clarifies. āWith Memphis, the possibilities are infinite because there is so much in Memphis design, so it took quite a long time to simplify and get it down to pure lines and fun colours.ā With the new collection, Getty has also moved away from diamonds and similarly precious stones in favour of semi-precious topaz. āI decided to go for lower-end stones,ā she says of the Fisher-Price-hued gems that adorn sinuous cuffs and star-pointed chokers. āIf I had used sapphires, the pieces would have been much smaller, and it was very important to have scale.ā At the brandās first boutique, on Berkeley Square, Getty has maintained the same daring. As soon as she saw the location ā a stoneās throw from the run of high-end jewellers on Old Bond Street ā she recognised its promise, despite the āwhite walls, grey carpet and corporate office furnitureā that came with it. āI did some colour research and landed on a poster of Bill Murray from [the 2004 movie] The Life Aquatic,ā she says of the inspiration behind her primary palette, executed in high gloss to achieve a vintage effect. āIāve also used the same three colours at home,ā she says, gesturing around her. āMy kitchen is this yellow, my living room is that red, and my bedroom is the blue. So itās like an extension of the same universe.ā Under foot is plush, Atlantic-blue carpet, while a selection of stools from Kartellās Sottsass tribute line (launched in 2015) and Dutch design brand Pols Potten complete the Memphis-inspired look. Getty has certainly run with the theme ā even her Jansen teacups dutifully nod to the movement ā but she is no design snob. A second desk, from Ikea, aligns just as well with the red roomās colour scheme as does Matteo Thunās Memphis āSanta Feā light that hangs overhead. Getty has no intention of redecorating the space each season. āNo, not every time!ā she says. āI really like it. Itās very happy, it has character and most of all itās fun.ā Just like her audacious jewels. As originally featured in the September 2016 issue of Wallpaper* (W*210)
