Professional Documents
Culture Documents
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Ourmodernr"uortd
euer-exponding
is hordto pindou-rn.
ueotthof interconnecting
lt is f [Leduith compLexitg
[ogers.
cnd cn
Weoreexperiencing on erc
of fl"ux
defined bg chonge, hgbridisotion ondexplorotion. Thefruitsof
centuries of experience orebeingremixed u-rith innouotion onddigitoLisotion.
These oreexciting gelconfusing times. ThereoLm of design,Likemongother
disciplines, isnou-rchottenged on increosing
to ful.fit numberof roles:to keep
up r-r.rith
neu moterioLs ond technotogies; to fociLitote interfocesu-tithour
increosing technologicol dependence; to helpmoketheLrtortd o betterond
t),1,,1 ptoce,
'1,1, moresustoinoble getbolonce thct someholu thedemcndfor the
u.tith
,i:.,,, trophies of conspicuous consumption ondcn dnquenchobte desire for
:il i:,:
nouettg. Addedto thisburdenof responsibiLitg is lhefoclthotthediscipl"ine
it:l"ti'
itseLfhosbecome o hugefieldr,uithno ctecrlydeflned boundories.
Design is troditioncLtg
oboutuuorking to frndsolutionscnd ochieue gooLs
u-rithin
o setof [imitotionsor restrictions
usuoltgdictoted by moterio[s,
monufocturing techniques,price,function ondoesthetics.Buttodogmony
designers do notsimptgdetiuer products,thegdesignprocesses, interfcces
ondsgstems, Luorking threeondeuenfourdimensions.
in tu.ro, Whiteforsome
ther-r-rorkptoce
mogbeotmostentiretg in theuirtuoIreolmof cclcuLotions
andCADprogrommes, othersoreto befoundin theirLrtorkshops, onkle-deep
in u-roodshouings, formingondshoping objects by hond- muchosother
croftspeople houedonefor thousonds of georsbeforethem.Stittother
designers mokeobjects thoi oppeorlo houeno function ot ott,or
intentionoLtg creotesetf-referring
shelches of ideosthct seemto soluenothing
onogo noLunere.
M' LimitedEdition iscbouldesigners u-rho
mokefurniture objectsoutside of the
induslrioI
monufocturing sgstem. ALthough someempLog thesomecriterio,
toolscnd moterioLs osthoserequired to produce monghundreds or
thousondsof copies thisbookisoboutindiuiduots
of on object, tuorking on
theperipheries of thotsgstem, ondther-uorh of thoseurhohouechosen lo
stepoutsideit completelg. Mongof thedesigners in thisbookthinkof
themselues osexplorers, testingtheboundories of moterioLs,process ond
medium. Forthem,theproductotmosb seems to beon ofterthought or odded
extro.Thesedesigners orecommilted to experimentotion; to exptoring notjust
thenctureondformsof u-rhot thegproduce but olsothesgstems u.tithin
uhichlhegorecommissioned, creoled,receiued, dispLcged,opproised ond
lb)#i :ryt
TordBoontje. TheFig Leof
Hond-pointed
bron6e
enomeLled
tree,hond-dUed
copperteoues,lost uox costpotinoted
onduouensiLk,hcnd-formedtrocerU
used.ThereisoLsoo grouingbondof golterists,
orenurturing
prototgpes
ondencouroging
or Limited
theseexperiments
potronscnd curotors
Thegcrehelpingto crecteneLU
editions.
u.tho
in theformof one-offs,
connections
supportstructure,trompeI'oeiIbock
:Meto betureendesign ondthemorket, betureenproductondobject, betueen
u sG o o b industrgondideos: chonging ottitudesondchottenging structures.
7
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t Eitherconsciouslg or unconscioustg, theseindiuiduoLs oreoskingsomebig Pobto Reinoso ' Spoghetli BAte
c o t l e r U :C o r p e n t e r sW o r k s h o pG o t t e r ! l
I: questions. Whotisdesign?
WhotoretheroLes
Whotdoesit meonto coL[oneself
of objects ondproducts?
o designer?
lf designisto prouide somonU
o P o b t o R e i n o s oS l u d i o
P o b | ' oR € i n o s o . s p o g h e b t iB o l . t o d eb € n c h
soLutions, urhere doesit houeto go to ftndneuJonsuleTs, to extendbegond o P o b l o R e i n o s oS t u d i o
I) ilsetfondtheboundories
negotiobLe
of itsoLrrn
fordesignoso discipLine,
[imitotions? Whichconstrcints
ondLlhichorenon-negotiobte?
orenou.t
lt is hord
to f,ndonsr,ueis- especio[Lg theuergissues
u-rhen inuotued orein sucho
( noscent stogeofchongethotu.re hcuenoteuendeueloped on oppropriate
uocobu[org u-rhich
u.rith ihem.Mongof thedesigners
to discuss I spoketo
Llritingthisbookfoundit hordto put nomesor cotegories
u-rhitsb to tuhot
thegu-rere doingondhou-r thegu-rerer,uorking. Weneedtheperspectiue of
timeondtheLuxurg of o hindsightthoi tle do not gethoue.Whotu-te condo,
houeuer, is Lookct potterns ondchoose exomptes ondindiuiduo[s ulhoseem
to beLooking ot,euotuoting ondproducing objects in o different u.-tog.
ilt l
tl= l
II Thehigh-end collectors'
osinuestment
furniture
morkeihoscometo uieu prototgpes
opportunities.Thegenjogc stotu-s
of series SotU€ndro
O A L e L iS
PokhoLd . 8.M.HorseChoir
e ro i u e n d rPoo k h o t d
il
on o poruith
hondmode or one-offpieces. Whereos thisphenomenon begonin theuintoge
tl section of tu-rentieth-centurgdesignoso u_rog of coLl.ecting pieces
ipeciol. th"ot
uereportofo series
..J
rl or mossproduction ero,thetendencg hosnoulsprecdto
contempo-rorg prototgpes fromestoblished or euengoungdesigners. Thereis
someconfusion, houeuer, osto themeoning of theterm proto[ype, in this
respect.Ontheonehond,thereoreproductor furniture designeisLuhostiLL
urorkuerumuchuiihin theindustrioI sgstem ondtheirprototgpes the
fuLfiL
tl troditionoI roleof teslingondcommunicoting chonges uithin-theOesign
process
tl of c product.Yetotherscreoteprototgpes thot orecloserto skeiches,
zl moquettes
concept
or piecesofscuLpture
thonongformof product.
thothouefci moreto do uliththecrectiue.
Andthereoresomedesiqners urhodo
both:Amsterdom-bosed Solgendro pokhoL6, for exompte, d"esignspiecesfor
seriesproduction for theLikesof Mogis,CorUnumondCoppetini, but heolso
conducts hisou-rn experiments uith moteriols ondprocesses thotconresuLt in
- LikehisB.M.HorseChoirondCeromic
r..uorks Choirs - thotthenhndtheir
uog ontothegoLlerg morkei.Thesg oreuhot hecolts,sludio projects,,
ond
theuconinuoluemonggeorsof reseorch. HisHorseChoirlooksomeseuen
georsto perfect, ondinuolued numerous scotemodets ond3DCADdesigns.
But,hesoUs, it isonl.gtheflrstpiecemodeto scoLe in the,reo[molerioL_-l"ike
thebron6e lostucx costingprocess in thecoseof theHorseChoir,, thotheis
prepored to coL[o'prototgpe'.
35
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ThegoungBerlindesigner duoStudioHcusen tokethiscommercioL roleof S o r o h u o n G o m e r e n. 8 i g D i p p e r
M e c h o n i c o lp e r f o r m o n c ei n s l c l l o L i o nm o k i n g u o x c h o n d e l i e r s
theproiotgpeo stepfurtheronduseit to courtneLlclients:'The prototgpe is O Sorohucn Gomeren
thecoreetement of oururork.lt iso sbotement.WebeLieue thotdesignersore
Ourproducts
idecgenerotors. oreideosin theshopeofprototypes. In orderto
getnoticedue needto communicote ourideosof trodefoirs,exhibitionsond
in themedio.
Thisrequires o constont output,becouse ontgthoseu-rith the
bestideosgetdocumented in thecompetition forottention.'ForStudio
Housen,theprototgpe isexpression ondmorketing tooLin one,oLthough its
origincL
functionremoins thesome,nomelg:'the modeluponu-rhich o [oter
'
oncLogue series
conbebosed
,ry
'We
fendoff o grouingLeuel of consumer iotigue. don'thcueo greot
retotionshiponUmoreuith u-rhot ue bug,'sogs Dutchdesigner Sorohuon
'People
Gomeren. oretookingintoulogsof giuingneu-r uotueto lheproducts
theybugondto creoleo retotionship u-rith
them.Oneof theuogsis lo be
oLloreof lheu-roy it ismode.'As pcrtof theLondon-bosed portnership Studio ,l
r{,
GLithero,uonGomeren's products cnd prototgpes orecreoted on-sitein
goLleriesondexhibition spoces. Sheintroduces o temporoL aspectto her \,;ri
designd.bg usingthedesignprocess osspeclocle lo disploguhot shecotts
her'experiments'.WithherBigDipper(seepoge36),forexomp[e, uon
Gomeren exhibitso [orgemochine thotdipsintricotelgshoped Luick
constructions intouox to creotecondLes shcpedLikecondelobros, in uhot is
essenticLtgo kineticperformonce. Theresulting objects orenotstricttg
prototgpes but thegorerough,slightl"g unflnished-Looking ond- despite
- essentiottu 'Thot's
beingmochine-mode unique. uhereprototgpe ond
experimentolion comerec[Ly c[ose,'exptoins
uonGomeren.'With theBig
Dipperthereiso doublespotlight: oneon theendproductondoneon the
process.WilhoutthetimeLine thegcon'texist.'
RoLfSochsLuelcomes 'lt
thisneLr.r
norroliueelement in design. isexocttg
u-rhot
peopLeurontondexoctlgn-rhoi
l'mtrgingto do...to bringdepthio theobject,
o senseof communitgperhops,
o senseof historu, ouroufromthecleon,just
puretgfunclionot, E tU L t i m Go r i l o. H u m p
object.'He
euenodds:'We houeto go muchfurther; ute're P r o l o L U p€etsE x p € r i m e nel xs h i b i l i o n
2 ,0 0 7
notcourogeousenoughof themoment.' C L i € nLt :oC a s oE n c e n d i dMo ,a d r i d
G o L L e rTUh:€A f o mG a l l € r U
O S h i r oK t o s m e r
Addingnorroiiue to thedesignprocess isnotonLgoboutennuiondhord
morketingptous.BUunderstonding il GittoGschuendtner . Shuttlecock Chond€l.ier
urhere something comesfromondhou-r
P r o l o L U p€elsE x p e r i m e net xs h i b i L i o2n0, 0 7
is mode,consumers creempou..reredto tokeresponsibiLity
for their G o t t e r uT:h eA f o mc o L l e r U
consumption.lf Uouoreunhoppg Luiththestorg,Upuconchoose notto bug O S h i r oK t o s m e r
theproduct.Ontheolherhond,if gouLikethestoryUoumouchoose to bug k B e U. S . L . A . K .
S l u d i oM o k h i n e
theproductbecouse of it.Thepurchosingdecisionno Longer
hcsto bemode P r o t o L U p€e,sE x p e r i m e net xs h i b i i i o n
2 ,0 0 7
giuestheproductsophisticotion,'scgs G o I L e rTUh: eA r q mG o L L e r U
on oesthetic
criteriocLone.'This Scott O S h i r oK t o s m e r
deMortinui[[e.'lt's
o bit Likeorgonicfood:gouorereodgto occeptfl.ou-rs
becousegouknou uheretheproductcomesfrom.Youeuen[ikeit more
beccuseoFtheseftou-rs.'
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o do Luiththequestion
o commercioL[g
of Lr-rhot
is'ort'onduhot is'design',
driueninterest
ondmoreto do ulith
in giuingkudosto thedesigner produced
furnituremcrketbg opproprioiing lt islruethotouerthepost
theu-rord'ort'.
decode or socontempororg designobjects houebegunto oppeorin contexts
preuiousLg reserued
forort:in goLteries,of ort ouctions,of ort foirs,on
pedesto[s ondin uhitespoces. Butsinceort itselfsuruiues ondthriues omidst
thedirtgmochinotions o[ commerce u,ithoutopporentLg Losing itscredibititg,
it ishordto seeuhot otLthefussisobout.
A r g u i n tgh ep o i n it n t h eo t h e d
r i r e c t i obngs o g i n g
t h o to d d i n gl h eu o r dA r t '
cfter'Design' somehou-r negotes theuclueor meoning of designissLightlg
moreinteresting. Butiheideothotdesignshou[dhoueo primoryutilitcricn
responsibiLitU, ondthotu-rithout thisfunctionoL ro[eit isdiminished ond
therefore bodin someuog, iso rotherdoted ondutopicnmid-tu-renlieth
centurguieur. ThereoIdifficuttg criticshoueu-rith thelerm'Design Arb'isthot
coLlectors oreottrocted to lhisneu-r kindof design somuchthotthegore
prepored to spenduerg[orgesumsof monegon it. Prices orecLimbing ond
t h em o r k eilsg r o u i n gu, h i c hm u s tm e o nt h o t ' D e s i gAnr t ' i si m p o r t o nBt .u ti s
it importont Likeo piecebg,sog,MorcelDuchomp or NeoRouch? Doesit push
FtedriksoS n tollord . KingBonkormchoirond stoot
boundories or express the5eitgeist? Orisit importont oso stotussgmboL Like
E d i lo n o f 8 , 2 o r i s l ' s p r o o f s c n d 2 p r o t o l ! p € s o DomienHirstdot pointing or o Ferrcri? Andisthereo difference ongmore?
G o t l e . ! lD: o u i d G l l l G a l t e r e s Thereisos muchbodondouerpriced designoroundosthereis bodond
O D o u i dG i i t G o t l e r i e s
P h o t oT: h o m o s B r o u n ouerpriced ort.WhocoTes, cs Lonqosit sells?
111
A U o L os e r o f o t U( A q u o C r e o t i o n s ). S t o n d B U
C e r t o i n L tgh e r ei s n o t h i n gn e u ro b o u t e d i t i o nf u r n i t u r ef o r t h o s eu . - r hcoc n G 0 t t f rU :A q u o G o l l . rl l
'Rich
o f f o r di t . p e o p l eh o u e o L u o g sb o u g h f e x t r o o r d i n o r go n d [ i m i t e d - t ) A l l ) iS c r o f o l U
q u o n t i t g f u r n i t u r et h o t u . - r odsi f f e r e n tf r o m u h o I e u e r g b o d ge l s ec o u L dh o u e , ' M o o r t e n B o o s ' P l . o s t i cc h o i r i n W o o d
s o g sB r i t i s hd e s i g n eTr o mD i x o n . ' W h e t h e t hr o t r - u o tsh e b i g d e c o r o t o rosf t h e C 0 rL J . (el l r r ; e d i t i o f o l 5 0
1 9 3 0 sL U o r k i n fBo r M o h o r o j o h so, r e u e n[ h e M o d e r n i s t sL i k eL eC o r b u s i e ri ,n G 0 l l e r l l :C o D i r o s t sG o l t . r f l
( ) C o r )I r d s t s G o L l c r
ll
t h e e n d t h e g u e r e m o k i n g r o r e t h i n g sf o r r i c h p e o p L eP. e r n e t t eP e r r i o n dt,h e
d o u g h t e ro f C h o r l o t t eP e r r i o n dt,o l d m e t h e g o n L gs o L dc r o u n d t u e n t g - [ u e o f
t h e u e r g f o m o u s [ 8 3 0 6 L eC o r b u s i e rc] h o i s e sL o n g u e sb e f o r et h e e u o r S . othose
u . r e rteh e k i n do I q u o n t i t i e tsh o t e u e nl h e m o s ti c o n i cs, u p p o s e d Lmgo s s
p r o d u c e dp r o d u c l sr u e r eb e i n gm o d e i n t h e n . ' T h e A m e r i c o nd e s i g n e r
'There
J o h o n n oG r o u . - r u n doegr r e e s : h o s o t u r o g sb e e nL i m i t e de d i t i o nd e s i g n .
A r c h i t e c t so f t h e p o s t m o d e c h o i r so n d s o f o so n d t o b l e sf o r t h e i r h o u s e sL. o o k
o f H o f f m o n nP , r o u u 6W , r i g h tL , o o sP , ontiL , eC o r b u s i eorn d s o o n . S i xc h o i r s
[ o r o p r i u o t eh o m e i s L i m i t e de d i t i o nd e s i g n s, o o r e t u e n i g - f r u ed e s k sf o r o n
o f f i c e s, o i t ' s n o t h i n gn e u - r . '
I n t e r h s o f c o l l e c t i n g t, h e r eo r e g o L l e r i s tus r h oh o u e b e e ns h o u - r i nogn d s e l l i n g
d e s i g nf o r d e c o d e sA. p i o n e e r i n gc o L l e c t oirs L o n d o n ' sD o u i dG i L LI .n 1 9 8 / h e
o p e n e dh i s f r r s tg o L L e r tgh o t ' c o m f o r t o b l gb l u r s t h e b o u n d o r i e sb e t u e e n
o p p l i e do n d F n eo r t s ' T . h e r eo, [ o n gL r i t ho r t o b j e c t sh, e s t o r t e ds h o u i n g
f u r n i t u r eb g p e o p l eL i k eC h o r l o t l eP e r r i c n do n d J e o nP r o u u € b, e f o r eq u i c k L g
m o u i n g o n t o e x h i b i te o r l g p i e c e sb g T o m D i x o n ,M o r c N e L U s oonn d R o nA r o d .
G i l Lh o s n o p r o b L e mu i t h t h e d e s i g n / o r [c o m p c r i s o n H . e L i k e n st h e P r i n c e
l m p e r i o Lc h o i r ,d e s i g n e db g M o t t i o B o n e t t ic n d E L i g o b e tG h o r o u s t ei n 1 9 8 5 ,t o
c G o u g u i np o i n t i n g . 'cl L r e o d gs o r uc t t h i sp o i n to c r o s s o u ebre t u e e no r t o n d
d e s i g nu i t h t h i sp i e c e , ' h seo g s .
G o i n gf u r t h e rb o c k t o o u e r o n e h u n d r e dU e o r so g o , i t i s o l s o u - r o r t h
r e m e m b e r i n gt h o t t h e L o t en i n e t e e n t hc e n l u r gA r t s o n d C r o f t sm o u e m e n t
u u o so L Lo b o u tc h o L L e n g i n i ngd u s t r i om L o r e so n d c e L e b r o f i nt hg e d e s i g n e r
c r o f t s m o n .l t u - r o so L s oo r e o c t i o nt o V i c t o r i o ne c L e c t i c i s o mn d o n ' o n g t h i n g
g o e s ' o t t i t u d teo s t g L eos n d f o r m s A . l t h o u g hs o m e L l h ottr o d i l i o n o L iisnt i t s
p r i n c i p L e st h, e m o u e m e n ts l i L Lr e j e c t e dh i s t o r i c i s mo n d g e n e r o t e ds m o L L
q u o n [ i t i e so f f u r n i [ u r ep i e c e st h o t u r e r ei n n o u o l i u eo n d e x p e r i m e n t o [m , cde
f r o m I n e m o t e r i o L sb o i h b g h o n d o n d m o c h i n e ,t h o l o n L gl h e [ u c k g f e u c o u L d
o f f o r d .T h e t r - u e n l i e t h - c e n t ubr rgo d i t i o no f d e s i g n e r - p r o d u c ef udr n i t u r eo b j e c t s
t h c t h o u e rs o m e L l h e r ec L o n gt h e e d g eo f o r t , c r q f t ,i n d u s t r uo n d f u n c t i o n o [ i t g
s t r e t c h e sf r o m t h e t o i I e n d o f A r t s o n d C r o f t st h r o u g hM o d e r n i s mt o t h e
ItoLion g r o u pM e m p h i si n t h e 1 9 8 0 so n d l h e D u t c hg r o u pD r o o gD e s i g ni n t h e
1 9 9 0 sr, i g h fu p l o t h e p r e s e ndbo g .W h o t t h e go L Lh o u ei n c o m m o ni s o s e n s e
of expLorctioo n n d e x p e r i m e n t oiLn n o u o l i o nt h o l c h o l L e n g epsr e c o n c e i u e d
f o r m so n d m o t e r i o Li sn d e s i g n .
)
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117
Thedesigners mckinglheseLimited-edition pieces oresurprisingtU unonimous L o u r e n l M o s s q [ o u x. V o n i t U t i d UX L
G o l l e r U :T o o t s G o l e r i e
oboutu-rhot creoting in thisoreomeonsfromtheirpointof uieur: freedom. As O Morc Domoge
on industrioL designer,'scgs MorcNeulson,'l Llorkto briefs,butin thecoseof
Frongois Brument ond Ammer E[oueini . Choir #71
mg Limited-ediiion urorksI houenone,so I concreotemUoulnporometers. I E d i l i o no f 3
ccnLetmg imoginotion runfreecnd express mUenthusiosm formoterioLs, O V e r o n i q u eH u U g u e
processes ondlechniques - buton mg terms.'Tom Dixon, on equoLlU
experienced ondestobtished designer,echoes hissentiments.'When I storted
off,'hesogs,'lr-uosn't thinking of mg uork osl'imited ediiion.lt Lt-tos
[imited
bg the'foctthotit u-rcs mcdeu-rith foundobjects, soit uos impossibte to moke
thesomepiecelu-rice. I u-rosLimited bg circumsionce, reot[g.'Dixon Loteruent
on to urorkuergsuccessfuLtg in thereo[moi industrioL design, buthos
grosped theopportunitg thotthisneu-r interesl
in Limitededitions hoscreoted.
'l of themorketchonging to do exociluurhotI
thinkl'uetokenfuL[oduontoge
urosbefore, but in o stighttgmoreottroctiue LUoU. l'musingit ossomeuhere I
ccnexperimenI rotherbhonlrgingto mokeeuergthing uork fromc
commerce lt giuesUouo spoceto bemuchmoredoringif youtike.'
uieu-r.
"t23
Touordtheendof thetLrrentieth if goutooko rotl-coL[
centurg, of top
producer'nomes'in -
designfurniture Uourtistuloutdgiel-dmosttgltoLicns
ncmes[ikeMoroso, CcppetLini,FLos,Edro,Mogis,Alessi,
Zonotto - cnd theg
u-rou[d
o[t bemonufccturers. Butjusto feu georsintotheneu mitlennium,
ue crebeginning picture.
to seeo rctherdifferent ThemosttoLked-obout
ot theroref,ed
furniture endof thedesignmorketiscomingfromquite
different
sources:Friedmon Bendo, Johnson TrodingGoLterg ondMossin NeLrr
York,Controstsin Shonghoi, KreoondToolsGoterie in Porisorejustsomeof
lheneu nomesto drop.These orenotindustrioL producers,bul o hcndful- of
gotterists,
collectorsondshopouners.Theirproducts oreege-cofching
timitededitions,
collections ondone-offs commissioned fromo smot[
setection
of designers ond,occosionot[9,orchilects.AtthoughthescoLe of
theiroutputissotingthotthegenercI pubticis unLikeLgeuento experience -
[etoLoneourn- oneof theseitemsin reoL[ife,imogesof thepieces ond
proILesof thedesigners flL[on euer-expondinguo[umeof design-centric
mediopubLicotions refl"ecting
o uogeuristicphenomenon dubbeddesign
porn'insomequorters.
167
,I il
@
ir I
IL
"M;;@/dWw
,,I
J u r q e n B e u . P u r o m i d so f M o h k u m
Kr5entoLlski comefromo flneort co[Lector's bockground' Murrog ,r,il ' e " g m e n t . ; t o e - L P s ' l J e rh o n o r a ' : b o l ' o r o o d
Whereos "oiot
Hloi,,iort."6out in retoit,but reoLised theimportonce of iheort contextfor c r 0 l e s ;e d i L i o no f 7
S [ o r e :M o s s N e u Y o r k / L o s A n g e L e s
quiteeorlgon Hetookcore-to Locote hisshopon
tf-r.i.t., ni.at of'sketches' O Moss
ouont-glrde ori districtof SoHoin Ner-u York'
Greene Streelin Ineexpenslue, '! l u r g e n B e U ' P U r o m i d so f M o h k u m
pr*."ti.g ,.rk isnol neutro[,'he sogs betieue thotretoiting ondthe E d i I i o no f 7
iso uergtheotiicoL gesture lt is mg job to consider the S L o r eM : o s s N e u Y o r k/ L o sA n g e l e s
oresentoli"on o[ obiecfs
trg fo oriicuLote it"os cteorlg ond LoudLg os I con So I put it in o O MoSS
;;;;.;; io
tullho pre-exisiing defrned chorocter' in o porticu[or citg'in o A l e x o n d e ru o n s l o b b e ' P U r o m i d so f M o k k u m
neiqhbourhood t0rl on of /
situotion, pointedtg juxtoposed u-riLhother objects or things
l.iloin pf-lUti.oL - s i o r e : M o s s N e 0 Y o r k/ L o sA n g e t e s
o certoin coritioLted tempercture' u'rith c certoin kind of
i,-ro..rtoinroomr-uith O Moss
m u s i cp L o g i n g . . . '
heLloscommissioning - from
Mossfoundthotbecouse theneu designu-rork
uounqEuroDeon deslgners suchcs StudioJob, Maorten Boos' CLoudg
i;;;;il";"d rrra eol,nqe- urosuerudifferentin intentfromuork ocquired
iheieu.,oso nee-d lo segregote it frombheresiof the
frori monufociurers,
int.iiottproducts in hisshop.HeLherefore opened o neu spocenextdoorLo
frisoriginotpremises.'Customers hodto lecueMoss'theshop'go oui intothe
the spoce next dooru'rhich uos coLLed "Gotlerg"" he
streei 6nd re-enter
thoi phgsicoL chonge is uhct peopLe needed lo understond
.rpLolnt,'onO
o diiJeient thinggoingon'SometimeLo,ier' Mossknocked o
|h;aah;;.r-uos 'Gotlerg'out
betr-ueen tnetiuospcces, tooktheu-rord of lhe
hotein theu-ro[[
uindoLr-r onclmodetheu-rho[e ihingMossAfterthreegeors'people didn'i
lheg didn'i neecl io be toLd thot this is "go[Lerg"' or
neeAtfreroodsigns,
;'rtuAt';rotnue"rsus ind-uslriol production Theghodcometo understond
industriot ondstudio, conbeneflL fromcLose comporrson
tfrotailerentu.rorks,
in speoh to eoch other, iltuminote eoch other ond oppeor more
ond ioci
presented thoi u-rog This duol- opprooch to creoling Luork
inf.t.tiingu-rhen
moreondmorec6miortobl-e u-rith todogisurhoL ismost
ih;l;;i;.;;t;re
.r.ittj,iO"rt ihismoment; it isthebreokdouln of theoLd"guiLd" sgstem'
is
tf-rEr. no point ond noLhing lo be goined bg se-gregoting o designer's
onJ
industrioL clesign opproocn ;rom"fris stuJioruorktn [oct'thereis muchto be
[eorned fromseeing themlogether"
Zoho Hodid. DuneLight Beuond SoHo,thisison ideothoto totof peopte orestiL[gettingusedto.
G o l L eD
r Uo:0 i dG i l tG o l L e r i e s
OD o u iGd i l tG o l l e r i e s It hcsbecome cleorthoto duoIsustemhosdeueloped in design,uhere
Pholo: Sl.iuko Guen6el. designersstiL[continue to creoteondrefneproducis for monufociuring
AtetierVon Lieshout. PrickLomp componies, butoreotsofreeto mckeLimited-edition pieces thotoreshourn
Edilionol 20 cnd sotdprimoritg in goLleries.
Onefeoture thol theLimited-edition sgstem
G0tterU:Corp€nlers Workshop cqllerU
OC o r p e n t eWr so r k s h oG
potl.erU
hosbroughtu,rithit fromtheindustricI sgstemison understcnding of the
needforgoodbronding u-rhenesioblishingo neu morket.'The "Design Art"
Atel.ier VonLieshout. FomitULomp
Edition ol 10
morketisot Leost,if not more,bronddriuenthcntheindustrioLised morket,'
G o l l e rC
Uo: r p e n l eWr so r k s h oG
po t t e r U sogsNickCompton, feotureseditorof Wollpcper mcgo5ine, ulhohosbeen
O C o r p e n t €Wr so r k s h ocpo t L e r U deuetopments in thisfieldforsometime.A uerushortListof keg
fottou-ring
nomes, suchos Neurson, Arod,Dixon,Boos,HodidondJongerius, represents
thetop'tobets'ond commcnds thetopprices.Thisisbecouse'the designort
gotlerists
onddeoters oreoftentrgingto ottroctneophgte collectors
or orb
collectors
lookingto moueintodesignbecouse it is moreoccessible, both
economicoLtg ondinteltectuo[Lg, thonconceptuol ondcontempororg ort',
Compton exptoins.'Brcnd nomedesigners eosetheseneu colectorsintothe
morketondestobtish instonttrust.'
17L
zoho Hodid . Dune Toble Aso monufocturer Vitroison exception to theruLeoboutdesignedition
E dl i 0 no f 8 , 2 o r t i s l ' sp r o o l s o n d 2 p r o l o i U p e s
G o l L e r !D: o u i dG l l G o l I e r i e s
producers, but it is unLikeLy to stogthotLroyfor[ong.lt ishordto betieue thot
O D o u i dG i l l G o i l e r i e s monufocturers oregoingto possup theopportunities foro neu.r morketonce
P h o l oS: l i u k oG u e n S e t it shou-rs
signsof beingestobtished enough, or themediocoueroge for
ZohoHodid . Dune Formotions ege-cotching experiments for bhotmotter.Butfor nou-r, goLteries suchos
Editioo n [ 8 , 2 o r t i s f ' sp r o o f s o n d 2 p r o l o i U p e s
Controsts, LibbySeLlers, Corpenters Workshop,.Johnson Trcding ondthe
G o l l e r UD: o u i dG i l t G o t t e r i e s
O MichoeX l uereb Designer's GotLerg in CoLogne, forexomp[e, oreLeoding theuog bg
NigetCootes . Trust Tobte ond Choirs
commissioning editions fromestobLished nomesond/orgoungunknou..rns.
E d i t i o no f 8 , 2 o r t i s f ' sp r o o f s o n d 2 p r o l o f U p e s Theproduction costsinuo[ued oreueruhigh,ondthereiso certoindegree oI
G o l t € r ! :D o u i dG i l t G o t t e r i e s pioneering spiritond[noncioIriskinuoLued. Perhops thisis u-rhyso manU
O D o u i dG i l t G o l t e r i e s
P h o t oG : o r e t hH o c k e r
protogonists preferto to[koboutexperimentotion rotherthonproIts.'For us,
editionsdo notrepresent o signifrcont
business,'sogs Fehtboum,'it is
'l
experimentotion.' Or: seemgselfoso potronin c muLtidisciptinorg ulog,'
sogsPeorL Lom,ou..rner 'l
of Controsls golLerg. don'tc[u-rcgs thinkobout
Ijust louedesign.' AndDidierKr5entou-rski 'The
budgets; of Kreo: goLlerg iso
kindof reseorch [oborotorg.'
setls.
is
the
It7
Portof thereuenue Estobl.ished d sons
flromthesoLeof Eslobl.isheder Sons'limited-ediliori
"4"exhibition oueruieu,MiLon2008
piecesot oucbion
ondetseuhere getsptoughed bockintofurtherleseorch O M i k eG o L d e r u o l e r
for otherproducts.
lt isquiteon interesting
controst in oltitudeto thotof
zoho Hodid. soorm chond€tier
/ Aquotobte
DidierK6etou-rski,
but bothuLtimotel-g ochieue thesomeresu[tbecouse componU:Estobtish€de, Sons
thereiso morkelout lhere,interestedin uhot theyoredoing,thotthegboth O Rol.ond
Holbe
hal narf fn aonornlo
So
:r.'e##ffi[fs3*tff
*xfu
Lo
ft3jfil':rff
t1i!}:"',r[:,lf
nedervrui[ .i"fi. r,.# :|.Xl[_%tfi jl,i;13-p1.,tr,.
.
I
" fromthepreuiousgeor),'J;
tuentg-nine
percent
!|;BBB t
-rh
moredesrgn-Literote
onddes
iridicotes
o huge rncreose
in o I
specrocle e.,,,,_;;;;ij;t,:;:$ffiil?',f
il"j,ir%H'ffii;
:?1il1,,,
to desrgn
beingon occessible.ctternoUr.
io ori,.opoO'te"oi
purnisfring
on
equol-Lu
richpotette
of content,
norrotiue
onorristor,ici
co'ntext.,Design
iso
CorpmtersWorkshopGo[[erU . Exhibition
v e f u eD
: e s i g nM i o m l / B o s e tJ, u n e
I D e s i gM n iomt/Bosel
20Og
ouerureu 53;Jffi j-f,i;,TilJ#l;:n::n5iil",.,
;l'l,k:x,,,,,,?[,,::.;1[i
oremogbemoreintereitedin
P h o t o : . l o mH
e so r r i s
Lroyfor ihemto mokeunusucIlol..p! tnonproouct. iJiiiJn, or. o uerygood
objecrs";;;.i;;i; iol itllrn.ir.Li.nt,or.
Studioi\4okhinke BeU . Cteoning_BeoutU_Cobinet pe.opLe^r.ulg
houeon crt opprooch
b 0 t t eUf :t o n t r o s l sG o l t e r u to destgnlt
ffirn iii, greorthct thismorket
exists.
0 C o n t r o s tGs o [ e r ! Ontheotherhond,nor
ffi iil ii,,5 o"o'''deiisn,isoriueond
; ff;lilli,i l,ft?lfillflf;00,"
Ledbg Solheby's ondPhitLips de Purge Compony, internotionolouction
housesbegonhol.ding dedicoteddesignobjectsolesin the[ote1990sond
houeplogedo kegrolein shoping thener-u LimitedEdition / DesignArt
morket.Theginitiottyconcentroted on uintogetu.rentieth-centurgfurnilure
piecestogetheru.ritho hondfutof prototgpes,editionsond one-offsfiromthe
- nou fomitior- ronksof estoblisheddesigners suchos RonArod,Ross
Louegroue, MorcNeusonondtheorchitect ZohoHodid.Bu!os theuintoge
piecesgot rorerond moreexpensiue, ond interestin experimenfoI
contempororg pieces remoinedkeen,thenumberoIcontemporory design
beingput up for solebegonto increose.
r.uorks Riskieru.rorlcsotsostortedto
oppeorfromyoungerdesigners, someof ihemfreshfromcoltegeond uith
hordl.gong trockrecord, cousingripplesof disopprouol fromthe more
conseruoiiue cornersof lhe morket.
There
oresignsofbigchonges
ofootinthemosttrdditlonot,
estob|ishment
ondcLiqueg u,rortdof theouctionroom.Not ontgis designnourbeingdeott
likecrt ond- for moreinterestingl.g - beingboughibg ort collectors, but
ouctionhouses orebeginning to openup ondbecome moreuser-friendtg,
uhich isottroctingo tr.rhote neu generotion of cosh-rich
collectorsr.r-rith
contempororu tostes. T.hepiecesthot someoi thesedesigners houebeen
producingfor georshouenot otteredmuch,sogsdesigner TomDixon.'Whott
chonged is ihot iheort morkethosbecome interested.'Theort morkethos
beenbutlishfor o Luhile ond pricesoreoccording|-g ostronomicol,but thereis
olsoo feeting
5eitgeist
morerisks,
of soturotion
isnotodequotetg
ondo sense
expressed
thegconbemoreconceptuoI
thottheneu mitlennium's
bg frneort olone.'Designers
creotiue
oretoking
ondthinkmoreortisticot[y,'sogs
I
Shonghoi-bosed gol"lerist
PeorlLom,uho deolsin bothcontempororg fineorl
onddesign. Audiences orelookingol thesetgpesof uork differentl.y.Theg
oren'tjust pieces of furniture,
butortr-uorksthotconolsobefunctionol.'
frlnu)
estobtished ort morket.Thismeonsthotit ismoreoccessibte to bugers, ond
thereis moreroomfor innouotionin termsof hor-u ond ulhUpiecesoretroded
'The
osuetl oscommissioned. col[ectors fordesignorechonging,'sogs
'Theinfl.ux
Richord Wright,flounder of theWrightouctionhousein Chicogo. o[
ort colleclorsoctiuel-gbugingison importont
LL'"
shift,bothin theiru.ritlingness
bospendbutolsoin Luhotthotsignifies: designostheexpression of the
collector,notjustquietflurniture thotrecedes intotheroom.'Giles
Hutchinson-Smith, o director of theBritishfrneontiquefurniture firmMottet
I
I
onditsneu conlempororg designoffshoot Melo,ogrees, ondoddsthot t
design cotlecting hoso lot to do ruithpersonoI bronding.'Colleciors louethe
ideoof beingobleto mixcontempororu urithtrodiiionol becouse it hoson
cmo5ingtg chiclookoboulit. Noton[Udoesit LookLiketheyoreeducoied ond
cuLtured in thepost,but educoted ondculturedin thefutureos r-ue[t, ond
Shigeru
thott o reoLtg importontmessoge... Al.l-
col,l.ecting,
fromtheoncientGreeks io
Bon. PTH-02PoperTeo House
G 0 l l e rPUh: i L t i p
d seP u r Ue C o m p o n U
Lo, ndon thetuentg-firstceniurg,isobouttheimogeof thecoltectors ond u.rhoi
O P h i L t idpesP u r Ue C o m p o n U peopte thinkoboutthem.'
22s
W.
H o n iR o s h i d ' R o i
B l a c h e p o x Us i e r e o tl h o g r 0 p h U ;e d i t i o r ro f 2 5
W i t hs om o n gm u L t i m i L L i o noorl o r eusn dt h o tt h e r eo T ee u e nd e d i c o t el rdo d e G a l l e r U : ' A l m o s p h e r i c s ' c x h i b i f i oPn h; L l i p sd e P u r! 4 C o m p o n U ,N e u Y o r k
shouscolering to theirLiquid ossets, stondord Luxurg stotussgmboLs suchcs l O P l r i l l i p sd e P ! r U e C o r n p o n ! l
c o r sg, o c h t o s n dh c n d b o ghso u eb e c o moeL m o scto m m o n p L olct ies.n o u f o r R o n A r o d . A [ L e rS p r i n g
morefoshionobLe to oddpolishlo thepersoncL identitgLuitho house(or F i r s l o [ 3 o r l l s L ' sp r o o i s
houses) in o co[Lection of contempororg one-offs ondLimited- G o t l e r US : o l h e b ! ' s 2 0 l h C e n t u r UD e 5 i g I
furnished o S o [ h e b U ' s2 0 l h C e n l u r ! D e s t n
editionpieces lo motchtheort cnd thecrchitecture.'Some of thesecoLlectors
orenoteduccrted in thehistorgof design or simpLg notinterested,'sogs
W r i g h t . ' T h ei sr oe L L u o og d
s r i u et o d os o m e t h i nnge u . ' B u g i ndge s i g insn o
Longe j ur s tf o ro n i n s i d ecrl i q u e
o f i n f o r m eeds t o b L i s h meenntth u s i o sbt su,t
forongoneuho concffordit.ThismoUoLsoexpLoin uhg contemporcrg
designobjects beingsoldot ouctlonoreincreosingLg presented in c retoiL
contexlrotherthonthetroditionoL historicoL or coLlector's formot.When
Richord Wrightfounded hisouctionhousetogether uith hisruifein 2000,
t h e gr e u o L u t i o n itsheedi n d u s t rbgg p u b L i s h ibnego u t i f u LdLegs i g n e d ,
mogo5ine-stgLe glossgcotoLogues for theirsoLes, pockeduith ueLL-shot
c o L o ui m r o g eos f t h ei n d i u i d u L cLo t sl t. b r o u g htth eb u g i n ge x p e r i e nccl eo s e r
to theshopping experience ond,in sodoing,pouedtheuog foro more
user-frlendLg tgpeof ouction.
l
MorcNeuson. Nicketchoir
Ediiioo nf10
U a: g o s i oG
G o t L e rG notLerU
dePurUet Compong
PhiLl"ips houeodopted o simitoropprooch lo Wright,ond
O M o r cN e u s o nG ; o g o s i oG
notLer! houeonLine cotoLogues pocked uith attroctiue imogesosurelloscleor
M o r cN € u s o n. c o r b o nF i b r ec h o i r instruclions osto houJtheouctionprocess urorks. Theghoueolsotokenthe
E d i L i oonf 2 5 0 preuieu-r
experience out of theobscure storeroom-tike olmosphere cnd intoon
GolterU Gro g o s i oGnaLielU oirgmodernspoceuiiththeirneuJbuiLding ot Hor-uick Plocein London. Here
O M o r cN e u s o nG ; o g o s i oGn o l l € r U
theghostsellingexhibitions too,of uorksfromdesigners includingHcni
MorcNeuson. Bl.ochHoLetobl"e Roshid,Morcus Tremonto, RoLfSochsondVitro.Theotmosphere hereis more
c o r b o nF b r e
! :h i t t l pdseP u r Ue C o m p o n !N
G 0 t l . e rP , e uY 0 r k thotof o contempororg gotlergor o smortconcept storethonon old EngLish
O P h i L l i pdse P u r Us C o m p o n U ouctionestobtishment.'l don'tseeourselues osjusto housefor mouing
productondobjecls clongthroughthemorketp[oce,'sogs Phitlips'Design
DirectorAlexonder PoUne.'l seeusosprooctiuetg Looking; creotingond
curoting ouctions thotorestimuloting ondshoruing thebestof thebestin
cultingedgecontempororg Thotmeonsgoingout ond
designculture.
seorching for lherightpieces thotmokesense, ondnotjustsittingbockcnd
for themto comein.'Follouring
u-roiting thetroditionoL formutoof simpLy
cotoLoguing ondsellinggoodsondchotteLs is no longeroppropriote for
todoy'smcrkel,cultureondclients, Pognebelieues.'We houeto crecteond
present u-rorksin o u-rog
thotstimutotes ondengoges thecoltector'smind.'
MothiosBengtsson . sticechoirs
Forthedesigners, theoduontoges of theiruork beinghondLed ondLooked ot E o r t up r o L o L u pi en so l u m i n i u m
o n du o o d
in on ort coniextorecLeor, 'Museums gotLeries G o t t e r uP: h i t t i pdse P u r U€ , C o m p o n U
N,e u Y o r k
sousTomDixon. ond oremuch O P h i l t i p s
de P u r U€ ,C o m p o n U
beiterforexptoining ideos...
Youhoueo cctotogue, gouhoueo tol of ulhite
spoceoroundlheobject, ondconexptoin theprocessondtheconceptuol
underpinning thotgoujust con'tin o design
of thepiecein o u..rog shopor o
retoiLshopor o trodefoir.Sothere's spoceto totkoboutideos, isgreol.'
u..rhich
232
Wol.fson Design. Gotdbox
O W o t f s oD
n esign
Neuertheless,thegold-rush otmosphere in themorketdoes- ondu-rilL
woLFson Design' Gol.dbox continueto - produce The'ongthing
cosuoLties. goes'ottiludemokesfor
O W o t f s oD
n eslgn
innouotionondinteresting deueLopments, butconolsocouseinstobi[ity.
WoLfson Design. cenoodesk A[so,becouse thesecondorg morketforcontempororU designhosgetlo be
E d i t l oonf 1 0
GotterU P :o t r i c h
B r i t i eFi i n €A r t propertgdefined, thereiso bigriskof.judgement erroro[[ round.'lthinkthot
'There's
O M o x i mN l l o u thedesignmorketis in forsomebumps,' sogsJomesZemoitis. u..rog
toomuchproductout there,thereareuroutoomongexperiments thotgo
oLr,tru
on theouctionmorket, ondthere's toomuchpressure for moterioLsto
bedeueloped, sotonsof mislokes cremode.'Ourimoge-bcsed societyu-rith
itsocceteroted ottentionsponisoLsoproneto ottention-deflcit problems ond
cono[LtooeosiLg mistoke noueltuforquo[ity.Thereiso Lotof tlork on the
morketfromdesigners no prouentrockrecordin thisfletd.Neuerthetess,
u.rilh
Zemoitisbelieues thotlheinterestin contempororg designis hereto stog-
ondforgoodreoson.'l thinkthotthereisenoughdepth,enoughgreotthings
hoppening, thol euenif theeconomg forces o sloudounin themorket,
coupled u-rith
boddecisions beingmcdeby ouctionhouses uith o heouygtut
of moterioL,thelongtermisgoingto beuerg,uergheoLthy.'
235