By BRABBU
In our subject of the best designers of the 20th century today we will approach the work of Philippe Starck.
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Philippe Starck became widely known since the start of his career in the 1980s for his interior, product, industrial and architectural design work.
Most likely influenced by his father, who worked as an aircraft engineer, Starck studied at the École Nissim de Camondo, Paris, and in 1968 set up his first company, which produced inflatable objects. Always interested in design as a total concept, in the 1970s he made a reputation for himself by creating interiors for clients such as the Paris nightclubs La Main Bleue and Les Bains-Douches.
Starck first gained international attention when he was commissioned to refurbish the private apartments in the Élysée Palace in Paris for French President François Mitterrand. He went on to design restaurant interiors. Starck was also responsible for the interior design of the Royalton and Paramount hotels in New York City, work that subsequently inspired hotels throughout the world to seek his services. Over the course of these varied commissions, he did not develop one distinct aesthetic or a preference for certain materials. Rather, he addressed the needs of an individual client, whether it was the somewhat conservative character of state apartments or the more flamboyant tone needed for a trendy nightclub.
Parallel to his career as an interior designer, Starck developed an international reputation on the basis of his wide range of industrial designs. Often displaying the same organic, fluid lines of his interiors, the varied products he designed on commission included boats for Bénéteau, mineral-water bottles for Glacier, kitchen appliances—notably the Juicy Salif juicer—for Alessi, toothbrushes for Fluocaril, luggage for Samsonite, “Urban Fittings” for Decaux, office furniture for Vitra, televisions for Thomson Multimedia, watches for Fossil, eyeglasses for Alain Mikli, and the Optical Mouse for Microsoft.
Starck also worked as an architect, with many commissions in Japan. Although not as well known as his interiors and product design, his buildings also displayed the fluid lines and playful details for which his industrial designs were known.
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