U.F.O.
Blurring the Boundaries Between
Art and Design
Where does design end and art begin ? Charles Eames, the most influential designer of the mid-twentieth century, said that ‘design is an expression of purpose. It may (if it is good enough) later be judged as art.’ Contemporary young designers see the matter more pragmatically. According to the Spanish designer Jaime Hayon, ‘there is no longer a clear border between product design and art.’ The most recent answer to this question is inherent in the new phrase ‘design-art’.
Artists like Franz West and others investigate the changing functions of sculpture and in so doing dissolve the borders between art and design, between ‘free’ and ‘applied’ creation, by allowing hybrids from other areas to develop. In the field of design, on the other hand, designers like Ron Arad or Marc Newson are increasingly discovering the sculptural qualities of design. They are distancing themselves from a conditionality of design - namely its function and the inherent possibility of reproducing something any number of times - and are creating unique items or small editions. The borders between ‘fine’ and ‘decorative’ art is becoming more blurred.
This exhibition is not about photography but this subject is very interesting for all kind of art including photography : where is the boundary including or not a photographs as fine art photography ?
The artists/designers featuring in this exhibition include David Adjaye - Ron Arad - Richard Artschwager - Ronan + Erwan Bouroulle - Fernando + Humberto Campana - Hussein Chalayan - Frédéric Dedelly - Martino Gamper - Liam Gillick - Johanna Grawunder - Konstantin Grcic - Zaha Hadid – Studio Job – Donald Judd - Mona Hatoum - Arik Levy - Ross Lovegrove - Marc Newson – Tom Price - Richard Prince - Rolf Sachs - Tejo Remi - Ettore Sottsass - Haim Steinbach – Kram / Weisshaar - Marcel Wanders - Franz West - Andrea Zittel - Jorge Pardo.
Ron ARAD, Novoid 1, 2006
© Gabrielle Ammann, designer's gallery, Köln
Richard ARTSCHWAGER, Chair, 1965 – 2000
© Monika Sprüth Philomene Magers, Berlin/London,
VG Bild-Kunst Bonn, 2009
Fernando and Humberto CAMPANA, Banquete Chair, 2002
© Albion Gallery, London
Martino GAMPER, A 100 Chairs in 100 Days, 2007
© Nilufar Gallery, Mailand, Martino Gamper, London
Konsantin GRCIC, Missing Object, 2004
© Konstantin Grcic, München
Ross LOVEGROVE, Long Liquid Bench, 2007
© Ross Lovegrove studio, London
Marc NEWSON, Lockheed Lounge, 1986
© Marc Newson Ltd., Foto: Thomas Dix
Richard PRINCE, Installationsansicht der Ausstellung in der
Galerie Patrick Seguin (23.10 - 29.11.2008)
© Gagosian Gallery, New York
© Tejo Remy & Droog Design, Amsterdam
Ettore SOTTSASS, Altar: For the Sacrifice of My Solitude
(Before It is Desecrated by the Deciet of Politics), 1969
© Sammlung Ernest Mourmans, Maastricht
Marcel WANDERS, Bella Bettina, 2007
© Marcel Wanders
Franz WEST, Sitzskulptur, 2004
© Galerie Eva Presenhuber, Zürich
UFO: Blurring the boundaries between art and design - May 23-July 5, 2009
NRW-Forum Kultur und Wirtschaft -
Ehrenhof 2, 40479 Düsseldorf – Deutchland - http://www.nrw-forum.de/ - Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday: 11.00 am–8.00 p.m. Friday: 11.00 am–12 pm -Supported by the Prime minister of Northrhine-Westfalia, sponsered by Raumkonzepte Klode and ERCO, Mediapartners are design magazine FRAME and design platform Stylepark. (c) All rights reserved.
