4.26.2009

夜宴故宮 包場要22萬@News

故宮夜宴菜色。
記者游順然/攝影

聯合晚報╱記者黃玉芳/台北報導

夜訪故宮可看國寶、享茶點、賞絲竹管弦,度過風雅的一晚。故宮針對企業人士最近將推出「夜宴故宮」,今晚特地邀請企業界、航空公司等上百位人士到故宮作客,率先體驗古色古香的感官饗宴。故宮希望,未來不只讓外界欣賞文物而已,更能發揮休閒度假的功能。

林百里等百人 今夜初體驗

包括廣達集團董事長林百里、國票金控董事長洪三雄、台達電總經理蔡榮騰、長榮航空副總兼發言人聶國維、華航總經理孫洪祥等人,都受邀到故宮參加夜宴。

「夜宴故宮」先由導覽員安排一小時的國寶巡禮,包括翠玉白菜、肉型石、毛公鼎等不能錯過的展品,以及定期更換的特展中的精品,接著到典雅的三希堂享用精緻茶點。

端上桌的藥膳、海鮮、養生三種套餐,包括單點菜單裡沒有、特別為套餐設計的木瓜涼拌百香果、涼拌海珊瑚等涼菜,主菜則是紅麴小籠包等熱點,還有受歡迎的芝麻糕、松子綠豆皇、紅豆草餅等甜食,口味清爽,再配上帶有淡淡奶香味的金萱茶。

吃飽喝足後,最後欣賞王心心南管樂坊的演出,在琵琶、洞簫等雅樂聲中,結束知性的一晚。故宮教育推廣處副處長朱惠良表示,故宮不只是典藏、展覽的場所而已,更可以跟休閒觀光結合。

朱惠良也說,除了夜宴的構想,未來7月還將在文會堂推出「故宮新韻」,以故宮館藏結合傳統戲曲,例如崑曲「長生殿」,搭配典藏的「明皇幸蜀圖」等,將更多珍貴館藏介紹給民眾。

精緻夜宴 先鎖定企業

不過由於一場夜宴包場需22萬元,約可容納100人,初期散客、一般民眾難以享用,至於陸客也因為行程趕及團費限制,不在規劃之列,目前鎖定企業、公家機 關。故宮今晚也透過邀宴企業界人士,希望收服大老闆們的胃,以後多多捧場。朱惠良也說,目前已有新聞局、神通電腦包場。


@Source from: 【2009/04/25 聯合晚報】@ http://udn.com/

Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum@Arch

@Source from: http://www.dezeen.com/2009/04/21/frank-lloyd-wright-from-within-outward-at-the-guggenheim-museum/
April 21st, 2009
Posted by Rose Etherington



The exhibition Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outwardopens at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York next month.



The show presents 64 projects by Lloyd Wright and includes over 200 archival drawings by the architect alongside newly commissioned models and animations. There will also be a sound installation featuring the voices of clients, friends, apprentices, and architects.
Top image: Frank Lloyd Wright, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York

1943–59
Ink and pencil on tracing paper
20 x 24 inches
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright , Gordon Strong Automobile Objective and Planetarium (project)
Sugarloaf Mountain, Maryland, 1924–25
Section
Ink on paper
17 x 35 7/8 inches
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



The exhibition marks the 50th anniversary of the completion of Frank Lloyd Wright’s design for the Guggenheim Museum.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Gordon Strong Automobile Objective and Planetarium (project)
Sugarloaf Mountain, Maryland, 1924–25
Perspective

Colored pencil on tracing paper
20 x 31 inches
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



It opens 15 May and continues until 23 August, before moving to Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in Spain.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Steel Cathedral (project)
New York, 1926
Elevation

Graphite pencil and colored pencil on paper
22 5/8 x 30 inches
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



The following information is from the Guggenheim Museum:

GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM AND FRANK LLOYD WRIGHT FOUNDATION CELEBRATE VISIONARY ARCHITECT WITH EXHIBITION MARKING 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF WRIGHT’S RENOWNED BUILDING
More than 200 Archival Drawings, New Models, Animations, and Oral Histories
Exhibition: Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward
Fifty years after the realization of Frank Lloyd Wright’s renowned design, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum celebrates the golden anniversary of its landmark building with the exhibition Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward, co-organized by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright , Steel Cathedral (project)
New York, 1926
Plan
Graphite pencil and colored pencil on paper
23 7/16 x 31 inches

The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



On view from May 15 through August 23, 2009, the 50th anniversary exhibition brings together 64 projects designed by one of the most influential architects of the 20th century, including privately commissioned residences, civic and government buildings, religious and performance spaces, as well as unrealized urban mega-structures.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
New York, 1943–59

Perspective, “The Reception”
Graphite pencil and colored pencil on paper
29 1/8 x 38 3/4 inches
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



Presented on the spiral ramps of Wright’s museum through a range of media—including more than 200 original Frank Lloyd Wright drawings, many of which are on view to the public for the first time, as well as newly commissioned models and digital animations—Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward illuminates Wright’s pioneering concepts of space and reveals the architect’s continuing relevance to contemporary design.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Larkin Company Administration Building (demolished)
Buffalo, New York, 1902–06
Interior court view

Print
18 x 26 inches
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



An exhibition co-organized by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. The exhibition takes its title from Frank Lloyd Wright’s musings on the importance of interior space in shaping and informing a structure’s exterior.

“The building is no longer a block of building material dealt with, artistically, from the outside,” Wright said.

“The room within is the great fact about building—the room to be expressed in the exterior as space enclosed.”

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Larkin Company Administration Building (demolished)
Buffalo, New York, 1902–06
Exterior view
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
FLLW FDN # 0403.0030
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



Few designs in Wright’s oeuvre so well illustrate the concept of designing “from within outward” as the Guggenheim Museum, in which the interior form gives shape to the exterior shell of the building. Richard Armstrong, Director of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and Museum, stated, “Fifty years ago, the trajectories of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and Frank Lloyd Wright became intertwined.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Cloverleaf Quadruple Housing (project)
Pittsfield, Massachusetts, 1942

Aerial perspective
Colored pencil and ink on paper
26 x 36 inches
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



When it opened in October 1959, the museum drew both criticism and admiration, but what was indisputable was that Wright had reinvented the art museum.” Armstrong continued, “How fitting that we open our fiftieth-anniversary celebrations with Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward, an exhibition that documents and challenges how architecture influences the way we live and how we experience art.”

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Cloverleaf Quadruple Housing (project)
Pittsfield, Massachusetts, 1942
Interior perspective

Pencil, colored pencil, and ink on paper
28 1/8 x 34 3/4 inches
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



“Rather than a retrospective, this exhibition focuses on the diversity of Wright’s vision and the ways he sought to realize it, conveying fresh perspectives on how the buildings themselves celebrate that vision through spaces that enrich our lives with their transformational power,” said Phil Allsopp, President and CEO of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, the only organization established by Frank Lloyd Wright to be the repository of his life’s work and the first to bear his name.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Marin County Civic Center
San Rafael, California, 1957–62
Main entrance of administration building
Photograph by Ezra Stoller © Esto



“The concept of the exhibition also reflects a growing recognition of the enormous relevance today of Frank Lloyd Wright’s design philosophies, which embrace culture, technology and environment. The exhibition articulates the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation’s public mission and active engagement in education, scholarship, design, research, historic preservation, and public policy.” The Frank Lloyd Wright Archives, which the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation owns and operates at its headquarters in Scottsdale, Arizona, is the primary source of loans for the exhibition.

Above: Imperial Hotel, Scheme #2 (demolished)
Tokyo, 1913–22
Exterior view
Photograph © Hulton Archive/Stringer/Getty Images



During his 72-year career, Frank Lloyd Wright (1867–1959), who died just six months before the opening of the Guggenheim, worked independently from any single style and developed a new sense of architecture in which form and function are inseparable. Known for his inventiveness and the diversity of his work, Wright is celebrated for the awe-inspiring beauty and tranquility of his designs. Whether creating a private home, workplace, religious edifice, or cultural attraction, Wright sought to unite people, buildings, and nature in physical and spiritual harmony. To realize such a union in material form, Wright created environments of simplicity and repose through carefully composed plans and elevations based on consistent, geometric grammars.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Imperial Hotel, Scheme #2 (demolished)
Tokyo, 1913–22
View of the promenade
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona Frank Lloyd Wright



His innovative designs complement the surrounding environment of the site and intensify the physical, emotional, and social experience of flowing, continuous space within them. In his earliest designs, such as the Larkin Company Administration Building (Buffalo, New York, 1902–06) and Unity Temple (Oak Park, Illinois, 1905), Wright carefully deconstructs the box-like environment of his European contemporaries by opening up corners and using walls merely as screens to enclose tranquil interior spaces. Wright’s architecture is a translation of his conception of society into a spatial language that can be understood intuitively and enhances the everyday experience. While the aesthetic strength of Wright’s work has invited people to revisit his idiom, it is the ambition of Frank Lloyd Wright:

From Within Outward to celebrate the basic idea behind his architecture—the sense of freedom in interior space—and inspire visitors to see the potential that architecture can carry for the here and now and for the future.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Herbert Jacobs House #1
Madison, Wisconsin, 1936–37
Interior view

The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
Photograph by Larry Cuneo
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward is organized in a loosely chronological order and is installed to be viewed from the rotunda floor upwards. Off the first ramp in the High Gallery is an original curtain depicting Wright’s native Wisconsin landscape from the 1952 Hillside Theater at Taliesin, Wright’s home and studio in Spring Green, Wisconsin (1911– 59). On loan from Taliesin, this curtain creates the backdrop for a sound installation of recorded oral histories from the collection of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, which feature the voices of clients, friends, apprentices, and architects reflecting on the revelatory experience of living and working in Wright-designed spaces.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Taliesin West
Scottsdale, Arizona, 1937–59
View from prow to drafting studio and original dining room
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



Highlights of Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward include newly created three dimensional scale models that examine the internal mechanics of functional space in relation to exterior form in a variety of Wright’s projects. Among these are an exploded version of the Herbert Jacobs House (Madison, Wisconsin, 1937); a mirrored model for Unity Temple; and a sectional model of Beth Sholom Synagogue (Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, 1953).

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright , Taliesin West
Scottsdale, Arizona, 1937–59
View to drafting studio
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



Large-scale models of unrealized urban schemes for projects, including his Plan for Greater Baghdad (1957), the Crystal City for Washington, D.C. (1940), and the Pittsburgh Point Civic Center (1947), provide insight into Wright’s visions for the landscapes of the city. The models were developed by Michael Kennedy of New York–based Kennedy Fabrications Inc., which specializes in architectural models and prototyping, and Situ Studio, a Brooklyn-based firm focused on research, design, and fabrication.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Taliesin III
Spring Green, Wisconsin, 1925–59
View to residence across the pond
Photograph by David Heald
© The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York



Special animations offer viewers the opportunity to experience an interpretation of nine of Wright’s un-built or demolished projects as well as his own Taliesin and Taliesin West. The animations were designed by teams of students from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design Interactive Spaces course taught by Allen Sayegh and from Madison Area Technical College, with the assistance of Archi Zarzycki of arc.studio.3d and ZD Studios (both also of Madison).

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Unity Temple
Oak Park, Illinois, 1905–08
Perspective
Ink and watercolor on art paper
11 1/2 x 25 inches
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



The curatorial team for Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward includes Thomas Krens, curator and Senior Advisor of International Affairs for the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation; David van der Leer, Assistant Curator of Architecture and Design; and Maria Nicanor, Curatorial Assistant, all for the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, in collaboration with Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer, Director of the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives; Margo Stipe, Curator and Registrar of Collections of the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives; and Oskar Muñoz, Assistant Director of the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives. Mina Marefat, an architect and Wright scholar, has served as Curatorial Consultant for the Baghdad module of the exhibition.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Unity Temple
Oak Park, Illinois, 1905–08
Perspective
Ink and watercolor on art paper
11 1/2 x 25 inches
The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation
FLLW FDN # 0611.003
© 2009 The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, Arizona



The exhibition installation for Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward has been designed by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in collaboration with the design firm Wendy Evans Joseph Architecture.

Media partner Thirteen/WNET.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Hillside Theatre #2, Taliesin III
Spring Green, Wisconsin, 1952
Interior view
Photograph by David Heald
© The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York



The Legacy of Frank Lloyd Wright

In 1990, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum was declared a landmark by the New York City Landmark Preservation Commission and in 2005 was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. On October 7, 2008, the Interior Secretary of the United States named the Guggenheim a National Historic Landmark in recognition of the museum’s significance within American history and culture. UNESCO World Heritage Center also is considering Wright’s legacy: ten of the architect’s most relevant buildings, including the Guggenheim Museum, Taliesin, and Taliesin West, his home and studio in Scottsdale and the headquarters of the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, have recently been included on the United States’ World Heritage Tentative List, which identifies the most significant cultural and natural treasures worldwide.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Hillside Fellowship Complex, Taliesin III
Spring Green, Wisconsin, 1933
Drafting studio (interior view)
Photograph by David Heald
© The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York



In anticipation of its 50th anniversary in 2009, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum recently undertook a four-year restoration, the results of which were unveiled in September 2008. At the outset of the restoration project, a team of architects, structural engineers, and conservators undertook a comprehensive condition assessment and found that, while the building remained in good structural condition, the removal of 11 coats of paint, the infilling of exterior cracks, the treatment of corroded steel structures, and the repair and reinforcement of the concrete were essential to insure the ongoing health of the structure.

Above: Frank Lloyd Wright, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
New York, 1943–59
Exterior view
© The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York


Above: Frank Lloyd Wright during construction of the Solomon R.
Guggenheim Museum, New York, ca. 1959
Photograph by William Short
© The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, New York
With its legacy grounded in the architecture of Frank Lloyd Wright, the Guggenheim is dedicated to exploring the connections between design, architecture, and other forms of art, especially in the context of the city.

Design exhibitions organized by the Guggenheim have included the 2001 retrospective of the work of architect Frank Gehry, which became the most attended show in the history of the New York museum, and a retrospective of the work of architect Zaha Hadid in 2006. With such projects at the forefront, the Guggenheim has initiated the development of a broad program in which architecture and design become a means of expression to document, divert, and direct our increasingly urban societies.

Exhibition Tour

Following the presentation of Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, the exhibition will travel to the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in Bilbao, Spain, where it will be on view from October 6, 2009 through February 2010.

Publications
Frank Lloyd Wright: From Within Outward is accompanied by a fully illustrated exhibition catalogue published by Skira/Rizzoli. With forewords by Phil Allsopp, Richard Armstrong, and Thomas Krens, the catalogue will include essays by Wright scholars Richard Cleary, Neil Levine, Mina Marefat, Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer, Joseph M. Siry, and Margo Stipe.

In addition to the exhibition catalogue, The Guggenheim: Frank Lloyd Wright and the Making of the Modern Museum will be published on the occasion of museum’s fiftieth anniversary and in association with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. This first-ever book to explore the 16-year construction process behind one of the greatest modern buildings in America will examine the history, design, and construction of Wright’s masterwork. Fully illustrated with preliminary drawings, models, and photographs, the book includes three major essays by Hillary Ballon, Neil Levine and Joseph Siry.

Venue: Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum,
1071 Fifth Avenue, New York
Dates: May 15 – August 23, 2009
Preview: Thursday, May 14, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.

龍巖墓園…安藤忠雄設計@Arch

安藤忠雄(左)來台與龍巖人本集團發表第一座墓園,右為龍巖人本集團董事長李世聰。
記者侯世駿/攝影

【經濟日報╱記者梁任瑋/台北報導】2009.04.25

在台灣擁有廣大粉絲的日本建築師安藤忠雄,昨(24)日與殯葬業者龍巖人本簽約設計墓園,這是台灣首度由企業獨資邀請安藤忠雄設計的建築案,也是安藤忠雄 第一個墓園作品。因工程浩大,龍巖預計花八至十年時間興建,投入經費高達100億元,每個納骨塔位價格上看100萬元,打破國內納骨塔單價紀錄。

龍巖與安藤忠雄合作的墓園位於北縣三芝山上,占地26公頃(7.8萬坪),將興建地上三層、地下一層的建築物,總樓地板面積約8,000餘坪,有一半都隱藏於地下。

龍巖人本董事長李世聰說,每年請安藤忠雄設計建案的公司不計其數,但只有3%能中選,也許是自己的意志力與熱情感動了安藤忠雄,他希望墓園能走「低調的奢華」風格。

安藤忠雄表示,偉大的建築可以讓人充滿自信,他希望這座成為世界最知名的墓園,但他也不諱言本案難度很高,他抱持「山要難爬,才有意思」的精神努力。

龍巖人本總經理劉偉龍說,自從去年宣布與安藤忠雄合作,就有不少企業家表明要訂購,為了讓大家盡快目睹大師的作品,安藤忠雄特別答應為龍巖設計已完工的真龍殿內部塔位空間。

目前安藤忠雄設計的空間,將由王俠軍的八方新氣設計納骨塔面板,每個單價要60萬元,以此推估,未來安藤忠雄設計的納骨塔位每個單價至少要100萬元,打破國內納骨塔單價紀錄。

@Source from 經濟日報

安藤忠雄、U2主唱Bono 惺惺相惜@Arch

時間: 2009/04/24 撰稿‧編輯:江昭倫 新聞引據:採訪

  安藤忠雄是國際建築大師,設計無數重要案子;U2主唱Bono則是世界知名樂團主唱,擁有全球無數歌迷,兩人惺惺相惜,不過安藤24日向台灣媒體透 露,原來根本不認識Bono,後來是聽了他現場演唱「奇異恩典」,才決定跟他做朋友。 一個是國際建築大師安藤忠雄,一個是知名樂團U2主唱Bono,兩人不同領域,卻是很好的朋友。究竟兩人是怎麼碰在一起的?安藤24日在來台記者會上,意 外透露了兩人認識的有趣過程。

   安藤說,5年前Bono不斷透過人希望能跟他見面,但他只認識披頭四,根本不知道U2是誰,所以一口回絕了,直後後來親耳聽到Bono自彈自唱「奇異恩 典」,才決定跟他做朋友。安藤:『(原音)一直到三年前才有機會(見到Bono),他親自到大阪來拜訪,後來我就帶他到光之教堂(安藤作品之 一),Bono在光之教堂裡面,親自自彈自唱了一首「奇異恩典」,那我聽了才發現,喔,原來Bono真的很會唱歌,然後我就覺得可以跟他做個朋友。』

   也因為成了好朋友,安藤忠雄同意幫Bono設計他位於都柏林的住家。最近安藤忙著為東京申請2016年奧運,邀請各地友人幫忙發聲,Bono也很有義氣出面力挺。兩人惺惺相惜,讓外界看到了兩位巨星之間深厚的友誼。

@Source from 中廣新聞

東京申奧 安藤忠雄打造海上森林@Arch

時間: 2009/04/24 撰稿‧編輯:江昭倫 新聞引據:採訪

  東京最近積極爭取申辦2016年奧運,擔任申奧場館圖設計總監的國際建築大師安藤忠雄,以生態為訴求主題,預計在東京灣上打造一座海上森林,安藤同時 發起全日本每人捐1000日圓,籌募植樹基金,希望能達到種植50萬棵樹的目標。 2016年奧運究竟在何地舉辦?目前包括東京、芝加哥和馬德里都積極爭取中,其中又以東京企圖心最大,找來國際建築大師安藤忠雄擔任申奧場館圖設計總監。

  安藤向台灣媒體表示,他計劃在東京灣上打造一座海上森林,主要概念有太陽、水和綠色樹木,為了讓這個海上森林計劃能夠實現,安藤也發起了每人捐款 1000日圓,相當於台幣300元的計畫,希望能募集植樹基金,種植50萬棵樹,經過一年四個月的時間,現在已經募集到33萬顆樹的資金,成效很不錯。

  不過安藤說,他只是負責整個申奧場館圖概念的設計,如果未來東京確定申奧成功,他不會親自硬體設計,反而希望在全世界召募各地人才一起加入。安藤說: 『(原音)這個構想是希望能夠讓全球各地的人才,認為來到東京是有機會的,那這個概念是我跟日本首相經過一番討論之後,那我們認為,希望讓東京更國際化, 讓更多國際人才能夠到東京來一起參與。』

  安藤說,整個比賽場館將會場將全面採取太陽能供電,所有設計概念也都是以生態環保為訴求,希望藉由東京申奧,讓東京更進一步國際化。

@Source from 中廣新聞

4.25.2009

Miuccia Prada Biography@People


One of the most well known names in high end fashion, Miuccia Prada is noted for taking a small-time family business and building a formidable fashion empire.

Maria Bianchi Prada, known professionally as Miuccia Prada, was born May 10, 1949. Her parents were Luigi Bianchi and Luisia Prada, although she was eventually adopted by her maternal aunt. Her grandfather was Mario Prada, noted for founding the first retail line bearing the name “Prada.” It dealt in leather goods and was known as Fratelli Prada.

Pursuing her education in political science, Prada secured a PhD in a field far removed from the glitz and glamour of the fashion world. Making her an even more unlikely choice for the business, she also attended Teatro Piccolo for five years, where she both studied and performed mime. Eyebrows were also raised when it became public knowledge she was a member of the Communist Party. In addition to her political views, Prada was an outspoken proponent of women’s rights in Milan throughout the 70s.

Prada’s future in fashion, however, began in 1978 when she inherited the company, Prada SpA, from her mother. With her husband, Patrizio Bertelli, Prada expanded the company’s output from its previous luxury goods to high end clothing. Prada credits Bertelli with much of her drive to continue and push towards international recognition.

1985 marked her first important benchmark when she scored her largest professional success to date. She released what would ultimately become the signature Prada handbag. A classic, black nylon bag, it was simultaneously delicate but sturdy. An instant hit, it was quickly seen hanging on the arms of supermodels and the international fashion elite such as Marie Helvin and Jerry Hall.

While the line was becoming a must have, the prices were prohibiting all but the rich and famous from owning them. Replicas began flooding the market, which only served to make the authentic products of the Prada line all the more desirable.

1989 brought the first ready-to-wear collection to the runway. Composed of dark tones, classic cuts, and simple designs, the line stood in stark contrast to the bright, overtly sensual lines of its competitors. Critics were enthralled, and Prada was instantaneously raised to the upper echelons of high fashion.

The success continued unabated, and 1992 saw the release of Miu Miu, a slightly cheaper bridge line. With lowered prices and looks that were less austere, the earthy, more stylistically daring patterns continue to be a hit with the fashion-minded youth.

All the hard work culminated in 1993 when Prada was honored with a Council of Fashion Designers of America International Award. The following year, she had earned enough fashion recognition to debut in New York and London. Her two lines are currently staples at Milan’s fashion week.

In addition to fashion, Prada is currently revered for her heavy financial support of various artistic endeavors.


@Source from: http://www.yuddy.com/celebrity/miuccia-prada/bio

Miuccia Prada / Vogue@People

Miuccia Prada on the Prada autumn/winter 2007-8 catwalk

Miuccia Prada is a woman's designer. She designs clothes that take account of a woman's curves and at the same time communicating intelligence as well as a sense of fun.

She has a PhD in Political Science, which she followed with five years studying performing mime. She was also a member of the Communist Party. After her degree, in 1978 she reluctantly took over the luxury leather goods company that her grandfather had founded in Milan in 1913.

• In 1985, she designed a line of black, unlabelled, hard-wearing but finely-woven nylon handbags that immediately became must-haves
• Prada launched her eponymous ready-to-wear collection in autumn/winter 1989 to critical acclaim
• In 1992, she debuted the less expensive Miu Miu (Miuccia's nickname), inspired by her personal wardrobe
• In 1993 she won a Council of Fashion Designers of America International Award

Miuccia met her husband and business partner Patrizio Bertelli at the same time as she took the helm of the family company. "If I hadn't met him, I probably would have given up - or at least not been able to do what I have done," she said.

It was under Bertelli's sway that the design house grew as a conglomerate adding such labels as Fendi, Helmut Lang, Jil Sander and Azzedine Alaia to its portfolio of brands. By 2007 they began to return to their core concerns. Jil Sander was sold back, Azzedine Alaia had bought back his company and Helmut Lang was sold in 2005.

Bertelli is passionate sailing and Prada have a boat in the America's Cup every year.

Miuccia Prada consistently brings a reality check to fashion: "I love fashion, but I think it should stay in its place, not rule your life. It's a very nice part of your life, but I think it should be fun."

Prada, 2 via Andrea Maffei, 20135 Milano
Tel: +39 2 76 00 14 26

Prada, 17-18 Old Bond Street, London, W1S 4AT
Tel: +44 20 7647 5000

www.prada.com

Jo Craven


@Source from: http://www.vogue.co.uk/biographies/080420-miuccia-prada-biography.aspx

LOEWE與王室明星結緣@Fashion

說起LOEWE,最為人們所津津樂道的莫過于其品質優良的皮革制品,19世紀中期,Loewe在馬德裏設立了皮革 工作坊,制造小零錢包、鼻煙盒、手提包等小型皮件,精致細膩。許多時尚評論家都說Loewe玩皮技巧已臻爐火純青境界,尤其納帕小羊皮nappa裁制的服 裝或提袋,一直是頂級皮革代名詞。自詡愛皮之人,此生至少要擁有一件!

近年來,由于傳統皮革工業進軍高級時裝,使每一季的經典包地位更顯重要,許多 大品牌推出的經典包,均成為必賣暢銷品。提到巴黎,先想到的是louisvuitton春夏推出的以好萊塢女星theda為名的手提包。而說到西班 牙,Loewe的跑車包(coupe)使女人有了掌握方向盤的快感……

Loewe向來以制作頂級皮件聞名全球,且深受西班牙皇室肯定,它內斂、優雅 地襯托出皇室般的氣度。值得一提的是,Loewe在第四代傳人EnriqueLoeweLynch的悉心管理下向時裝界進軍,當今著名的設計師 KarlLagerfeld、GiorgioArmani及LauraBiagiotte都曾擔任Loewe初期時裝的設計師。

出生西班牙創始人來自德國

Loewe的出生地在150年前的西班牙,創建人卻是個德國小青年恩裏克·羅威· 羅斯伯格。1872年,28歲的他來到西班牙首都馬德裏,憑著多年制作皮革的豐富經驗,加入由一群西班牙皮革技工師所創立的制皮工作坊,主要制造皮革小 盒、相架、皮袋、皮包、煙絲盒等精致皮革用品。由于當時馬德裏人對一切奢侈品的設計極為著迷,皮革用品可謂盛極一時,于是這個工作坊在西班牙貴族圈內嶄露 頭角,並擁有了無數國內外的貴賓,甚至吸引了歐洲富豪。

皮包貴氣奢華深受西班牙王室眷顧

1905年是Loewe的榮耀之年,它被正式委任為西班牙王室的特許供應商。根據 文獻記載,當時國王AifonsoXl-ll經常定制的精品包括:鑲有純銀及象牙的紅皮箱子、皮革文件盤、廢紙箱、表盒;以摩洛哥皮革制成的首飾盒、皮制 文件夾、各款手袋;以及各色案頭用品等。當時王室及上流社會開汽車,因此國王還向Loewe特別訂制用上乘皮革制成的皮革椅套。由于王室的眷 顧,Loewe的客戶與日俱增,迄今仍有許多王室成員特別向Loewe訂制皮革用品係列。Loewe從此和貴氣、奢華等形容詞結下了不解之緣。

30年經典AMAZONA包屬于獨立堅毅的女性

有人說,卓越的工匠技藝是一門巧奪天工的藝術。就像Loewe的每一個皮具背後都 隱藏著故事,每個皮包可能都在述著一個珍貴的回憶。歐洲女性于上世紀70年代逐漸獲得解放,她們開始追求自己的事業,並成為獨立堅毅的Amazona女 性。Loewe因此推出Amazona手袋,以讚頌新一代的時尚女性。新款的Amazona手袋打破了固有的設計模式,推出首個沒有襯裏及框架的手袋,並 綴以刺繡頂邊的設計。迷你款式以白色貂皮制造,展現出精湛的皮革制作工藝。經典Amazona手袋已經推出了30年了。一個女朋友對我說:“他的皮質真的 很棒,而且款式簡潔大方,自從買了第一個袋子後就愛上它了……”

這是Loewe2005秋冬的最新款皮包係列。為配合亞洲區連串的宣傳活動, 早前該品牌從亞洲羅致七位氣質女星拍攝一輯硬照,為品牌的Amazona手袋推出三十周年造勢和助陣。手袋是讚頌新一代獨立堅毅的時尚女性,所以分別“欽 點”了張柏芝、鄭裕玲、鐘麗緹、李冰冰、金喜善、范文芳和林心如七位女星作為代表。

@Source from: 深圳都市報 / 責任編輯:冉曉寧

Prada 不做貴族的附屬品@Fashion




Miuccia Prada出生在一個非常富裕的貴族家庭,一開始的時候,她並沒有想到自己會和服裝設計這條路有關聯,六十年代,她選擇了去米蘭的大學學習政治學,和好多當時的知識分子一樣,Miuccia Prada非常致力于左翼運動,並且很快成為了一名共產黨員。當然,相對于其他的知識分子而言,Miuccia Prada並不是一個僅僅具有戰鬥性的女性,在她的生活中,還是隨時的關注著流行和流行的趨勢,特別是看到收藏在母親衣櫃中那些由著名設計師縫制的整潔服裝,Miuccia Prada既感到好奇和喜愛,又感到一種特別奇妙的憧憬和驕傲。

1978年,28歲的Miuccia極不情願的從母親手裏接過由祖父傳下來的公司,之所以心裏面有些抵觸,是因為那時候的她還沒有做好把時裝設計當成自己畢生職業的準備,不過,對于Miuccia Prada成長所在的這個家族來說,由她來繼承PRADA的事業,本就是一件很順理成章的事,萬般無奈,Miuccia Prada只好走馬上任了。 在被Miuccia Prada接管以前,PRADA的品牌其實已經漸漸的露出了陳舊的姿態,Miuccia Prada雖然一開始有些不能接受家族給她的使命,一段時間以後還是調整了心態,她很快覺察到PRADA不可以再繼續在傳統的名義下正襟危坐。要想讓PRADA走得更遠,必須找到一條將“傳統與現代的融合”的新路。

1987年,Miuccia Prada在一次商品展覽會上偶然同Patrizio Bertelli相識,兩個人在一見鐘情之下很快的墜入情網,最後成為人生的伴侶。這次以外的邂逅帶來的婚姻對PRADA來說,無疑是一件具有歷史意義的事件。從此,Miuccia Prada用自己獨特的時尚感悟力進行設計,而Patrizio Bertelli則用思路清晰的邏輯進行工作,兩個人在各自互不侵犯的領域努力,偶爾也會相互補充不足的部分。 很多人都說,Miuccia Prada和Patrizio Bertelli的結合,不僅成就了一場美麗的愛情,更給整個時裝圈帶來了一個最強的合作組合,有了兩個人的默契合作,PRADA的發展異常迅速,除了手提包袋外,更于1983年推出皮鞋,1989年推出女裝,1994推出男裝,1998年推出了運動裝。

當然,Miuccia Prada推出的運動服同樣也貫穿了“自己想穿”的精神。為了制作設計時髦、可以適應戶外運動的真正運動服,Miuccia Prada與生 產一流原料的廠家合作,選擇最高級的面料。運動服包括了室外運動服、襯衫以及鞋、包袋、帽子等品種,顏色以黑、白、灰等單色為主,作為插入色增加了紅色,形成了PRADA獨特的用色。

@Source from: 瑞麗女性網

Rei Kawabuko@People

Comme des garçons' Avatar of the avant-garde
When Japanese designer Rei Kawakubo arrived in Paris in 1981 to show her Comme des Garçons ready-to-wear collection to the Western press for the first time, critics branded her mannish coats, inky palette and distressed fabrics "post-atomic" and "Hiroshima chic." They dismissed her unfinished seams and asymmetrical cuts as absurd.

At that moment in fashion, French couturiers ruled the roost. Black was not a color worn during the day, and clothes were intended to be objects of ornamentation. In fact, Kawakubo's concept that clothes should express something other than sexuality was unthinkable. Instead of taking traditional fashion cues, Kawakubo, who had come to design from textile advertising, looked to masculine dress, street culture and her Japanese heritage for inspiration. While other designers were cutting and draping their silhouettes, Kawakubo was slashing and shredding and twisting and sculpting hers. In everything she created, she challenged the notion that fashion was meant to beautify or to be beautiful.

Of course, black is now the preferred palette for day, and the diminutive designer has become a giant of the avant-garde. Where Kawakubo ventures, other designers will inevitably follow—her influence fueled by her consistent provocation.

In 1997 she outraged observers with a collection that questioned the very shape of women's bodies. Known as the bump collection, it deformed the silhouette with Quasimodo-style padded lumps placed strangely and strategically on models' backs, shoulders and hips. For spring 2004, when every designer was sending cliches of femininity down the runway, Kawakubo left many in the audience perplexed by presenting models in voluminous skirts cut from traditional Japanese fabrics. Instead of blouses, they wore sheer swaths of tulle over bare breasts. Even Kawakubo's perfumes defy convention. Odeur 53, created in 1998, has notes of nail polish and burnt rubber. The idea was to express smells that nobody would recognize.

Today Kawakubo presides over a multimillion-dollar privately held company with both commercial and fashion-forward lines for men and women, a perfume license with Puig and a new joint venture with Fred Perry. She also collaborates with Vivienne Westwood on a collection sold exclusively in Tokyo.

—By Kate Betts

@Source from: http://www.time.com/time/2004/style/020904/power/9.html

Donna Karan@People

The Designing Woman Women Love
In the late 1990s, more than a few critics suggested that Donna Karan had lost her way. A dozen years after she launched her own label to great acclaim, winning the hearts of working women with her streamlined, sexy suits, there was a sense that the native of New York's Long Island had become sidetracked by her interest in yoga and spiritual pursuits, turning out fluttery clothes more appropriate for meditating in Bali than mediating in the boardroom.

For her part, Karan insists she was never out of step, merely ahead of her time. "I don't think the consumer was ready for what I was talking about," she says, sitting next to the Zen rock garden installed on the first floor of the Madison Avenue flagship store. (The store for DKNY, her lower-priced line, is a few blocks away.) "People thought I was weird for using candles and incense, but now I can sell more candles than I can sell clothes."

Whether the cash register is ringing up candles or evening gowns, Karan's business overall seems healthier than it has been in many years. After stumbling with a public offering in 1996 (the stock price plummeted as extra inventory built up in discount stores and staff layoffs broke in regular waves), the company was bought by French conglomerate LVMH in 2001. More recently, CEO Fred Wilson was replaced by Jeffry Aronsson, former CEO of Marc Jacobs. Aronsson says he plans to build on the improvements made by Wilson, who is credited with moving the business back into profitability by controlling distribution and closing outlet stores.

In the past few years, Karan has been through significant personal transitions; in 2001 her husband and business partner Stephen Weiss died of lung cancer. She gives yoga much credit for keeping her balanced, and in the past few seasons, she has drawn praise—rather than confused broadsides—for her collections. There are fewer asymmetrically hemmed skirts, more form-fitting and flattering basic pieces in her signature neutral palette. For fall 2003, she showed a group of white dresses, one a goddess-style evening gown in silk jersey patterned after the dress she made for herself the night before her daughter's wedding in 2002.

—By Michele Orecklin

@Source from: http://www.time.com/time/2004/style/020904/power/7.html

Miuccia Prada@People

Fashion's Auteur, True To Her Own Eye
Desperation and luxury are mortal enemies. Fear and power do not peacefully coexist. It follows, then, that she who wishes to reach the most rarefied and potent ranks of fashion, whether in dealmaking or designing, must have a certain serenity. A certain above-the-fray quality. And a flat-out disregard for what you think. Which brings us to Miuccia Prada. The rise of Mrs. Prada, as she is known to her Italian staff members, is a well-known tale—your basic story of a onetime communist and mime student from Milan who takes over her family's dusty luggage company and, with the help of her go-getting husband, turns it into a luxury conglomerate that in 2002 had revenues of about $1.9 billion. Her power, first manifested in the minimal black nylon backpack draped over every influential arm in the '90s, also became incarnate in such celebrities as Uma Thurman, twirling down the red carpet in ethereal Prada-designed Oscar gowns.

But having created some definitive design benchmarks, while a sure sign of her eye, is not what has really given Prada her juice. What sets her apart is her disregard—in some cases, her open contempt—for the dictates of fashion. Whereas fashion expects an image to be constantly updated, Prada reportedly sank upwards of $100 million into projects that are supposed to be permanent, if not immutable: her architecturally pioneering stores in New York City (by Dutch brainiac Rem Koolhaas) and Tokyo (by the precise Swiss duo Herzog & De Meuron). Whereas common sense says a designer should design what she likes, Prada will choose a color (such as turquoise) that she despises, because of the rush it gives her when she can make something beautiful with it.

Prada has few celebrity friends. She lives in the apartment she grew up in. And, of course, season after season, she sends intelligent, beautiful and, inasmuch as anything in fashion can be, sui generis collections down the Milan runways. "If you want to know what a season is about, you don't miss the Prada show," says Julie Gilhart, fashion director for Barneys. "She never follows anyone else's lead, just her own original energy. Her collections are completely an expression of herself."

And herself is curious, independent and thoughtful. Prada once showed a raincoat that was transparent until it got wet and became opaque. This season she charmed the front row with a collection inspired by 1950s souvenir scarves and the quirky tchotchkes (beaded bags, raffish straw hats and embroidered suede moccasins) that a stylish housewife might have picked up on a honeymoon in Venice. Prada the company has not been immune to the economic downturn and has some challenges ahead, including a heavy load of debt that it has been working to pay off. But one thing Prada the woman is unafraid of is a good fight. And more often than not, she wins.

—By Belinda Luscombe

@Source from: http://www.time.com/time/2004/style/020904/power/2.html

4.24.2009

搶救林家花園 史料入書@Culture

30餘年前,學生在林園測繪的珍貴照片。
記者孟祥傑/翻攝

【聯合報╱記者孟祥傑/板橋報導】2009.04.23

被譽為台灣林園代表作的板橋林本源園邸,在林家搬離園邸後,一度被人淡忘而淪為垃圾場,甚至被早期大陸逃難來台的難民占據,最多曾同時住了多達155戶人家,造成園邸遭受嚴重人為破壞,所幸在台大城鄉所教授夏鑄九等人搶救下,才逐漸恢復當年原貌。

北縣文化局昨天舉辦「樓台重起」新書發表會,作者兼30餘年前發起搶救行動的台大城鄉所教授夏鑄九、中研院台灣史研究所所長許雪姬等人,回憶當年搶救林園 行動時感嘆說,雖然現在投入搶救古蹟行動的人愈來愈多,但整個社會為求科技文明發展,持續破壞古蹟的心態與行為,30多年來卻絲毫沒變,拯救古蹟仍是「一 條充滿荊棘的路」。

夏鑄九說,板橋林本源園邸是國際著名的庭園代表,當年為了搶救這座百年古蹟,他與台灣知名古蹟學者李乾朗,和當時還在念研究所博士班一年級的許雪姬,帶領各大專校院建築系學生分頭蒐集相關史料,並完整測量、繪製園內每個角落,希望還給園邸原有風貌。

許雪姬說,林本源園邸歷經清末、日治、二次大戰到民國,飽經歷史風霜與人為破壞,當年蒐集史料相當不容易,得跑遍北台灣各文獻單位,對當時還是學生的她來說,是極為艱鉅的任務,她一度想放棄,但又不忍珍貴的古蹟被人遺忘,才咬牙完成相關工作。

即使如此,夏鑄九、許雪姬仍感慨地說,努力爭取保存園邸所有建築還是晚了一步,園邸內的「五落大厝」全被政府拆毀,勉強搶回主要梁架等結構,目前仍存放在中研院台史所內。

文化局與園邸也自即日起至5月5日展出測繪圖,相關資訊詳洽29653061轉14查詢。

@Source from: 【2009/04/23 聯合報】

Serious Architecture for the Standard@Arch


The new Standard Hotel in the meatpacking district is the first of a string of projects linked to the development of the High Line, a park being built on a segment of abandoned elevated rail tracks.

Photo: Matthew Weinstein for The New York Times


The towering structure, designed by Polshek Partnership, is supported on huge concrete pillars, while a ground-floor restaurant and garden cafe are tucked underneath the High Line’s hefty steel frame.

Photo: Matthew Weinstein for The New York Times


A view of the lobby. “It would be easy to dismiss the new Standard Hotel in the meatpacking district as a final shout-out to the age of excess. . . . That would be a mistake. The boutique hotel is serious architecture,” writes The Times’s Nicolai Ouroussoff.

Photo: Matthew Weinstein for The New York Times


The building bends slightly near the center, giving it a more streamlined appearance in the skyline and orienting the rooms toward the most spectacular views. To the southwest the facade is angled toward a sweeping view across the Hudson River to the Statue of Liberty.

Photo: Nikolas Koenig


An elevator bank. “With the Standard Hotel, Polshek Partnership joins a handful of other midlevel firms that are beginning to find the right balance between innovation and restraint,” writes Mr. Ouroussoff.

Photo: Nikolas Koenig


The Standard, he writes, “is the kind of straightforward, thoughtfully conceived building that is all too rare in the city today.”

Photo: Jeff Goldberg/ESTO

Source from: http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2009/04/08/arts/design/20080409-polshek-slideshow_index.html

Industrial Sleek (a Park Runs Through It) @Arch

The new Standard Hotel in the meatpacking district rises atop the High Line, at left, abandoned elevated rail tracks that are being converted into a greenway.

Published: April 8, 2009

It would be easy to dismiss the new Standard Hotel in the meatpacking district as a final shout-out to the age of excess. The entire area, whose trendy shops and cafes must still contend with the occasional whiff of rotten meat, reflects a development culture run amok.

Well, that would be a mistake. The boutique hotel, designed by Polshek Partnership, is serious architecture. The first of a string of projects linked to the development of the High Line, a park being built on a segment of abandoned elevated rail tracks, the new building’s muscular form is strong enough to stand up to both its tacky neighbors and the area’s older industrial structures. Its location, on Washington Street at West 13th Street, exploits the clash of scales that has always been a gripping aspect of the city’s character.

In short, it is the kind of straightforward, thoughtfully conceived building that is all too rare in the city today.

Part of this is due to its stunning position. The partially open hotel — 19 floors and 337 rooms — is the only new building that rises directly over the elevated park. The towering structure is supported on massive concrete pillars, while a ground-floor restaurant and garden cafe are tucked underneath the High Line’s hefty steel frame.

I admit to some mixed feelings about the restaurant. Clad in recycled brick, it’s meant to reflect the neighborhood’s old identity as the city’s meat market. A slick black metal canopy is a spiffed-up version of the decrepit canopies that once lined the neighborhood’s sidewalks, without the beef carcasses. The garden’s brick paving and industrial light fixtures look quaintly European. Over all the effect feels about as genuine as a Hollywood back lot.

Still, Polshek smartly plays up the contrast between these spaces and the tough brick, concrete and steel structures that surround it. From the garden cafe people can look up at the High Line’s gorgeous steel underbelly. One of the most enticing fire stairs runs down the side of a concrete leg supporting the hotel, crashing down on the restaurant’s roof before tumbling out on the sidewalk.

Polshek was also careful to segregate the various entries — to the hotel, restaurant and a lounge that will open this summer on the 18th floor — so that hotel guests won’t feel as though they are trapped in an entertainment hell for 20-somethings. (The Standard’s owner, André Balazs, is negotiating with the city to create a more direct connection between the hotel and the High Line, which would significantly diminish this effect as well as compromise the park’s public quality.)

It’s only once you get off the ground, however, that you appreciate the design’s true flair. The hotel is set at a slight angle to the High Line (part of which is to open in June), creating a delicious tension as its deck passes underneath. The building bends slightly near the center, giving it a more streamlined appearance in the skyline and orienting the rooms toward the most spectacular views. To the southwest the facade is angled toward a sweeping view across the Hudson River to the Statue of Liberty. To the northeast, guests look out across jagged rooftops to the Empire State Building.

This sense of floating within the city is reinforced by the arrangement of some of the rooms. The rectangular ones on the south side of the building are laid out with their long side along floor-to-ceiling windows. The effect is to bring you up closer to the glass, so that you feel as though you were suspended in midair, with the city just underneath your feet. (Mr. Balazs confessed to an instant of vertigo when he first stepped into one of these rooms.)

These are simple but powerful moves. And they are a reminder that enveloping a structure in a flamboyant wrapper is not always the most effective way to create lasting architecture. In the wrong hands, too much creative freedom can be outright dangerous.

With the Standard Hotel, Polshek Partnership joins a handful of other midlevel firms that are beginning to find the right balance between innovation and restraint. These include the designers of the Bank of America building in Midtown and 1 Madison Park, two projects under construction that suggest a revival of the kind of smart, sleek and confident architecture popularized by architects as diverse as Morris Lapidus and Gordon Bunshaft in the 1950s and ’60s. Those architects didn’t want to start a revolution; they wanted to make glamorous buildings.

Whether this trend will survive the current financial climate, of course, is another matter.

@Source from: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/09/arts/design/09pols.html

Utilitarianism at Milan’s Furniture Fair@Design


The dominant style of this year's Milan Furniture Fair seems to be utilitarianism, with many designers showing spartan, minimalist objects. The show opens Wednesday, and has expanded from a showcase for northern Italy's furniture makers to a global design extravaganza. These Vegetal chairs, designed by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, are made from molded plastic for Vitra.

Photo: Vitra


The Build Up corrugated cardboard table and chair, designed by Philippe Nigro for the debut collection of the new Italian furniture maker and retailer, Skitsch. Skitsch is a $16 million start-up that plans to open a flagship store in Milan.

Photo: Skitsch


Nacho Carbonell with his design, Beasts. Inspired by punk culture, Mr. Carbonell used recycled leather and staples to create his pieces.

Photo: Fendi/Design Miami


A prototype of the Iri chair, designed by Paolo Cappelo, embodied the raw, rationalist style that was echoed throughout the show.

Photo: Paolo Capello


The 10-Unit System of furniture, designed by the Japanese architect Shigeru Ban for Artek of Finland. The L-shaped modules are made from recycled composite material and can be combined in different ways.

Photo: Artek


The Life 0 1 light was designed by the young British lighting designer Paul Cocksedge for production by the Italian manufacturer Flos. The light is illuminated when a fresh flower is placed in the water inside the glass vessel. If the flower is removed from the vessel, or if it dies, the light goes off.

Photo: Flos


Matali Crasset's Open room for Established & Sons is reminiscent of the Reitveld Schröeder House in Utrecht and Piet Mondrian's paintings.

Photo: Established & Sons

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