May 23 - July 5 2009
NRW-Forum Kultur und Wirtschaft, Düsseldorf
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.
The artists/designers featuring in this exhibition:
David Adjaye
Ron Arad
John Armleder
Richard Artschwager
Ronan + Erwan Bouroullec
Fernando + Humberto Campana
Hussein Chalayan
Frédéric Dedelley
Martino Gamper
Liam Gillick
Rodney Graham
Johanna Grawunder
Konstantin Grcic
Zaha Hadid
Studio Job
Donald Judd
Mona Hatoum
Arik Levy
Ross Lovegrove
Marc Newson
Jorge Pardo
Tom Price
Richard Prince
Rolf Sachs
Tejo Remy
Ettore Sottsass
Haim Steinbach
Kram/Weisshaar
Marcel Wanders
Franz West
Andrea Zittel