LUXURY 24

You have a very solid university education. What do you think of the schools of design in general?
I studied industrial design at Carleton University in Canada. The difficult part was the program was really a broad general degree with sociology, marketing, engineering, architecture, semantics, history, iconoclasm, philosophy, so the degree a the time seemed frustrating because I really wanted to draw and design, but looking back at it, I learned that design is not a bout a form or shape, but it is a cultural critique, a cultural shaper, a faction of social life, and political, and economic life. As an undergraduate studying in Italy Ettore Sottsass taught me not to be too much of an artist. Working with Rodolfo Bonetto taught me that the industrial object is a manifestation of behavior. What I learned about design school from my own experience, is that the people you encounter, professors, internship mentors, and peers, are the most important part of your education. Any school you go to is what you make of it, how much passion you put into your work. But the experiences and interactions are what will ultimately shape the philosophy that you will carry with you through the world, and throughout your career.
Do you like to teach? How do you encourage the kids (if they need it)?
I was so bored with my job when I was starting out in industrial design, but I did not have the confidence to start my own practice. So finally I quit a design firm in Canada and became a full-time academic, teaching at Rhode Island School of Design. Now that I have my own studio, I frequently travel to lecture at universities and international venues. I try to inspire others through my presentations, and tangible passion for what I do. I hope that the audience will be invigorated, and recognize their own power to leave their mark on the world, and shape our physical landscape.
Was it important when you are still studying, get in touch with the corporate world?
I think design schools today really prepare their students to become working professionals. I also think it is important to have a balance, and not to over specialize. On one hand, you need to have practical knowledge of your field, and advanced technical abilities. On the other, I think it's important to retain a sense of plurality and artistry to your work. I like the whole idea of the Warholian factory, where you could move around in all the disciplines of the applied major arts. I also like that when Warhol decided to make a film, he just made it. He did not think ‘I am not a film maker - I am an illustrator. So I promised myself that if I ever had my own practice I would keep it broad and think of my design practice as cultural shaping.
You have lived in many cities and is now fixed in new york (I think), work, travel permitting. What fascinates you more than the "Big Apple "?
I love New York because it is truly a global melting pot, its diversities, its complexities, its globalism and pluralism is really inspiring. I have always felt global, not a New Yorker, not an Egyptian, not an American, not a Canadian, not English, but part of the world, and New York is one of the few places where integration and a global spirit is omnipresent. I am so busy I never seem to have time to really enjoy the city, but there is an energy that I get via osmosis regardless of whether I go out or not. The vibrancy, the fulgence, the passion of life is everywhere. Museums and art are the most visually inspiring parts of New York city, like west Chelsea art galleries, Moma, the Met, the Whitney, Guggenheim and Noguchi museum is a real paradise of organic sculptures. Every diverse language which I hear constantly in every part of the city and a multitude of cultural epicenters little Korea, china town, Indian district, Russian district, the Italian quarters, the boroughs like Harlem, Bronx, and the surrounding burbs like stating island , white plains, etc. New York is a true epicenter!
How do you feel, just 50 years, be present in so many museums?
It feels extremely rewarding and a reaffirmation of all the values I have carried through my philosophy and through the duration of my career, since I was just a young student, to now when I am 50 years old. I was also inducted to the Interior Design Hall of Fame this year, and won 27 awards. I couldn't be more thrilled, and yet I am not content. I am still looking to the future and what the next challenge will be.
There's a song, a product, a work, a project, which is more affectionate than others?
I feel affectionately toward the Doride lamp for Artemide. This piece is special to me because I designed it when I was just 19 years old in University. Seeing it come to fruition years later in my design career is something quite fascinating for me.
What do you like most of the relationship with the Italian companies and entrepreneurs?
I frequently work with Italian companies and enjoy doing so because I find a real synergy between my philosophy and practice, and what the client desires. Italian companies retain a sense of artisan craftsmanshipand delicacy when considering their projects. They appreciate the nuances and subtle beauties, and at the same time I find them very progressive and open to pushing the boundaries of design aesthetics. From working with Artemide, Cierre, Bonaldo, B-Line, Memphis, Felice Rossi, Zerodisegno, and many more I feel these collaborations have resulted in some of my best work.
Are you never afraid of lacking inspiration?
I work with the motto ‘Form follows subject." The future shapes will be inspired by each product's subject matter –but my interest is to make form as sensual, as human, as evocative, and as sculptural as possible trying to find new form that have never existed. I look way beyond design and architecture. Inspiration is accumulative. Everything can be inspiring. It is how you look at the world. I am inspired by my childhood, my education, by all my teachers I have ever had, by every project I have worked on, by every city I have traveled to, by every book I have read, by every art show I have seen, by every song I have heard, by every smell, every taste, sight, sound, and feeling. I am never short of ideas or inspiration, and I look at each project as an opportunity to expand my philosophy.
What does the furniture fair mean to you?
I turned 50, and Saloni turned 50 so I thought it was very apropos. And I owe Italy a great deal. I have 30 clients there and frankly the Italians are so passionate and afford and allow me to experiment whereas most countries do not take these kind of risks with design. Italians really do ‘do it better'. I always loved Milano. It is Design Mecca. During this Milanmecca 300,000 design minded souls make pilgrimage to the Salone grounds. Everyone is so enthusiastic about design, innovation, and beauty but also the design business. Design is good business and design is finally a public subject, which the fair has been critical part of this develop. It is the quintessential metropolis of artistic
pursuit and commerce combined. But Milan is one of those cities where just walking is inspiring, whether it is all the parties, the models, the cafes, the book shops, the coffee bars, the clothing boutiques, the galleries; Milano is always interesting, small but cultured, intimate yet global.
Do you still feel emotion when you present new ideas to the public?
My passion has never dwindled over the years, in fact I feel more enlightened and impassioned than ever. I approach every new project with the enthusiasm as if it was my first, and at the same time with the same rigor and consideration as if it were to be my last.
Who is your favorite designer who has influenced you most?
I try not to have a favorite everything, this way I am constantly open to new ideas and expanding my base for inspiration and knowledge. I have been inspired by many artists and designers, The immaterialists James Turrell, or Robert Irwin, Dan Graham, organic experiments of Luigi Colani, Frederik Keisler, Sarranin, Niemeyer, and Noguchi , Mollino the frugal smart ‘efficient design of Eames, Nelson, Neils Diffrient, the ecological designer Victor Papanek, the brand eloquence of Raymond Lowey the reductiveness of Braun and Deiter Rams, the radical experiments of the Italians of the sixties such as Sottsass, Bellini, Mendini, super studio, Gaetano Pesce, Joe Columbo, Andrea Branzi.
if you could live in another era, which would you choose?
I prefer our own time, or if anything I would chose to live in the future. Much of what is on the market today is not design. It is styling and sadly, styling that really has nothing to do with now. Too much of what is out there is relegated to the past, obsolete designs based on false nostalgia. Decoration today should communicate our hypertrophic digital age, full of energy, fission, color, and ethereality. All objects and spaces have semantic language. They speak to us. Certain forms, line's, color's, textures, functions, all touch and communicate to our senses and our daily experiences. I believe that it is important to not necessarily over-embellish- to keep a certain truth to a product or space, but I also believe that objects and spaces need to touch our sensual side, touch our emotions, they need to elevate a certain experience, and they need to be human.