Philippe Starck was born in 1949 in Paris, the city where he also studied in the mid-60s. He represents a new kind of design, provocative and playful, yet simple and brilliant. He has been described in a thousand ways, including as a visionary, genius, inventor, poet, revolutionary, and so on. Today, he is one of the most original and prolific designers. Winner of major awards such as the Grand Prix National de la Création Industrielle, the Honor Award from the American Institute of Architects, the Red dot Winner Award, and the Good Design Award, he is internationally recognized.
His projects are the result of a quest for an improved reality and technological innovation. For the French designer, objects should serve to improve our quality of life. He is famous for his architectural works, which include homes, ports, and sports centers, but also for having decorated the interiors of prestigious hotels such as the Royalton in New York and the Sanderson in London, as well as restaurants, venues, and homes in Spain, France, and Japan, to name just a few.
His first major public recognition came with his design for the official residences of French President Mitterrand and the interior and furniture design for the Parisian café "Costes" (now closed). He has also designed numerous and varied objects, including scooters, motorcycles, yachts, televisions, telephones, wall lights, lamps, furniture, clothing, and kitchen accessories.
The brands he has worked for are also very diverse: Vitra, Puma, Cassina, Aprilia, Baccarat, Target, Seven Eleven, Alessi... Of the latter, we must highlight a piece that has become an icon and is inextricably linked to Starck: the famous Juicy Salif citrus juicer. This revolutionary and surprisingly functional juicer was outlined, in its essential features, by Starck on a napkin from a pizzeria during a vacation at the seaside in Italy.
In the bathroom sector, his contribution has been incredible, working for brands such as Duravit, Axor, Hansgrohe, Hoesch, and more. Starck's close collaboration with some of these brands has resulted in unique and exclusive collections, such as the Axor Starck V faucet, awarded Best of the Best at the Interior Innovation Awards. A faucet with a transparent spout that creates a swirl of beauty, resulting in an intense water experience at the sink.
Duravit and Philippe Starck have been collaborating for over 25 years, and on the occasion of the recent launch of their Cape Cod and ME bathroom series, we spoke with the designer. For him, "design marks an important moment. Today it's integrated into society, it's almost normal. After all, when it comes to design, the only things that count are honesty and utility. First, you have to choose an absolutely honest partner and a serious manufacturer like Duravit. And then you have to create a useful product."
Starck maintains: "We can never save lives with design, but we can improve them by creating useful design objects. That's why it's important to work with a partner like Duravit. Creating beautiful (attractive) products is easy, but if no one buys them, they're not interesting. The beauty is being able to supply good products at a good price. I think we've achieved this with the new ME by Starck and Cape Cod series from Duravit."
For Philippe Starck, “the durability of a high-quality product can never be questioned and is essential, because you don't replace a sink every three years; it's part of the home, perhaps for generations. It has to be perfectly manufactured. And this is what all Duravit products deliver.”
Another fundamental aspect, for the French designer, is responding to our true needs, "something we've achieved with the ME by Starck series. We've focused on real ergonomics, real movements, how water flows, how to reduce dirt, or how to clean it more easily. This seems very simple, but done with fundamental and structural honesty, it's the most incredible thing. ME is simply designed with honesty and rigorous ergonomics."
