Ron Arad

Description

Ron Arad is one of the most successful and creative contemporary designers. He was born in Tel Aviv in 1951 and, in 1973, moved to London to study at the AA School of Architecture. In the early 1980s he established, with Caroline Thorman, One Off Ltd., a design studio and workshop, followed in 1989 by Ron Arad Associates, an architecture and design practice. In 1997 Arad was appointed Professor of Furniture Design at the Royal College of Art in London and two years later became Professor of Industrial Design there. Ron Arad works for some of the most important furniture manufacturers, such as Cappellini, Kartell, Moroso and Vitra. Besides his activity as a product designer, he also works in the field of architecture and his projects include the Tel Aviv Opera in Israel. The text of this book is an interview by Matthew Collings, a contemporary art critic, who, as he points out, doesn't know much about design but wants to understand more. The conversation between Collings and Arad starts with the question: what is design? From this first, basic question they embark on a journey that touches the most important art and design issues, inside and outside Ron Arad's work. Stimulated by the Matthew Collings' questions, Ron Arad goes through the main aspects of his work, explaining some of his projects in detail and talking about his relationship with design, architecture and art in general. The interview is divided into 10 sections on 10 different subjects and illustrated with many of Ron Arad's projects, accompanied by narrative captions that explain their history and their main features and characteristics.

Matthew Collings is a painter, writer and television presenter best known for his British television series This is Modern Art. He was Editor of Artscribe International and is the author of Blimey and Art Crazy Nation.

'Arad's work is loosely described as 'design' - but encompasses everything from turntables built into paving stones to the Tel Aviv Opera House in Israel. Packed with a great mixture of new photography and archive shots of his older work - an illuminating read.' Arena, August 2004 'Collings - uses simple, guileless questions to bring out the most important issues in design and its relationship with art. This produces a likeable, unstuffy tone - that raises issues many of us would like to see addressed, but are too afraid of appearing ignorant to ask.' Blueprint, August 2004 'very nicely put together' Grafik (formerly Graphics International), September 2004 'beautifully designed - sharp, clear and clean' Sam Jacob, Modern Painters, Autumn 2004 'INNOVATIVE OPTIMIST - however unexpected the choice of Collings might seem, it works. He enters the conversation as an outsider to Arad's world, and thus places him in a wider context than that of design. - refreshingly unpretentious. - what might have been an experiment on the part of the publisher has paid off. - a great resource for anyone interested in design or architecture - the sheer range of Arad's subject matter is what is most impressive - This publication echoes [Arad's] was of encountering the world: unpretentious, and whimsical in places, but always compelling.' Kathy Battista, Architect's Journal, 16 September 2004