ten product designers

1. Charles and Ray Eames are most famous for their furniture design. The Molded Plywood Chair is considered one of the best in modern design. When we had the "exhibit" of these chairs in IARC, we learned that they were originally designed to be available for everyone, so that the average and every day person could experience good design in their own homes. Although this never happened, the Molded Plywood Chair is still in a so-so price range (a thousand-ish) :) And is one of the most comfortable chairs I've ever sat in before! I hope to own one someday. I've also noticed throughout this research process that Eames chairs pop up almost everywhere. They are classic and timeless elements in modern design.

2. Richard Hutten was featured in the profile section of the November 2007 issue of Dwell. I stumbled upon the article about him by accident, one quote really stuck out to me: "The museum isn't a natural environment for my work. I'm not about perfect images, but real objects for real people." I love this philosophy. All of Hutten's designs are made with the use in mind. He wanted people to really use them.. because design is to increase the quality of life- why not use it? Some of his products include a plastic children's cup called the Dombo, which comes in a variety of bright colors with big fun handles. It is "the most expensive plastic cup in the world," at a whopping 14 or so US dollars. He also has a very cool chair called the "Sexy Relaxy" chair, a perfectly fitting name.

3. Paul Frank has always been one of my favorite designers, and I didn't even think to put him on this list until I saw his ad in the March 2007 issue of Dwell. He has a retro style and accredits this to his elementary school's bright colors (like rusty orange, bright blue, and mustard yellow). I love that Paul Frank targets adults as well as children, and how he has such a variety of products. He designs bicycles, bedding, furniture, clothing, and other accessories, as well as maintaining an online cartoon about his main character- Julius the Monkey. I love that Paul Frank's designs have such a fun nature and a sense of humor, because often humor is not a factor in design, but he likes to make people happy with his products.

4. Julian Mayor is (primarily) a furniture designer and had his 'General Dynamic' sculpted chair featured in the October 2007 issue of Wallpaper. His design process is fully exhibited on his website, which is really interesting to see. I love how it looks like he was just doodling random lines when the idea for a bench or a chair came to him and he decided to go with it. That shows you what you can think of when you really aren't trying to think of anything. A piece of his that I really enjoy is his "Impression Chair." The basic cube form is ever present, even with the chair molded in.

5. Marcel Wanders was also featured in the October 2007 issue of Wallpaper. Wanders' has designed a wide variety of products including furniture, bedding, lighting, bathroom fixtures, and even birdhouses. His style is edgy, modern, and extremely eclectic. A quote about Wanders from the August 2006 issue of Wallpaper (UK) reads, "His wacky creative Shtick may grate, but Wanders’ designs show a wit, lightness of touch and formal elegance exactly where it’s required."

6. Karim Rashid ( 1 2 ) has an extremely funky and explosive style. Products like this vase and twisted chairs and tables make for really fun and interesting products. He designs everything from kitchen utensils to watches, so anywhere you need a burst of color or a simple yet quirky form in a room, his products are a perfect resource. Rashid was featured in the May 2007 issue of Interior Design.

7. Nanna Ditzel is a Danish furniture, jewelry, textile, and product designer. One of her tables was featured in the December 2007 issue of Wallpaper. Ditzel's designs are simple and elegant, but they still hold a funky modern quality at the same time. None of her pieces seem gaudy, and that is what works about them; they use the most minimal materials with functionality still in mind.

8. Inga Sempé was featured in the June 2007 issue of Dwell. She designs furniture, chairs, lighting, and other pieces such as shelving units. All of her designs are extremely simplistic, but are functional at the same level. She takes basic forms like cubes and cylinders and morphs them, as well as letting others morph them. One of her lamps is made out of paper in an accordion fashion, so that it can be pulled and smushed to the desired form. Sempé also uses very simplistic and basic colors in order to further accentuate the form of her objects.

9. Josh Urso was featured in the October 2006 issue of Interior Design. While I am not a big fan of his chair designs, which look like he took some chair he didn't even design and threw a blanket over it, his light fixtures are really interesting. They look like elaborate paper flowers. His website is a fun design as well. I like how he seems to use scraps to create his a lot of his products.

10. Christophe Delcourt definitely choose function before form. I love that he uses such simple forms however, but you can clearly tell the function of each of his pieces. He also adds some dynamic elements to make his products more aesthetically pleasing, which can be a nice thing. I also really enjoy his website, because it is in black and white, and makes everything displayed appear timeless and classic, a good choice for marketing products.