Friends+Design

From time immemorial, the theme of friendship has preoccupied philosophers and artists of all kinds. Especially in our day and age, in the hub of hectic social networks and countless virtual communications, true friendships are more precious than ever and they can be found in the professional sphere. 

Only to mention some, the strong and productive bond between Jean-Michael Basquiat and Andy Warhol, the creative, sometimes even conflict-charged, relationship between Ettore Sottsass and Alessandro Mendini, or the friendship embedded in a business enterprise between Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron. 

In “Friends + Design”, the Kunstgewerbemuseum accordingly asks seven selected designers how they handle their friendships. Based on clearly defined work commissions from curators Tulga Beyerle and Maria Cristina Didero – close friends with each other –, the diverse relationships are visualised and brought close to the public in the shape of new works. In doing so, the designers work in different constellations with one another and take the stage in three rooms of the Wasserpalais.

The designers invited are Michael Young (UK, lives in Hong Kong and Belgium), Richard Hutten (NL, lives in Rotterdam) and Jerszy Seymour (UK/CA, lives in Berlin), which are close friends but have never produced a shared project. Mathias Hahn (DE, lives in London) and Tomás Alonso (ES, lives in London) are likewise product designers and, although they sit together in a bureau in London (OKAYstudio), they work completely independently of each other. 

Bethan Laura Wood (UK, lives in London) and Philippe Malouin (CA, lives in London) both won the Design Miami Basel “Designer of the Year” award. Their assignment is for each to mentally merge with the other, under the assumption of having to step in for each other.

until 1 November 2016
Friends + Design
SKD Museum
Pillnitz Palace, August-Böckstiegel-Strasse 2
Dresden