Philippe Starck - Furniture & Objects

Beginning June 20, P.S.1 presents Philippe Starck: Furniture & Objects, a collection of signature works by the influential contemporary designer. On view in P.S.1’s light-filled Kunsthalle, the exhibition includes a selection of works highlighting Starck’s creative transformation of simple objects such as a toothbrush or a fly-swatter into exotic, brightly colored, sculptural forms. The objects are paired with a collection of Starck’s singular chairs, whose inventiveness ranges from a spiky-legged, biomorphic turquoise stool to a formal, cushioned chair featuring a portrait of the designer on its high back.

Philippe Starck is one of the first contemporary designers to achieve broad public recognition. Celebrated in the late 1980s and early 1990s as a “rock star of architecture,” Starck has been instrumental in establishing the prominence of contemporary design. An efficient and prolific artist, Starck has reinvented everything from a toothpick to the largest waste disposal center in Europe. His persistently inventive work draws on surrealist influences and a science fiction aesthetic, adopting organic shapes such as horns and vines and dynamic abstract forms. On view at P.S.1, his Royalton Bar Stool features long, curved, plant-like legs and an orange velvet seat, while his citrus squeezer resembles a spacecraft taking off. Starck’s whimsical approach to design is likewise reflected in titles such as Prince Aha, Juicy Salif, Dr. Kiss, and Miss Trip. This collection of Starck’s work is drawn from his design period, which ranges from 1989 to the present.

Philippe Starck
Furniture & Objects