Working on the cusp of design and craft, Dutch-born Tord Boontje has long sought a delicate marriage between design with emotion that is as broadly accessible as it is enticing. This London-based product designer combines advanced technologies with artistic techniques to create exquisite glassware, lighting and furniture.
Luminaire was thrilled to be the first to introduce Boontje to a Miami audience on October 8, 2008 in an exhibition of his delicate, otherworldly work and a reception to foster dialogue on his role in contemporary design practices.
According to Boontje, ‘I am always drawn to things that are conceptually and visually exciting, like the work of Martin Margiela, David Lynch, Christian Boltanski and Graphic Thought Facility…. I have a strong empathy with materials and, thinking through making, I value the making of an object as a method of testing ideas.’
As conceptual as it is concrete, his work draws from a belief that modernism does not mean minimalism, that contemporary does not forsake tradition, and that technology does not abandon people and senses. Boontje’s designs often temper edges with softness, borrow inspiration from nature, and employ a de?cor of forms and layers to engage and entice imagination and emotions in the user.
From his early projects like the tranSglass series of recycled green bottles, to ambitious recent work at Luminaire such as the sumptuous replica of a bough of Blossom that he created as a Swarovski crystal chandelier, Tord Boontje has sought to imbue his products with a magic and romance that transcends their function.
Guests to the exhibition and reception experienced Boontje’s ethereal designs for the Swarovski Crystal Palace, and were able to meet the designer as he shared stories of his work in design over the years.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
