Philippe Starck

Born to a father who was an aeronautical engineer and a mother with an offbeat, upper-class flair, Philippe Starck is a hyper-creative figure of disconcerting elegance. His isolated and solitary childhood rendered him invisible to himself and others, an immateriality that compelled him to create: to create in order to exist and become visible once more, much like The Invisible Man and his bandages. His mother encouraged him to enrol at the École Camondo in Paris: ‘In her experience, there were only two professions in which I could succeed: hairdresser or designer’.

At the age of 18, Philippe Starck was put in charge of Pierre Cardin’s furniture range, a post he soon left as his vision did not align with that of the great fashion designer. He began creating his first inflatable objects, but these failed to win over the manufacturers… until one day, by a stroke of luck, he met Arturo Del Punta Cristiani. On his way to the shop where he was about to sell his first designs to make ends meet, Starck paused in front of the shop windows of Paris’s first design shop. Intrigued, Arturo Del Punta Cristiani approached the designer and asked to see his drawings. Fascinated by Starck’s work, the Italian man asked him: “Do you know that you’re the greatest designer in the world?” Two weeks later, Philippe Starck was signing contracts with Italy’s leading manufacturers!

Today, with over 10,000 creations to his name, the French superstar Philippe Starck – something of a workaholic – continues to live by his principles, making his own contribution to the world of design, an important mission that allows him to give back to the community: “No one needs to be a genius, but everyone must play their part:” From furniture and perfumes to, soon, a space tourism capsule, this jack-of-all-trades and design genius makes everyday life more enjoyable by creating useful and accessible objects. From his belief in positive degrowth to his conviction that our world is becoming increasingly dematerialised, Philippe Starck is perpetually seeking ‘more in less’. A quest that finds tangible expression in the iconic Louis Ghost, a chair of which over 1.5 million have been sold.

The Ghost collection, produced by the Italian manufacturer Kartell, features transparent chairs and furniture. Almost ethereal, they haunt our interiors with a sense of poetry without ever imposing themselves: it is up to us to decide whether or not to notice them. Timeless and highly resistant to knocks and scratches, these plastic creations are produced using a unique process: the plastic is injected directly into a single mould using a syringe. The baroque silhouette and the entirely transparent material of the Louis Ghost armchair allow it to blend seamlessly into both traditional and contemporary interiors.

With Starck, it’s all about love: ‘to have beautiful children, parents must be in love’! His partnership with Kartell is proof of this: following the Ghost range launched in 2005, the duo have teamed up once more, this time alongside designer Eugeni Quitllet, for the Masters seating collection. The Masters chair is intended as a tribute to the ‘big three’: Arne Jacobsen’s Series 7 chair, Eero Saarinen’s Tulip Chair and Charles and Ray Eames’ Side Chair. The result? A versatile and functional polyurethane chair whose elegantly openwork backrest offers both style and comfort.

Photo credit: MATTIA AQUILA