Philippe Starck

Philippe Starck (born 1967) is a French designer known since the start of his career in the 1980s for his interior, product, industrial and architectural design including furniture and objects that have a simple but inventive structures.

Career

The son of an aeronautical engineer, Starck studied at the École Camondo in Paris. An inflatable structure he imagined in 1969 was a first incursion into questions of materiality, and an early indicator of Starck's interest in where and how people live. Starck's designs brought him to the attention of Pierre Cardin who offered him a job as artistic director of his publishing house.

Starck Product

While working for Cardin, Starck set up his first industrial design company, Starck Product - which he later renamed Ubik after Philip K. Dick's novel - and began working with manufacturers in Italy – Driade, Alessi, Kartell – and internationally, including Austria's Drimmer, Vitra in Switzerland and Spain's Disform. His concept of democratic design led him to focus on mass-produced consumer goods rather than one-off pieces, seeking ways to reduce cost and improve quality in mass-market goods.

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