The inexhaustible creative talent of Marc Newson continues to design all kinds of objects, many of them for companies he has been collaborating with for years. One of them is Louis Vuitton, for whom he has created different suitcase collections. And another that we can name is the publishing house Taschen for whom he designed a while ago his beautiful bookstore in Milan and now he has collaborated in the edition of a luxurious book celebrating the 70 years of history of the Ferrari team.
It would be very long to mention all the works that arise from the mind of this Australian, since as he himself told us some time ago in an interview in Horse, he never stops working and always carries his notebook with him to write down ideas and solve the projects in which he is involved. A good example of this creative fertility and his versatility can be seen in the exhibition we want to talk about below.
Suitcases designed by Marc Newson
Marc Newson in Hong Kong
On May 23rd, the first exhibition of Marc Newson in China was inaugurated at the Gagosian headquarters in Hong Kong, displaying some of his limited edition furniture An exhibition that will remain open until July 27th, 2019. An ideal opportunity to see some of the latest and most laborious and personal projects of this creator who merges in himself the trades of industrial designer, craftsman or sculptor.
Gagosian Gallery headquarters in Hong Kong
And the setting could not be better than the financial and most futuristic area of the peculiar Hong Kong island. In the Pedder Builiding of the Central district, surrounded by some of the most charismatic buildings of contemporary architecture of recent times signed by geniuses such as Norman Foster or I. M. Pei.
Exhibition furniture at Gagosian
What you see in the Gagosian show is the fruit of Newson’s long working process. As are some of the decorative references that have always attracted the Australian.
One of them has a lot to do with China. We refer to the ancient technique of cloissoné, a type of enameling for many centuries of history. But that he has undertaken to recontextualize in our time. And for this he even supervised the construction of a new kiln in Beijing that has served to create pieces like the ones you can see here. Furniture decorated with a wide repertoire of oriental plant motifs such as cherry blossom branches or magnolias. Or with their particular interpretations of these ornamentations.
Cloissoné with floral motifs
More abstract interpretation of cloissoné
A wide variety of inspirations
China or Japan and their decorative arts have always interested Marc Newson, but they are not his only references, neither formal nor material. A good example of this are the chairs that can be seen in HK exhibition. Chairs made with Bohemian fused glass. Chairs composed of quarter spheres and that give us the other dimension of this designer: his innovative character, researcher and completely breaking with traditions.
Quarter sphere fused glass chairs
And on top of all that, his design encompasses virtually any discipline you can imagine. From jewelry to interior design, from furniture to publishing, any kind of industrial object that can be mass-produced or in limited editions, from Dom Perignon wine racks to yachts.
In short, the exhibition in Hong Kong focuses on the furniture aspect. But the truth is that Marc Newson can be considered a universal creator. Both for the type of objects he designs and for his materials and the influences that inspire him. He is undoubtedly one of the great stars of industrial design today.
As a good Australian, surfing is also present in his work.
