Designer of the month - Philippe Starck

The new year brings the celebration of another world-renowned designer. Philippe Starck, was born on January 18th, 1949, in Paris, but belongs to the world since he was young. He is an inventor, creator, artistic director, designer (of interiors and products), architect, and much more. He already has more than 10,000 creations, from kitchen utensils, perfumes, watches, cars, boats, hotels, and even shoes (among many other things). Since 2011 he lives in Portugal with his family, a country that delighted him, and does not intend to leave soon.

Starck studied product design and interior architecture at the École Nissim de Camondo, in Paris. At the age of 17, he worked with Pierre Cardin and, at 19, he started to have some relevance in the design after creating inflatable furniture. However, with 34 years his recognition increased around the world, among the general public, when he was invited to remodel the presidential apartments on the Élysée, by the French president, François Mitterrand.

He calls himself a "lonely guy", "control freak" and a professional dreamer, prefers to work alone and never stops working, as he is always drawing or creating in his head. Moreover, he does not follow what is happening in his professional environment, as he already assumed that he "lives apart from everything" in a "crystal ball" with his wife and daughter. For these reasons, he is known for the speed and accuracy of his work.

"Subversive, ethical, ecological, political, humorous… this is how I see my duty as a designer.” Philippe Starck

His design is characteristically light, contemporary, with a hint of humor and a concise vision: he insists that each creation should focus on the essential and improving the lives of as many people as possible, being part of human evolution.

“I don’t design what people want, i design what i think people need” Philippe Starck

Besides, Starck also defends the concept of “democratic design”, which consists of creating high-quality pieces at affordable prices.

"People are intelligent. They want quality. They want a high level of creativity, but everyone will have less money" Philippe Starck

Throughout his long career, he had the opportunity to do a TED Talk, in 2007, with the theme "Design and destiny”. He was awarded hundreds of times, among them, the Grand Prix National de la Création Industrielle and the Honor Award from the American Institute of Architects. He has collaborated with hundreds of companies, from the most varied sectors, all over the world, from Microsoft to Alessi.

The collaboration of Philippe Starck with the "Italian Design Factory," Alessi, already has several decades and resulted in several products, such as the colander “Max Le Chinois", the cake server "Ceci n'est pas une truelle", the kitchen fork "Mangetootoo" and others.

However, the best seller that perpetuated in time, is the Juicy Salif citrus squeezer. Some say that it looks like a rocket, others like an alien, or even a spider, but one thing is certain: it was the most controversial citrus squeezer in the 20th century, due to its creative, innovative, futuristic, but unexpected design.

The creation of this utensil dates back to 1990 and, interestingly, the first sketch was, made by Starck, on a paper napkin, during his holidays in Italy. His inspiration was the squid with lemon he was eating at that moment, proving that “creativity has no limits”.

Juicy Salif is considered a piece of art, in the literal sense of the term, since it is at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, but its acquisition is also accessible to anyone, reinforcing the democracy that Starck defends.

Although this product has already celebrated 30 years of existence, it is still a current, functional design and an excellent gift idea, since it is also a decorative element for any kitchen.

Are you curious about this unique citrus squeezer? Take a look at our store to know all the details of this product and others, created by Philippe Starck with Alessi.

If you are interested in knowing more about this incredible designer, we suggest his website and official Facebook and Instagram pages, so you can follow everything.

Let yourself be inspired!