Where does design end and art begin? Charles Eames, the most influential designer of the mid-twentieth century, said that ‘design is an expression of purpose. It may (if it is good enough) later be judged as art.’ Contemporary young designers see the matter more pragmatically. According to the Spanish designer Jaime Hayon, ‘there is no longer a clear border between product design and art.’ The most recent answer to this question is inherent in the new phrase ‘design-art’.

Artists like Franz West and others investigate the changing functions of sculpture and in so doing dissolve the borders between art and design, between ‘free’ and ‘applied’ creation, by allowing hybrids from other areas to develop. In the field of design, on the other hand, designers like Ron Arad or Marc Newson are increasingly discovering the sculptural qualities of design. They are distancing themselves from a conditionality of designnamely its function and the inherent possibility of reproducing something any number of timesand are creating unique items or small editions. The borders between ‘fine’ and ‘decorative’ art is becoming more blurred.

The artists/designers featuring in this exhibition include David Adjaye – Ron Arad – Richard Artschwager – Ronan + Erwan Bouroulle – Fernando + Humberto Campana – Hussein Chalayan – Frédéric Dedelley – Martino Gamper – Liam Gillick – Johanna Grawunder –Konstantin Grcic – Zaha Hadid – Studio Job – Donald Judd – Mona Hatoum – Arik Levy – Ross Lovegrove – Marc Newson –Tom Price – Richard Prince – Rolf Sachs – Tejo Remy – Ettore Sottsass – Haim Steinbach – Kram/Weisshaar – Marcel Wanders – Franz West – Andrea Zittel – Jorge Pardo.

U.F.O.:
Blurring the boundaries between art and design
23.5-5.7.2009

NRW-Forum Kultur und Wirtschaft
Ehrenhof 2, 40479 Düsseldorf
www.nrw-forum.de