Art Smoothly Merges With Products
By Yang Suh-hee
Contributing Writer
A trip to the museum to enjoy the latest and greatest innovations in art and design is now a thing of the past. With the new emerging interest in art marketing, the most compelling and sought-after designs are now within reach of consumers everywhere at any time.
Seductive pieces by renowned designers and artists can now be treasured with delicate use or abused by everyday needs. Now, one can pass the pasta at dinner on elegant and playful dishes by contemporary industrial designer Karim Rashid over a mid-century modern classic dinner table designed by the influential architect Le Corbusier. The set of avant-garde style cutlery on the placemat is designed by a prestigious award-winning architect Zaha Hadid, and top it off with an intriguing lighting piece by Ingo Mauer and reward yourself in the comfort of an Eames chair. Dinner has never been so tasteful!
Art-marketing spans all sorts of products and aesthetics, as well as ranging from the attractively economical to the questionably expensive. The commonly mimicked Barcelona Couch by master modern architect Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe could put an $8,000 hole in your pocket. On the other hand, international industrial designer Philippe Starck concentrates on usable household products that can be stumbled across at a local Target store.
With the broad success of art marketing, prestigious companies now offer entire lines of products authored by the genius of signature designers. In the fall of 2006, Tiffany and Co. launched an entire line by internationally acclaimed architect Frank O. Gehry. The Gehry Collection embodies the architect's audacious and organic forms, similar to those of the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, CA. Although recognized for his building forms, this new line allows people to approach the brilliant design work of Gehry in a more intimate and tangible scale. ``Most of the consumers who select the Gehry Collection are familiar with the architect's bold and dynamic design, and much favors them because the are by Frank O. Gehry,'' states Cha, Hee Hong, an assistant manager of Tiffany & Co. of the Shinsegae Department Store.
Many artists are also designing furniture, as they would a sculpture, which could indirectly speak to the audience. Choi, Byung-hoon, a professor at Hongik University, who was one of the first Korean artists to pioneer the term ``art furniture,'' states, ``we should not only introduce art marketing and art consulting for brand equity purpose, but to support these principles holistically in order to strengthen our relationship with the art that we approach daily.''
Some designs have proven so popular and mainstream that they are overlooked as a product rather than a work of art. Takashi Murakami, a Japanese pop artist, is the one responsible for the fashionable Louis Vuitton's Monogram Multicolor canvas handbags and accessories. ``Louis Vuitton launched this new line of Multicolor as a limited edition back in 2003, but they were sold out immediately in Korea and everywhere else,'' said a public relations expert. He also adds, ``They soon became a part of Louis Vuitton's permanent collection and is now one of the popular lines, along with the company's iconic Monogram Canvas line.'' This demonstrates how a strong and sophisticated design can propel a product into instant popularity while its longevity proves that a solid design can surely endure the test of time.
Art-marketing has peered into technological industry leaders like LG Electronics and Samsung. Consequently, household appliances that we commonly find throughout our homes could potentially be an inconspicuous piece of art. The Art DIOS side-by-side refrigerator by LG Electronics is a free-standing piece of art that seemingly turns a household kitchen into a gallery space. Designed by Korean artist Ha Sang-lim, Art DIOS introduces a pleasing and modest piece that breathes warmth into the kitchen space while cooking the edibles inside. Meanwhile, it maintains a dignified presence in any household kitchen without overpowering any neighboring appliances.
Samsung's 63-inch PDP Television is an indubitable favorite among the electronics world, but its impact in the art and design world is usually understated. Few are familiar with its success in improving the visual art quality at the Louvre Museum of Paris, or the impressive design awards it obtained across the globe, such as the prestigious German Red Dot Award in 2006 for its innovative design. By blurring the boundaries between art and technology, the PDP is a telltale of our times, where the sublime and the state-of-the-art are brought together with sophistication and grace.
Whether its form or function that you're after, there's no denying the fact that art marketing not only provides a seamless unity of these two commonly separated concepts, but also makes it accessible to the consumer. With so many exceptional designs surrounding us, now we can celebrate contemporary and functional designs in a little museum of our own, in the comfort of our home.