Eoin Lyons meets the highly productive Philippe Starck
Meeting Philippe Starck is like meeting a caricature of a particular kind of Frenchman. He dresses in chic black and navy, but also uses plenty of swear words. No one would mistake him for a prissy designer. And he talks and talks and talks. About how he wants to rebalance the scales and help China create its own luxury brands: "They have the manufacturing expertise but not the ability to create a style-led brand." About how he wants to "design things that make the lives of my wife and family easier". About the importance of democratising good design. And then he talks about his 16 houses.
There are big bucks to be made from such altruism and from his furniture, towels, cutlery, luggage, scooters, beer-bottles (the latest is for Kronenbourg) ... the list is so long that, despite their high quality and Starck's hands-on design, he could be mistaken for a modern-day Pierre Cardin. "Put my name on something and sales go up," he says.
In the US, Starck designed a line of furniture for the budget chain-store, Target. "The first chair I designed 20 years ago sold for $1,000," he points out, "now I do a chair for Target that costs $50." But the problem is that many of Starck's current products are more gimmicks than great designs (the sofa-cum-sound system he designed for Cassina is one example). While the chair from 20 years ago has stood the test of time, today's work is unlikely to retain the same cachet. And that's if they even get the chance; his Target contract was discontinued a few weeks ago.
Even his big hits - such as the Louis Ghost chair - often date quickly. The Sanderson Hotel in London - which he designed in the late 1990s and which contains such visual diversions as as a reception desk that doubles as a video screen - has already lost its novelty. Starck, though, believes his style has staying power. "Last year, I was asked to redesign the Paramount in New York [which he designed in a similarly playful style in the 1980s], but we left it as it is because it couldn't be improved."
In any case, it's hard to knock his astonishing productivity. A store has recently opened in Sydney selling only goods designed by Starck. If his goal is to bring design to us all - via the medium of his famous name - then it's working.
•Philippe Starck products are at Mimo, Cork (021-4344999), and Haus, Dublin 2 (01-6795155). Bathroom fittings from Elegant John, Dublin 1 (01-8658010)