Starck, perhaps the most famous contemporary designer of his generation, declared that love was the key to successful design.
 In front of a packed house of marketing, branding and other creative professionals at the 10th annual Fuse Brand Identity and Package Design conference in New York City on Tuesday, democratic designer extraordinaire Philippe Starck declared that brand is dead.
 Starck explained that no longer is a brand either created or manufactured by the company that sells it. "The only brand is yourself," said Starck, "and we must find our own value." Stating that he exists only to serve his friends, family and tribe, Starck emphasized that we need to value the love of others more. Only then can we make the lives of others better, manage our decadence and "go to immateriality."
Material styles and trends make us hypocritical, said Starck. Our love of material items in some ways dictates our feelings towards others. He used the example of fur coats: first we admire those who wear them, then we reject them. Then finally we accept them.
With all the problems in the world today, Starck did not want to talk about design. "Fuck design," he said. But the message was very clear. Whatever we do in life, love should be our motive and guide. Only then will we be able to answer one of the questions that is at the heart of design: "What is really useful?" |
