If someone ended an email to you with “bumblebees and sunshine,” you might assume that person wasn’t quite grown up. But Marcel Wanders is fully grown, and he’s not childish so much as he is childlike in his sense of wonder and appreciation for the world in which we live.
This is the guy, after all, who wears floral trousers in a sea of dark designer garb. Who designed his lumpy Egg Vase (1997) by stuffing latex condoms with hard-boiled eggs. Who smiles and laughs with refreshing frequency. And who, when asked “What is important to you in seating design?” responds with, “My butt; to understand a good butt.”
At the same time, Wanders can be “serious” too. He designed the Square Light Pendant (1998) and the Container Table (2002), both exemplars of clean lines and pure function. His Can of Gold (2001) is a gold-plated soup can that sells for $200, with the proceeds going toward food for the homeless. And Wanders must be able to meet commitments, because he’s in demand all over the place – designing soap for Bisazza, a lamp for Flos, tables for Cappellini.
The secret of his success? A fresh vision born of innocence. “I’m a sort of amateur, and amateurs aren’t so sure about things, so they investigate and bring new ideas that experts might overlook,” says Wanders. He adds, “I work with durability in design – products worth bonding with for a lifetime. I have an overall respect for ourselves and the world, and I think this respect is the basis of good design.”
This is the guy, after all, who wears floral trousers in a sea of dark designer garb. Who designed his lumpy Egg Vase (1997) by stuffing latex condoms with hard-boiled eggs. Who smiles and laughs with refreshing frequency. And who, when asked “What is important to you in seating design?” responds with, “My butt; to understand a good butt.”
At the same time, Wanders can be “serious” too. He designed the Square Light Pendant (1998) and the Container Table (2002), both exemplars of clean lines and pure function. His Can of Gold (2001) is a gold-plated soup can that sells for $200, with the proceeds going toward food for the homeless. And Wanders must be able to meet commitments, because he’s in demand all over the place – designing soap for Bisazza, a lamp for Flos, tables for Cappellini.
The secret of his success? A fresh vision born of innocence. “I’m a sort of amateur, and amateurs aren’t so sure about things, so they investigate and bring new ideas that experts might overlook,” says Wanders. He adds, “I work with durability in design – products worth bonding with for a lifetime. I have an overall respect for ourselves and the world, and I think this respect is the basis of good design.”
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