This blog entry is written by a guest blogger; Karin Tobiasson.
Most of us today own something from IKEA, be it 'Billy' the bookshelf or 'Hej' tealight holders. IKEA has always been about cheap furniture and, well, a lot of swearing and cursing over the fact that some parts are missing or that the instructions make no sense at all. But today IKEA is also to a great extent about design. They are the high street store of furnishing where we mere mortals can buy look-alikes of expensive designs to a reasonable price.
For example, take the classic Arne Jacobsen Ant or Series 7 chairs, price tag: £165. Then we have IKEA’s chair Gilbert, clearly inspired by the Arne Jacobsen chairs, price tag: £30. IKEA make great designs affordable. However, some might say that Gilbert the chair will loose his charm as a desirable design since his price mean that he will be found in many homes and he is a bit of a rip-off. He is not exclusive like an Arne Jacobsen chair is. But the question is if design should be exclusive and produced in limited numbers with a high price tag?
As a customer, I guess I would argue that there is always something special about owning something rare, something in limited edition. However, if I can’t afford the design I want, I would be quite happy to buy something similar in IKEA for four times less the price. But as a designer, would you rather want everyone to own what you design or just the lucky few who can afford what you make? Would you feel more successful if you knew that the masses adored and bought your designs or that what you made came in limited numbers?
There is clearly a current trend in mass produced design, as haute couture designer are lining up to make clothes for H&M and other high street fashion stores. So I personally hope to see this trend carried on to furniture design and see a number of famous designers selling affordable collections at IKEA!
Arne Jacobsen chair; Series 7:
Sluta sluta, börja börja.
Martin
4 comments:
Room and Board, CB2, West Elm, Ikea and Eurostyle all have cheaper versions of this chair. Whenever an expensive or famous piece is made, there are knockoffs. This doesn't diminish the value of the piece, you still own an original. It also doesn't add value to the knockoff, it is merely that, a knockoff, not an heirloom.
Arne Jacobsen – one of the most influential furniture designers of the last century – has designed the lounge Egg Chair in 1956. Its reproduction has a molded fiberglass frame. Improvements include a fire retardant polyurethane foam with high quality crepe pure wool upholstery. This wonderful chair is presented in the Mojo Interiors webshop.
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