I do not believe anything that this designer says anymore, and I used to be a real fan. He has said that nature is boring and is now claiming that he is a leading “eco” designer. He has said that the best design comes from the lone vision of a genius (like himself) but is now talking about how important collaboration is. The design media seems completely ignorant and he continues to be rolled out as a design visionary. He is nothing but a hollow shrill, talking into any camera pointed at him, and presenting whatever the current flavor is. This is not design, it is decoration and void of any significant content. It is a shame that the design world props him up as a star, especially when there is so much amazing design work going on.

I agree with the above, but would add that form and beauty are real goals to work to achieve and that we should value these more. I am not sure if Rashid delivers on this either though. The plastic magician creates a ton of work that ends up in Goodwill a season later.

I am not sure if design can deliver real cultural value anymore, it seems to have more to do with shopping. Rashid is not going to solve any real world issue (even if he thinks he is), but rather solves a different type of problem; like what to give a young couple for a wedding present, or a friend for a stocking stuffer, or as a way to outfit a teens basement hangout. Rashid has a fan base, magazines/blogs write his work (this one included), galleries collect and reward the things he makes, so any dialogue around “content” should be forgotten, literally it is not his style. In our world, design is about entertainment and appearances, not solving issues. In this vein Rashid may be the best designer out there.

Karim should stop discussing issues and design. I have heard him lecture many times, he is not an intellectual but a tireless self promoter, using the thoughts of the day or event to flavor his spiel. He needs to embrace that he is the Brittany Spears of design and stop trying to attach himself to the current hot topics of “real world design”. This way he would avoid all the heat that he catches from serious design insiders who are offended by his trendy approach and the attention that it generates. His body of work speaks for itself and the design scene loves the guy. Design is largely a shallow venture, we need to accept that and move on and let the police, academics, politicians and grass roots organizations solve the real problems in the world. Let the design community think they are where it is at, they have to sleep at night with that, and karim has to work really, really hard to keep this fickle bunch pointed in his direction. If you have a brain, his work will hurt your noodle, turn it off and enjoy the eye candy.

I wonder what it is like to sit in? It must cost a fortune to ship it, and it seems like a waste of materials but it is really nice. Reminds me of the Solair chair.

Well, at least the chair isn’t pink or plastic for a change. If it’s made of reclaimed wood (which I highly doubt), that would be even better.