Design or Art? Form or Function? Artist or Designer?
Well within the space of 24 hours I have stumbled upon two design legends talk art and design.
Funny thing is they are both talking about the same thing. When the line between art and design get so blurred they end up becoming disparate creations that are neither good art or good design.
These creations have a space to exist, but this is a curious surreal space where things don’t feel right, so are great for Charlie Kaufman films. The premise of some of these scenarios are dream-like creations that don’t really feel right. But we can also love them and celebrate them in surreal explorations.
First up we have aucklanddesignweek posting on istagram:
“Design over functionality, or design with purpose? Can we create beauty that also serves?
Let's hear it from @karim_rashid_official 🔥 speaking from @webbsauctions where some of his designs were being auctioned during ADW2025.”
But before that I had watched the short video of Dieter Rams pointing at things he doesn’t like. I was curious to see whether there would be clash of opinions here but there wasn’t.
Of note was the ‘most expensive’ Lockheed Lounge - Dieter Rams did not like this at all. Where they meet and match is they both don’t think you should be a furniture artist, more a furniture designer where form and function work together.
Karim Rashid lives by the same values, but is poles apart from Dieter Rams. Style once again makes you famous, and both a dripping in style, one environment awareness and minimalism, the other around environment shifting and style explosions.
See more about Karim Rashid at the Webbs page where the image below comes from with notable text in the words “…his art in galleries around the world, and has an extraordinary 4,000 designs in production”.
Karim Rashid, photo courtesy of Webbs
While Karim’s designs are called art due to their undeniable style, he tempers that with design over art. It’s such an interesting space to think about the form, function and intention.
A meeting of minds, a clash of styles, legends in their own unique spaces. Love DESIGN!
Have a light hearted look at Dieter ‘pointing at things he doesn’t like’ below.