Rob Forbes founder of Design Within Reach, the furniture company that made modern design accessible to a wider general public.
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Now playing: Grace Jones - Corporate Cannibal
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Thursday, 15 January 2009
Saint or sinner?
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7 comments:
A bit of irony there in how someone that is so sincerely interseted in the preservation of diverse culture has ended up, perhaps inadvertantly, creating a company (DWR) that seems to homogenize it.
He describes himself as a "streetwalker" in the beginning of the film. I suppose there would be a whole discussion on that!
Thanks for the film! I enjoyed it! :)
Forbes' DWR newsletter essays were something I looked forward to and miss reading. They were intelligent and inspiring and rarely about products. Rather about ideas and ways to look at the world. I have to say that I put him in more of a saint category and Mayor Daley is a design/eco saint of the highest caliber. Forbes left DWR in 2007. Thanks so much for this video.
What a useless and bitchy notion to ponder....how precious and immature to insinuate that someone who's been able to successfully bring good design to the masses is somehow robbing the world (or the special anointed few) of beautiful objects that should only be had by a special group. In case you didn't know or maybe you are too scared and jealous to have noticed this process of bringing good design to the masses has been going on for centuries in open societies. This is part of what makes up a democratic society and what sets it apart from a society where the best is for just a special few. Grow up!
JS - Have you had a long hard day? Or, are you just naturally touchy?
Part of me wants to reply to your comment properly, while another part of me just wants to tell you to fuck off and get over yourself.
I'll let you know what I decide once I have had my coffee.
Well maybe I was just a bit over zealous LOL! But you did pose a rather loaded question and most of these blog dialogues are so MILK TOAST! Don't you get bored with the lack of ideas and opinions. The more I read the responses to the endlessly interesting images you and others put forth the more saddened I am at how dull they all are. Of course I don't have a blog so Im not putting my head on the chopping block so Im terribly sorry if I hurt your feelings.
Getting back to the question, what is the "sin" that Mr. Forbes might be committing? You must think there might be one or you wouldn't have made the suggestion, no?
J.S. - I agree. That is why I generally don't comment. The two words I hate most are awesome and amazing.
I had absolutely no objection to your comment (I have a very thick skin), just its tone (I have a very hot temper). I love a good dialogue. Almost as much as a good scrap.
As he is not God, I think it a fair question. In fact, even if he were God, it would still be a fair question. I do not regard Mr. Forbes with any contempt, what so ever. I have a great admiration his zeal. Imagine if he had used his titanic skills in furthering American design — both established and burgeoning. What that could have been like...There is a great deal to be said for the context in which something is created.
Without the understanding of the concepts and ideals behind the more readily available designs, they have become trophies for many misguided privileged people flexing their (pseudo) intellectual and economic superiority. This is a far cry from the egalitarian ideals that inspired them.
While one cannot blame Mr Forbes for this, one cannot help but wonder if it would not have been better if he had championed the ideal rather than the designer.
House... you're so awesome. and pretty amazing, too.
xoxo
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