Philippe Starck and Axor celebrate the 30th anniversary of their collaboration this year. 'Philippe Starck uses design as a creative tool to provide a service; his prolific and multiform work demonstrates what creativity can achieve when it is used to both innovate and, always with respect and humour, play with traditional patterns and norms,' the Hansgrohe Group explains.
In 1994, Starck contrasted the 'wet room' with the Salon d'Eau, literally translated as the 'Water Living Room'. This concept completely changed the image of the bathroom. 'There are many ground-breaking ideas that Philippe Starck brought to Axor or even to the entire industry. The two most important ones were not only to think about the object, but to design a space and, of course, to rethink the interaction between people and products,' summarises Olivier Sogno, VP Axor.
The birth of Axor
Until the late 20th century, most bathrooms were functional wet rooms. The idea that you could spend longer than necessary in the bathroom because you wanted to feel good was still foreign to most people. As was the idea of wanting to personalize this space. It was precisely because Hansgrohe recognised the potential of the bathroom as a living space that the company established its own design brand, Axor, in 1993.
Axor built on the experience of its sister brand hansgrohe in the field of design and consistently expanded it.
Axor and Starck – a 30-year collaboration
It all started with the Salon d'Eau, which included the AXOR Starck collection in 1994. The image of a bathroom with a free-standing bathtub, washbasin and toilet, including the faucets from this collection, and a room flooded with daylight, without tiles, and characterized by natural materials, was both a revolution and a commercial success that still shapes our idea of modern bathroom design today. The Axor Starck collection has become an icon of bathroom design. It is still one of the most successful bathroom collections Axor has launched to date.
More information:
Hansgrohe Group
www.hansgrohe-group.com