The original designs of today's leading contemporary architects are on display at the Contemporary Arts Center (CAC), all leading up to an auction on May 10.
The pieces, which will be offered in editions of three, plus one artist proof, are expected to go for between $18,000 and $290,000 when auctioned by Christie's at CAC's Silk & Spice Gala.
The idea of FORM: Contemporary Architects at Play was to bring together some of the most brilliant minds in architecture and design to produce pieces of modern sculpture that one could sit, lean, lie, and play upon.
Materials and fabrication costs were provided by Formica Corporation.
“The entire collection is a celebration of imaginative design,” says Alice & Harris Weston director and chief curator Raphaela Platow.
Among the pieces available for bidding are:
- Chair #1 by Peter Eisenman, his first-ever chair design
- Cirrus by Zaha Hadid, which utilizes more than 70 sheets of Black Polished Laminate - nearly half of the Formica Brand material used in the competition
- J Chair by Michael Graves, designed so it can be disassembled and placed in flat packaging
Other participating architects include Thom Mayne, Bill Pedersen, Laurinda Spear, Bernard Tschumi, Jaime Valez, Massimo Vignelli and Buzz Yudell.
The exhibition and auction are being held to celebrate the CAC's 5th anniversary in the Lois & Richard Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art, with proceeds benefitting future exhibitions and educational programs.
“This auction represents an extraordinary moment in the Center’s nearly 70 years, where internationally renowned architects come together and employ their exceptional creativity in benefit of the CAC," Platow says.
Writer: Kevin LeMaster
Source: Stacey Czar, public relations director, Contemporary Arts Center
Photography by Scott Beseler
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