20 French Design Icons

March 10th, 2011

Some of the most significant French designs will be on display at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA) and Alliance Française de Singapour from now to 20 April.

20 french design icons

Perrier Glass by Martin Szekely

20 french design icons

Tabouret Bubu by Philippe Starck

From motor vehicles (E-Solex by Maurice Goudard and Marcel Mennesson), to furniture (LC4 by Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, Charlotte Perriand), to humble everyday objects such as the water glass (Perrier Glass by Martin Szekely), the exhibition seeks to highlight the universality and staying power of good design, and how they have evolved into leading household and luxury brand names today.

20 french design icons

Juicy Salif by Philippe Starck

20 french design icons

Rainbow Chair by Patrick Norguet

It also aims to illustrate how a seemingly simple design can become iconic.

The pieces to be exhibited were selected by French freelance design editor Cédric Morisset.

20 french design icons

E-Solex by Maurice Goudard and Marcel Mennesson

20 french design icons

Darkside collection by Philippe Starck

“Icons are characterised by their reach – if not religious, at least symbolic… The concept of an icon is purely relative. What is an icon for me need not be one for another, what is an icon for the French need not be one for the Japanese,” says Morisset.

The breadth of the exhibits is meant to reflect the significance of France as a country from which great designs and designers are produced, from the late Jean Prouvé and Pierre Paulin to Philippe Starck – a name that today needs little introduction – to the younger generation of designers such as Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec.

20 french design icons