Ron Arad
The Israeli furniture designer Ron Arad studied at the Jerusalem Art Academy from 1971 until 1973 and continued his studies at the prestigious Architectural Association in London, which promotes avant-garde architecture and design. There, Ron Arad studied with Peter Cook, the founder of Archigram; among his fellow students were Peter Wilson, Nigel Coates, and Zaha Hadid. In 1981 Ron Arad and Caroline Thorman founded "One Off", a London practice and showroom in one. "One off" became an experimental laboratory for Ron Arad's designs although it also showed the work of other avant-garde designers, including Tom Dixon, Danny Lane, John Mills, and Tom Lynham. In 1981 Ron Arad produced the "Rover Chair", a mounted 4 x 4 seat; it was followed in 1985 by the "Concrete Sound" hi-fi with a concrete casing. Ron Arad attaches great importance to his works being one-offs; consequently, it would be more appropriate to call his seat furniture seat objects. In his choice of materials, the labor-intensive process of making these pieces, and the unusual forms he designs, Ron Arad distances himself deliberately from mass produced furnishings. Ron Arad designed the "Spring" Collection for Moroso, which includes the seat furniture "Big Easy" (1988/89) and "Little Heavy" (1991). Another Ron Arad design for Moroso was the 2000 "Victoria & Albert" chair, whose forms are extremely sculptural. For Kartell Ron Arad produced some very successful designs, including the 1997 shelving system "Bookworm" and the 1998 chairs "Tom Vac" und "FPE" (- fantastic plastic elastic). Ron Arad also designed for Vitra in the 1980s; these designs include the "Well Tempered Chair" (1886/87) made of sheets of stainless steel fastened together with bolts and wing nuts. In 1989 another Ron Arad practice was opened in London: Ron Arad Associates. There has also been a Ron Arad Studio in Como, Italy, since 1994. Between 1994 and 1997 Ron Arad was a visiting professor at the Kunsthochschule in Vienna. Ron Arad teaches at the Royal College of Art in London.