Slelf Lamp by Marc Baroud and Marc Dibeh. Courtesy of Art Factum gallery
way to proceed: “You can’t apply new technologies
to buy the full product they would like. The rich cus-
to all projects. Sometimes you’re exploring new aes-
tomise because they want something unique. What
thetics or pushing into new materials, textures, finishes
is exciting now is that the middle class is becoming
– but in other contexts you might use the same tech-
enabled to customise, so the masses have the abil-
nique as was used 100 years ago.”
ity to impact their environment in a way they never have before,” says Najjar, who far from bemoaning
This mid point, where the designer uses hybrid
the precarious position of the designer in this brave
techniques and enables the consumer to do the
new production system, can’t wait for it to manifest
same means that individualised products, rather
more fully in the next few decades. His attitude of
than mass-produced uniformity, will become the
positive embrace is the only solution to design’s big
norm as the 21st century progresses. “The poor
challenge of self-preservation. As he puts it, “We’ve
customise because they don’t have enough money
hacked the world and I’m so proud of it!”
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