Pentagram Kodak
The exhibit about Kenneth Grange, founder of the famous design studio Pentagram, runs until the 30th October at the Design Museum. It’s presenting a retrospective of the product designer’s work, considerate to have “made Britain modern”.
Born, as he says, in "a bacon and eggs kind of house" of the London’s East End in 1929, he designed over the years a long list of items. Among them, the first Kodak 44A in 1959, the 1997 version of London black cabs, Parker pens, Kenwood fool mixers, the anglepoise spring lamp, the first UK parking meters, Thermos etc. In fact, if you live in England, even for people that Grange’s name still unknown, you definitely already travelled or utilized once his designs in your day-to-day life.
Influenced by his national service and his early jobs as an architects assistant, Kenneth still working. Funny and maybe true, in an interview with The Observer, he said that Mac is overdesigned and some modern furniture might be “absolute icon” but still not comfortable and “designed to make the space look brilliant." Hopefully, according to him, his chairs are “bloody comfortable”. (1)
I enjoyed it but I made it through rapidly. However, British people can find it nostalgic as they recognize objects of their past. The 7£ entry was worth it because of the Brit insurance designs of the year exhibit that you can see at the same time.
(1)Kenneth Grange: half a century at the forefront of british Design, Rachel Cooke, The Observer
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