Ah--to hear the words of level-headed businesspeople who actually get design. When Richard Sapper's expensive, award-winning Halley lamp for Lunesco sold poorly, blame was not bandied about: "Going for an iconic designer and for Richard was not a mistake," says [Lucesco co-founder Curtis] Abbott. "Our mistake was we didn't have the market research to help us understand the sales potential for this product."
This from an excellent article on the prolific Sapper in Businessweek, detailing some tidbits and highlights from his 50-year career. With clients like IBM (and now Lenovo), Artemide and Alessi, the man commands a level of respect positively inspiring for designers.
"Richard gets into long and hotly contested arguments with our engineers," says Alberto Alessi, "but, at the end, the results are stunning and our technical skills are stronger."
The article also includes a slideshow of some of Sapper's greatest hits.
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