The Big Easy: Ron Arad and Moroso

To coincide with the current retrospective, “Ron Arad: No Discipline” at MoMA in New York, Moroso is mounting a Ron Arad focused exhibition of its own in its New York store, 146 Greene Street.  Opening September 14^th and running four weeks, the Moroso exhibition traces the history of the twenty year working relationship between Arad and Moroso. The exhibition will include prototypes and edition pieces that are in creative director Patrizia Moroso’s own personal collection.

In 1988, Patrizia Moroso sought out Ron Arad in his studio several times.  She was surprised and excited to discover that this man, whom she considered mythical, knew of her and her firm. Arad, impressed by Moroso’s standard for craftsmanship and innovation, was similarly pleased to make the acquaintance.  Thus a partnership was born to jump start Arad’s move from functional artwork to design for industrial production.  The iconic 12 piece Spring Collection, which includes such classics as The Big Easy and Soft Heart, was introduced in 1991.

Over the years, the collaboration has seen the development of many designs, from Victoria and Albert (2000) to Three Skin and Ripple Chairs and No Waste table (2004) Misfits and Wavy (2007).  Arad’s newest piece for Moroso, Do-Lo-Rez, will also be on display: the concept brings together the worlds of art, design and technology. It is a modern sofa whose unique aesthetic is created by soft, square-based rectangular- or cube-shaped modules of various heights and colors, arranged together and fixed to a base by steel pins. This seemingly simple product is extremely complex in constructional, structural and manufacturing terms. Do-Lo-Rez represents a double entendre combining a real woman’s name with a pun on “low res” imagery which is its virtual inspiration.

The Moroso/Ron Arad exhibition is especially personal for Patrizia, who has put on display many of her own Ron Arad originals. The chosen pieces are a combination of Ron’s early work and prototypes specifically related to his work for Moroso.  On view for the first time to the US public, these include examples of Low Tilt and High Tilt, the first prototypes of the Big Easy, and several pieces that have never been realized in production.