Philippe Cramer

Philippe Cramer (born May 8, 1970) is a Swiss and American artist and designer whose work focuses on small editions and one of a kind pieces of furniture, decorative objects and art. Expressed with minimal yet sensual shapes, his work often combines bold colors with natural materials. He is known for establishing long term professional relationships with artisans, often Swiss, with whom he matures his artistic vocabulary. Together they forge new work and revise past creations, refining them - sometimes over a long period of time - to find the proportions and color he is looking for. Refusing to be attached to a particular school of thought, Cramer decided from the very beginning of his career to work from his Genevan studio, which doubles as his showroom, at a distance from the known centers of the design and art world. Cramer's production is sometimes described in contrasting terms due to his interest in various artistic currents, materials and manufacturing techniques. Bold, whimsical, pure, minimal, baroque and sensuous are all terminologies that have been associated with his work. Although these descriptions might seem paradoxical, they are due to his high degree of creative freedom, allowing for a unique point of view.

Philippe Cramer
Cramer in 2020 (photo by Célestin Fournier)
Born(1970-05-08)May 8, 1970
New York, USA
NationalitySwiss and American
EducationParsons The New School for Design, New York, USA
Known forFurniture design, product design, jewelry design and art.
Notable work
  • Baar, stool (2001)
  • Randogne,family of lamps (2004)
  • Andrienne, console table (2006)
  • Captromancie, wall mobile (2019)
Websitehttp://www.philippecramer.com/

Biography

Cramer was born in New York City and grew up in Geneva. After schooling in Switzerland, Philippe Cramer studied in London where he obtained a Certificate in the History of Decorative Arts of the 19th and 20th Century from Sotheby's Institute of Art in 1992. He then graduated from Parsons The New School for Design in New York with a Bachelor in Product Design in 1996. Cramer lives and works in Geneva.

Career

Cramer founded his studio in 2001 with the idea of developing a design brand producing limited editions of swiss made furniture and home accessories. In 2003, he opened his showroom in Geneva's Art District, designing, manufacturing and selling to an art and design oriented public. Two years later, the American company Bernardt Design launched "The Philippe Cramer Collection", Cramer's first furniture line for the US market. That same year, the Museum of Modern Art in New York selected several of his creation for its online and city design stores. He has since worked for institutions and private clients as well as architectural studios, notably for Dom Pérignon, Georg Jensen, Hermès petit h and Made.com.

A follower of the slow design movement, Cramer is also aware of the social and environmental impact of his products and uses indigenous and sustainable materials wherever possible. He mandates local artisans who revive ancestral techniques in order to produce his objects. Sensitive to the notion of honest design, Cramer looks for the most responsible solutions to create products which are as beautiful as they are simple and sensual. This proximity to local industry, is also reflected in the names he gives his products, often inspired by Swiss mountains, rivers or villages. Cramer is regularly invited to teach classes, conduct workshops or act as a critic in design schools across Switzerland including the Haute école d'art et de design in Geneva and the Ecole cantonale d'art of Lausanne. He also has been a regular contributor to the Swiss daily Le Temps and the architecture magazine Espaces Contemporains.

In October 2010, Cramer was invited to create a solo installation at the Museum of Art and History of Geneva, organized for the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Museum. This installation, titled "L'Ornement Jamais" has since been integrated into the permanent museum exhibition and is now part of the Geneva state heritage collections.

Several exhibitions have been dedicated to Philippe Cramer's work, notably : ArtCurial and Gallery S. Bensimon in Paris, Galerie Caroline Freymond in Gstaad, the Spazio Setmani, Swiss Cultural Center of Milan, the Audi Foundation in Beyrouth and the Lapidarium museum in Prague. Philippe Cramer's bibliography includes "The New Jewelers" by Olivier Dupon (Thames & Hudson, 2012), "Décor, Design et Industrie" by Alexandre Fiette (Somogy editions, 2010) and "MAH Les Collections du Musée d'art et d'histoire de Genève" (Favre editions, 2019).

He is a member of the Swiss label group.

Cramer has been asked to design the awards for the Young Activists Summit at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. Organized in 2019 by the United Nations Office at Geneva, Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS) and dev.tv, this event brought together six young female activists with inspiring backgrounds and achievements.

Profiles of Cramer and photographs of his creations have been published in many leading magazines and newspapers such as V Magazine,[1] Elle Deco,[2] Wallpaper,[3] Elle decoration,[4] Metropolis,[5] AD France, Le Temps, the Financial Times, Maisons et ambiances,[6] Agefi Immo,[7] Tribune des Arts,[8] Hôtel President Wilson,[9]

Exhibitions
  • Art Genève, 2019-2018-2017
  • Maison Tavel, 2019
  • Collectible Fair, Brussels 2019
  • Lapidarium, Prague 2019
  • Gallery Ormond Editions, Zürich 2018
  • Sotheby's Art à porter, 2018
  • Audi Mosaic Museum, Beirut 2017
  • Gallery S. Bensimon, 2012

Notes
  1. V Magazine: page 184. automne, 2008.
  2. Elle Deco Fr: pages 38.-42. juillet, 2002.// page 40. novembre 2018
  3. Wallpaper: pages 164-166. octobre, 2001.
  4. Elle Decoration UK: pages 130-140. June, 2006.
  5. Metropolis: page 50. February, 2005.
  6. Maisons et ambiances: pages 48-49. janvier, 2019.
  7. Agefi Immo: pages 16-17, mars, 2018.
  8. Tribune des Arts: page 22, novembre, 2018.
  9. Hôtel President Wilson: pages 76.-80., magazine, 2018.

Articles
  • Von Westersheimb, Kay (2006-06-01). "Balancing Act". Elle Decoration UK. pp. 130–140.
  • Vinson, Nick (2007-08-04). "Touches of Glass". The Financial Times, House & Home. p. 9.
  • Hyde, Mireille (2005-02-01). "Clear Intentions". Metropolis. p. 50.
  • Bauer, Sacha (2001-11-01). "Crossover". Vogue Germany. p. 194.
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