Memory is unique to the individual. Physical places are often strong triggers for memories, or else can be the focus of the memory itself. In AXOR's personal new campaign, "AXOR Places", design partners of the brand share their "Place of Memory". Complemented by aerial landscape photography by Tom Hegen, the designers' stories showcase their individual experiences of place. The photography connects the personal "Places of Memory" with the individualization possibilities offered by the AXOR MyEdition faucet collection.
Utilizing materials reminiscent of a specific place, the collection provides complete freedom in the choice of mounting plate material for maximum personalization. "Thus a piece of the world materializes in the appearance of the individual faucet," explains Anke Sohn, Head of AXOR Brand Marketing. As the campaign is profiling designers specifically, the craft itself, materiality, and origin of the materials were also carefully considered. The final level of the experience is "Places to Be", hotels where interior designers have incorporated AXOR products into their individual interpretations of space.
Continue reading for the following five designers' individual "Place of Memory" stories: Barber Osgerby, Antonio Citterio, Andreas Diefenbach, Jean-Marie Massaud, and Philippe Starck.
Barber Osgerby
Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby’s Place of Memory is far away from the city: a cottage in Trearddur Bay on the west coast of Holy Island in Wales. The small Victorian stone dwelling looks majestically out over the stormy Irish Sea. When they were studying at the Royal College of Art, they retreated to the cottage together to develop and illustrate their ideas. Lost in concentration for hours, often they covered the entire floor with sketches. What fascinates them about this place is the continuously changing weather and tides, and above all, the sense of calm. At one moment it’s raining, but suddenly the coast is bathed in the most beautiful light. This contrast provided them with a sustainable source of inspiration for their creativity.
“We value moments of quiet, preferably near the sea where we can think clearly.” —Edward Barber, Jay Osgerby
Designers Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby founded their design and architecture studio in London in 1996. They have been working with AXOR since 2013.
Antonio Citterio
For Antonio Citterio, the most important place to be is with his family. That’s why a residence in St. Moritz, in Switzerland’s Engadine Valley, is his preferred retreat: a place to experience the magic of the mountains, enjoy a fabulous winter landscape, celebrate Christmas together or simply spend time as a family. Also, his children were born here in this special place surrounded by lakes, flame-orange larch forests and soaring 3,000-meter peaks. Family, the culture and natural landscape of the Engadine, and the warm cocoon of a beautiful home, these combine to form Antonio Citterio’s personal Place of Memory, a world away from the hectic, bustling metropolis of Milan, where his design studio is located.
“For me the most important place is the family.” —Antonio Citterio
Architect and designer Antonio Citterio opened his first office in Milan in 1972. He has been working with AXOR since 2001.
Andreas Diefenbach
Andreas Diefenbach created his Place of Memory in his imagination. He spent the first 13 years of his life in northern Kazakhstan. Later, he would chart his own path between the primordial wilderness of central Asia and European civilization. His uncle lived near Lake Baikal. When he visited, his uncle told him about ice fishing, hunting, and searching for mushrooms in the taiga. Hearing these stories, Andreas imagined a freezing-cold landscape full of adventure. The frozen expanses surrounding Lake Baikal became a canvas for his fantasy. He loves frost, snow and ice. For him, snow symbolizes warmth and familiarity, and frost and ice express something incredibly clear and calm. Even today, he says, he has his own personal memories of this place, even though he has never actually visited the taiga.
“For me, the truly fantastic spaces are those we build in our dreams.” —Andreas Diefenbach
Andreas Diefenbach is a product designer and Managing Partner at Phoenix Design Stuttgart, Munich and Shanghai. Founded in 1987, Phoenix Design has worked with AXOR since AXOR’s foundation.
Jean-Marie Massaud
Jean-Marie Massaud’s Place of Memory is in Japan, the Land of the Rising Sun. It was fifteen years ago, he told us, on a rainy afternoon in the middle of the woods about 30 kilometers from Kyoto. The setting: a meditative temple built of wood, white paper lanterns along the footpaths, the smells, the totally unique sound of water, and in the midst of it all, himself and his partner, who knew nothing of what was about to happen. Jean-Marie wanted to surprise her. Just two hours before the ceremony, when they were alone together, he asked her to be his wife. Fortunately, she said yes. So they were married before a group of their closest friends within this magical place. What remains is a unique memory of one of rural Japan’s Resonance Chambers, revealing its essence in the harmony of nature, culture, and time.
“Creating is an idealization of feelings and memories.” —Jean-Marie Massaud
The designer Jean-Marie Massaud founded his studio in Paris in 2000. He has been working with AXOR since 2004.
Philippe Starck
For Philippe Starck, our Earth – this blue planet – is the place of all places which must be protected for all time. Thus, the fight to save water is vital. Starck is a professional dreamer, fascinated by the history of evolution, from the appearance of amoebas to the changing consciousness of humans. As a global citizen, he dedicates his life to creativity - no hobbies, no vacation, always working alone in Nature, in the middle of nowhere, in the forests, the dunes or the mud. Nature is a very powerful source of inspiration for his creativity: the natural light, the power of elements to form waves, the vitality of water, the mighty power of the sea. Each place has its own music.
“If we don’t’ want the earth to become only a memory, fight to save water.” —Philippe Starck
Philippe Starck is focused on the essential: Creation must improve the lives of as many people as possible. Sharing the same vision, Starck and AXOR have been collaborating since 1992.
Further information about Places of Memory can be found on AXOR's website and their Instagram account, @axordesign.
