Ron Arad, celebrated London based designer and architect, designed Timothy Taylor Gallery's stand for the Frieze Art Fair 2008 in London (16-19 October)

This marked  the beginning of Arad’s working relationship with Timothy Taylor Gallery, who announced earlier this year that it is now the primary gallery representing Arad in the UK.

Presenting works from international artists represented by the gallery such as Kiki Smith, Armen Eloyan and Mai Thu Perret, Arad’s stand consisted of dynamic clusters of interlocking planes which challenge the usual distinctions between a stand’s inside and outside, allowing many more viewpoints for visitors and passersby.

Fauteuil Uncut, 1997
Feuille d’aluminium moulé sous vide.
Piètement en acier inoxydable poli.
Brut de démoulage de la chaise Tom Vac
Edité à 50 exemplaires
83 cm x 98 cm x 89 cm
Fabricant Marzorati Ronchetti, Cantù
Centre Pompidou, Musée national d’art
moderne/ Centre de création industrielle,
Paris, don de Facom, 1999
© Collection Centre Pompidou, Dist RMN
photo Jean-Claude Planchet

Portrait Ron Arad, July 2008
© Photo David Bailey

Arad said, ‘I wanted to rethink the idea of the conventional rectangular fair stand with a solid exterior wall, and to create something that really gives the best service to the exhibits, doesn’t fight or compete with them, but is nevertheless expressive. The stand is a temporary, operational structure, but it doesn’t have to look that way.’

Frieze Art Fair is acknowledged as the UK’s most important contemporary art event and one of the world’s most influential contemporary art fairs. The 2008 fair presented a rigorous selection of around 150 of the most exciting international galleries, together with Frieze Art Fair’s unique curatorial programme of artists’ projects.

Timothy Taylor Gallery is one of the UK’s leading galleries and its exhibition programme was directed by Emma Dexter, who joined the gallery from Tate Modern where she was a senior curator. She said, ‘It’s a wonderful opportunity to be able to test the limits of an essentially basic formula by commissioning Ron Arad to design our stand. As a result of working with Arad’s design, it has encouraged us to think differently about what we’re showing at Frieze. It’s adventurous and has opened up a realm of new possibilities.’

Arad’s design for Frieze Art Fair preceded his major solo exhibition at the Centre Pompidou, Paris, which runs from 20 November 2008 until 16 March 2009 under the title "NO DISCIPLINE" and will then travel to the Museum of Modern Art in New York. His first solo exhibition with Timothy Taylor Gallery in London will follow in Spring 2009.

Timothy Taylor Gallery Stand at Frieze Art Fair 2008 designed by Ron Arad
Presenting various works by Ron Arad
Photo credit: James Lander
Courtesy the artist and Timothy Taylor Gallery, London

Timothy Taylor Gallery Stand at Frieze Art Fair 2008 designed by Ron Arad
Presenting various works by Ron Arad
Photo credit: James Lander
Courtesy the artist and Timothy Taylor Gallery, London

Ron Arad / Bodyguard
Super formed Aluminium
55 1/8 x 74 4/8 x 36 5/8 in. / 140 x 190 x 93 cm
Courtesy the artist, Ernest Mourmans and Timothy Taylor Gallery, London
Copyright: Ron Arad, 2008

Chaîne hifi Concrete Stereo, 1983
Tourne-disque, amplificateur,
2 haut-parleurs, composants électroniques
intégrés dans le béton
Platine 7,5 x 46 x 38 cm
Haut-parleur 89 x 20 x 20 cm
Éditeur One Off, Londres
Collection particulière
© The Gallery Mourmans
photo Erik et Petra Hesmerg

Fauteuil Big Easy Volume 2, 1988
Acier poli
Edité à 20 exemplaires
Éditeur One Off / Ron Arad Associates,
Londres
81 x 100 x 130 cm : poids 20 kg
Collection particulière
© photo Ron Arad Associates

Fauteuil New Orleans, 1999
Fibre de verre et polyester imprégné
de pigments
Réalisé à 18 pièces uniques par Ron Arad
pour la Galerie Mourmans
Éditeur The Gallery Mourmans, Maastricht
Collection particulière
© The Gallery Mourmans
photo Erik et Petra Hesmerg

Poubelle Squashed Vipps, 2008
Acier Inox poli
Hauteur 35 cm ; diamètre 35 cm
Éditeur Ron Arad Associates, Londres
Collection Ben Brown Fine Arts, Londres
© Ben Brown Fine Arts,

Fauteuil MT Rocker Chair, 2005
Acier poli, bronze
Édité à 6 exemplaires
80 x 75 x 110 cm
Éditeur The Gallery Mourmans, Maastricht
Collection particulière
© The Gallery Mourmans
photo Erik et Petra Hesmerg

Table Paved With Good Intentions, 2005
table dessinée à la main pour Design 2005, Miami
Acier inox poli miroir découpé au laser
Signée, datée R. Arad 48 2005
139,7 x 238,8 x 38,1 cm ; environ 80 kg
Éditeur Ron Arad Associates, Londres
Collection Emmanuelle et Jérôme
de Noirmont, Paris
© Emmanuelle et Jérôme de Noirmont
photo Mathieu Ferrier

Hôtel Duomo, réaménagement, Rimini,
Italie, 2003-2005, projet réalisé
Un spectaculaire anneau d’acier poli et
luminescent occupe obliquement l’espace.
C’est le bureau de la réception.
Les 34 chambres et 9 suites sont toutes
différentes les unes des autres. Le bar
construit par Marzorati Ronchetti est
constitué d’éléments d’acier Inox découpés.
© Ron Arad Associates

Fauteuil à bascule Voido Rocking Chair,
2006
Polyéthylène de différentes couleurs
78 x 58 x 114 cm ; assise 50 cm
Éditeur Magis, Motta di Livenza, Italie
© Ron Arad Associates
photo Tom Vack