Philippe Starck (born in 1949 in Paris) is considered one of the major figures in contemporary design. Introduced to drawing and engineering from an early age by his father, an aeronautical engineer, he developed an approach in which invention, technology, and imagination remain inseparable. After attending the École Nissim-de-Camondo, he founded his first company in the late 1960s before joining Pierre Cardin as artistic director, embarking on a career that would permanently transform the international design landscape.

From the 1980s onwards, Philippe Starck profoundly renewed the language of contemporary furniture. Rejecting the opposition between industrial production and artistic creation, he conceived objects in which functionality, humour, narrative, and formal experimentation coexist. Creations such as Costes, Miss Dorn, Dr. Sonderbar, Von Vogelsang, Richard III, Prince de Fribourg, Treyer, Miss Milch, and Phil Lizner are now considered among the most important works of late 20th-century collectible design.

Alongside furniture, Philippe Starck developed an international architectural practice that has had a lasting impact on the history of hotels, restaurants, and public spaces. The Royalton, Paramount, and Delano hotels, Café Costes, Teatriz, and the Asahi headquarters in Tokyo helped establish a new approach to interior architecture, in which every piece of furniture, light fixture, and detail contributes to an overall experience.

Beyond his iconic creations, Philippe Starck advocates a deeply humanist vision of design. He promotes democratic design, accessible to as many people as possible, in which the object is never an end in itself but a tool intended to improve everyday life. This philosophy has led him to design everything from toothbrushes, armchairs, yachts, and buildings to medical objects and space projects, always guided by the same desire to simplify use and reduce the essential to its most appropriate form.

Galerie Ketabi Bourdet has been conducting extensive research into Philippe Starck’s historical furniture for several years. Through exhibitions such as Ubik and L’Esprit de la forêt, the gallery highlights the most experimental period of his practice, spanning the 1980s and 1990s, presenting rare pieces, prototypes, special commissions, and iconic creations now sought after by leading design collectors.