Marc Newson Unveils Striking Marble Console and New Designs at Gagosian Gallery

Renowned designer Marc Newson has captivated audiences with his latest exhibition at the Gagosian Gallery, featuring a stunning new marble console and a collection of innovative designs. The show highlights Newson's continued exploration of classical materials fused with cutting-edge technology, resulting in pieces that are both sculptural and functional.

Key Takeaways

• Marc Newson's first solo show in Greece featured the "Extruded Ribbon Console," his first marble design in 15 years.
• The console utilizes the deep blue Azul Macaubas stone, reimagined in Greece's national colors.
• Newson's work consistently blends traditional materials with advanced technology and historical techniques.

The Extruded Ribbon Console

The centerpiece of the exhibition is the "Extruded Ribbon Console," a remarkable piece crafted from a single slab of deep blue Azul Macaubas stone. This design marks Newson's return to marble after a 15-year hiatus and was created for his first solo exhibition in Greece at Gagosian Athens. The console's curvilinear form is conceived as a ribbon extruded into three dimensions, creating a sinuous loop that defines the table's profile. This design is a continuation of forms explored in his "Lathed and Extruded" furniture series.

For this particular piece, Newson opted for the Brazilian Azul Macaubas stone over the more traditional Carrara and Bardiglio marbles. The choice was deliberate, aiming to evoke Greece's national colors of blue and white. His studio noted that Azul Macaubas was selected for its specific blue hue and its material qualities, such as robustness and durability, likening it to marble as a noble material with a classic and mythical aura.

The console, CNC-milled, showcases Newson's ongoing experimentation in pairing classical materials with technology to highlight the material's technical potential. A striking feature revealed in the stone's cross-section is a deep indigo spot surrounded by a white ring, which Newson has recontextualized as an "evil eye"—a potent apotropaic symbol deeply embedded in Greek tradition. This naturally occurring motif is unique to the first edition, with subsequent consoles in the limited edition of three likely to vary due to the inherent variances of natural stone.

A Symphony of Blue and White

Beyond the console, the exhibition also presented several other new works in a blue and white colorway. Variations of the "cloisonné chair and lounge" were adorned with Newson's signature circular "orgone" motif, executed using an ancient enameling technique. The "Murrina White & Blue Table" features a top with a dense blue-dotted pattern, created using the historic Mediterranean murrine technique. This method involves fusing and slicing multicolored glass canes to reveal their intricate cores, artfully mimicking the molecular structures found in the cross-section of the Azul Macaubas stone.

Newson's Artistic Vision

Marc Newson's approach to design is characterized by an experimental exercise in extreme structure and advanced technologies, coupled with a tactile exploration of materials, processes, and skills. His broad reach as an industrial designer spans concept jets, cars, watches, and aircraft interiors. Alongside his mass-production work, he has consistently produced beautifully crafted, limited-edition furniture since the outset of his career. In a landscape where the lines between art and design are increasingly blurred, Newson stands out as a trailblazer, having pursued parallel activities in exclusive and mass production for over two decades.

Sources

• Marc Newson’s new marble console, Domus Web.
• Marc Newson at Gagosian Gallery in London, Dezeen.