CzechDesign.cz

DuPont – 27.04.2004

Ron Arad talks about what inspired him to create “Lo-rez-dolores-tabula-rasa”.

Why the name – “Lo-rez-dolores-tabula-rasa”?

It’s ‘Lo-rez’ because that’s the effect you’ll get when you look at the movies and images shown through Corian® – a low-resolution image…. ‘dolores’ is just the name of a woman – Lores Dolores… and ‘tabula rasa’ meaning a blank slate, no memory, no trace.

What inspired you to create this installation?

Well, I’ve been talking to Corian® for a while. And I decided that if I was going to do something in this material, it had to be really adventurous – experimental. So this installation takes one of the qualities of Corian® - its translucency – and really shows what you can do with that, in a way that has never been done before. We’ve tried to exploit all the qualities of Corian®. The ‘Oh-Void’ chairs show the way it can be bonded seamlessly in a more interesting way. I’ve seen pieces of Corian® inlayed in stripes, but I’ve never seen this technique done before – so that you end up with fine lines like topographical lines on a map. So Corian® itself was a major source of inspiration. “As for the technology we’ve used, what inspired me there was that when you look at any LCD screen, if it’s not switched on, it’s like a black hole – very dense. But this way, we can have a tactile, perfect white wall, which is beautiful in itself. You can always tell projection, you can always tell a plasma screen, but I don’t think you’ve ever had a real surface like this that has the ability to show films and images, and I think it will be very exciting to witness this experience.

Then, of course, I wanted this installation to entertain people. So what we’re showing will hopefully do that. There’s a special film made for the installation by young London film-makers The Light Surgeons which should be interesting.

What reaction do you hope to provoke in your audience with this installation?

Well, this is highly experimental. And the word ‘experimental’ contains an element of risk and the real possibility of failure. It’s like everything you do. Every book you write or film you make – you can’t anticipate exactly the effect it will have on people. But I’m certainly hoping that people will be entertained, amazed and fascinated by this – just like any other piece of work I do.

And I hope it prompts questions about how we did it. This time, we won’t be showing the back of the wall - that’s going to be a mystery - but maybe in the future, that would be interesting to show.

Did you consider using other materials for this installation?

It would have worked in other materials – concrete, for example. But you wouldn’t get the smooth, tactile surface that way.

Has this project changed your view of Corian®?

One thing I have to say is that I have definitely warmed up to Corian®. I used to view it as an expensive option, but I’ve used other similar materials in the past, and you can always tell Corian®. There’s a definite man-made feel to it – it’s not imitating other materials – and it’s warm to the touch. It has certainly penetrated the practice now. It’s in our minds.