Talking Roots

Design Talk with Stefano Pilati, Louise Neri, Stefano Tonchi, David Adjaye

Today’s Design Miami/ Design Talk moderated by W magazine’s Stefano Tonchi was entitled:  Heritage & Identity. Architect David Adjaye, Stefano Pilati (the Creative Director for Yves Saint Laurent), and Gagosian Gallery’s Lousie Neri discussed how our roots influence our art, design, architecture and fashion.

Early on in the conversation, Adjaye revealed he wanted to be a chemist growing up and Pilati said he wanted to be an architect.   They both found themselves in different places professionally, but say their early experiences shaped their creative perspectives.

Adjaye’s parents are from Ghana, but he was born in Tanzania.  By the time he was a teenager, he was living in Europe.  “I was lucky to experience different influences growing up.  I lived and experienced African, Islamic and European architecture – all before I was fourteen,” said Adjaye.

Pilati grew up in fashion’s Mecca – Milan.   He knows his roots are a part of his creative DNA.  “Heritage is something that is a big part of my life.  I grew up when ‘Made in Italy’ began to mean something around the world.   In Milan, you can breathe fashion everywhere,” said Pilati.

Both Adjaye and Pilati are profoundly aware that their heritage and identity influence their work, but they both agree current environments and current experiences have a lot to do with it too.

Pilati commented:  “To create for the future you have to look at the past and be respectful of the past.  You also have to look at the present.  I don’t think my design is French or Italian.   My focus is to design something with relevance.   But at the same time, I wouldn’t be able to design for Yves Saint Laurent if I didn’t live in Paris.   I need to be a part of that culture and language.”

Adjaye believes “we are actually creatures of our environment.” Where we’ve been and where we are now, matters.  He says “the atmosphere and light of a place impacts the work.”   For Adjaye, the work changes based on one’s relationship to the place.   “In my work, I try to question the assumptions [when I start working somewhere new] and evolve from there.”