Dezeen Magazine

No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery

No Ordinary Love project asks buyers to pay more if they want to know who made a piece

Martino Gamper and Actant Visuelle has curated an exhibition of unattributed ceramic pieces that questions the importance of identity in the design industry.

The show – which is being held at SEEDS Gallery London – operates on an unusual buying system that asks visitors to pay double the price if they want to know the designer behind each piece.

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Gamper and design studio Actant Visuelle brought together ten friends to contribute ceramics, none of who had ever collaborated before.

Designers including Max Lamb, Bethan Wood, Jochen Holz, Gemma Holt and Silo Studio created work in clay as part of a collaborative workshop, and Gamper himself has also contributed.

Each ceramic is stamped with a sun-shaped potter's mark, which acts as a collective signature for the group and ensures the author remains secret – unless buyers are prepared to pay more.

No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery

"With a collectively signed project, what happens to the authorship of designers who are already renowned and promoted by the market?" asked the gallery. "Is authorship in the design world becoming as important as it already is in the art wold?"

The ceramics on display range from two-tone plant pots and patterned vases to clay tiles and pipe-shaped decorative objects. There are also several plates hung in the gallery, which has filled its window display with a collection of the clay pieces.

Other work from each of the designers is also being shown as part of the exhibition, including glassware by Bethan Wood, neon pendant lighting by Jochen Holz and furniture by Max Lamb.

The topic of authorship has been raised a few times this year, including in the current Lisbon Architecture Triennale pavilion Form Is Form, which mishmashes the architectural styles of three studios.

No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery

Louise Schouwenberg argued in an opinion column for Dezeen that the focus on "star" individuals meant the role of collaboration was being understated.

"Each [technological] innovator has for sure taken inspiration and ideas from others, and is thus at best the co-author of a project," she wrote.

"If we look at contemporary art practices it's clear that single authorship has also become an outdated notion within this field."

SEEDS, which opened in February 2016, is a new addition to London's design galleries. It combines elements of a traditional exhibition space with a design store.

The No Ordinary Love exhibition opened on 17 September 2016 and continues until 20 January 2017.

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No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery
No Ordinary Love exhibition by Martino Gamper and friends Seed Gallery