Borek Sipek

BOREK SIPEK (Prague, Czech Republic, 1949-2016) for DRIADE.
Fountain or tray "Bernard", 1990.
Delft porcelain glazed in blue and white.
Made by Koninklijke Porceleyne Fles, Delft for Driade, Caorso.
With porcelain stamp.
With its box.
Measurements: 10 x 53 x 34,5 cm.

Tray model Bernard designed by Borek Sipek. His style is recognizable in the organicist solutions that he prints to the molded and mixtilinear eaves. Sipek has become one of the key figures of postmodernist design craftsmanship, not only for the success achieved by his creations, but also for the role he played in safeguarding the Czech glass industry. His unique and unparalleled language abandons the label of "neo-baroque", crossing national borders and becoming a benchmark in the international market. In its apparent random mix of styles from different eras and materials hides a study based on calculation and technical innovation. In this way, organic shapes combine with sharp corners and edges, while the multiplicity of materials used (metal, leather, porcelain, blown glass, etc.) give his creations a unique and totally transgressive character.
Decorated Borek Sipek trained in interior design at the School of Arts and Crafts in Prague. He completed his studies in Architecture at the University of Applied Arts in Hamburg and Philosophy at the Technical University of Stuttgart, later establishing his design studio in Amsterdam in 1983. In the 1980s he began collaborating with Driade, for whom he designed furniture and objects characterized by their tremendous originality, a collaboration that was decisive for the success of his career. At Driade he became one of the brand's main collaborators alongside Philippe Starck, Oscar Tusquets and Antonia Astori. He was later one of the initiators of the construction of the Ajeto glass factory to support the traditions of Bohemian glassblowing, where the best craftsmen were dedicated to the creation of high-end pieces. He firmly entered Milan's design circles, where he was invited to collaborate with Alessi, Cleto Murani, Sawaya & Moroni, Wittmann and the Swiss brand Vitra. In the late 1980s, he traveled to Asia, where he became acquainted with the Japanese polychrome lacquer technique: he created an atypical Urushi Arai collection, where his usual techniques for glass were rendered in wood. Throughout his career he has received numerous awards, including the honorable mention in the German Architecture Prize (1983), the Dutch Kho Liang Le Dutch Kho Liang Design Award (1989), La Croix Chevalier dans l'ordre des Arts et Lettres by the French government (1991), the Prince Bernhard Fonds Award for Architecture and Applied Arts of the Netherlands (1993) and the Talent De L'Originalite" - Le Sommet du Luxe et de la Creation award, among others. Between 1990 and 2003 he held the title of court architect of Prague Castle appointed by Václav Havel, president of the former Czechoslovakia, later the Czech Republic.