Studio Visit: Nigel Coates
This year designer, architect and author Nigel Coates is retiring as head of architecture at the Royal College of Art after 16 years. Here, he speaks to Crane.tv about his practice and design philosophies, including the one piece of advice he sees as crucial for students and designers alike.
Initially trained as an architect at at University of Nottingham and the Architectural Association, Coates' practice has grown into a multi disciplinary approach incorporating commercial pieces alongside experimental conceptual work.
As a designer of both lighting and furniture, he has worked with Alessi, AVMazzega, Ceramica Bardelli, Frag, Fratelli Boffi, Poltronova, Slamp and Varaschin. He has designed and built interiors, exhibitions and buildings internationally, particulary in Japan; including the Wall, Noa’s Ark and the Art Silo. In Britain, Coates' work includes the National Centre for Popular Music, Powerhouse::uk and the Geffrye Museum. Coates' work is displayed in museum collections around the world such as MOMA, FRAC and theVitra Design Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum.
'Time and motion' are key to Coates' work which he believes are 'the dynamic partner to the fixed, physical world.' Narrative has also been a long standing influence, or rather the idea of using narrative to 'overlay the real or original function of design with associative triggers.'
Says Coates:
‘I go for architecture that overlays and enhances. By blending observation and wit with reason, I want my work to generate a sense of the unexpected, and the seemingly spontaneous.’
