Sam Chermayeff: Beasts follows the Berlin-based architect and designer's previous collection, Creatures, to document a new series of objects that deliberately collapse typological boundaries — a chair becomes an umbrella stand, a wardrobe a place to smoke or apply make-up.
About This Book
Where most designer monographs document form, Sam Chermayeff: Beasts documents behaviour. The objects gathered here — fabricated from galvanised steel and mirrored surfaces — are conceived not as discrete products but as stages: each piece choreographs the space between itself and the person using it. Printed on glossy paper with metallic stamping throughout, the book's own materiality mirrors the collection's concerns. An extended interview between Chermayeff and curator Alexandra Cunningham Cameron excavates the philosophy underpinning the work, while an introduction by architect and editor Jack Self approaches these objects from the position of someone who simply loves them. Photography by Jeroen Verrecht locates the pieces both on the streets of Barcelona and within a gallery installation context.
Key Features
- 64 pages of glossy photography plus a 12-page design index booklet, with metallic stamping throughout
- Introduction by architect and editor Jack Self; extended interview with Chermayeff by curator Alexandra Cunningham Cameron
- Photography by Jeroen Verrecht, shot on the streets of Barcelona and at Side Gallery
- Published by Apartamento, 2020
What You'll Discover
- How Chermayeff deliberately merges furniture typologies — chair, umbrella stand, wardrobe, vanity — into hybrid objects that resist single-use categorisation
- The role of galvanised steel and mirrored surfaces in shaping both the aesthetic and the experiential quality of the Beasts series
- Jack Self's personal critical account of what it means to have an emotional and intellectual attachment to designed objects
- How Verrecht's photography shifts meaning across two contexts — street and gallery installation — revealing how site inflects the reading of each piece
About the Author
Sam Chermayeff is a Berlin-based architect and designer whose practice extends across furniture, objects, and spatial design. Beasts follows his previous project-turned-book Creatures, published by Apartamento in 2020. The book features contributions from architect and editor Jack Self and curator Alexandra Cunningham Cameron.
Specifications
- Format: Paperback
- Pages: 64 + 12-page index
- Dimensions: 300 x 180mm
- Language: English
- ISBN: 9788409389841
- Publisher: Apartamento
- Publication Date: 2020
Perfect For: Architects and designers interested in the intersection of furniture design and spatial theory, collectors of Apartamento publications, and anyone drawn to design objects that operate as mise-en-scène rather than mere utility.