Jonathan Ive, who Steve Job’s once described as his “spiritual partner at Apple,” and Marc Newson, a pioneering and influential industrial designer, have teamed up with Bono in the (RED) Auction to raise money through Sotheby’s for The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.
The auction, a celebratory event of the very best in design and innovation, features a spectrum of objects curated by both Ive and Newson, including a Steinway & Sons “Red Pops for (RED)” Model A Piano, 18 karat Solid Rose Gold Apple Earbuds, and in reverence to the sublime, a Russian cosmonaut suit.
Created with Neal Feay
“It’s been a thrilling journey for Jony and me to curate this collection of pieces that celebrate extraordinary design that we love, that transcends all boundaries of time and place. These objects were each conceived to resolve a singularly focused challenge, yet have subsequently achieved a cultural significance that’s above and beyond their initial functionality. Each object and the process of creating it conveys a rich set of human values, so it seems fitting that they should be auctioned with a different sense of human value in mind, to raise as much as possible to help people’s lives today,” said Marc Newson. “We’d like to thank our partners for their sincere generosity and for giving so gladly and willingly.”
Newson and Ive also worked on a completely new and original design which will be the highlight of the auction: a 1.5 ton aluminum desk produced by Neal Feay at the firm’s studio in Santa Barbara, California. Equal parts sturdy, beautiful, and practical, the desk is a collaborative effort that has been many years in the making.
Created with Neal Feay
Lofty in presence and sleek in appearance, the table has paper-thin edges and a cellular pattern on its surface, comprised of 100 unit blocks that fit together like the perfect puzzle. Its cubist surface and Space Age stance make it a completely original and refined piece, including chamfered edges likened to the iPhone 5. Using CNC Machining, the same method by which MacBook’s are encased into a single shell, the aluminum was shaped into a uniform piece of furniture.
“We call it a desk because it may be the object’s most practical function, if it had one, but we really wanted to just create a beautiful object that had its own particular presence in a space by virtue of the way it was made, and the materials used to make it,” says Newson.
Created with Neal Feay
Speaking with Vanity Fair recently, Jon Ive said he thought the chair would bring in $6 million or more. The piece, which is a testament to 15 years of friendship between both Newson and Ive, will surely be breaking some of Sotheby’s records.
Jony and Marc’s (RED) Auction will take place at Sotheby’s in New York on November 23.
