Design in Aluminium

Aluminium was not discovered and named until the year 1808, in 1827 scientists solved the problem of how to extract it. Aluminium was light, clean, durable and soft enough to be modelled into complex shapes, and was hailed as a wonder material. Initially aluminium was only available in small quantities, the price of aluminium was higher than the price of gold. It was not until 30 years later that a new, more efficient extraction process was discovered, a process which is still in use today. Within ten years the aluminium price fell by 90 per cent. In the Twenties aluminium was marketed as the material of modernity. It was used for trucks, motorbikes, cars, bicycles, buses, aircraft and caravans, in other words streamlined vehicles on land, on the water and in the air: In association with speed the lightweight material experienced a gigantic upswing during this decade. At the start of the twentieth century modern designers were seduced by its high-tech surface finish. Between 1940 and 1960 large numbers of international elite designers such as Marcel Breuer, Gio Ponti and Charles and Ray Eames experimented with this cult material. This was followed by a quieter period for the lightweight metal, and its use came to be taken for granted. However, for over ten years now it seems that aluminium has been rediscovered, for example by Jorge Pensi, Philippe Starck and Marc Newson.