The Connection Collection

January 2010

HSBC Private Bank confirms its commitment to design by launching The Connection Collection, a private collection of limited edition design to grow out of HSBC Private Bank commissions. The Connection Collection debuted with a new work by Arik Levy, in an edition of two. Levy’s design had been launched at Design Miami/ 2009 in the HSBC Private Bank Designers’ Lounge, a dedicated area for VIPs at the pre-eminent international fair for limited edition design.

The Connection Collection takes inspiration from HSBC Private Bank’s truly international philosophy to open doors and make connections for clients around the world. HSBC Private Bank has been supporting design since 2006 when it became principal sponsor and partner of Design Miami/. The Connection Collection therefore also marks a natural evolution of the bank’s commitment to facilitating connections and nurturing talent in the design world.

For the first commission of The Connection Collection, Arik Levy was asked to create something that expressed the notion of how people connect. The result is a new, modular shelving system composed from wood and laminated steel and accompanying seating arrangement which can be split into two elements.

RockSplit and RockShelves by Arik Levy, photography by Richard Patterson

This is an extension of Levy's acclaimed Rock series featuring multifaceted rock-like structures. Following Design Miami/, Arik Levy’s installation will be displayed at HSBC Private Bank offices in Geneva.

Levy’s vision to HSBC Private Bank was not only that they should create their own collection but also to create a timeless trace by publishing a book of the project. "Exhibitions are often brief and books stays forever, like ideas" says Arik. By bringing together Libby Sellers and Asaf Gottesman as writers, and Robert Violette as publisher and adviser, Levy made this publication become a bridge, or connection, that enables the project to be seen by a wide audience.

Written by Libby Sellers, founder of Gallery Libby Sellers, Asaf Gottesman, an architect and the founder of Gottesman-Szmelcman Architecture with offices in Paris and Israel, and Arik Levy, the book explores on one hand Levy’s inspiration and interpretation of what 'connection' means to him in the context of his practice and on the other the evolution of ideas. HSBC Private Bank shares Levy’s view that personal connections make possible the dreams of established and emerging talents in all spheres of life, and The Connection Collection aims to recognise such works in the field of design.

Asaf Gottesman gives a commentary on Levy’s creations, which he describes as "… works in progress. Complete in themselves, they also serve as stepping stones in a creative journey that is rational and unexpected at the same time." Gottesman sees Levy’s latest works, RockSplit and RockShelves, as a particularly brave step - the work of a mature artist who celebrates ambiguity.

Arik Levy looks at his Rock series and how it has evolved and what it represents. RockShelves is the first piece where the Rock is combined with another element – slices of American walnut in this case – to be come a new thing, a kind of 'buckle' for the never-ending loop of possibilities set out on the following pages of Rock evolution.

The Connection Collection / Volume 1 will be the first in a series accompanying future design commissions.

RockSplit and RockShelves by Arik Levy, photography by Richard Patterson

The Connection Collection will grow and evolve out of a passion for groundbreaking design and a desire to support innovation, from both established names and emerging talent.

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