Many times the simplest and most pretensions design It is the one that survives in time. This is the case of the work of a lifetime of Jaime Gutiérrez Lega (Bucaramanga, 1932), who is, in turn, synonymous with the origin of the Colombian industrial design.
«I went to study art to the United States and discovered what at that time were the 'applied arts' – more and more would be called industrial design – and I realized that with this career could solve real problems of everyday life In a country as needed with practical solutions as Colombia, and I went along that way, ”said the teacher about the beginning of his prolific career.
When transforming the traditional buitron design of the fireplace, the designer cleaned the space and added air.© Mónica Barreneche Olivares. Rights reserved.
Gutiérrez Lega is a Contemporary Renaissance that – through architecture, art, sculpture, design and archeology – has militated for a philosophy of life that breaks with traditional structures and with which he himself preaches: «Everything that does not happen by chance, happens by design.»
Its most recognized and that has endured in time is the Ovejo chairwhich according to Jaime is a reflection of a lifestyle that is gradually faded; of a past life of slow time and noble materials. Gutiérrez Lega also designed pieces for editors such as Herman Miller, Gercol, Arteco, Ervico, Camacho Roldán And your own company, Multidiseños. During the sixties, seventy and eighties, Jaime was a fundamental piece in the development of Colombian industrial design, which would later be drastically stopped with the arrival of the Chinese industry to the country.
The Ovejo chair is one of the most important design pieces in Latin America.© Mónica Barreneche Olivares. Rights reserved.