Markus Benesch

ed: What did you do last Sunday?

mb: I picked up a friend in Milan and drove with her at 5 o clock in the early morning to the ligiurian seaside to spend a day on my clients boat - having a wonderful breakfast and then enjoying the day: fishing, chatting, discussing some topics with my client and making silly pictures.

ed: How important is fashion to you and what’s your favorite piece of clothing?

mb: It catches my eye once fashion is innovative or blue. I love jackets in general - my favourite piece is the classic "Hamburger Friesennerz", a yellow/blue raincoat- its so refreshingly anti-fashion. Couple of years ago Mandarina Duck launched a fashion line made of papyrus paper: trousers and coats - great stuff, unfortunately they stopped that line after a year.

ed: What book or film would you recommend and why?

mb: Film: Jacques Tati : Mon Oncle Why? Go see it! It`s so much fun! It`s all about the representational aspect of architecture or design- focusing only on the shortlasting omnipotential power of superficial aesthetics... It should be obligatory for each architect or design student to watch that film. Book: Ayn Rand - The Fountainhead. It describes well the steps of a young carreer and a body of work which was too early for its times.

ed: You have the chance to initiate a cultural revolution. What will you do?

mb: Free people`s mind of uniformity and idea of copying. I would like that people start to enjoy again the act of creation - to trust their own unique creations. That would make life interesting and so much more fun - instead of following the fashion of the day. By nature children are doing this playfully - that ability we should try to captivate and build on it.

ed: What is your favorite travel destination and what hotel/resort should everyone visit at least once in their lifetime?

mb: My own imagination - which I consult myself when I am in search of a good idea. Everyone should at least once in a lifetime visit his or her mind in a peaceful moment.

ed: What was in your opinion the biggest ever faux pas in architecture/design/art/fashion?

mb: Well, I usually never judge architecture or design or art pieces by good or bad - I only decide for myself if I am interested in it or not. Instead, I could give you many examples I find particularly interesting or a great pieces.

ed: Who has influenced you the most?

mb: Gyro Gearloose - the crazy inventor from Walt Disney`s Micky Mouse. In Germany he`s called Daniel Düsentrieb, in Italy: Archimede.

ed: How would you define “cultural identity”?

mb: The cultural identity according to me is the mental fabric, woven out of tradition, experiences and studies. That I would like to describe as the basic cloth, then it gets here and there some embroidery of new beliefs, some patches of freshly acquired principles and insights. The beauty of it that this cloth can be tailored into anything you want it to be and combined also with other fabrics of cultural identity.

ed: When is an idea a “good” idea?

mb: The idea is a good one when it`s: - innovative - new or at least interpreted in an unknown fresh way - helping to improve people´s life in direct or indirect fashion - inspiring and lead to other ideas - making you cry of joy

ed: And last but not least: you are entitled to a single question. What would you ask?

mb: Why are you doing that?