Rihards Funts. Born in 1978. Graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in functional design from the Latvian Academy of Art in 2007. Further study at the Academy’s Scenography Department (2005–2006). Graduated from the Interior and Graphic Design Department of the Riga School of Arts and Crafts (1997). Worked in the graphic workshops of Einārs Kvilis and Ilze Lībiete. Active participant in international and student design exhibitions. Gained first place in the branding competition organised by the Riga City Council agency Mežaparks (2007) and in competition for the “Monument to the First Animated Latvian Film” organised by the Latvian Animation Association. One of the founders of the design workshop Rijada (2006, www.rijada.lv).
The presentation of his graduation work turned out to be a tempestuous occasion. Splashing water flooded the parquetry of the hall of the Academy of Art, his friends circled around his graduation work with bowls. The author pessimistically interpreted this technical failure as a bad omen. This is because the maximalist Funts had insisted that he would not finish university with a pretty fantasy model which was unencumbered by technical considerations, but would develop his object to the prototype stage. In this way, he raised the level of difficulty for himself considerably. The procedure of the presentation was rousing, as finally something live was happening in the halls of the academy: something real, which was worth discussion. Particularly taking into account the academy’s favouring of smoothly spoken presentations, of which no one ever hears anything, as there are no microphones. It is rumoured that the closed meeting of the examination committee was also tempestuous and Funts was labelled an antifunctionalist.
In conversation with Funts (his surname – stylish), he punctuates every second sentence with a perplexed hand gesture: “well, you probably shouldn’t write that.” The only moment he flares up is when talking about ‘antifunctionalism’: “All of my works are functional!” And my mind clings to this axis unexpectedly and begins to revolve around it. In reality, the artist is a ‘conceptualist’ and ‘antifunctionalist’. Funts finished the functional design department with a functioning, contemporary ecological object, while some group members presented sculptures. When disassembled, the garden shower can be loaded into a VW Passat station wagon, the sun heats the water in a tank, the shower base is made from recycled materials, with wooden legs. It is designed to stand as an independent element in a rural landscape. There is only one ‘antifunctional but’. The water supply is not automatic, if it doesn’t rain then the user has to take a stool to climb up and fill the water tank with a bucket. A design that makes you work. And at this moment my thoughts stick to the question about the significance of design. Does every function of a designed object have to be pared back to requiring a minimum of effort, as is always assumed? I recently re-read a fantasy book written by a Soviet Russian author in the 1950s, in which the author imagined life in 1800 years time. Humans all spoke Russian, which had been enriched with elements from other languages. Everyone dressed the same, atomic airplanes were controlled not even by human’s needs, but just their desires, there were no social concerns at all, no limit to food, you only had to wish something and it would appear. I became anxious, and it wasn’t because of the Russian language. Human bodies should be freed of large physical movements, so that they could have the potential for creative flights or at least healthy activities. I have the suspicion, however, that in the time gained, the subject would be staring at Eurovision on television or in the best case scenario visit a shopping centre. The average human body is lazy and, let’s be honest: the spirit is pretty lazy too. How big is the potential of the ecological design of the idealist and thinker Funts with its planned physical effort – and how ‘conceptual’ is this, containing an encoded message? Germans sort their rubbish feverishly; Scandinavians have understood the significance of unbleached toilet paper. People enjoy novel activities from time-to-time. Rihards Funts definitely wants to work in design and within his country. Latvian design has enough art. Who knows if this is a failing or a trump card?