Snow White Plates by Antonia Astori & Ron Gilad for Driade, 2007, Set of 9

Born in Tel Aviv in 1972, designer Ron Gilad studied industrial design at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem. Between 1999 and 2001, he taught 3-D and conceptual design at the Shenkar College of Engineering and Design in Ramat Gan, Israel. He moved to New York in 2001, and cofounded the studio Designfenzider. Since 2006, he has taught at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.

Gilad’s often minimalist designs include everything from jewelry to furniture and interiors. Through his work, he consistently attempts to deconstruct the function of a given object, and in the process redefines its purpose and context. His work is included in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York’s Museum of Arts and Design, and the Tel Aviv Museum of Art, as well as multiple private collections.

Italian furniture manufacturer Driade was founded in 1968 by designers Enrico Astori, Antonia Astori, and Adelaide Acerbi. The company was built on three important principles: project planning, execution and advertising. Enrico established himself as art director, while Antonia was the designer and architect, and Adelaide was in charge of the brand’s image and communication. Their ultimate goal was to introduce experimentation into mass-produced products. Driade's early successes came through collaborations with cutting-edge Italian designers like De Pas, D’Urbino & Lomazzi, Enzo Mari, Nanda Vigo, and Lella and Massimo Vignelli. As the company grew, the roster of designers expanded internationally.

During the 1980s, Driade hired prolific French designer Philippe Starck, who designed many iconic pieces and influenced the company's general aesthetic. Iconic Driade designs by Starck include Miss Dorn Chair (1980), the three-legged Costes Armchair (1984), J. Série Lang Chair (1986), Lola Mundo Chair (1988), and Vicieuse Coffee Table (1992), to name a few.

In 1983, Driade published its first furniture manual, which was sold at news-stands. In 1988, the company moved its headquarters to a new building designed by Antonia in Fossadello, near Piacenza. In the mid-1990s, the DriadeStore collection was introduced as a collection of items for everyday living targeted at a younger demographic.

Since the beginning, Driade aimed to work with designers who were able to anticipate new lines of research and trends in order to design unique products for the home, gardens, and public spaces.  Over the course of the company’s history, Driade has collaborated with a wealth of high-profile designers, such as Atelier Oï, Ron Arad, Claudio Bellini, Iluis Clotet, Toyo Ito, Fabrio Novembre, Bořek Šípek, George Sowden, Oscar Tusquets, and Marco Zanuso Jr., among others. Notable designs include Antonia Astori’s Oikos (1972); Enzo Mari’s Delfina Chair (1979, winner of Compasso d’Oro); Alessandro Mendini’s Sabrina Sofa (1982); Bořek Šípek’s Jansky Chair (1986); Enzo Mari’s LegatoTable (2001, winner of Compasso d’Oro); Dong’s Adelaide Tableware (2008); Arad’s MT3 Rocking Chair (2008, winner of Compasso d’Oro); and Novembre’s Nemo Chair (2010).

In 2013, Driade was purchased by Italian Creation Group, an Italian industrial holding company. In 2014, architect David Chipperfield was appointed the new Art Director. In 2016, Chipperfield introduced the Driade Living Room 2016. Designers for the collection include Philippe Starck, Konstantin Grcic, Naoto Fukasawa, Lievore Altherr Molina, Fredrikson Stallard, and Ludovica+Roberto Palomba.