Sir Arthur Charles Clarke was undoubtedly one of the most influential science fiction writers of the 20th century. His vivid imagination and visionary ideas revolutionised the genre, inspiring generations of readers and writers. He spent the first half of his life in England, where he served in World War Two as a radar operator, before emigrating to Ceylon in 1956. He is best known for the novel and movie 2001: A Space Odyssey, which he co-created with the assistance of Stanley Kubrick.

Dieter Rams, an iconic figure in product design, revolutionised the industry with his minimalist and functional approach. His work at Braun and his 'Ten Principles of Good Design' continue to inspire and shape contemporary design thinking. Rams is credited with the memorable phrase “Weniger, aber besser,” which translates to “Less, but better.” He is widely regarded as a major influence on Apple's best-selling products and is recognised as one of the most important industrial designers of the 20th century.

George Nelson is often referred to as one of the founders of American modernism, and with good reason. Together with Charles & Ray Eames, Harry Bertoia, Eero Saarinen and the talented designers in his New York studio, he ushered in a new style of design that would change the way we dress our homes forever. While heading up his studio, George Nelson Associates, he gifted the world the Coconut Chair, Marshmallow Sofa, Bubble Lamps and an impressive 130 clock designs.

Joe Colombo was an Italian designer, artist and architect who created many of the most iconic Italian designs, despite coming to the profession only late in his life. In a brief but successful career, Joe Colombo produced highly innovative objects, which made him into one of the most influential product designers in Italy at the time.

François-Xavier and Claude Lalanne were a husband-and-wife team of artists who created inventive and often surprising works, widely admired and collected since the 1960s. Throughout their careers, they sculpted a playful menagerie of monkeys, ducks, fish, and especially sheep. Their pieces blur the line between fine art and decorative objects, having been exhibited in numerous galleries worldwide and sold for seven figures at auctions.

Every so often, there comes a man who is able to see the universe in a new way, whose vision upsets the very foundations of the world as we know it. With his ideas still informant, Albert Einstein was 22 years old when he sat out alone on foot across the Alps. In his youthful passage through the mountains he longed to grasp the hidden design, the underlying principles of nature. Throughout his life, Einstein would look for harmony, not only in his science but in the world of men. The world wanted to know Albert Einstein and yet he remained a mystery to those who only saw public face and perhaps to himself as well. However, the next 7 practical life lessons can reveal Einstein’s way of thinking.

Max Bill was a great Swiss polymath: an artist, architect, industrial designer, graphic designer, and teacher. He attended the Bauhaus where he was taught by Josef Albers, László Moholy-Nagy, Paul Klee, Wassily Kandinsky and Oskar Schlemmer. Bill remained closely associated with the Bauhaus school and was a key figure in developing and propagating its principles, especially through his professorship at the Kunstgewerbeschule Zürich and as a founder of the Ulm School of Design.

The Bauhaus was arguably the single most influential modernist art school of the 20th century. Its approach to teaching, and to the relationship between art, society, and technology, had a major impact both in Europe and in the United States long after its closure under Nazi pressure in 1933. The Bauhaus was influenced by 19th and early-20th-century artistic directions such as the Arts and Crafts movement, as well as Art Nouveau and its many international incarnations, including the Jugendstil and Vienna Secession.