Interview

Stepping into Patrick Thomas??s office in Leverkusen, the first thing you notice is that it??s full of gadgets. Gadgets and art. There are headlamp clusters from the new Audi A8, a roof panel of the Smart Fortwo car, eye surgery equipment, jars of nanotubes and samples of viscoelastic foams. There are roller blades, ski snaps, audio CDs ?? including the complete symphonic works of Beethoven ?? and footballs. There are also two stunning originals by Spanish surrealist Joan Mir??.