Hasta La Ideas

Just a stool characterized by a clear and simple form language. Inspired on the mathematic π-sign. Use it as a stool, a small table or as a night s..

Communist-era woodturning from a master Czech craftsman

by Adam Štěch

American artists like J. B. Blunk, Wendell Castle and Jack Rogers Hopkins are established heavyweights in the world of design and certainly represent the “haute couture” style of woodworking, but Czech master craftsman and turner Antonín Hepnar continues to work in relative anonymity behind the former Iron Curtain from his studio in the small village of Čakovičky near Prague.

Working in the art of woodturning since the 1950s, Hepnar is a unique creative mind in a local design scene traditionally associated with glass and porcelain. According to the artist and designer, wood is the most important material in our lives. “Man is born into the wooden cradle, sits on the wooden chair his whole life, and dies into the wooden coffin,” says Hepnar.

Thanks to his philosophy and love for wood, Hepnar has created various turned objects throughout his career. His vases, bowls, candlesticks and lamps, as well as large sculptural objects or realizations for architecture and interiors have been produced exclusively on the spinning axis of the lathe, a primitive and genial machine with seemingly never-ending possibilities.

Hepnar was a very productive artist during the former Communist era through the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s, making functional and decorative home accessories for the only Czech design gallery at the time—Dílo. Inspired by Baroque, modernism and folk art, his objects represented traditional craft with a modern edge. He sold well—and very quickly—due to the lack of quality aesthetic objects available at the time.

After a series of exhibitions devoted to Hepnar in Prague, his work has become well-known and now, the master craftsman is at work once again. Next to his own re-issued editions of popular products, such as his lovely 1950s Amanita lamp, or the striking abstract owl decorative sculpture from 1983, he continues to discover new possibilities in the world of woodmaking. His latest “Bosáž” series of bowls made of very thin turned wood and deformed by steam is a handcrafted gem.

Antonín Hepnar sells his work in the Prague-based DOX by Qubus concept store.

Images courtesy of Jaroslav Moravec, Matěj Činčera, Antonín Hepnar archive and the Phillips de Pury Archive.

Though we may yet see the golden days of business again, I think I can safely say that time is, unfortunately, in the distant future. In this “multi-colored age of entrepreneurship,” businesses must be more creative than ever when developing a brand strategy, and they shouldn’t neglect their looks—a major part of that strategy is a visual identity.

Gestalten’s recent publication Introducing: Visual Identities for Small Businesses profiles 151 business identities by 89 designers from all over the world, investigating start-ups and small business owners who know that “branding is personal identification as much as it is public presentation” and who have used a strong visual identity to drive their business. The kinds of businesses profiled range from bespoke perfumeries and bike shops to well known restaurants and bars.

Anna Day and Ellie Jauncy worked in the fields of fashion design and illustration before they founded a full-service flower shop. Jon Cantino and Matt Gorton quit their design studio to establish their own clothing line. Daniel Martnavarro teamed up with his sister, the designer Rocio Martinavarro, to develop a meaningful identity for his bakery shop. And the designers of the Studio Goodmorning Technology develop and sell bicycle parts under the label of a side project that they branded themselves.

The vis-id tome is split into four chapters according to aesthetic:
Sunny Side Up – a clean white slate with bright logos and lettering
Pretty Straight – black, white and gray color palettes with minimal text and linear forms
Everlasting – vintage-inspired
With a Twist – experimental, image-based, humorous or unusual materials

Amongst the best brand identities is the Amsterdam ice cream shop Frozen Dutch, designed by Ewoudt Boonstra. “Like the artistic movement De Stijl, Frozen Dutch stands for elementarism—in this context pure flavors and honest brand communications. The logo is the shape of an ice cream scoop, its colors are those of different flavors and the business card in an ice cream stick.” The packaging speaks to the product itself. The only marking on the stark white ice cream container is a sticker with only the most straight forward product information printed with the color of the ice cream flavor, a clear indication to the consumer that Dutch Frozen adds no fillers or synthetic ingredients to their product and, likewise, to their product design.

The aforementioned Studio Goodmorning Technology‘s branding for Copenhagen Parts takes the cake in the Pretty Straight chapter. The stop sign red color and missing vowels in the brand name not only give you an idea of what the company is about, but it also performs a second task. In 2009 Copenhagen Parts wanted to expand their brand without weakening “their credibility as a supplier to the underground bicycle community. The result is a playful typographic interpretation of bike culture: Real bicycle connoisseurs are always on the lookout for special parts. Their bikes are subjects of an ongoing process of deconstruction and recombination and are never complete.” It’s win-win. Loyal bikers don’t feel like their beloved local shop has sold out and Copenhagen Parts can bring in bigger clients – and how can you not love that Christmas card?

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Réalisée par Marc Reisbig chez Passion Pictures, voici une vidéo de promotion de l’évolution de l’aéroport d’Oslo d’ici l’année 2017. Avec une animation en stop-motion, la vidéo prône les améliorations de l’aéroport avec poésie et élégance. A voir dans la suite.

Lead Product Designer
ASTRO Studios
San Francisco, California

ASTRO Studios—a performance-driven studio focused on the intersection of lifestyle, technology and design—is currently reviewing at LEAD PRODUCT DESIGNER portfolios. Lead Designers at ASTRO set the creative pace on multiple programs and at times, lead other designers and outside collaborators. All designers must be able to present strong points of view via killer visual & verbal skills to ASTRO teams and clients alike. In addition to collaborating on design, designers must have the ability to hit schedule & budget goals and support other design teams as needed.

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The best design jobs and portfolios hang out at Coroflot.

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