Untitled Architecture completes overhaul of attic apartment in Milan

Private apartment in Milan by Untitled Architecture

A metal beam, cylindrical staircase and narrow partitions are the simple solutions that Untitled Architecture has used to configure this small apartment in Milan.

Private apartment in Milan by Untitled Architecture

Occupying the attic of a residential building, the apartment’s formerly dark and cramped interior has been rationalised by Untitled Architecture to feature just a couple of structural elements.

“The project was designed in order to expand the interior space and change its perception by reshaping the existing geometry and increasing the amount of natural light,” explained the studio.

Private apartment in Milan by Untitled Architecture

Its 30-square-metre floor plan is now arranged in a simple cross-shaped formation, with key living areas pushed into the apartment’s four corners.

A central stainless-steel beam acts as an axis to the space. Adjacently lies a cylindrical staircase that leads up to the mezzanine-level bedroom, where a simple mattress has been slotted underneath the sloping ceiling.

Private apartment in Milan by Untitled Architecture

Although the majority of the staircase is white, textural interest is added by the beginning two steps which have been crafted from pale marble and the last two which are made from grey-painted timber.

“The curved shape of the stairs creates a vivid contrast with regard to the rigid geometry of the apartment,” the studio added.

Private apartment in Milan by Untitled Architecture

To optimise square footage, the studio has swapped free-standing furniture pieces for integrated cabinetry around the perimeter of the apartment.

This appears in the kitchen, which features a shiny stainless steel splashback, and in the sitting room.

Private apartment in Milan by Untitled Architecture

Surfaces throughout the apartment are rendered with white plaster to complement the light oak floors. This excludes the bathroom, where walls are clad in grid-likes tiles with blue grouting, intended as a visual nod to the balustrade and piping on the staircase.

“The choice of materials is very neutral with the aim to highlight the irregular geometry of the apartment,” said the studio.

Two existing skylights have also been expanded to let in more natural light.

Private apartment in Milan by Untitled Architecture

Untitled Architecture is headed up by Bogdan Peric and Andrey Mikhalev, and has offices in both Milan and Moscow.

It isn’t the only studio that has found alternative ways to organise small homes. Hiroyuki Ogawa Architects used sliding timber screens to create a flexible floor plan in a Tokyo flat, while architects Anna and Eugeni Back suspended a desk from the roof of a Barcelona apartment so that its inhabitants could use the mezzanine as a study.

Photography is by Giovanni Emilio Galanello.


Project credits:

Design team: Bogdan Peric (partner), Andrey Mikhalev (partner), Stefano Floris, Evgenia Sokolova
Contractor: Restauri Ancona

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Former Dyson experts designed a cordless vacuum that expels cleaner air than the air it absorbs

With a background in vacuum technology from perhaps the leading innovator in the domain, the creators of Lupe have a reputation that speaks for itself. Having previously worked at Dyson, the designers behind the Lupe are no strangers to the woes of vacuuming… be it the wires, the weak suction, the weight of the appliance, or even the fact that a powerful vacuum cleaner comes with a very hefty price tag. The Lupe Pure Cordless, a product of over three years of engineering and prototyping, is none of those things.

The guys behind Lupe say that it’s hands down the best cordless vacuum cleaner they’ve seen. A combination of an upright, cylinder, and handheld vacuum cleaner, Lupe was designed to be used anywhere, anyhow, with a battery-powered brushless motor that allows the vacuum to be used and carried anywhere, unencumbered by wires, or the lack of a nearby plug-point. Lupe’s designers and engineers also developed what they call the Suction Intensifier, a technology that aids their powerful motor by almost doubling the cleaner’s useful suction power, proverbially leaving its competition in the dust! The Lupe comes with a Japanese brushless motor that’s capable of spinning at 108,000 RPM (roughly double the speed of a jet engine), allowing you to clean your floor, rug, or sofa in a single sweep of your hand, rather than having to move to and fro.

Lupe’s powerful motor is aided by its removable battery pack that can be removed and charged separately along with the rest of your gadgets, and eventually replaced after years of use. When running, the battery gives you over 60 minutes of vacuuming on a full charge, enough to clean the entire house, and Lupe’s universal cleaning head, multi-function accessories and wand attachment give it the ability to work on rugs, floors, upholstery, stairs, ceilings, and even in your car.

The cordless vacuum cleaner comes with its own bag-less 1000cc (1 liter) bin that was designed for easy removal and cleaning (without even getting your hands dirty). The air being sucked into the Lupe goes through a HEPA filter too, trapping in not just dirt and dust but even micro-particles like pollen and allergens too, so the air coming out of the Lupe is cleaner and purer than the air going in. The HEPA filters can be removed and washed too, making them infinitely reusable.

Lupe’s design combines power, function, portability, and ease-of-use in a design that was made to last. Unlike big brands that build better products each subsequent year, rendering older models obsolete, Lupe’s design can be reused, with parts that are easy to remove and replace, and an extended warranty especially for early adopters on Kickstarter. The entire vacuum cleaner can be disassembled and stored in closets (or alternatively kept assembled and standing in a corner of your room), and Lupe’s simple interface with just four buttons means it can be used right out of the box to battle dust, dirt, grime, cobwebs, and the occasional accidental cornflakes spill anywhere, anyhow!

Designers: Lucas Horne, Pablo Montero-Cowell, Oliver Skittery & Gary Poolman

Click Here to Buy Now: $370 $599 (37% off). Hurry, less than 24 hours left! Rasied over $700,000.

Lupe Cordless Vacuum Cleaner

A premium cordless vacuum that is powerful, enduring and flexible. Created by former Dyson experts with patented technology, it offer unrivaled performance and supports upgradable design.

The Pure Cordless excels at three major factors where others are compromised.

– The patented technology delivers enduring power that cannot be matched and our unique platform delivers the rest.
– The Pure Cordless is a premium machine featuring the latest technology in brushless motors, batteries and dust collection.
– There is no better machine for gathering dust and dirt, and our HEPA filtration captures 99.97% of fine dust and allergens.

Power

Unrivaled suction power through patented technology. Lupe’s enduring suction comes from inner strength, the patented Suction Intensifier delivers the strongest and most efficient suction of any cordless out there, with no compromise in picking up any debris type.

See for yourself below how Lupe compares to the competition on an exceptional challenge of 20mm (0.8 inches) deep grooves filled with dust:

Patented Suction Intensifier Technology

Optimum pick up across different surfaces and debris types all the time, with no settings to change.

– Powerful motorized agitator for cleaning hair and deep-down dirt – great for carpet.
– Air tight rotating seal conforms to all surfaces and debris, preventing unnecessary leaks and increasing suction – great for hard floors.
– Velocity vane increases air velocity by reducing the opening on the floor surface.

Increased velocity and eliminated leaks results in up to x10 the useful suction at the cleaner head compared to some conventional designs. Doing more with less. That’s the power of pure.

Endurance

Power is nothing without endurance. Unlike other models, the pure cordless offers outstanding dust cleaning performance for a full 60 minutes.

Flexibility

The Lupe Pure Cordless is a true 3-in-1 vacuum that offers the best of all worlds wrapped into one convenient package, and has outstanding reach to high places (2m/6.5ft).

Conventional cordless stick vacuums put all the weight in your hand, Lupe’s unique format makes cleaning high easy with significantly less weight to lift.

Taking the cleaning head off to switch between configurations is really quick and easy.

Fully Capable But Smaller in Size

The design team has aimed to bring the whole-house vacuum up to date with the 21st century. The Pure Cordless is slim and convenient but packed with power.

One Cleaning Head

Rather than multiple cleaning heads, the team focused on one head capable of cleaning all surfaces, one that seamlessly moves from one surface to another. There’s no longer any need to have multiple vacuums (or multiple heads) for different tasks. Because sometimes, one head really is better than two.

Below: See How The Lupe Pure Cordless is Different

1. Battery pack removable without tools
2. Brushless motor housed in separate removable housing
3. Washable lifetime filters
4. Single service panel reveals access to motor and control PCB
5. Detachable pickup head has removable components and no PCB electronics on board
6. Dust separation system is self-contained and made from polycarbonate for exceptional durability
7. All control electronics centrally housed and re-programmable

The Pure Cordless has been expertly engineered in detail to ensure the design can stand the test of time.

Below: Features

1. Pickup Head

The most energy-efficient dust pick-up technology available intensifies the suction for deep-down cleaning across all surfaces – no settings to change. Two motorized agitators deal with any debris type – large, fine and pet hair.

Easy to remove both brush rollers simply using a coin.

2. Motor

The Japanese brushless motor spins at 108,000rpm (twice as fast as a jet engine) and has exceptional energy efficiency. It’s also exceptionally durable.

3. Cyclonic Bagless Separator

With two stages of cyclonic separation and two stages of filtration the Pure Cordless is at the cutting edge of dust separation technology. With a genuine 1000cc (1 liter) capacity the Lupe pure cordless has the one of the largest bin capacities of any cordless. Less bin emptying to get the job done quicker.

Very easy to empty.

4. Battery

The Pure Cordless 32.4V 81Wh Li-Ion battery delivers 60 minutes of powerful cleaning from one single charge. The LEDs on the front communicate accurate charge capacity remaining. The battery can be charged on the machine with no dock, or taken out and charged discretely while the machine is stowed away in a cupboard.

The Pure Cordless has 9 Murata (formerly Sony) high drain, high capacity lithium-ion cells. The battery pack is fitted with a fully featured protection board to monitor health of the battery and communicate with the control system in the Pure Cordless to always ensure optimum performance.

5. HEPA Anti-Allergy Filter

A genuine HEPA (H13) filter separating 99.97% of fine dust and allergens down to 0.3 millionths of a meter. Easy to remove and wash for optimum performance. Other brands use lower grade filters that allow 100’s of times more fine dust through.

Accessory Tools

The multi-function accessory tools are useful and not a drawer-full that clutters your home and never gets used. An upholstery tool and a crevice tool both with slide up/down bristles for dusting. The Pure Cordless is supplied with a holder to attach them to the product to save you losing them.

Simple Controls

The Pure Cordless has very simple controls to access the three power modes and to turn-off/override the brush roller for delicate surfaces.

Design

The Pure Cordless has been designed and built with two principles at heart – purity of purpose, and longevity of design.

It has been designed and built with the singular purpose of keeping your home clean, and we’ve designed it to last: no built-in obsolescence, no superseding product every year.

What’s in the Box?

– pure cordless main body
– universal pick-up head with suction intensifier technology
– lithium ion battery pack
– charger (will be territory specific)
– detachable wand
– multi-function crevice and upholstery accessory tools and on-board mount

Click Here to Buy Now: $370 $599 (37% off). Hurry, less than 24 hours left! Rasied over $700,000.

MAD designs Yiwu Grand Theater to look like a Chinese junk

Yiwu Grand Theater in Yiwu, China, be MAD architects

Architecture studio MAD has designed a theatre for the city of Yiwu, China, which will be surrounded by water and topped with “glass sails” to give it the appearance of a boat sailing on a river.

Set to be built on an island near the south bank of the Dongyang River, which flows through the city in China’s Zhejiang province, the theatre complex will consist of two theatres and a conference centre alongside a large plaza.

Yiwu Grand Theater in Yiwu, China, be MAD architects

The complex, designed by Being-based architecture studio MAD, has been created so that it will look like a ship sailing on the river.

“Positioned with the mountains in the distance as its backdrop, and the water as its stage, the design responds to its locale, and appears as a boat, floating on the river,” said the studio.

Yiwu Grand Theater in Yiwu, China, be MAD architects

The three auditoriums – 1,600 seat and 1,200 seat theatres and a conference centre – will be covered with roofs and walls made from semi-transparent planes of glass.

MAD have arranged the roofs so that they look like the sails of a Chinese junk – a type of Chinese ship that was first developed in the 2nd century and are still in use today.

“It is defined by a layering of glass sails that are reminiscent of the Chinese junks that once transported goods across the waters, while their subtle curves echo the Jiangnan-style eaves of the ancient vernacular architecture that is typical of the region,” explained the studio.

Yiwu Grand Theater in Yiwu, China, be MAD architects

The island complex is intended to be a new cultural centre and public space in the city. It will be accessed from both banks of the river – a vehicle bridge will connect the complex to the south bank, while a curved pedestrian bridge will join it to the north bank.

“The Yiwu Grand Theater has been designed as a monument for the city, that will serve to connect inhabitants to the waterfront from a new perspective,” added MAD.

Construction on the theatre will begin in 2020.

Yiwu Grand Theater in Yiwu, China, be MAD architects

MAD, which was established in Beijing by Ma Yansong in 2004, now has offices in Los Angeles, New York and Rome.

The studio is currently designing a conference centre in northeast China and recently completed a kindergarten with red rooftop playground in Beijing.

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Join Dezeen's design education chat on Twitter with #dezeenchat

Is design education broken? Dezeen editors Augusta Pownall and India Block will be taking to Twitter on 4 July at 4pm UK time to discuss the reality of design education with Dezeen readers. Join in using the hashtag #dezeenchat.

Not able to make it? Share your thoughts using the comments below and we’ll Tweet on your behalf during the chat.

The post Join Dezeen’s design education chat on Twitter with #dezeenchat appeared first on Dezeen.

Lifetime Brands of the KitchenAid, FARBERWARE fame needs an Industrial Designer

Lifetime Brands is a leading global provider of kitchenware, tableware and other products used in the home. They offer brands you trust, value without compromise and an unwavering commitment to innovation. Their products make it easier for you to prepare food, serve meals, entertain guests, and decorate your home. They market products under well-known kitchenware brands, including Farberware, KitchenAid, Sabatier, Amco Houseworks, Chef’n, Chicago Metallic, Copco, Fred & Friends, Houdini, KitchenCraft, Kamenstein, Kizmos, MasterClass, Misto, Mossy Oak, Swing-A-Way, Taylor Kitchen and Vasconia; respected tableware and giftware brands, including Mikasa, Pfaltzgraff, Fitz and Floyd, Creative Tops, Empire Silver, Gorham, International Silver, Kirk Stieff, Rabbit, Towle Silversmiths, Tuttle, Wallace, Wilton Armetale, V&A and Royal Botanic Gardens Kew; and valued home solutions brands, including BUILT NY, and Taylor. Apply now to revolutionize the culinary world.

Celebrate KitchenAid’s 100 Years of Making with a Custom Color and Heritage Inspired Design. This mixer is featured in a custom, classic color, Misty Blue, which harkens back to one of the first ever KitchenAid Stand Mixer colors introduced.

The Opportunity

Create kitchenware products based on market research and retail strategies. Evolve concept designs through a systematic process of drawing, model making, testing, and analysis. Works on a variety of projects simultaneously from concept throughout the design process. Familiar with standard concepts, practices, and procedures within the field.

Essential Job Functions

• Design products based on specifications.
• Works on large scale projects from conception through the design process.

Requirements

• Education: Bachelor’s level degree in Industrial Design
• Experience: 2 – 5 years in the field or in a related area
• Specialized Knowledge, Licenses, etc.: Adobe, Photoshop and Illustrator programs, must possess skills with solid and surface modeling in either Solidworks or Creo programs with relevant technical and illustrative abilities including sketching and overall creative design skills and ideation.
• Other Skills/Abilities: Ability to interact with users in non-technical, clear terms. Highly creative with the ability to work within the requirements of an industrial manufacturing process.

Location

Garden City, NY

Click Here to Apply Now!


Check out all the latest design openings on Yanko Design Job Board

Climate-change data turned into colourful towering totems

Alicja Biała and Iwo Borkowicz's Totemy project turns climate-change data into towering sculptures

Designer Alicja Biała and architect Iwo Borkowicz have aimed to capture the realities of climate change with these colourful Totemy towers that serve as multi-storey data visualisations.

Installed beneath MVRDV’s Bałtyk tower in Poznań, Poland, each of the six Totemy sculptures is a nine-metre-tall, geometric wooden tower.

Alicja Biała and Iwo Borkowicz's Totemy project turns climate-change data into towering sculptures

Each of the totems has been designed to communicates a statistic about an environmental issue. For instance, one totem  illustrates what has happened to every piece of plastic produced throughout history.

The sculpture is dominated by its blue top half, carved into bold geometric shapes and faintly patterned with swirls. This represents all the plastic that has been discarded as waste.

Alicja Biała and Iwo Borkowicz's Totemy project turns climate-change data into towering sculptures

Below it, slimmer sections in different colours show the fates of the remaining plastic. Green shows it is still in use; red, that it has been burnt. The slimmest section, a mere belt of yellow, represents plastic that has been recycled.

Viewers can access these explanations — as well as links to the statistics’ sources — by scanning a QR code on each sculpture.

Alicja Biała and Iwo Borkowicz's Totemy project turns climate-change data into towering sculptures

Biała said she hopes the installation, which will remain at the site permanently, will help to inject climate change into people’s conversation.

“We wanted to address the public at large, and at an everyday level,” she said. “Passersby on the street and tram will catch out of the corner of their eye a flash of strong colours and be reminded of the current state of our world.”

Alicja Biała and Iwo Borkowicz's Totemy project turns climate-change data into towering sculptures

She has been buoyed by the positive response, both locally and abroad, since Totemy opened on 16 May.

“This is particularly important within the state of discourse in Poland where many politicians and public figures manifest climate ignorance, like Polish President Andrzej Duda, who has a rich climate change denial history,” said Biała.

“The thing is that our totems are designed to represent science; you may discuss with me, but you cannot argue with facts.”

Alicja Biała and Iwo Borkowicz's Totemy project turns climate-change data into towering sculptures

Besides the plastic pollution Totemy sculpture, there is another dedicated to air pollution, one showing how much water goes into farming beef versus vegetables, one exploring over exploited fisheries and one that concentrates on wild animal populations.

Biała and Borkowicz chose statistics that would speak to Polish audience specifically. One Totemy sculpture shows the amount of annual global deforestation versus the total area of Poland — resulting in two sections of nearly equal size.

Alicja Biała and Iwo Borkowicz's Totemy project turns climate-change data into towering sculptures

Biała, who is a visual artist as well as a designer, handmade all the sculptures with help from local woodworkers. She said her workshop was open to the community throughout the process, and every Saturday they would host a discussion and show documentaries in the space.

Biała is currently studying at the Royal College of Art in London, having graduated from Denmark’s Via University College and The Copenhagen School of Design and Technology.

Her collaborator, Borkowicz, is an architect specialising in sustainable development, and won the 2016 Young Talent Architecture Award for his graduate project at the University of Leuven in Belgium.

Photography is by Alicja Biała, Iwo Borkowicz and Dominik Pazdzior.

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A screen-free smartwatch that uses light and sound to convey information

Di-fuse is a smartwatch with a difference; as opposed to relying on a distracting display to communicate information, it uses a combination of sound and light to create a productivity-inducing accessory! Simply put, this smartwatch conveys all the information you need without any screen. The removal of the conventional interface leads to a beautifully simplistic and fuss-free aesthetic that is far less visually intrusive than the devices we are currently familiar with.

However, at this point, you may be wondering what Di-fuse can be used for? Well, this wrist-worn accessory is still capable of notifying the user of social-related notifications, tracking their health status, as well as even being able to provide them with direction via voice cues. To elevate the watches desirability even further, it also features interchangeable lugs that the face satisfyingly snaps into, dramatically changes the visual aesthetic of this intriguing device!

Designer: Thomas Le

Autex opens rooftop interior acoustics showroom in London

Autex's Clerkenwell showroom promotion

Dezeen promotions: Autex has transformed a roof terrace in London into a showroom displaying its latest acoustic panels and products.

Designed in collaboration with TP Bennett director, Michelle Wilkie and senior interior designer Ben Boxshall, Autex’s Clerkenwell showroom is intended to function like a gallery, where products can be exchanged on a regular basis. It is divided into four zones and can cater for both one-on-one conversations and larger group events.

Dispersed throughout the spaces are the manufacturer’s latest interior wall and ceiling acoustics products, which showcase ways designers can use them to reduce noise in the workplace.

Autex's Clerkenwell showroom promotion
Autex’s new London showroom functions like a gallery

“The new showroom provides architects, designers and clients with the latest collection of interior acoustics solutions to reduce noise from London’s bustling workspaces,” explained Wilkie,.

“A gallery-style concept was developed to display the company’s growing range of interior wall and ceiling acoustics products.”

Autex's Clerkenwell showroom promotion
Products on display include Cube, Frontier, and the Cascade hanging panels

Products in the showroom include Cube, Frontier, and Cascade, which are all made from 100 per cent recyclable polyester. These products were selected for their sound absorbing properties and also their environmental qualities.

“A strong emphasis was placed on utilising highly sustainable materials that also contribute to a pleasant and comfortable working atmosphere for occupants,” added Wilkie.

Autex's Clerkenwell showroom promotion
The Cube range of wall coverings and panels is one of the products on display

Autex’s Cube range of decorative, lightweight and functional acoustic wall coverings are displayed throughout the showroom to provide designers with a “true feel” for their design, scale and texture in an office setting.

They are currently available in 17 colours, with set to be launched in the near future.

Autex's Clerkenwell showroom promotion
Autex’s acoustic modular acoustic ceiling system, called Frontier, is available in five styles

Meanwhile, Cascade is its range of hanging screens, which are suspended from sliders throughout the space to create different zones.

While reducing noise, they are also designed to increase privacy in open-plan environments. Cascade screens are available in an array of different patterns.

Autex's Clerkenwell showroom promotion
Material samples are available for a wide variety of the products

Another product on display is Frontier, Autex’s selection of modular acoustic systems, which can be arranged in a variety of different configurations.

It is designed for more targeted sound absorption, and is available in five styles and 17 different colours.

Established in 1967, Autex is a manufacturing and product development company specialising in textiles and advanced fibre technology.

Its London showroom is located at 61 to 67 Old Street. To find out more visit the Autex Acoustics website.

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Barend Koolhaas slots steel and basalt gallery between two Amsterdam houses

Eenwerk & Ibo by Barend Koolhaas

Barend Koolhaas created Eenwerk & IBO, a gallery and graphic design studio, by slotting a basalt and steel structure between two brick houses, in Amsterdam.

One of the 20th-century brick houses has been renovated and is occupied by the design studio, Irma Boon Office (IBO).

Eenwork, the gallery run by Boon’s partner, occupies the new structure next door.

Eenwerk & Ibo by Barend Koolhaas

From the street the old and new halves of the programme appear distinct, but they blend together internally via a series of visual and physical connections.

“For the user and the visitor the transition between the modern and the classical spaces is almost imperceptible,” said Barend Koolhaas.

Eenwerk & Ibo by Barend Koolhaas

The distinctive stepped form of the new gallery’s front facade, with its angled basalt-clad balconies, was designed to avoid blocking the windows of the adjacent IBO space.

Inside the former house the original domestic interiors have been refreshed and given new fittings to turn it into an office and library. Special curtains that can be used to darken one of the rooms for video projections have also been installed.

Eenwerk & Ibo by Barend Koolhaas

In contrast, the new gallery floors have been kept as open and transparent as possible.

“With large windows in the front and back, the gallery space’s transparency puts the context on display as well as the art,” said the architecture studio.

“From outside one can see right through the building and get a preview of the work inside.”

Eenwerk & Ibo by Barend Koolhaas

Each floor of Eenwerk is configured differently to accommodate a variety of exhibition styles.

The ground floor has north-facing windows and a garage door at the back, to allow artworks to be brought in. The middle floor has windows at both ends.

Eenwerk & Ibo by Barend Koolhaas

The top floor can function as a greenhouse space, “equally suited to growing plants and vegetables as it is for presenting work in an Arcadian setting”.

New staircases and voids in the dividing wall connect the two spaces together, so people can move around Eenwerk & IBO in a continuous loop.

Eenwerk & Ibo by Barend Koolhaas

The entrance to the gallery sits beside a new sidewalk garden designed by Dutch landscape designer Piet Oudolf.

The ubiquitous Amsterdam apartment block has recently been the subject of many modern reinventions.

In 2017, 31/44 Architects built a new house on the site of an old worker’s cottage, and the year before, WE Architecten designed a co-owned apartment block with arched brick openings.

Photography is by Iwan Baan.


Project credits:

Architect: Barend Koolhaas
Collaborators: Reinier Suurenbroek, Aura Luz Melis
Landscape: Piet Oudolf
Structural engineer: Arup

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