Hasta La Ideas

With former Droog co-founder Gijs Bakker at the creative helm, Taiwanese design collective Yii is sure to steal the show at the upcoming exhibit “Asia Now: Exploring Design Culture” curated by Designboom.

Kicking off tomorrow in L.A., “Asia Now” is a major part of this year’s Dwell on Design events. In addition to the objects from Yii (pictured exclusively here), the exhibition showcases the works from ten other Asian countries—such as Korean designer Kwangho Lee’s “Obsession” chair (top left), the “Handbag” kettle from Indonesia’s Jesika Karina Tirtanimala (top right), Singapore studio Cilicon Faytory’s “Coconut Fibre Furniture” (above) and the “Venice Fly Swatter” by China’s Monica Tsang (bottom).

“One unifying aspect of Asian design is that it is sometimes more impacted by beliefs and religion than Western design is,” explains Designboom editor-in-chief Birgit Lohmann, who also points that the differences lie in the varied materials and styles used from one country to the next.

“Sometimes we associate Asia in general with copies of original designs that were conceived of elsewhere. This is unfortunate and often unwarranted. For the ‘Asia Now’ exhibition we were looking for truly unique work that is not too influenced by Western styles.”

“Asia Now: Exploring Design Culture” is on display at Dwell on Design from 25-27 June 2010.