Hasta La Ideas

In this movie, filmed at Ventura Lambrate in Milan, Arjan van Raadshooven from Vij5 talks to Dezeen about Newspaper Wood, a wood-like material made from recycled newspapers. Watch the movie »

French designer Ora-Ïto has designed a spaceship and a sedan chair for car manufacturer Citroën.

The Mutation project was presented in Milan last month.

The two objects, named UFO and Evo Mobil, have design features based on the styling of contemporary Citroën cars.

See all our stories about Milan 2011 »

More stories about transport design on Dezeen »

Here is some more information from Citroën:

Mutation Exhibition
Milan 2011

On the edge of the hypothesis and the contemporary art, this hybrid object is based on the fulfillment of child’s dream with an obvious commitment for the ecology.

In the vocabulary of Ora-Ïto, we find a real assertion expressing and realizing the imagination. Inspired by the fluid curves of the Citroën « Traction Avant » monocoque structure and based on his designer’s competences, Ora-Ïto reflects on the ergonomics of the interior of the first mobile module.

He has worked on the codes, the DNA and the philosophy of the car industry to modernize it with the possibilities and the existing technologies.

Associated to the research and innovation department of dynastic Citroën, he has developed a surprising and unexpected sculptures joining all the parameters and the technologies appropriate for the universe of car manufacturers.

Baptized Evo Mobil, he creates a monotypic kind, which possesses only single specie.

The term « genetic transformation » is used to indicate an irreversible modification of the genetic and hereditary information. If the transformation arrives up to cells then, it is passed on to the descendants of the mutant individual.

This change can get a selective advantage. This is the base of the evolution’s process.

Ora-Ïto has naturally imagined other modules to join the initial project. A continuity of the imagination allowing to multiply actions and give another reflection to « Evo Mobil ». He has created « UFO » which is inspired by an iconic car from Citroën.

The DS model commonly used by the president is now enrolled into the « genetic transformations » from Ora-Ïto artistic vision that play on the strong and iconic details.

The vehicle is based on the future of transport mixed with one of the most famous cars in the world.

UFO sculpture allies the dream to the formal, the future to the technology. The idea to work with several entities allows all the « genetic transformations » to spread a universal message to the car industry through his artistic vision and new directions never investigated before.

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MINI Rocketman Concept	Artikcar by Ben Wilson	Vision EfficientDynamics by BMW

Dezeen Screen: In this interview filmed in Milan last month, London designer Philippe Malouin tells us about The Yachiyo metal rug, which is handmade from galvanised steel wire. Watch the movie »

Here are some more images of Yuya Ushida‘s expanding plastic sofa for Dutch company Ahrend, featured in our movie interview with the designer published yesterday on Dezeen Screen.

Called XXXX_Sofa, the piece is made of 8000 sticks and 2000 rings that snap together.

The components are injection-moulded from recycled plastic bottles.

A stool version with 600 parts is available in kit form.

Ushida originally created the system in bamboo while studying at the Design Academy Eindhoven in the Netherlands.

Watch our video interview with Yuya Ushida on Dezeen Screen »

See all our stories about Milan 2011 »

Here are some more details from the designer:

Dutch office furniture company Royal Ahrend NV is producing transformable furniture XXXX_Sofa and XXXX_Stool designed by Yuya Ushida.

XXXX_Sofa/XXXX_Stool are industrial version of Ushida’s Graduation project SOFA_XXXX for the exam at the Design Academy Eindhoven in June 2010. It was rewarded with the maximum level of 10 and the graduation was cum laude. This original model is handmade of about 8000 bamboo sticks and 2000 rings. The basic idea is that a chair can change into a sofa by a simple movement without any tools…

A chair becomes a sofa, and a sofa becomes a chair.

“Whenever I see it the beauty of the simple geometrical structure and its repetition always fascinates me. SOFA_XXXX is made of just 4 different lengths of sticks, rings and joints. the parts on their own don’t seem to be special, but when put together in a regular pattern their beauty appears. It can be contracted, which makes it easier for transportation…”

This was a my concept for SOFA_XXXX, which was my graduation project 2010. I used bamboo sticks and It was all hand made. Therefore it is hard to mass produce. However I prefer to focus on our daily life rather than making an art.

In order to use as a daily life object, we chose to use plastic injection molding. And you can click in to build it up. It consists of only 8 elements, you can make many shapes. (e.g. Sofa, Stool, Table and Bench etc…)

Also it is used genuine recycled PET, no glass fiber for strength. I wanted to do something with the PET bottle that overflows in our society.

My design motto is to make people happy while using things that I have made. Also, I would like to translate a beauty that is surrounding us into my objects.

XXXX_Sofa and XXXX_Stool suit this very well. Of course these can be used as a furniture, but also you can enjoy the geometrical structure like your own Eiffel tower! Then, if you put together it by yourself, I am sure, it definitely will be existence more than furniture for you.

XXXX_Sofa is made by 8000 sticks and 2000 rings
XXXX_Stool is made out of around 600 parts (sticks and rings)
XXXX_Stool is available in kit form

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Diederik Schneemann at Ventura Lambrate	Benjamin Hubert at Ventura Lambrate	Laurens van Wieringen at Ventura Lambrate

In this game of chess created by designer Florian Hauswirth of Switzerland, pieces that are taken can be stacked to create new pieces with combined abilities.

Called Democratic Chess, the maple set can be used either as a traditional chess set or played according to Hauswirth’s rules.

The design was presented at Ventura Lambrate in Milan last month as part of a presentation entitled Trattoria Utopia by design collective Postfossil.

See all our stories about Milan 2011 »

Here are some more details from Hauswirth:

Democratic Chess – Postfossil Trattoria Utopia Collection 2011

The game of chess as model for a utopian society

The scenario described by a traditional chess set consists of a monarchy with entourage including a castle/city, soldiers/knights and pawns/people. It is a game of strategy, whereby planning for the next move is essential.

Chess – ‘The Royal Game’ – has been played since time immemorial in the most varied cultures from India to Persia, Russia, to the Vikings. Nowadays, computers are increasingly playing alongside chess masters.

Democratic Chess is a new interpretation of the traditional chess game. Not only the form, but also the function of the figures has been re-interpreted, which means that the flow and content of the game can change. Democratic Chess increases the unpredictability of the game, creating totally new and surprising situations.

New ways of playing are made possible by the shape of the figures. Pieces taken are not eliminated but stacked, thus creating new figures, which have more abilities. For example, a knight or even a second queen can be made from several pawns etc.

Democratic Chess can be played in one of three ways:

• normal chess (monarchy) with the traditional rules
• the new, democratic chess, with flexible values and play scenarios
• A constructive children’s game

Material: maple wood, in coloured varnish

POSTFOSSIL sets up its exhibition ‘Trattoria Utopia’ during the Milan Furniture Fair (12 -17 April 2011) in Ventura Lambrate.

The objects exhibited in the exhibition ‘Trattoria Utopia’ provoke discussion, encourage questions and allow new utopias to arise. The interaction in the space is central, as is the exchange between visitors and designers. Trattoria Utopia ventures a peek at the future, suggests possible scenarios and combines these with impossible ones. Visions are presented, but developed together with visitors. Trattoria Utopia is a meeting place that invites one to spend time, make discoveries and to contemplate.

The collection ranges from cutlery, crockery, seating to toys: Objects that can be found in a trattoria, but which also deal with the postfossil vision. The objects are arranged and displayed on and around a large board. Removed from their pure function as exhibits, they can be tried out and tested by the visitors.

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FHNY Collection by Florian Hauswirth	Postfossil at Milan 2010	Doublefacette by Postfossil