Milan 2011: our latest movie made in Milan last week features Yves Behar of fuseproject talking about Jambox, the wireless speaker he designed for Jawbone, and JamScape, the audio installation presented in the Ventura Lambrate design district. Watch the movie
Milan 2011: UK designer Benjamin Hubert presented this ash chair for Italian brand Casamania at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan last week.
The chair, called Maritime, is constructed from ash plywood with the curves following the grain of the timber.
See all our stories about Benjamin Hubert »
See all our stories about Milan 2011 »
The following is from Casamania:
Benjamin Hubert x Casamania
Maritime
Inspired by traditional wooden shipbuilding techniques maritime is a solid wood range of chairs that are skinned internally with a formed plywood shell.
The construction technique where the supports are visible on the outside allows for a distinctive design language that is in harmony with the material and production. The ribs allow for a structurally robust chair with minimum use of material.
Maritime is comprised from solid and laminate ash and offered as an upholstered option. To enhance the construction details the range is also offered in translucent dyed colourways.
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| Patch by Benjamin Hubert | Roofer by Benjamin Hubert | Pebble by Benjamin Hubert |
Milan 2011: architect Zaha Hadid presented this zig-zag chair for producers Sawaya & Moroni in Milan last week.
The Z-Chair is made of polished stainless steel in a limited edition of 24 pieces.
See all our stories about Milan 2011 »
More about Zaha Hadid on Dezeen »
Above two photographs are by Ruy Teixera, courtesy of Sawaya & Moroni.
Here’s some text from the manufacturers:
Z-CHAIR
The design of the Z-Chair Chair summarizes the essence of contemporary design and the research developed by Zaha Hadid Architects over the last three decades. A simple three-dimensional gesture zigzags in the space as part of the continued discourse between form and function, elegance and utility, differentiation and continuity.
Geometric abstractions inform the design’s linear loop, which is articulated along its path in a language that alternates thin wire streams and large surfaces to provide both ergonomic affordances and inherent stability to the overall shape. The dichotomy between the elegance of the composition and its articulation is negotiated through a subtle play of contrasting angular corners and wide, smooth curves.
The resulting form echoes the calligraphic gestures of Hadid’s two-dimensional works; a controlled brush stroke on a canvas, the perfect synthesis of an idea: the sketch.
Z-Chair 2011
Limited edition of 24 +3AP
Dimensions:
Length: 920mm
Height: 880 mm
Depth: 610 mm
Materials: stainless steel
Finish: polished
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| King Bonk by Fredrikson Stallard | Snoop and Woopy by Karim Rashid | Rubber Stool by h220430 |
Milan 2011: Swiss brand Punkt. presented this alarm clock by British designer Jasper Morrison at Spazio Rossana Orlandi in Milan last week.
Called Punkt. AC 01, the design comprises an extruded L-shaped aluminium base with a circular hole housing the clock face and mechanism.
The product comes in black, red and white and is Morrison’s second for the brand – see our earlier story on his Punkt. DP 01 telephone launched in September last year.
More about Jasper Morrison on Dezeen »
The details below are from Punkt.:
“It’s an alarm clock with a shape that I designed… it sits slightly angled on an ‘L’ shaped aluminium extrusion, with the clock face set into a round hole. A rocker-switch, to set the alarm on and off, rotates around the mechanism, which sticks out of the back, and a small window below the 12 marker on the clock face indicates its status.” Jasper Morrison.
Punkt. AC 01 offers you the pleasure of going back to the traditional alarm clock for everyday use. Why have your cell phone lying on your bedside table, when you can be woken up by a superb design object such as the AC 01? No fumbling around in the dark, no radiation emissions, and no unwanted calls in the middle of the night; just the pleasure of trusting your sleeping hours to a wonderfully simple object that, thanks to its extraordinary simplicity, will delight you every time you wake up to it.
Essential and timeless
If function defines design, then the essentiality of the AC 01 is natural – like the daily routine of waking up – which makes the AC 01 a timeless timepiece.
Simple and intuitive
Set the alarm on; switch it off; prolong sleep by activating snooze; check the time in the middle of the night. Four simple actions which need to be performed intuitively; as with the AC 01.
Long lasting materials
The AC 01 dial is protected by thick scratch-proof glass and surrounded by a solid aluminium body to ensure product longevity.
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| r5.5 by Jasper Morrison | Punkt. DP 01 by Jasper Morrison | r5.5 Platinum Chrono. by Jasper Morrison |
Milan 2011: industrial designer Konstantin Grcic launched this armchair inspired by windsurfing and paragliding equipment for design brand Vitra at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan.
Called Waver, the design features a fabric seat hooked over the tubular backrest and suspended from the armrests by two straps.
The chair swivels on a four-legged base and comes with cushions for the head and backrest.
More about Konstantin Grcic on Dezeen »
More about Vitra on Dezeen »
See all our stories about Milan 2011 »
The information below is from Vitra:
Waver Konstantin Grcic, 2011
The Waver armchair is the first collaborative project between Vitra and Konstantin Grcic. Waver embodies a new aesthetic, incorporating materials and construction principles from the outdoor sports that inspired the design.
The idea behind Waver was to deliberately use no conventional armchair typology. Outdoor sports such as windsurfing and paragliding provided inspiration – the commonalities with the lightweight yet high-performance equipment used in such sports are abundantly evident in Waver.
Waver offers a high level of sitting comfort combined with a simple technical construction. Like a paraglider in a trapeze, the user floats in a fabric-spanned seat, which is suspended inside the tubular steel frame by two belts and hung over the top.
Although the back is made of only one layer of fabric, it offers a comfortable contour thanks to its precise cut, at once supporting the body and allowing for a wide range of motion. The tubular steel frame is shaped to offer the flexibility of a cantilever chair, which when combined with a seat and neck cushion provide a level of comfort previously attainable only with conventional upholstered furnishings.
As a swivel chair with a four-star base, Waver interprets a classic type of furniture with sweeping dimensions and unconventional lightness. The energetic colourfulness of the fabrics and the clearly emphasised connecting and functional elements give Waver its sporty look and feel. Its waterproof materials make Waver ideal for use as a garden or patio chair or as an informal and economical indoor seating option.
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| Netscape by Konstantin Grcic | 360° Family by Konstantin Grcic | Interview with Konstantin Grcic |
Milan 2011: this white plastic chair shaped like a scull and designed by French studio Pool is on show as part of the Nouvelle Vague exhibition of French design in Milan this week.
Called Souviens toi que tu vas mourir (Remember that you will die), the design is a reinterpretation of the ubiquitous monoblock chair.
Today is the last chance to see Nouvelle Vague at the Centre Culturel Français, Palazzo delle Stelline , corso Magenta 63, 20123 Milano. See all our stories about Milan 2011 »
Photographs are by Benjamin Le Du.
The information that follows is from the oganisers:
Souviens toi que tu vas mourir chair
The emblematic monobloc chair reinterpreted as an expression of vanity.
This memento mori represented by a skull acts as a leitmotiv for those who seek the comfort of a chair and the ceremonial act of being seated.
Material: fiberglass
Dimensions: L55cm W50cm H88cm
Prototype
Nouvelle Vague, the new French domestic landscape
Entitled Petite Friture, Moustache, Superette, Specimen and Goodbye Edison. Punchy and easy to remember names chosen to stand out by the plethora of new French furniture and objects editors. Difficult to believe in such a sluggish, but this is reality: France has never known such an entrepreneurial frenzy in the design world. In barely 3 years, the French design market has seen more editors emerge, but also design galleries (YMER & MALTA, Next Level Galerie, Fat Galerie, Galerie BSL, Galerie Gosserez, etc…) than over the last ten years.
In very little time, their pioneering work, production, and commercialisation of new object and furniture collections has permitted a new generation of designers to stand out and become visible. Their work has also given this new wave confidence. Now uninhibited, polyglot and entrepreneurial, they take risks, auto-produce and are opening out to the world. From amongst these numerous new faces, five obviously outstanding will be presented at this exhibition: A+A Cooren, Ionna Vautrin, Pierre Favresse, Studio Nocc and Pool.
Curator: Cédric Morisset
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| Mirror Chairs by Kai Linke | New Amsterdam Chair by UNStudio | TransPlastic by Campana Brothers |
Milan 2011: Japanese designer Tokujin Yoshioka has filled Moroso‘s showroom with mist to present his new Moon chair for the Italian brand in Milan.
Called Twilight, the installation comprised artificial smoke hanging in the air with beams of light streaming through.
More information about the Moon chair in our earlier story.
The installation is open at Via Pontaccio 8-10 until the end of today.See all our stories about Milan 2011 »
More about Tokujin Yoshioka on Dezeen »
More about Moroso on Dezeen »
The following text is from Tokujin Yoshioka:
Twilight
Nature is beautiful, yet the unimaginable energy inheres behind its beauty. Its beauty uplifts our emotion, and resonant in our heart, yet sometimes shows its threatening expression.
We have witnessed nature’s threats with our own eyes, and we have been reminded by the the importance of living with nature. I would like to think deeply about the nature and continue persuing the creation that seeks and express its elements of the beauty. With the deepest hopes in our future, I am presenting an exhibition “TWILIGHT-Tokujin Yoshioka” at MOROSO Showroom.
Creating the space with the light and the aura, I will display a new chair series “MOON.” “MOON” is the chair as if sculpted from this beautiful rounded shape of the Moon.
In this exhibition, the light reflects on the surface of the chairs and reveals the beauty of the various textures exist in the different kinds of white materials, such as plastics, and unique fabrics.
The space would remind people of the natural phenomenon, known as the angel’s ladder, and will bring visitors the celestial experience as if embraced by the natural world.
I hope the light of “TWILIGHT” will glow within people’s heart all over the world.
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| Snow by Tokujin Yoshioka | Rainbow Church by Tokujin Yoshioka | Snowflake by Tokujin Yoshioka |
Milan 2011: German designers Ett La Benn show these vases made of biodegradable cellulose as part of Poetry Happens at Ventura Lambrate in Milan this week.
Called Kami, the pots are moulded by hand and left to air-dry.
Ventura Lambrate is open until 17 April. Download the Ventura Lambrate map and guide »
See all our coverage of Milan 2011 »
More about Ett La Benn on Dezeen »
Here are some more details from Poetry Happens:
kami
The ‘kami’ collection of pots/vases/home lighting encourage a new way of thinking in eco-friendly lifestyle products.
Made from 100% biodegradable cellulose, an enormously solid and light material, ‘kami’ transforms this most abundant natural raw material into objects for daily use by simple air drying.
Charles Bukowski: ‘Poetry is what happens when nothing else can.’
Design as a creative discipline always floats between pure culture and an applied profession that fulfills industrial needs.
Our exhibition project emphasizes the experimental ‘making’-oriented cultural path of design. As every year, Milan is the best place to showcase these new concepts and researches. Our exhibition POETRY HAPPENS displays authentic, archetypal projects, prototypes and installations with a narrative design quality. Poetry as a headline gives every invited designer, architect and artist the freedom of his / her personal approach and interpretation of his / her work related to poetry.
Poetry transferred into the world of design can be: The poetry of making by emphasizing the personality of the maker or the unique and individual strategy of the creator behind an object.
The poetry of collages combines readymades or parts, principles and mechanics of existing ‘everyday’-products into hybrid objects with a new life-cycle that, unlike standard industrial production, also shows signs of usage. The poetry of prototyping: process models, mock-ups and regular prototypes generate the story and evolution of creating – a narrative quality with often a bigger impact than the final product.
The poetry of materials and technology experiments is the engine of the continuous evolution of design. The history of design would be blank and just a formal discipline without the quantum leaps in materials and technologies.
The poetry of spaces and installations expands the pure object’s existence into space and environments which finally every object has to deal with.
The poetry of sustainability begins when design objects tend to achieve an archetypal long lasting quality with a maximal visual continuity: classic pieces and long runners in the market won’t absorb new resources.
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| Laurens van Wieringen at Ventura Lambrate | Diederik Schneemann at Ventura Lambrate | JamScape at Ventura Lambrate |
Milan 2011: this new video up on Dezeen Screen features Ralph Nauta and Lonneke Gordijn of Design Drift talking about their Fly Light and Fragile Future projects, which is on show this week at Ventura Lambrate in Milan. Watch the movie. See all our movies from Ventura Lambrate 2011.
Milan 2011: Berlin designer Jerszy Seymour presents this chair made from two continuous metal wires at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan this week.
Called Flux, the design for Italian brand Magis traces the shape of a chair in the air like a sketch.
The show continues until 17 April. See all our stories about Milan 2011 »
More about Jerszy Seymour on Dezeen »
More about Magis on Dezeen »
Here are some more details from Magis:
Flux design Jerszy Seymour
The flux chair is a gentle change in direction. Manipulated like a drawing in air, the wire pieces are treated each as an axis with unlimited directions representing unlimited life possibility. Liberating itself from the modernist grid, the Flux chair declares itself ‘modern modern’ by the use of simple materials, a flexible manufacturing technique and language of a human flow of energy.
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| The Workshop Chair by Jerszy Seymour | Baguette by Ronan&Erwan Bouroullec for Magis | Sparkling Chair by Marcel Wanders for Magis |
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