Hasta La Ideas

The Faculty of Art and Design of the Free University of Bolzano, the only Italian university selected to exhibit at Ventura Lambrate, recently presented “Vertigini,” an exhibition of 13 projects, curated by Professors Claudio Larcher, Steffen Kaz and Simone Simonelli.

The title of the exhibition refers, of course, to ‘vertigo’: “Not in the sense of a fear of falling, but as a spinning of the head, a sensation of being able to rise to new heights… this is the sensation that those studying for the three-year BA at the Faculty of Design and Art are trying to achieve.”

The spectacular setting, consisting of ten ladders, is an idealized representation of the wish to learn and grow on the part of the students at the Faculty in South Tyrol, as well as their desire to strive towards ever greater professional challenges and increasingly ambitious projects.

If this theme—”an alteration of the sensory perceptions that occurs when we are exposed to objects of particular beauty displayed within a confined space”—seems particularly lofty, the work is quite strong overall.

Viktor Matic – “WWW”

WWW is an interpretation of the ‘shelf’ archetype. Between form and function, between space and dimension, it creates concrete opportunities and specific associations. Through its parts, it is not just notionally a modular system but also a type of installation in an ever-changing space.

Tomas Menapace – “Rock Vibrations”

A record player made of marble: the heaviness of the material reduces the vibrations of the disc, so you get much higher quality.

Giulia Cavazzani – “Viminibidi”

Viminidbidi is a ‘parasite’ that can grow on the ordinary plastic chairs found in gardens or at beach bars, giving them one or more extra functions. The project is an encounter between a mass-produced object and an ancient craft technique, that of wickerwork. The traditional wicker-weaving technique takes the form of a climbing plant that, growing on a plastic chair, introduces a new function: the magazine-pocket. Viminibidi thus transforms an ordinary plastic chair and gives it a new identity, allowing it to ‘attract attention’ thanks to its unusual form.

Giulio Maria Perencin – “BLM”

BLM is the unexpected result of a personal and unconventional path taken by a young design student. The choice of material and the working method may be crazy, but they nevertheless differentiate BLM from the other bikes on the market and the commercial dynamics of the multinational companies. The result is a self-made object, produced as a limited edition, that also emphasizes the value of the person making it: the craftsman.

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ILIDE, a loose acronym for “Italian lighting design,” was founded to revive traditional Italian craftsmanship through modern design. Their debut at the Temporary Museum for New Design at Zona Tortona’s Superstudio Più included two distinct series: “Unicità,” a capsule of four lamps inspired by major Italian cities, and just over a dozen ‘experimental’ pieces “obtained by pushing technology, materials and artisans’ skills to the limit.” The inaugural collections are remarkably diverse, the result of a design contest in which 20 designers were paired with as many craftsmen to create the 17 final pieces.

The colors of the “Matera” lamp by Davide-Giulio Aquini come from the different kinds of clay, not a surface treatment. Image courtesy of Ilide

The “Venezia” by Davide-Giulio Aguini and Daniele Gualeni is a modern update to the traditional Venetian chandeliers. Image courtesy of Ilide

In addition to invoking the romantic spirit of “traditional handcrafted products”—indeed, it often seemed like the majority of new work was described as such—Ilide’s offerings are also locally manufactured. Yet the new company has a legitimate claim to a truly artisanal heritage: the new generation of stateside DIYers has nada on the maestros who collaborated with established designers to create beautifully-crafted, often sculptural lamps and lighting fixtures.

The “Soffio” lamp by Alfonso Montalto & Mariagiovanna Ruiu is a tribute to hand-blown glass technique

Naheul Vega’s “Light to Me” lamp uses natural coarse salt as a diffraction surface for embedded LEDs

The unconventional concept is made intuitive in the hourglass form.

“Tick” by Andrea Costa

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Burg Giebichenstein Kunsthochschule Halle is, by its own description, “one of Germany’s most varied and interesting art schools. Situated at the meeting point between East and West, it has had to reinvent itself for nearly a 100 years and does so to this day.” I must admit that I’m not familiar with the the past century of Burg Halle’s history, but if their recent graduate exhibition in Ventura Lambrate is any indication, the school has an excellent design program.

Here’s a look at several of the works in their jam-packed, two-story booth in the warehouse space on Via Massimiliano:

Julia Brümmer – Herr Holzinger

…combines firewood storage and a rack system. It provides easy access to firewood and creates space for books and much more. Through different add-ons, such as hooks, shelves, seating area or a lamp, Herr Holzinger offers various uses. Herr Holzinger can be built individually or in multiple modules side by side. Due to the variable stack height of 60 cm or 120 cm, Herr Holzinger can be built both, as a high room divider or as a lower sideboard.

Anne Rossner – LeseLIEGE

Observed many times, most people can’t stay in the same reading position very long. The idea—one surface entirely made of cushions. All cushions can be moved individually to create the favored position: pushed down or pulled out. They provide support for the different arrangements, making it cuddly and comfortable.

Matthias Zänsler – Couch Flanders

Flanders is a furniture for living rooms or maybe even for the office. A furniture between chair and sofa, that can be rolled out to a couch area on the floor. The nearly three-meter long cushioned fabric is wrapped around a wooden body and then clamped to a tubular steel frame. Inspiration for this furniture was a roll of carpeted floor in a hardware store.

Oliver Reinecke – Hyde Table & Gap Chair

Hyde is a table which offers special storage. Inside its table top one can find a hidden channel, providing enough space for things which are needed at a workplace like hard drive, power supply and other office accessories. Three plates close the storage channel and create a free table surface.

The Gap Chair is composed of three components that can be arranged individually by the owner in color and material. A plastic part connects the individual parts and creates a joint that allows the attachment of additives such as a table surface or a reading light. Easy assembly, few parts and a small packing size underline the customizing concept.

Hannes Trommer – Papillon

AS if by magic, Papillon changes from a flat board into a sculptural table lamp. This is made possible by a cleverly thought-out folding mechanism that gives the lamp form and stability.

The material used is a laminated composite made of plywood and linen, with integrated LED technology and wiring. The wedge-shaped recess in the arm allows clamping of the lamp on a tabletop with no fastening elements whatsoever. Compared with conventional table lamps, Papillon features an extremely compact design for packaging and storage, as well as user-friendly setup.

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The minimalist aesthetic that all but defines functional design is typically associated with the likes of Scandinavia and Japan, yet the design language has become global to the extent that designers from across the globe have adopted those high standards for quality as their own. Thus, Anne Boenisch and Steffen Schellenberger explore a universal approach to understated yet beautiful design as much as the legacy of, say, their fellow countryman Dieter Rams.

In fact, the duo repped their hometown with a felicitous bit of wall text, lest the fairground crowds mistake their work for that of designers from further afield. Schellenberger’s “3^rdqualityfirst” wall clock highlights aberrations in a smooth porcelain surface—usually regarded as unwanted defects—by recasting the markings as a clock.

Nevertheless, I must admit that Boenisch’s “Motion” stool was the piece that initially caught my eye. Like Christian Kayser’s “Synkraft Stool,” which we saw at Tuttobene’s “The New Glint of Things,” the form vaguely resembles an African drum, with its thin stainless steel struts.

Where Kayser’s frame suggested a spiral, Boenisch’s seat looks a bit more the Eames’ “Eiffel” chair legs. Therein lies the rub: the “Motion” stool can be flattened into a modernist flower with a two-handed tug to the midsection of the frame—Boenisch likened it to an exercise apparatus. (The side table of the same name is simply a proportionally larger version; not pictured here.)

The design has an uncanny affinity to Boenisch’s “Karat” lamp, made from folded aluminum sheets. In addition to the warm glow that emanates from the bottom of the shade—enhanced by its gold-anodized interior—light also limns each vertex, shining through acrylic plates at each edge.

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Hinoki Kogei x Peter Marigold collaboration

Japan, like Italy, has a long tradition of highly-skilled craftsmen and specialty manufacturers. On trend with the larger design community, Japanese designers and manufacturers are working hand-in-hand to elevate public consciousness about the techniques and artistry indigenous to their native crafts. One organization that is doing just this is Japan Creative. Following last year’s tsunami disasters, the organization was founded to, “1) rediscover at a fundamental level in the modern world the distinguished aestehetics and tradition-oriented skills of the Japanese, and 2) create and present ideas and products from a new perspective.”

Last week in Milan, the first exhibition of Japan Creative was held showcasing prototypes for six specialty product collaborations: Oigen x Jasper Morrison, Hinoki Kogei x Peter Marigold, Pioneer x Paul Cocksedge, Mihoya Glass x Yeongkyu Yoo, Koubei-gama x Inga Sempé and Dome Carbon Magic x Nacho Carbonell. The exhibition, Simple Vision, emphazies the aesthetics that Japanese design is known for: simple, space-efficient and multifunctional, while examining the possibilities found at the intersection of contemporary design and traditional craft. Check out Japan Creative’s website for more beautiful process photography from the designers’ visits with the manufacturers.

We wrote about the 160-year-old Oigen Foundary’s beautiful and functional cast iron cookware last month at the International Home + Housewares Show. Morrison, who is known for his highly functional designs for everyday objects, created a beautiful collection of cast iron cookware that feels both modern and timeless. I especially like the stove-to-oven pot and lid with an integrated wooden serving tray that holds the lid for elegant tabletop presentation.

Dome Carbon Magic creates lightweight and structurally stable carbon fiber developed for high performing racing cars. Their collaboration with avant-garde design darling Nacho Carbonell, created a beautiful seating collection that, “emits a sound using the resilient properties of carbon fiber.”

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