Hasta La Ideas

Four pieces in one modular overnight bag from the Swedish design company

Based in the haven for functional modernist design, Stockholm’s Unit Portables is the brainchild of a group of likeminded individuals educated in product, fashion and technology design. Founder Andreas Ehde and his team of creatives designed a modest range of modular bags for the modern traveler, striving to make the ideal bag for practical, organized mobility. Today Unit Portables announces the addition of four new bags that build off the sleek silhouette of their first tote-style shoulder bag launched under a year ago. Anchored by a moderately sized overnight bag, the new range brings Unit Portables a few steps closer towards international recognition.

Each of the bags, pouches, cases and sleeves are numbered as part of a system, but are free to be used individually or as a whole. Much like the tote, two pouches and iPad sleeve (Units 01-04) released last summer, the overnight bag is denoted by the number 05 rather than a name, along with an accompanying mesh toiletry bag (06), 13″ Macbook case (07) and a small cord organizer pouch (08). The modular pieces can easily be attach with small metal snaps, adding additional storage to either the inside or outside.

Taking a typically Scandinavian approach to design, the unstructured canvas Unit 05 is decisively minimalist throughout. With one large zipper pocket on the exterior, the interior—like the exterior—features three rows of stitched webbing on one side to accommodate Units 06-10. This purpose-driven approach reduces weight and overall footprint while maintaing a cohesive aesthetic throughout the line.

While the industrial-strength canvas lacks a certain sense of luxury, the design team behind Unit Portables see their products as a solution to “fill the gap between boring computer bags and snobbish fashion notebook bags.”

We’re partial to the all-black scheme, but Units 05-08 will also be available in beige, green, russet and navy. Set to officially launch on 27 August, Units 05-08 are now available for pre-order with Unit 05 selling for £80 and the rest to be announced.

Images by Graham Hiemstra

Innovation takes over the City of Light

The 12th edition of Designer’s Days decorated Paris inside and out last weekend. The celebration brought a varied bunch of innovative creations all over the city, involving a blend of venues and actors, famous design brands, exclusive creators, art schools, designers’ studios and workshops, embassies and outdoor installations. Every branch of design was part of the feast, including industrial design, interior decoration, homeware, furniture and more.

The festival marked an occasion for brands to debut innovations like the decorative “Add-on” heaters designed by Satyendra Pakhalé for the Italian company Tubes Radiatori, which was shown at Centre Pompidou museum. Trying to convert utilitarian heaters into decorative pieces, “Add-on” utilizes an enlarged surface area to spread heat, and the system’s polyhedric modules can be freely assembled to create infinite decorations. The lattice-style form makes this piece ideal for a room divider, resembling an Arabic Mashrabiya.

Exclusive rug company Dedar commissioned the New York-based Stephan Burks for an artistic performance around rope and fabrics. The artist invented seats with large bunches of tough rope partly covered with caoutchouc and wrapped with zipped corsets inspired by African textile culture and patterns.

The famous inventor of the bag-free vacuum cleaner, Dyson, exhibited prototypes made by fresh design graduates as part of its sponsorship program, with all projects reflecting the brand’s focus on air. Dyson gave an award last year to the “Airdrop“, an innovative system able to produce water for irrigation by capturing moisture from the atmosphere, and the utility of the low-tech device for drought-ridden countries is quite promising. “Kerio” is a home dry cleaner that implements air technologies to replace a washing machine, steaming clothes in a low-water, eco-friendly system. The “Wind Up” lamp, which is turned on and off in the manner of a candle by simply blowing on the bulb, is as simple as it is poetic.

Recent graduates from the prestigious École Boulle design and interior architecture school were also given the opportunity to show their achievements and allow the public to discover this up-and-coming generation. One creation, the “Mister T” table by Antoine Lesur smartly embeds in the piece a ready-to-use set of table, tray, basket and cushions. The light shape of the armchair by Eric Naveteur has also been selected along with the “Pouff” by Norman Bouzidi, a table and seat designed for snack and improvised parties, with storage spaces in the locks.

Italian brand Poltrona Frau asked the French designer Noé Duchaufour Lawrance to create a scenography for its store. The result is an organic chain of leather that emerges from armchairs and spreads all over the showroom, featuring gigantic arms or roots that connect all the pieces of the collection. The piece communicates both the appealing power of leather as well as the brand’s superior level of creative execution.

Many other leading brands on the market commissioned famous or new designers to produce something for the occasion. Silvera-Poliform exhibited the new line “Plia” of side tables designed by Victoria Wilmotte in wood and stainless steel, which reflect light through their beveled edges.

Jean-Michel Wilmotte displayed bushes of street lamps on the famous Ponts des Arts of front of the Louvre, evoking connections between architectural heritage and contemporary design.

We discovered work by the textile designer Tzuri Gueta, who makes a unique line of silicone jewelry evoking blood vessels and anatomic desiccations, as well as weird shellfish and a motorbike helmet, all in sexy silicone lace or in a “rain pearls” curtain trying to marry rain, water and light.

The 1.5 km long promenade “viaduc des arts”, gathering designers and craftsmen workshops, provided a large scope of pieces made for the event like a rocking hobby-horse that brayed like a galloping horse and could imitate sounds of smooth and tough surfaces.

Plenty of other interesting and intelligent ideas for small urban places were on show, such as mini mobile plant pots hung on folded hard plastic maps and planted tables as interior gardens. A clock in a blown-glass bulb recalled Napoleonic clocks under their glassy globe, and we were taken by a poetic variety of lamps: candy-like love-apple lamps in red blown glass and melted sugar sat alongside flower and feather lamps.

The Italian Embassy opened its doors to the public for a tour through the past decades of major achievements in Italian design—all displayed in the golden apartments of an 18th-century palace, such as the famous “Him” chair by Fabiola Novembre for Casamania.

The studio of Jean Nouvel, one of the most famous French architects, was open to the public to show a beautiful play on wood, featuring a line of seven wooden tables and their accessories with sober lines made out of seven varieties of woods. With the purpose of going back to the essentials and basics, the display paid tribute to both plain natural wood and to ancient assembling techniques by avoiding any metallic element such as nails. Their minimalist, elegant aesthetics proved to be the most contemporary.

Images by Isabelle Doal

Ethereal neon and abstract forms in new work by Evan Gruzis

Opening tomorrow at Duve Berlin, an exhibition of new work by Evan Gruzis explores the interstices of waking and dreaming life. “Alpha Wave” derives its aesthetic from the afterimage effect—the “burning” of an image on ones vision after the original image has disappeared. Gruzis—a young artist whose resume already boasts work in the Whitney Museum Collection and a solo show at Deitch—presents a series of hauntingly minimal works on paper and through video.

While his past work bears the mark of nostalgia for Hollywood of the 1980s—a byproduct of his time spent in LA—this collection marks significant growth. Gruzis ditches pop elements in favor of a more streamlined look, going beyond gloss and neon to convey the “alpha wave” narrative throughout the work. While he made a name for himself based on his masterful employment of india ink, the artist has turned mainly to watercolor in this collection. Gruzis uses a liberal amount of water in the creation of his gradients, which are painted on “arches aquarelle” paper. Stretching the paint, he slowly builds layers to create his transitions. The photorealistic effect looks to be the product of a neon light show or early digital design. In addition to watercolor, Gruzis employs graphite and acrylic into most of the works that are included in Alpha Wave.

One of the standout works, “Movie”, is a purple canvas of watercolor, gouache, india ink and spray paint. Highlighted with pinpoints of star-like specks, the somber, glowing piece conveys a unique effect that serves as testament to Gruzis’ curious experimentation.

The exhibition also includes “TV”, an abstract video work of projected LED lights. Interpretive and hypnotic, the installation carries Gruzis’ dream-like sensibility. Gruzis first made his way onto our radar last year in his collaboration with Rafael de Cardenas called Exotic Beta, though this exhibition certainly sets him apart in his own right.

“Alpha Wave” will be on view at Duve Berlin through 20 April 2012.

Duve Berlin

9 March – 20 April 2012

Invalidenstr. 90

Berlin, DE 10115

Our trio of basic accessories for your pocket mainstays

There are a few essentials you never leave home without: your keys, your phone, your wallet. These represent the survivalist accessories of modern life, and they should be carefully considered—after all, they remain the stronghold of minimalism and functionality in a world of excess. The following leather goods are handsomely spare selects that do everything required and nothing else.

wwSlimmy Coloma

The size of your wallet can say a lot about you—overloaded back-pocket bricks indicate hoarder tendencies, and anything requiring a snap release signals high maintenance. This pliable option has three enclosure slots to keep cash and cards separate and the durable, American-made Korchmar leather is fully tanned with vegetable dyes, resulting in a rich color. The handcrafted wallet is available from Koyono for $129.

Hard Graft Phone Fold Wallet

In a world dominated by cards, it may seem excessive to carry a wallet at all. Besides providing stellar protection for your phone, this case comes with a slot to carry the shortlist of everyday cards along with space for cash. The felt liner is kind against scratch-prone screens while the tough leather outer amps up the heritage look. Made in Italy, the wallet is hand-finished by Florentine craftsmen and can be found at Hard Graft for $89.

Alice Park Lanyard

We’ve always felt that bulky fobs are unnecessary. Lanyards serve as the perfect key accessory, providing ease of access without adding too much weight. Alice Park‘s calfskin option comes in a rainbow of colors to fit your personality. The brass and nickel rings link with a detachable hook to prevent fiddling with key rings, while the generous length allows you to latch onto purse handles and belt loops if you don’t want to rock the drape. The lanyard is available at OK for $45.

Kaweco fuses heritage and modern convenience in an ultra-portable fountain pen

Named for the diminutive island dwellers of Gulliver’s Travels, Liliput is a petite new pen from heritage German pen-maker Kaweco. True to its name, the pen measures only 3.8 inches when closed, expanding to five when posed for writing. At first glance, the cylindrical capsule could be anything from an EpiPen to an elongated pillbox, but don’t let its austerity fool you. Made from solid aluminum, it takes refillable cartridges and at only eight grams, weighs next to nothing.

The kind of pen James Bond would use to gloss dossiers, the company culled their own archives for the 1930s design on which they based this present model. Those afraid of the mess, maintenance, and pretentiousness of a fountain pen can rest easy. Kaweco’s standard refills work with all their models, are a breeze to install and ink flows instantly from the stainless steel nib. And because of Liliput’s spartan figure, nobody will call you a fuddy-duddy for using a fountain pen. Still not sold? Kaweco also makes a ballpoint version of the Liliput.

At only $50, Liliput is a perfect introductory fountain pen, making a great gift for epistolary pals. Find it online through Jet Pens.