Until Sunday June 4th state of Design, Berlin 2017 is presenting projects from over 80 international creatives, supported by films, lectures and workshops, in the Vollgutlager in Berlin-Neukölln. Viewing the 2017 edition it occurred to us there is a lot of charming ambiguity about the name state of Design, Berlin....... Folding Chair Arena by students from the Inside interior architecture masters course at the Royal Academy of Art The Hague. The main discussion forum at state of Design
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In northern hemispheres June marks the start of both astronomical and meteorological summer. In southern hemispheres June marks the start of both astronomical and meteorological winter. The one rejoices, the other laments .... and we don't even notice, far too busy as we are perusing architecture and design exhibitions. Our five recommendations for June 2017 features new shows in Den Haag, Frankfurt, New York, Leipzig and Brussels. "Architecture and Interiors. The desire for Style" at the
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Inaugurated in 2016 state of Design Berlin is a festival which seeks to explore the experimental, critical, social character of design as much as present the industrial and commercial: and by extrapolation explain not only that design is all these things, but that the various aspects of design's character needn't be contradictory, far less conflicting or contrary. The 2017 edition of state of Design Berlin opens on Thursday June 1st state of Social Design Initiated by the German designer
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'tis a curious thing time. It has accompanied our universe since the instant of its creation, has allowed for the development of our civil and social society, is the bedrock of our economic, industrial and commercial systems, guides us through every day, week, month, year, life. Yet it is questionable if it actually exists. And if it does exist. In what form? How can we visualise and document it? Does it have an inherent value? Clues towards some possible answers are provided by the
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Dear Judge Tessin: I will herewith express our delight to have Florence with us this summer. I am sure that it will be good for her to see a little more of the world. We are going to Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Germany, and Holland. We will take good care of her. Most sincerely yours, Eliel Saarinen1 And take good care of Florence, Eliel Saarinen did: so much so that she advanced to become one of the most important protagonists in the development of post-war furniture, textile and interior
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When we first viewed the exhibition Full House: Design by Stefan Diez at The Museum für Angewandte Kunst Cologne, it was was still being assembled. Objects were missing, set-ups not in their final composition, lights not yet properly positioned. As such we didn't get to form an opinion on the final, complete, intended exhibition. Did however mange to take some truly awful photos. Fortunately we have now had a second chance to view the exhibition. And it is every bit as good as we assumed it
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With the exhibition Much More Than One Good Chair. Design & Society in Denmark, the Danish Embassy in Berlin present an exploration of the evolution of design in Denmark since 1945. And by extrapolation of the evolution of society in Denmark since 1945. Much More Than One Good Chair @ Felleshus Berlin As regular readers will be very aware, we have an uneasy relationship with the term Danish Design. Or perhaps better put we don't believe in it. We believe in design from Denmark, but not that
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It's early May and once again the party ship we call the smow song contest is ready to set sail...... First staged in 1956 in Lugano, as a small, essentially regional, event, the smow song contest has grown as the smow family has, and now enjoys a popularity far outwith smow's geographic heartland. A fact acknowledged by the addition of Sydney to the competition in 2015: our antipodean cousins having long adopted the spirit of smow. Yes, some, ill informed, never happy's, oafs quite frankly,
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There is one song missing from the smow blog playlist: missing for the simple, regrettable, and thoroughly avoidable, reason that it isn't on spotify. For din skyld by the Danish singer Birgit Brüel. Denmark's entry for the 1965 Eurovision Song Contest. And featuring lyrics by Poul Henningsen. Yes, that Poul Henningsen. Poul Henningsen (1894 - 1967) Although popularly remembered as a lighting designer Poul Henningsen was, as previously noted, so much more. Indeed, in many respects his
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On May 1st 1851 Queen Victoria opened The Great Exhibition in Hyde Park London: the first "World's Fair", an event which celebrated the advances of the industrial age, and whose influence on industry, engineering, science, architecture and society was to resonate globally for decades, acting as it did as the motor for the quickening technological advances of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. While the profit generated from the 6 million visitors allowed for the construction of London's
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It's not quite radio smow. Not yet. But we hope it is another way to enjoy, and understand, the smow blog....... 6 D 030 Z by Charles & Ray Eames for Evans for Zenith Radio, as seen at Radio Days. Tube Radios, Design Classics, Internet Radio, the Museum für Angewandte Kunst Cologne Much as there is an innate joy in the way a good designer can reduce an idea down to a few lengths of wood, or twists of metal, so to is there an inescapable wonder in the way a good songsmith can express an idea
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"The handicraft training in the Bauhaus workshops was not an end in itself, but an irreplaceable educational tool. The aim of this training was to create designers who, thanks to their precise knowledge of materials and processes, were able to influence the industrial production of our time." Walter Gropius, 1955* The tensions caused by the practical question of how this influence was to be expressed, and the parallels with the industrial production of our time, are explored in the exhibition
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One of the genuine highlights for us at Milan Furniture Fair 2017 was without question the launch of USM Haller E - a new development by which electricity can be supplied to USM Haller units, electricity which can be used to power LED lighting or USB chargers housed unobtrusively in the structural tubes. "Unobtrusively" being the keyword as it means the functionality of the system is extended without altering, adjusting or otherwise impacting on the aesthetics of the system. A genuinely very
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Backrests appeared to be a major feature of those new products Konstantin Grcic presented at Milan Furniture Fair 2017. Or perhaps better put, from those new product we saw by Konstantin Grcic, we interpreted the backrest as being central components. But it wasn't all about backrests, a few thoughts on new products for Magis, Plank, Flos and Mattiazzi. Noctambule by Konstantin Grcic for Flos, as seen at Milan Furniture Fair 2017 Monza Bistro Chair for Plank Although an addition to the Monza
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Much as we moan, moan, and moan about Milan Furniture Fair, it is a rare opportunity to get a snapshot of where individual designers are currently at: differing products for differing manufacturers being displayed in relatively proximity allowing for a nice overview. A few considerations on the latest projects by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec for Vitra, Magis, Flos and Mattiazzi. Verticale by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec for Flos, as seen at Milan Furniture Fair 2017 Softshell Side Chair for Vitra
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In our post The Sedentary Workers: Orchestra Musicians we explored the unique world of orchestra musicians' chairs. One of Europe's largest, and most experienced, manufacturers of orchestra and musicians' chairs is Esslingen based Wilde+Spieth. Who thus seemed an ideal address to learn more about the orchestra chair and the orchestra chair market..... Musicians Chair by Wilde+Spieth, based on the SE 68 by Egon Eiermann (Photo Wilde+Spieth) Originally a manufacturer of window shutters, in
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As older readers will be well aware, little gets us down quite like Milan Furniture Fair. Every year our only wish as we cross the Alps is that we will find something to make us thankful that we did. Milan Furniture Fair 2017 produced more such moments than the average year, which we suppose means we'll be back next year!! Our Milan Furniture Fair 2017 High Five!! Linea Perch Stool by Wesley Walters & Salla Luhtasela for Nikari Back at Neocon 2016 we bemoaned the lack of objects in public
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Although the evidence is not, yet, conclusive, recent years have seen an increasing confidence in the theory that sitting for too long can have a negative impact on health, and that all whose job involves prolonged sitting should regularly stand, move and generally change their body position. But what about those workers who can't? What about those workers whose job is defined by long periods of sitting? Orchestra musicians at work. Seated. Specifically, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra with
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While it’s hard to feel anything even vaguely resembling joy in a month which sees the UK start its senseless and cowardly, withdrawal from the European Union … life goes on!! Our five top distractions for April 2017 features new design and architecture exhibitions in Berlin, New York, Paris, Dessau and Milan. "Otto Bartning (1883–1959). Architect of Social Modernism" at the Akademie der Künste, Berlin, Germany Born in Karlsruhe in 1883 the architect and theoretician Otto Bartning was, and
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Thingness. Noun. [ˈthiŋ-nəs] The quality or state of objective existence or reality1 Thingness. Exhibition. [ˈthiŋ-nəs] A comprehensive Jasper Morrison retrospective currently on show at the Bauhaus Archiv Berlin. Jasper Morrison. Thingness @ Bauhaus Archiv Berlin Originally conceived by and presented at the Centre d’innovation et de design, CID, Grand-Hornu, Belgium, Jasper Morrison. Thingness presents a chronological excursion through three decades of Jasper Morrison design. We first saw
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It may lack the Unicorn Horn that graced so many Renaissance era Cabinets of Curiosities, but with The Room of Desires Keum Art Projects present a collection of objects with just as much beauty, mystery and grace as could be found in the Wunderkammer. And yet which are grounded much more in reality. The Room of Desires @ Raumwerk Munich Back in the day we once received an almighty thump from a very good friend for suggesting that the fact her mother had adorned their living room with so many
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The exhibition Divine Golden Ingenious. The Golden Ratio as a Theory of Everything? at the Museum for Communication Berlin featured two projects by Berlin based designer Mark Braun, projects which, largely, if not exclusively, owe their form to deliberations on and experimentation with the Fibonacci number. A state of affairs, we considered, makes Mark Braun an ideal person with whom to speak to about the role, attraction and relevance of the Fibonacci number and Golden Ratio in product design.
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The Bayerischer Staatspreis für Nachwuchsdesigner is one of the more interesting international design prizes. Not only because it is biennial and thus steadfastly refuses to play with the "every year new" ethos of the contemporary design industry, nor only because it is exclusively for young designers, but also because in addition to the "usual" categories it also recognises Design Research and Applied Crafts. And thus promotes a pleasingly healthy and positive understanding of the term
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For George Orwell nothing heralded spring quite like the re-appearance of toads, emerging from their subterranean hibernation and setting off, once again, on life's great cycle. Our toads are the flurry of new design and architecture exhibitions which open globally every March, as the international museum and gallery community awake from their winter slumber. Our highlights for March 2017, featuring new exhibitions in Bielefeld, Helsinki, Weil am Rhein, Utrecht and Paris "Partners in
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