Truth be told we'd expected a bit more bravery from our favourite Amsterdam anarcho-artisans. But no, no tree-trunk bench on the droog presence in Cologne. At least there was people - in comparison to their stand at ICFF 2009 in New York where they made do with a shadylace. High-point for us, however, was without doubt the Rag Chair. And especially the woman who sat on it, looked at her companion and said "Hard as stone!!" And Rag Chair is; which is of also why it is comfortable. The
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Designed in 2005 for the French producer Ligne Roset, Facett by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec will be familiar, at least tactility, to all who know the Bretonnian Brothers Alcove Sofa for Vitra. A winner of a RED DOT award in 2005 the Facett armchair is part of a small range of living and dining room furniture that also features a sofa and dining chair. While garish orange/yellow isn't always our favourite colour, Facett simply wouldn't work in any other colour scheme. And exactly because the
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Shortly before the IMM opened the German Furniture Association announced that the production of furniture in Germany fell by 10% last year. And if what is on show in Cologne is the very best the German furniture consumer can look forward to in the coming 12 months - expect a further reduction. And by a lot more than 10% Truly, truly ugly. Imagine hell decorated by the devil with a really, really bad hangover - and your getting near to what we endured in some halls this afternoon. Indeed
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We're not going to pretend we're fans of Carnival. Truth be told, for us Carnival and Oktoberfest belong to a class of cultural events that indicate a nation still struggling to come to terms with the fact that woolly mammoths no longer roam the land. Or that women are allowed to vote. However, we're in Cologne and so we can at least pretend that we find alcohol fuelled violence oh-so amusing. Especially when presented in conjunction with a Papier-mâché model of Angela Merkel with an
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We're indebted to Dave Report for drawing our attention to the forthcoming Jasper Morrison exhibition in Stockholm. Organised by the Hallwyl Museum in conjunction with Forum, (the magazine for Scandinavian Architecture, Interiors and Design), the exhibition features jugs, jars and pitchers selected by Morrison. Which might not sound like the most fascinating of exhibitions; but just as with "Take a seat!" exhibition at Museum Les Arts décoratifs in Paris the exhibition offers visitors a
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Our preparations for the 2010 IMM in Cologne are advancing apace and one particular highlight looks like being the Richard Lampert stand which will be celebrating the 100th birthday of Herbert Hirche. Born in Görlitz Hirche is in many ways the "forgotten" Bauhaus student; and that despite his considerable contribution to post-war architecture and design in Germany. After completing his carpentry apprenticeship Hirche enrolled in Bauhaus Dessau in 1930 and moved with the school to Berlin
read moreChemnitz is without doubt the ugliest city in Sachsen. If not Europe. And so it is all the more surprising that the town produced one of the most gifted aestheticians of the Bauhaus generation: Marianne Brandt. A student of, amongst others, László Moholy-Nagy, Josef Albers and Wassily Kandinsky, Brandt is best known for her home accessories including ashtrays, coffee/tee services and lamps. Many of her works are part of the permanent collection at leading museums including the Museum of
read moreAbout five years ago we summed up all the courage we could find and took ourselves off to Haiti. No land signifies for us more the unfairness and discrimination that politics and political processes can inflict on innocent human beings than Haiti. A land held in poverty because that suits those who posses the power. But we didn't go there on a crusade, we went to learn more about Haitians and their culture/history And an important figure was Patrick. Patrick sort of hung around our guest
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We don't know how it is with you, but with us there is always- but always - someone who does things effortlessly more successfully than us. Whether its passing exams or negotiating an escalator: they turn up everywhere. And so it came us no real surprise when checking our (smow)flickr account we discovered that the most viewed picture is not one of the many excellent photographic essays lovingly formed by the (smow)blog collective, but a quick snapshot taken by the (smow)boss while on a visit
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Italian design is, if we all close our eyes for a minute or two and be brutally honest, a lot like English football or French cooking - it's continued association with a particular quality and geniality is largely due to the number of non-Italians(English/French) who have continually contributed to the tradition and so kept it modern, kept it fresh and kept it exciting. Danish design is Danish because only Danes are allowed to do it - Italian design is universal because any one can do it:
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With the Christmas pounds still causing us to sink deeper into the January snow than we find attractive, it is with relief that we look forward to next weeks trip to the IMM in Cologne. Because what with all that running about we wont have time to eat :) In addition to its role as diet-helper,a s the first international furniture trade fair of the year IMM always offers a wonderful opportunity to both reflect on the good and the bad from 2009 as well as to try to size up the coming year. And
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The end of January sees the inauguration of the new Design Museum in Holon, Israel. We were planning heading on over, until we read that the "Design Museum Holon's permanent collection ... will be unveiled in five to seven years" So we'll probably wait until the collection is in before booking our flights. But given that the permanent collection is still half a decade away, and that no temporary or travelling exhibitions have been announced.... why the official inauguration? The answer is
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W've all been there. We've all suffered. And so we can all wonderfully identify with Michael #57's winning entry in the designtagebuch.de Christmas designklassiker Medapal competition. The judges were praised not only Michael's concept but also the excellent photo re-working and the wonderful little story that rounded the entry. Congratulations Michael and hopefully in January you can donate your torture chair to some museum or chamber of horrors and enjoy the ergonomic and
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With our recent design hotels post still simmering on the back-burner of critical acclaim the first photos reach of us perennial (smow)blog favourites Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec's design for the new restaurant at the Casa Camper Hotel in Berlin. The Boys from the Bretagne took their inspiration from the desire to celebrate the work of Head Chef Albert Rauric, the former Chef du Cuisine at elBulli and founding Head Chef at Dos Palillos, Barcelona To this end the restaurant features one table,
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Bosses are without doubt the best reason to set up your own business. Bosses, however, buy your office chair when you work for them. Set up on your own and you are forced to buy your own seat. And for far too many of us the first steps in an independent working life lead us to a supplier of cheap mass-produced furniture. The normal reason given is cost: well made and intelligently designed furniture costs more than a generic piece loosely based on the form of the well made and
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We know. We know. It looks like our MAXintheBOX designersopen post was simply advertising for (smow) Yet ironically it wasn't. We were at the designersopen press launch on the Friday- and the (smow)boss was there on the Saturday. And by the time we saw the (smow)boss on the Tuesday, the deal was in the sack and MAXintheBOX was in the (smow)catalogue. And that genuinely should be a lesson to all young designers out there - such design shows can bring success, if your project is immediately
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Twas the month before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. Save for a company from South Tirol, In hopes that unwary Christmas shoppers would buy their illegal unlicensed copies of Bauhaus classics In a lesser known version of his 1822 classic “A Visit from St. Nicholas", Clement Clarke Moore eerily predicted events some 180 years later whereby, as part of a Christmas sales promotion, a "known" producer of unlicensed copies of Bauhaus classics
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From experience we can confirm that photographing furniture is not the easiest job in the world. And getting a picture that captures the spirit and functionality of the object is a true art. And so we were all the more impressed when we stumbled across a series of photos of Vitra miniatures by Dutch photographer Bart van Bussel. All we know about Bart is that he is a photographer, lives in Amsterdam and has more facebook friends than we do. But we do know quite a lot about the chairs he has
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The organisers of the 2010 DMY Berlin are now accepting applications for all DMY Youngsters, DMY Allstars and DMY Extended. We're hoping to enter a couple of projects ourselves; so watch this space. And for all who simply want to enjoy the best and freshest in contemproary design, the festival will take place deom June 9-13 at the new venue tresor.m, a formerpower staion in Berlin-Mitte All details can be found at DMY Berlin
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It all started with "boutique" hotels. which, if one is brutally honest, were simply small hotels. Or guest houses as we used to call them. Back in the day. Then slowly, ever so slowly the term "design hotels" emerged and today - whether used to describe a hotel where each room has it's own "identity" or an establishment furnished with designer furniture - design hotels represent an important part of the accommodation repertoire, and tourist marketing concept, of all major cities. As with so
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...and the mistletoe and wine will almost certainly be in abundance - so why not give someone the gift of time this Christmas. Puns, we love 'em One of the true greats of clock design was former Herman Miller design director George Nelson and his classic 1950s clock designs are a gift that one can always give with confidence. A new addition to the range is the three Ceramic Clocks; designed in the early 1950s but which never entered production. On the basis of drawings and other technical
read moreThe "Product Design" category of the 2009 Sachsen Design Prize, as announced in Dresden Wednesday evening, produced a somewhat curious result: no winner but two second places. Which aside from being ridiculous is a real slap in the face for the product design community in Sachsen. For those who don't know we live in Sachsen,; learned our trade here; took the knocks, got back up and tried again here. The region is branded on every part of our bodies and our souls. And we now where the
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In the world of designer furniture there are few designers for who "home" and "family" played such a central role as Charles and Ray Eames. From the design of their "Eames House" as a combined living and working space for a young family and on through their many works for and with children, Charles and Ray Eames always presented themselves as "domestic" rather than "industrial" designers. And so it is little wonder that so many of their designs can be so easily recommended as Christmas gifts.
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A few weeks ago we premiered our new film featuring USM Haller in the leading role. This however was not our stars first major film role. In 2001 USM Haller starred alongside John Travolta, Hugh Jackman and Halle Berry in the film "Swordfish". And just as during our production USM Haller also proved to be real diva on the "Swordfish" set and was responsible for various delays during the filming. Most notably in the famous scene when a Hummer breaks through a plate glass window. The script
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