The (smow) designer furniture world cup always throws up some interesting matches, and Konstantin Grcic against Frank Gehry was always going to be a highly entertaining spectacle: experience against youth, minimalist straightforwardness versus radical non-conformity. From the very first minute the inability of Konstantin Grcic to get to grips with the non-linear forms created by his opponent was obvious and Frank Gehry quickly established a 1:0 lead, largely thanks to some brilliant
read moreAlthough this encounter was never going to be as extravagant as the opening match, Fritz Haller and Maarten Van Severen fought a tense, minimalist battle in Durban. Fritz Haller's style has changed little since he broke onto the international design scene in the 1960s and his trademark mini, midi, maxi approach ensured a typically solid Fritz Haller performance. Maarten Van Severen's occasional forays were always very well considered and perfectly executed; yet, despite .03 or .04 excellent
read moreThe opening match of the 2010 (smow) designer furniture World Cup pitted not only two of the great design nations against each other, but two of the most influential post-war European designers: Verner Panton and Cesare "Joe" Colombo. In a brave early move Verner Panton attempted to go solo with his Bachelor chair, Colombo managing to counter at the last minute with his Armchair Modell 4801 for Kartell. Following further good build-ups and clever uses of plastics, Joe Colombo eventually took
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With less than a week to go before the opening match in the 2010 (smow) Designer Furniture World Cup the 16 competing nations have been busy finalising their preparations. Co-favourites USA arrived in South Africa from their training camp in Denmark in good spirits, team manager George Nelson however avoided answering the question as to how he saw his team's chances with the answer that “the simple joy of taking an idea into one's own hands and giving it proper form, that's exciting.” For
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