Matthias Pliessnig

This is the work of the designer Matthias Pliessnig, a very interesting seating structure. "Providence" was conceived around the notion of building a landscape for people to interact with. He also made many other similar structures, and they all give me a sense of tranquillity, and they seem very comfortable (...)



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Embrasure:


With Embrasure, he wanted to experiment with flexible joints to see if he could create a hammock effect. Each joint is joined with hand-hammered copper rivets. The strips that make up the form are more sporadic as they swirl around to show the geometry of the curves.



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A deviated path:



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Convolution:



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Ebb:



via Matthias Pliessnig, Yatzer

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Inside Out

I always like to find new and cool designers, they inspire me and make me love fashion even more.
Inside Out is a new label designed by Central St. Martins graduates James Woolfin and Yvette White They make these super cool T-shirts and other jersey items- printing knitwear, shirts and waistcoates digitallysuper-imposed into the jersey. I love the details and the texture. It´s like layering without all the layers, hehe.
Want one? Go to Creatures of Comfort, a edgy online shop with lots of other treats for all the fashionistas out there.

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The sugarwriter Marian Bantjes

I found for some time ago a lovely vectorial work that I have been looking at for some time now, not knowing who made it. But finaly today the website of Canadian Marian Bantjes came out of the blue. She has a huge talent within graphics and her typography keeps amazing me. Take a look at her site to see all the works she has done, there is plenty too see. She even writes with sugar, people!! WOW!!!!

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Playmedesign getting noticed in press

During Salone del Mobile, we handed out loads of clothing pins, and we did some stunts with them, too. The italian magazine GLAMOUR noticed the clothing pin, and stopped some people to ask were they got it from, and luckily for us, our name was written all over it. In the trend section, we were mentioned under the title "What a great idea!", and that the new trend is launched on our site- check it out!



(Our picture)

The magazine wrote:



(In english:)

What an idea!
Our advice? Play with everything, absolutely everything. The great result is guaranteed.
Look closely: and notice the wooden clothing pin used as a pendant (that way you can put in wherever you want to). It is a new trend presented on the blog www.playmedesign.com;like a tribute to all the designers in the world, from Norway to Africa.

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The slow-moving street art project

Many of you might have seen the work of Slinkachu around, specially Little People. The pictures will at first sight seam like everyday settings, but then you take a closer look and discover that it’s not really humans but miniature figurines. Now the artist have started a new project called Inner City Snail, were he uses the snail shell as a medium for 'art'. And as the artist says himself: ”No snails were harmed, they just had their homes vandalised”...

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Design with Life!

This wallpaper from the designer Shi Yuan is part of a project called "Design with life", where the goal is making everyday objects that are normally passive- more alive and active. The wallpaper reacts to heat, and changes (the flower actually blooms when added heat!) with the atmosphere around you. It is a great idea, and I also loved the painting that reacts when you touch it and the daily calendar that fades away during the day. Check them all out on page 2.

The calendar that fades away during the day:







The painting that reacts on touch:






via Yatzer

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Atelier Blink at the Belgian Embassy in Oslo

Remember Atelier Blink? Their beanbag chair Octupus made them well known in 2007, among with a lot of other nice projects. The designer duo Emilie Lecouturier and Céline Poncelet works with product and interior design as well as environmental design and project development. This Wednesday, the 28.05.08, they are exhibiting their work at the Belgian Embassy in Oslo, so if you are in town I recommend that you take a look.

Psst-it, a table made of huge post-it sheets. Perfect for meetings or for restaurants.

Rendez-vous is a wallpaer made of “naughty” patterns that take their inspiration from those repetitive floral garland patterns which so many of our forebears were exceptionnally fond of.




Baiser praliné, Chocolat shaped as a kissing mout

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GEODESIGN in Torino

Friday night I was invited to the opening of the GEODESIGN exhibition in Torino (The World Design Capital 2008). Out of many participants, 45 different contributions was picked out for the exhibition through a competition. The big Palafuksas center was crowded with people and there were many different things to see. I was excited, since my school was part of the exhibition, but most because of the big names like Piero Lissoni, Naoto Fukasawa, Giulio Iacchetti ecc. There was a lot of interesting products, and I've posted some of the most prominent and interesting things I saw. Click more for a thural description and a walk through the exhibition...




The competition: "A high level of experimentation, the creation of a network of highly interactive relations and an intense exchange of knowledge and experience are the project's fundamental characteristics.
Once the designers have been chosen, they will be called to Torino to participate in workshops that will elaborate and construct the prototypes by the end of 2007.
In April 2008, during the same period as Milan's Salone del Mobile, the entire project will participate in a large exhibit in the Porta Palazzo area, illustrating the entire process of dialog, design and prototype production."

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Giulio Iacchetti:
Sistema antifurto (anti-theft system)
Concept description:
A locking/anti-theft system where the user only has to bring the key (the locking system is so small that it is a part of the key), and the "closing"-system (the green thing) will be permanent in the street/on a pole, so you don't have to carry that heavy part around... The key is personal and the closing system is "open" to everybody- just put you key in- and lock.



The key:









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Piero Lissoni:
Stendipanni
Concept description:
A closing system for balconies with the use of greenhouses (you can have your own).










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Drè Wapenaar
Tende
Consept description:
A practical "curtain" for balconies with multi-functions.






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Naoto Fukasawa
Separè
Concept description:
A light nylon separè for the typical erasmus student. They meet a lot of new people, have to switch housing often and have everything with them in one suitcase. The possibilty for privacy is very low.







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Vered Zaikovsky, Civico 13
Berimbau (musical instrument/capoeira)
Concept description:
This dance imported from Brazil puts great importance on the instruments used; these instruments are expensive and difficult to find. The Brazilian maestros in Torino insist on the absolute usefulness and commercial potential of new instruments, in particular percussion instruments, that can be designed by contaminating traditional materials and forms with new ones.






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Matteo Ragni
Accescories for Hammam
Concept description:
A line of products/utensils designed for the bath, scrub and body, that can be used at the hammam–Dar Al Hikma cultural center in Via Fiochetto and that can also be sold in stores as a brand. These made in Corian.





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Le scuole IAAD e NABA, con Studio Ghigos
Archivio mobile (mobile archive)
Concept description:
Highly-efficient energy-saving objects, hi-tech or low-tech; or recycled/recyclable objects for the inhabitants of a condominium who are experimenting a sustainable lifestyle first-hand, sharing spaces and services. The students worked on a portable personal archive, where you can gain information "on the way".





The first model:






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Giulio e Valerio Vinaccia
Peruviani
Concept description:
A portable isothermical container for food.






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Migliore+Servetto
CIRCO
Concept description:
The circus school located in Grugliasco (east of Torino) is one of Europe’s most famous. Equipment needs to be designed for setting up performances in public areas in town (free-standing supports for trapezes and lightweight cords for transportation, that can be easily and quickly set up and dismantled, even during the performances). Made in Lycra.






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Fratelli Campana, Carlorattiassociati Walter Nicolino e Carlo Ratti
We tube
Concept description: a modular system for urban use.






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Others:
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Public urinal/stickers:



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Portable cinema:






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Students from my school NABA presentating a project in collaboration with the well-known designer, Enzo Mari:



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INFORMATION:

OPENING HOURS:
Sunday - Wednesday 10-19
Thursday - Saturday 10-23

free entry

Stefano Boeri
Curator
Stefano Mirti, Lucia Tozzi
Scientific co-ordination
Michele Bonino
Urban Center Metropolitano, community relations
Luca Cianfriglia
‘The Gate', community relations
Id-Lab
Logistics co-ordination
Torino Geodesign is a project
Developed in collaboration with the Assessorato
alle Politiche per l'Integrazione of the City of Torino.

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Street Art

This morning I found these street art pictures online. I don't know who has made them, but they where strange and made me smile.

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"MUTO" by Blu

The artist BLU, from Bologna, Italy, is known for his very large, often surreal and aggressive but always strong pictures in the public space. His very playful and comic-style pieces, often carry an ethnic, political or moral statement, yet without being patronising. Next to his works in the public space, he draws a lot and uses the pictures in animation films. This film "MUTO" was a project that blew me away-
"where stop motion meets art", made in Buenos Aires this year. You just have to check it out, it's impossible to go into more details... Check also the Livorno project on page 2, a very tipical piece of the artist.

The Livorno project:

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Lucy and Bart: futuristic fashion

Visiting Lucy and Bart`s blog for the very first time you cant help not to get fascinated. Lucy and Bart is a collaboration between Lucy McRae and Bart Hess where they show you some pretty strange, but beautiful photographs. Looking almost like a futuristic fashion shoot, they also remind me of the film Brazil. See more of their pictures by pressing more or check out their page!
Plastic surgery

Dripping color



Hook and eyes

Evolution

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Will Renzo Piano put Oslo on the map !?

The harbour of Oslo is in these days getting a total and well-needed makeover. The Opera opened about a month ago and now its time to start the focus on the little islet called Tjuvholmen. One of my all time favourite architects, Renzo Piano, is going to make the new art centre for Astrup Fearnley, a sculpture park, a 60 meter tall view tower, an adventure centre and a living and office building on the islet.


The new Astrup Fearnley museum will be collaboration between Piano and the Danish art centre Louisianna and will open its 3000 square metre in 2011. Piano have a lot of experience drawing art centres and we all know him for Centre Pompidou in Paris (in collaboration with Roger Rogers), De Menil Foundation in Texas, Paul Klee-centre in Bernondation, Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome, and the new tower of New York Times on Manhatten.

If the new opera have not put Oslo on the map yet, then I really do believe that Renzo´s signature on Tjuvholmen will be a national symbol for Norway.
Centre Pompidou in Paris
Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome
Paul Klee-centre in Bernondation
the new tower of New York Times on Manhatten

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iFuture ?

Apple is taking over and the gadget site Gizmodo have invited their readers to send in their suggestions to "the most ridiculous iPhone 2 concept designs possible". I really don’t hope this will be the future, since I for obvious reasons would have some problems killing an iBug or eating iFruit. But there are some pretty funny suggestions, so check it out!

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Cookiemonsters.....

Wow... take a look at this food design! I'm supposed to do homework but then I came over this fantastic food design from Eugene and Luise Bakery in Belgium. They make theese cute monsters and trolls all to eat and adore. Three Belgian friends are the geniuses behind this cute bakery. Even their store and website is adorable. They have a perfect red line through their concept. Thank you Glenn D’Hondt, Sylvia Meert (aka Eugene and Louise) and Tinne Mermans.

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Lovejoy Vodka

Love is all around.... it's not only on lovesongs this is a frase. ID branding has made the lovely labels for "Lovejoy Vodka". Two best friends in Portland happen to have a distillery that makes small batch, hand-crafted spirits, and they call there brand Integrity Spirits. They trusted Id branding to do the strategic positioning, create a name, chose a bottle, concept and design the labels, managed the production and delivery of the entire Lovejoy packaging system. I think their work is amazing!!!!

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Grand Hotel De Londres

I’m back from Istanbul and I promised you to write something about that. Istanbul is one of the most interesting cities I have ever been to, and with so much history and culture to show off, there was not a lot of design to see. But one of thing I really think that a designer-heart can fall in love with is the beautiful hotel “Buyuk Londra” or “Grand Hotel De Londres”. The building dates all the way back to 1892 and it’s filled with all kind of strange stuff like old chandeliers, old heaters, angels sculptures, bird cages with living birds singing all day long, the kitschiest wallpapers ever, and just the perfect atmosphere! So press more to see some of my pictures (Ps. Sorry, I know the photos are not so good, but bare with me!)



During our stay the hotel was filled with an Italian group of musicians and a film crew that were using the hotel as a location for their film, so its needles to say that this is a place appreciated by creative people.


I have never seen so many big, beautiful and kitschy lamps in one hotel!


Even the radiators had a unique and special look!

Birds! Waking up early in the morning and having a cup of Turcish apple tee in the lounge, with birdsong from all over the room is strongly recommended !

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Domestic trophies

These deer trophies are hand made by the designer Rachel Denny, and they are a playful contrast to the classic (and ugly) trophies of real animals people have in their homes all over the world. She is very interested in our complex perceptions of the natural world and the expectations we place in our surroundings. "We long for a sense of peace and rejuvination from being out in the forest and are drawn to the wildness of the natural world, yet spend vast quantities of our spare time taming our personal surroundings. The little square of land we live on becomes our private Eden that we can shape to our own liking...", she says. I think she has an interesting approach to this, and it is decorative, too! If you want one yourself, you can buy them here. (I love the bunny by the way!)

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Shred and use!

Jen Spraet, made this cupboard last year of shredded documents. "Every document tells a story. By shredding confidential documents, part of its information remains mysteriously visible. One Day Paper Waste gives new life to these documents, that’s the real beauty of this product", it says on his website. Now he has made the second edition; a table made of the same "confidential material" that has the strength as wood. The table is produced by Droog design, and was presented at their exhibition "A touch of green", at the Salone in april this year.

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Interventions in Bologna

In Bologna this week there will be an exhibition by the designer Marcus Hofer, and it really fascinated me. Finding new relations between objects that we are used to seeing around us (and then maybe stop noticing)- makes us now look at them again with a new perspective. "These series of Interventi Bolognesi (Interventions in Bologna) contaminate places of the historical centre, offering to the public, and to everybody who’s passing, new possibilities of reading the reality, new approachezs to the city’s elements to which it’s accustomed, a new conscience of what is surrounding it. They have been created with the attempt to cause a feeling of lost, provoked by a transformation of the function and of the original form of objects, architectonic elements, artificial elements and human traces." is written about the exhibition, and I think it is spot on.




“I place infinite questions about the truth that surrounds me, every day. I need this work to give me some answers” says Marcus Hofer.

Nosadella.due presents Interventi Bolognesi by Markus Hofer
curated by Elisa Del Prete from 21st May, Bologna.

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All the world is a stage

There are some fashion- photographers that bring something ekstra to their work, and London based Tim Walker is one of them.
He creates new worlds to each shoot, building fabulous and creative sets in order to take original and captivating photos.
Truly an cutting edge photographer that makes fashion into something magical!
And now you can enjoy his work by bying his new book, Pictures, or go to see his exhibition at
Design Museum In London .

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Street design

Maruja Fuentes was born and raised in Puerto Rico. On her site it is written: "As a young girl, she developed a passion for art, a passion which has continued to grow until the present day," and you can definitely see that in her work. These leaning molds are an innovative furniture wall-system created for public spaces where, instead of sitting, an individual can comfortably