Happy Monday! I know, I know, New Designers was at the beginning of July. Design events seem to be coming thick and fast at the moment, so I’ve decided to make this a weekly column, so I can keep up! Hopefully it will cheer up your Monday mornings too.
New Designers is dedicated to graduate talent, and as such is one of my favourite shows. I absolutely love meeting graduates. They are so full of optimism and belief. They are brave – most plan to work for themselves, something I would not have had the courage to even consider at their age. They are collaborative – constantly drawing our attention to fellow student’s work before their own. They are proactive – one group had funded their presence at New Designers themselves, even creating a mini newspaper; because although their university didn’t have an events budget, but it did have an advertising budget! Generation Y are much maligned, but the students and graduates I meet constantly blow me away with their determination, their positive spirit, their creativity…
…and in Chris Newman‘s case, their hair!
It’s always so hard to choose my favourites, but here are my top ten from New Designers… and I’ll give you my top picks from New Designers One Year On next week.
I’m a bit rubbish at fashion, and it’s not something I give a lot of thought to until I come to get dressed in the morning. So I often find that anything even vaguely suitable for the day ahead is in the washing basket, in the washing machine or on the ironing pile. I can’t be the only one, because there were a few solutions for the age old problem of ‘what to wear’ at New Designers, but none so simple and fun as Zoe Tynan Campbell‘s days of the week coat hangers. They really appeal to my geeky organisational side too!
I love what NSF Rycotewood Furniture Centre students are doing with wood. I loved the thought that had gone into this desk by Josh Snell – fron the curled up edges, to the way the desk sat into its legs, it seemed to have been designed with real love and care. The stroke of genius though was the wooden batons concealing magnetised metal, that created a really nice place for putting reminders and inspirational images.
I loved the organic shape and almost accidental functionality of Michael Sewell’s Lumiere hallway coat and shoe stand.
And I loved this this hall mirror and shelf combo from a third NSF Rycotewood Furniture Centre student, Nicola Williamson.
(A little shout-out must go to fellow design blogger Stacey Sheppard who you can just see in the mirror!)
I’ve got a bit of thing about buttons, so this stool had me at hello! I love the colour and the generosity of materials – it just oozes design geek appeal. It’s called S-Tool and is by MbyMartin, Martin Saar’s design label.
This multi-functional seat by Aissa Gonzalez is inspired by and named after the “curiously bashful” mimosa plant aka Makahiya, whose leaves open and close. Its design allows for several different configurations and it’s a lot more comfortable to sit in than it looks!
I’m a little bit in love with this chair – it makes me feel all funny inside. I love the colours, I love the form, I love the character… and I know it really doesn’t look like it would be, but it’s one of the most comfortable chairs I have ever sat in. I love it!
Oh, and it’s by Matthew Cox.
Henry Williams‘ chair and table have echoes of Frank Gehry and Tom Raffield about them, but that’s not to say they aren’t original. He’s got his own interpretation of steam bent wood and I like it. There was a lot of wood and a lot of organic shapes at New Designers; part of a trend towards reassuring forms and materials.
Simon Locke-Wheaton offered us a pen…
…but not just any pen. Oh no, this one is full of ink that conducts electricity! So you just draw your lighting design onto the wall, pop on some light bulbs et voila!
And last, but by no means least, Rowan Allen. There is a definite movement towards designing interventions, systems and programmes instead of products, and Rowan’s little boats are a lovely example of this. I believe that design should make people’s lives better, and sometimes that’s in the tiniest of ways.
The idea is that you write down your worries on a piece of paper, fold it into the shape of a boat and then just Let Go.
Further reading for the especially geeky:
- out and about :: d&ad new blood
- out and about :: pulse
- out and about :: clerkenwell design week
- out and about :: 2 willow road
I love the way they’re using wood now. Id love to see more of their wooden furnitures!