out and about :: greenhouse, stockholm furniture fair 2015

Greenhouse is the reason I brave the snow in Stockholm every February. The Stockholm Furniture Fair‘s showcase of design graduates and new designers, it’s always an amazing place to spot new talent and meet passionate designers. The space was designed by Note Design Studio, for the third year running, with slightly unsettling mirrored centrepiece – more of me than I ever want to see again! “This time we have chosen to focus on the product and the designer,” they said. “We wanted to create a space that becomes a reflection of the visitors and exhibitors in Greenhouse, a place that embodies one of the principles of Greenhouse – the ability to reach out to a bigger world with one’s products and ideas.”

I loved the delicate lines of Alexandra Goncalves’s Naturally Collection. “Lunaria is a common plant growing in our gardens. In the end of its life, it forms seed pods which then flake away revealing silver disks. This fragile constitution – holding a thin white skin – was the inspiration for Naturally,” she said.

Cute as they may be, the eyes of Eye Toy by HCWang Design are designed to follow you around the room, making them slightly creepy!

Ten HDK Steneby, University of Gothenburg, students were showing projects on the theme of survival. I loved Clemence Lam’s Sleeping Station. “We need sleep to survive,” said the designer. “In today’s busy world, fatigue from lack of sleep affects many people. This piece is designed for fast-paced working environments where we struggle to find a place to rest. Safe from other people’s eyes, an origami fabric cover absorbs sound by creating a cocoon. The user rests his head on a tactile and natural wooden pillow. Can a hard material be comfortable and inspire day time rejuvenation?”

Eight Konstfack students presented a collection on the theme of Juxtaposition. Georgina Walters showed a cabinet called Nudel (noodle) made from bamboo and rubber thread – the threads have to be stretched apart to create an opening enabling the user to access what’s inside.

I loved the bold lines and bright colours of the Corners Shelf by Kyuhyung Cho. I can see them popping wonderfully against Scandi grey and white interiors.

I climbed into Gróa Ólöf Þorgeirsdóttir’s Into the Blue chair and didn’t want to get out! Its shape was inspired by a seashell and its colour by the varying blues at different depths of the ocean. Each fabric piece is hand-tied.

I also loved the yellows in fellow VIA University College graduate, Jeannett Hojer‘s Rutha. “A sofa? A daybed? A cozy place? It’s everything you want, for every need or situation that might show up in your home,” ” she said. “Rutha is the new way of using functional urban lifestyle furniture. It’s the centre of chatting, relaxing, and napping.”

Students from Stockholm’s Aalto University presented fourteen different interpretations of the chair, each made of black steel tubing and ultramarine blue Finnish aircraft plywood. “The 1.5mm plywood used for the chairs was manufactured in Finland from Finnish birch trees,” said university lecturer Martin Relander. “It is an extremely durable yet also mouldable material, which was first made use of in aircraft construction during World War II. For making light armchair prototypes there is probably no better material in existence.” The three prototypes above are by Mirella Peltonen, Anna Spark, and Ines Wartianen.

Pettersen & Hein is a collaboration between Danish designer Lea Hein and Norwegian sculptor Magnus Pettersen. The pair quote American artist Richard Artschwager to explain their work: “If you sit on it, it’s a chair. If you walk around it and look at it, it’s a sculpture,” adding “What happens when design is no longer compromised by function, but longs for the aesthetic and ethical freedom of art?”

Basketlamp by Juan Cappa can be used as a table, floor, or ceiling lamp, and was inspired by traditional basket weaving techniques. The lamps come flat-packed and the woven structure is secured into a turned wooden top.

And finally, Yoin‘s Pool Chair was inspired by swimming pool ladders. “When I climbed up from the pool, I grabbed a pool ladder that gave me a feeling which was very comfortable,” said the designer. “I was also fascinated by the gentle lines of the ladder.”

I’m off to Ambiente in Frankfurt today, so keep an eye on Instagram to see what I spot. Until then, some further reading for the especially geeky:

• coadgbursary :: home london, jan15
• out and about :: desso best in class winner
• out and about :: art house, designblok
• out and about :: openstudio designblok

The Stockholm Furniture Fair is one of four shows we’re covering for Issue 2 of Fiera Magazine, so keep your eyes peeled for lots more new design talent – preorder your copy of Issue 2 now.