More lighting from Serbian designer Ana Kras. When I see projects like this it’s like a breath of fresh air – a simple design, but finished with a beautifully hand crafted shade that clearly took some time to make. It’s like when you read the ingredients on a package of food and are pleasantly surprised that there are only four items. It just makes you feel better. In this case, the Hive lamp is made with an oak frame and a wire shade wrapped with colorful cotton string. See, isn’t that nice?
‘New New England’ is a collection produced by NH-based designer Tim Liles with the help of local craftspeople. The ‘Crested Comb Chair’ is a simplified version of the classic Windsor, made from native maple with streamlined joinery. The chairs are made by Fred Chellis of Little River Windsors in Berwick, ME. For the ‘Braid Dead Rug’ Tim collaborated with the Country Braid House in Tilton NH, bringing modern colors and graphics to a traditional craft. As a native New Englander I really appreciate this collection; every region of the United States has local artisans with specialized skills and knowledge. It’s nice to see someone tapping into these creative resources and collaborating rather than churning out another factory made widget.
‘Hand Werk’ is a limited edition set of boxes that contain materials and forms for abstract play (top). Designed by Peter Nencini, these thoughtful collections of wood, fabric, rubber and ceramics encourage people to come up with their own imaginative uses; no instructions are provided. “Hand Werk is simply about sensibility brought about by mute play, by handling. No rules because the elements should be moved and moved again.”
When I was a kid I loved the Recycling Shop at the Boston Children’s Museum. It was a small little store where you could fill a bag with anonymous objects for craft and creative play (bottom).
Charley Harper’s graphic imagery has been an inspiration to many artists. I always thought his work was primarily illustrations and prints, so I was surprised when I came across images of two large mosaic murals the artist made in the John Weld Peck Federal Building in Cincinnati, Ohio (1964). These large scale works (18 x 10.5 feet), depict 100 animals in Harper’s iconic style.
(images via visualingual)
During the recent RCA graduation show in London, I got the chance to meet Seainin Passi, a student in the Goldsmithing, Silversmithing, Metalwork & Jewellery department. During the exhibition Passi set up a color apothecary, a place where visitors could hand select their own tiny silver pin and fill it with a color of their choosing.
According to Passi, “Response to colour is the most immediate and basic of human responses. Each colour of the spectrum is a vibration, a frequency, resonating with different aspects of the body and mind. This is a universal language that exists deep within each of us.”
So many parts of this project were charming. I loved the very very small pins that show off just a hint of special color to the world, like a tiny badge. But what resonated most was that the project was not complete without personal interaction. The designer and the patron were linked; they sat together, chatted and as a result of that dialogue, a finished product was created. I ended up picking an electric blue thread (my pin is on the top of the right hand picture) – not sure what that says about me, but I’m wearing it today.
Dutch designers Scholten & Baijings recently presented their ‘Vegetable’ series at Rossana Orlandi in Milan. The pieces are entirely hand made and constructed in the designers’ Amsterdam studio. The pair are beginning a new research project on the designer as craftperson, exploring whether the work changes because of the intensity of making a product by hand from start to finish. For ‘Vegetables’, it took one person one week to hand dye and then stitch each work.
At Designersblock in Milan, Johan Lindsten presented his ‘Dream About an Idyllic Place’ chairs. Lindsten discovered old Swedish textiles, which had been embroidered by hand. Rather than discarding these labour intensive works, he worked worked them into his seating design.
Ana Kraš is a Serbian designer who will be presenting at Salone Satellite this year. Her ‘Bonbon’ lamps are beautiful handmade pieces – made by knitting yarn over steel wire frames. Also on display will be her simple ‘Ksilofon’ clothing rack, initially designed at the request of her freinds who wanted an easy an affordable clothing stand.
(introduction to Ana via Sight Unseen)
Beautiful textile work by Chilean designer Karen Barbé – above are the screen printed strips of a future quilt. Barbé also has a nice blog where she documents vintage finds and inspirations.
(via weloveyouso.com)
Industrial lamps re-interpreted in leather forms by Dutch designer Pepe Heykoop. Each light is handmade, foldable and available in a variety of colors.
