concept – DesignApplause

adapt or die: the design professional’s odyssey at the dawn of ai.

May 10, 2024

above midjourney bot

in the eloquent words of buckminster fuller, “a designer is an emerging synthesis of artist, inventor, mechanic, objective economist, and evolutionary strategist.” as we stand at the precipice of the ai era, it’s conceivable that fuller would have woven ‘poet’ into this tapestry of roles. this addition symbolizes the transformative journey of design professionals in the age of artificial intelligence.

it was just a matter of time for artificial intelligence [ai] to pay DesignApplause a visit. about 18 months ago we began hearing about a word generating application called chatgpt, a chatbot developed by openai and launched november 30, 2022. based on a large language model, it enables users to refine and steer a conversation towards a desired length, format, style, level of detail, and language. openai also has developed software that generates images from words. named dall-e a generative artificial intelligence program that generates images from natural language descriptions, called prompts. currently, midjourney and stable diffusion are fighting for supremacy in the image generation space.

here’s how it works and looks like: crafted from the cacophony of zeros and ones, an image springs to life based on nothing but a few words. definitely not ripe for submission, nor fully prepared, but frighteningly efficient and undoubtedly worthy of further exploration.

above dall-e bot

the evolution of design: a dance with technology the essence of design lies in its purpose: to forge functional, usable objects. this process has historically been a ballet of human creativity and technological advancement. from the initial sketch to the detailed drafting, designers have always been in lockstep with the tools of their times – from hand-drawn blueprints to cad and 3d modeling. now, ai ushers in a new epoch where designers narrate their visions directly to machines. the quintessential skill of the future is not just in creating but in articulating intentions with clarity and imagination, using the brain as the primary tool.

above midjourney bot

creative destruction: the artist’s rebirth great artists, like picasso, embraced ‘creative destruction’ to continually reinvent their perspectives. in the realm of design, this concept takes a new form. designers are evolving from mere creators to discerning editors – sifting through ai-generated possibilities, deciding what to keep and what to discard. this shift from artist to critic is epitomized by tools like midjourney, which generate multiple options, leaving the designer to select the most fitting. the future of design ai lies in a harmonious blend of technologies like gpt-4 and midjourney, offering a rich palette for creative exploration.

above> modjiurney bot

embracing ai: the designer’s new collaborator at the dawn of ai, the most prudent path for designers is not resistance but active participation in shaping this new tool. the analogy of photography’s journey from an unrecognized art form to a celebrated medium is apt here. ai, initially perceived as non-humanistic, is on a similar trajectory toward acceptance and appreciation in the design world. the successful designer of tomorrow will not work alone but in tandem with an ai collaborator. this partnership promises to expand the boundaries of creativity and efficiency, allowing designers to explore uncharted territories.

ford switches gears re most dramatic auto business model switch in your lifetime.

May 23, 2023

above> the all-electric f-150 lightning

this article by associated press correspondent tom krisher may be the most dramatic automobile business model switch you have heard in your lifetime. article edited for brevity and clarity.

ford ceo, jim farley says the company will stop competing in over-served market segments and instead will place big bets on connected vehicles and digital services. the days of ford being all things to all people are over, farley said at the company’s capital markets day event.

the company he said has been “stuck in a box” with thin profit margins, weak growth and low stock valuations. ford will emphasize software and services as well as pickup trucks, large SUV’s, commercial vehicles and advanced second-generation electric vehicles, farley said.

for example, by the time ford rolls out a new version of the f-150 pickup truck later this year, it will have cut 2,400 parts from the bill of materials for the truck, compared from the existing model. ford f-series pickups are the top-selling vehicles in the u.s. and a huge profit center for the company. farley said by focusing on software, services and ford’s strengths in products, the company won’t be as vulnerable to a downturn as in the past. he said the company has let complexity “overrun our business as we tried to be all things to all people.”

above/below> mustang mach-e gt

farley says ford will be competing differently, going for tailored ownership experiences rather than “jockeying for slivers of market share” with complex vehicles in over-served market segments. he said the company will go to non-negotiated prices, working with the dealers. farley has long complained about ford’s high retail and warranty costs.

kumar galhotra, president of ford blue, said, rather than testing the new super duty pickup to a particular standard, the company tested it until parts and systems failed. now ford is finding the eventual weak point and eliminating it, prolongin vehicle life, galhhotra said.

ford also said its new or revamped electric vehicle manufacturing plants will be far more efficient, with nearly 30% less labor overhead than the company’s current large internal combustion vehicle plants.

design miami 2021 offers a long awaited hybrid format a best of both worlds.

Oct 23, 2021

above> r & company gallery

design miami/ returns to pride park with new curatorial director, wava carpenter. the 17th edition of the fair will explore the theme of human kind and how design can impact the world for the better.

above> wava carpenter / photo karli evans

edited official release — design miami/ is delighted to present the 17th edition of it’s fair in miami beach from 1 – 5 december 2021. taking place in pride park, opposite the miami beach convention center, the fair will feature over 35 gallery and curio exhibitions to be presented alongside an exciting lineup of partnerships and collaborations. in addition, design miami/ will be presented in a hybrid physical and digital format. all exhibited works on the show floor will be available to purchase at designmiami.com for a limited time, alongside a robust online program of design talks and 3d virtual tours.

jennifer roberts, ceo of design miami/, says: “the 17th edition of design miami/ brings a myriad of reasons for celebration – from returning to our home in pride park to our human kind theme, which will look at how design can play a role in shaping the world for the better. as we continue to see the collectible design market grow, in both physical and digital spaces, we’re pleased to also welcome many new members to the design miami/ family – galleries, curios and partners – all of which are bringing thoughtful contributions to the fair”.

the theme of human kind, shining a spotlight on design-led visions for a more equitable and interconnected future. those operating at the cutting-edge of design thinking will bring together works, ideas, and presentations to spark conversations around the current state of the world and where we need to go. the galleries and partners have planned thoughtful and diverse responses to this timely theme.

carpenter says: “the practice of design, at its heart, has always aimed to create a better future. but in recent years, as the global challenges that humanity faces have approached existential proportions, the future that designers envision increasingly demands a fundamental reorientation of what it means to be human in this world, calling on all of us to become better stewards of nature and of each other.”

[ aesthetics of the moment: the fantastical & the primordial/ ]

perhaps as an escape from the realities of the world as it is now, designers and collectors are drawn to truly extraordinary forms that evoke another time and place. this larger trend finds two expressions: the fantastical and the primordial. the former aesthetic is exuberant, vibrant, surreal, as if created for a fairy tale or science fiction story, often inflected with a tongue-in-cheek wink. the second expression has a minimalist yet striking aura that calls to mind relics of the ancient past, prehistory and beyond time.

above > extraño 1 / tanya aguiñiga / volume gallery / 2020

at objective gallery, ‘reincarnation’ presents the work of brecht wright gander, fernando mastrangelo, j mcdonald, vincent pocsik, eny lee parker, and charlotte kingsnorth, which as an ensemble conjures objects of past lives and nostalgia for bygone ways of living. in the age of industrial and mass production, it is less possible to commune with one’s environment and the art of everyday life. the works in reincarnation revive pre-industrial artisanal processes and mastery of materials. jason jacques gallery presents ‘ceremony’, an ayahuasca ceremony from the planet zeefromzeglop. the ceremony posits that all that exists in the universe is connected through cracks in time-space that are universally opened by plant medicine. on show are tapestry depictions of great spirit animals and plants. meanwhile, volume gallery presents new braided and draped woven works from renowned craftsperson tanya aguiñiga. forming part of the designer’s ‘extraño’ series, the objects are a craftful expression of the grief, gratitude, rage, and exhaustion aguiñiga has felt in response to the constant threats faced by the bipoc community, as well as the diverse effects and losses of the pandemic.

above> tomorrow land / studio proba and enjoy the weather / miami design district

the miami design district has named creative studios, studio proba and enjoy the weather, this year’s winners of its highly anticipated 2021 annual design commission. curated by wava carpenter and anna carnick of anava projects and design miami/, this year’s installation, titled tomorrow land, will transform the neighborhood—as well as the entrance to design miami/—into an interactive playground through a series of joyful sculptures, seating, and ornamentation designed by studio proba. the physical installation will serve as the basis for an interactive, virtual game created by enjoy the weather. a dedicated app that uses ar technology and proximity beacons will allow visitors to ‘collect’ and customize studio proba’s shapes and place their own custom totems throughout the neighborhood and beyond.

[ material of the moment: ceramics/ ]

through their direct, hands-on and hands-in nature of production, ceramic works are an ideal medium for storytelling, especially autobiographical and sociological stories, which resonate deeply with audiences in this time of disruption and separation. it seems that, more than ever, ceramics artists are working with clay in new ways to share perspectives on and insights into who they are, where they came from, and where they want to see the world go. this has resulted in a thriving market for ceramics, and this year’s fair presents a strong representation of both contemporary and historical ceramics.

above> zizipho poswa / southern guild

southern guild presents an exhibition of ceramics specifically commissioned for the fair from four of south africa’s most accomplished artists working in clay – andile dyalvane, zizipho poswa, madoda fani and chuma maweni. these contemporary artists use the medium to explore aspects of traditional xhosa culture and spirituality while drawing on their personal experiences and deep belief systems. titled ‘studio visit’, the booth will take visitors behind the scenes of the artists’ practices as they foreground new techniques and achieve some of their most technically ambitious work to date. at friedman benda, the gallery will introduce a series of never-before-seen portrait works produced in glazed stoneware by nigerian american ceramicist and sculptor ebitenyefa baralaye – the first collaboration between the designer and the gallery. interpreted through a diasporic lens and abstracted through the aesthetics of craft and design, baralaye’s work explores cultural, spiritual, and material translations of form, objects, text, and symbols – this new series being a vehicle through which to offer reflections on his experience of being a black man in america.

mindy solomon presents ‘free flowing geometry’, a striking presentation of works by john gill, kelsie rudolph, and minkyu lee. exploring the boundaries of form and function, each artist builds pieces that are carefully crafted with functionality in mind, taking artistic license to bring movement and vibrant color to the mix. moderne gallery offers contemporary and 20th century ceramic pieces, including a masterful ceramic representation of the planet, glazed ceramic globe (2021) by japanese ceramicist hashimoto tomonari, presented alongside estelle halper’s 1960s organic sculptural work.specialized in nordic design and decorative arts, hostler burrows also presents a beautifully curated selection of contemporary scandinavian ceramics alongside a few exceptional historic design pieces, including works by steen ipsen, martin bodilsen kaldahl, taher asad-bakhtiari, bjorn friborg, frida fjellman, maren kloppman, torbjorn kvasbo.

[ the best of the best/ ]

as always, design miami will host galleries representing work that tops today’s collectible design market, both vintage and contemporary. masterpieces from icons of the 20th century include works by pierre jeanneret, charlotte perriand, george nakashima, harry bertoia, joaquim tenreiro, and verner panton, while contemporary highlights are found in works by daniel arsham, katie stout, the haas brothers, and more.

moderne gallery presents a strong selection of rare and unique mid-century design, with a focus on studio craft movement pieces. a particular highlight is george nakashima’s first furniture design: the karuizawa chair (1935), made for st. paul’s catholic church in karuizawa, japan. until recently, only two chairs were known to exist worldwide. across the chair’s peeled cryptomeria frame is suspended a seat made of woven grass threads, a design that displays both traditional materials and a modern sensibility. it’s clearly the precursor for what is now nakashima’s most popular, grass-seated chair (designed 1944).

above> amnesia or platelet apparition? / samuel ross / friedman benda / 2020

at friedman benda, the gallery will present a solo booth of work by artist and creative director samuel ross, celebrating the launch of the gallery’s partnership with the acclaimed british designer. emblematic of his all encompassing, conceptually rigorous approach, ross will transmute the traditional fair booth into a quasi-industrial setting. the space, caught between construction and deconstruction, acts as a liminal staging ground for select works from three discrete but intersecting series: signal, rupture and amorphous strand.

[ design miami/ 2021 curios/ ]

curio is an exhibition platform that invites designers, architects, curators, innovators and gallerists to present total environments of objects, textures, artifacts and ideas that challenge and contextualize familiar design narratives. curios are interspersed amongst design miami’s gallery program, infusing the fair with inventive snapshots of today’s design landscape. the 2021 miami fair presents a diverse range of 19 curios that question and respond to the theme of human kind, including 13 fresh faces this including: apical reform & zeel studio, bea interiors design, bohinc studio, james de wulf, objective gallery, pelle, tuleste factory, twenty first gallery and verdi.

non-profit organization and platform, house of today returns to miami after their debut curio presentation in 2017, this year showcasing a solo exhibition of work by lebanese designer khaled el-mays. this new series of work has been made in collaboration with craftspeople in mexico city and is a continuation of the long relationship between el-mays and house of today, founded by cherine magrabi tayeb. entitled new nature, the five-piece series features two mirrors, a bar, bench and the designer’s first ever chair, made from leather, wood, raffia, and wicker as well as ceramics which is a new material for the designer who has collaborated with master company anfora who has over 100 years experience in the industry. also returning to miami is harry nuriev with his sixth curio presentation, a continuation of the designer’s recent explorations of transitory spaces that serve as a metaphor for “traveling through different layers of space, reality, and consciousness”—a theme found in much of nuriev’s work. the bedroom is a silver bedroom installation that will feature a ryokan-style mattress, situated within a zen-like cube that underscored the value of the bedroom as a space to escape reality, meditate, experience vulnerability, and access different levels of consciousness.

above> mass table / tom dixon / mass research studio / 2020 // below> emotional rocks / apical reform & zeel studio / 2021

amongst this year’s debut curio presentations, highlights include first time exhibitors apical reform & zeel studio – a collaboration between designers amrish patel, darshan soni, and gordana zgonjanin that brings apical reform’s innovative work that encompasses functional, bespoke and kinetic art – presented by miami based zeel studio. for design miami/ they will debut emotional rocks, an installation that aims to capture the essence of time through the impact of the intangible aspects of emotions on hard objects such as rocks. the emotional rocks and blurry stars kinetic benches will also be installed throughout the common spaces of design miami, offering visitors a spot to rest and to take the time to evaluate their relationship with the world. also new to miami is new york-based twenty first gallery who will showcase an exhibition of new work by london-based polish designer marcin ruask.

[design miami/ 2021 galleries/ ]

ago projects/ mexico city
ateliers courbet/ new york
bernard goldberg fine arts/ new york
carpenters workshop gallery/ new york
converso/ chicago
friedman benda/ new york
hostler burrows/ new york
jason jacques gallery/ clinton corners
john keith russell/ south salem
magen h gallery/ new york
moderne gallery/ philadelphia
ornamentum/ hudson
r & company/ new york
side gallery/ barcelona
southern guild/ cape town
the future perfect/ san francisco
thomsen gallery/ new york
todd merrill studio/ new york
volume gallery/ chicago
wexler gallery/ philadelphia

[ design miami/ 2021 curios/ ]

apical reform & zeel studio/ gujarat
atra/ mexico city
bea interiors design/ miami bohinc studio/ london
gallery all/ alhambra, beijing harry nuriev/ new york
house of today/ beirut
j. lohmann gallery/ new york james de wulf/ los angeles mercado moderno/ rio de janeiro mindy solomon gallery/ miami objective gallery/ shanghai pelle/ brooklyn
reinaldo leandro/ new york room 57 gallery/ new york
tom dixon/ new york
tuleste factory/ new york twenty first gallery/ new york verdi/ bogota

[ design miami/ 2021 partners/ ]

doha design district
fendi
grand seiko
kohler
lexus
maestro dobel
miami design district
perrier jouet
panerai
scad
usm

[ schedule of events/ ]

preview day/ by invitation only
tuesday, november 30/
members preview/ 11am – 12pm
collector’s preview/ 12-7pm
wednesday, december 1/
vip preview/ 11am – 1pm

public show days/
wednesday, december 1/ 1–8pm
thursday, december 2/ 11am–8pm
friday, december 3/ 12–8pm
saturday, december 4/ 12–8pm
sunday, december 5/ 12–6pm

[ about design miami/ ]

design miami/ connects the world through extraordinary collectible design, with live fairs and experiences on four continents that bring together galleries, designers’ studios, brands, experts, collectors, and enthusiasts, and designmiami.com, a content-rich digital marketplace. each edition of design miami/ features museum-quality 20th and 21st century furniture, lighting, and objets d’art from the world’s top, expertly vetted galleries with flagship fairs taking place alongside art basel in miami, florida, each december and basel, switzerland, each june. design miami/ is also accessible 365-days a year through designmiami.com, featuring shoppable works from design miami’s expert galleries, dm/bx – a curation of more accessible one-of-a-kind, limited edition, and small batch design objects, as well as virtual programming, and engaging storytelling at the forum magazine.

this is a developing story…

amazon’s new zoox robotaxi future of urban mobility inkling.

Dec 15, 2020

zoox is the first in the industry to showcase a driving, purpose-built robotaxi capable of operating up to 75 miles per hour.

an autonomous four-wheel drive fully electric vehicle is not breaking news anymore. but amazon announcing it’s new ride-sharing robotaxi along with its vision for the future of urban mobility concept certainly is.

as concept cars go the robotaxi offers pretty familiar features but she also has several unique laudable features: bidirectional driving capabilities and four-wheel steering, which enables maneuvering through compact spaces and changing directions without the need to reverse; a four-seat, face-to-face symmetrical seating configuration that eliminates the steering wheel.

the vehicle has one of the smallest footprints in the automotive industry, about a foot shorter than a standard mini cooper and features a 133 kwh battery, one of the largest available in electric vehicles today, allowing it to operate for up to 16 continuous hours on a single charge.

primarily envisioned for short rides in urban environments, passengers will have an app to hail the vehicle, much as they do with uber and lyft today. we’re led to believe that robotaxi should soon be in business in san francisco and las vegas as these cities are in the vehicles database. not sure how i feel about going 75 mph however.

[ zoox ]

foster + partners shares the prototype design for a reusable face visor. covid-19.

Apr 6, 2020

to aid the fight against covid-19, foster + partners has designed a general-purpose prototype face visor, suitable for cleaning and reuse. it is specifically aimed at fast mass production.

[ foster + partners press release ] we are sharing the design templates and material specifications as an open-source design asset. this is to encourage both designers and in particular large-scale manufacturers to investigate the potential of digital and laser cutting machines as an alternative to 3d printing technology.

the prototype visor, designed by a team of industrial designers, model makers, architects and analysts, is made from three components: a visor made from 0.5mm optically clear petg, an interlocking soft pp headband, and a surgical silicone rubber head strap that ties the two together. these were all cut on the practice’s digital flatbed cutters by its printroom and model making teams. each visor can be cut from sheets in under 30 seconds and the elements can be assembled in under a minute. with a single cutting machine, we were able to cut and assemble components for 1,000 visor masks in a day, representing a reduction of days in the time taken to produce 3d-printed alternatives.

the visors can be produced and assembled or flat-packed and distributed in large quantities in a short span of time. an important advantage is that the visor can be easily disassembled, cleaned, sanitized and reused, addressing the growing shortage of raw materials for visor production. we are now delivering these prototype visors to a number of london hospitals where they are being tested. we are also exploring means of getting the design approved for mass production and use by health workers.

> flat-pack reusable visor comes in two sizes — short and long.
> visor, headband and strap can be cut by a flatbed digital cutter or laser cutter.
> cutting time: <30 seconds > assembly: <60 seconds > each visor can be disassembled and cleaned for reuse.

> visor: 0.5mm petg or equivalent
> headband: 0.75mm polypropylene (pp) or equivalent
> adjustable strap: 1mm silicone

click here to download the assembly instructions
click here to download the file for the digital flatbed cutter (.dwg)
please note that by downloading these files you are accepting the following terms and conditions:

1 > this design for a flat pack laser cut visor (the design) is created and owned by foster + partners limited and is licensed for non-commercial use under the creative commons attribution-non commercial 4.0 international public license (“the ccl terms”).
2 > as set out in section 5 of the ccl terms, no representations or warranties of any kind concerning the design are given.
3 > by downloading and or using the design files, you:
accept and agree to the ccl terms.

acknowledge that:
a > this design has been created by foster + partners in response to the global covid-19 pandemic;
b > foster + partners has no prior expertise in the design and manufacture of personal protective equipment (ppe) and therefore this design has neither been made by reference to any specific regulations nor subject to any formal testing regime;
c > that any user of the design shall assume all responsibility for developing the design in conformity with regulatory and testing requirements of any markets it intends to make the visor available in.

notes to editors:

1 > one zund g3 m 2500 cutting machine or equivalent can cut 217 per hour.
2 > the template offers two sizes – short and long.

[ DesignApplause covid-19 response ] #covid19 #coronacvirus

autonomous vehicle startup nuro gets nhtsa green light with their r2 electric delivery vehicles.

Feb 11, 2020

a lot will be happening in the ev, self-drive marketplace in 2020. above, nuro r2

now they get a great opportunity to prove themselves. the national highway traffic safety administration (nhtsa) has awarded [ nuro ] with a permit to temporarily deploy up to 5,000 low-speed electric delivery vehicles free of human controls.

the nuro r2 has been designed to make short trips and will be restricted to pre-mapped neighborhood streets. the vehicles will be deployed during a two-year period and offer a delivery service for grocery stores, restaurants, and other businesses.

in granting the nuro r2 a permit to test on public roads, the nhtsa has for the first time approved a petition for a vehicle that doesn’t meet all existing u.s. auto safety standards, such as featuring normal human controls like a steering wheel and mirrors.

u.s. transportation secretary elaine chao says that for vehicles like the nuro r2, “certain features that the department traditionally required – such as mirrors and windshield for vehicles carrying drivers – no longer make sense.”

nuro was co-founded in 2016 by a pair of former google engineers who had worked on the company’s self-driving car project. last year, nuro raised $940 million from softbank group corp and the company is now valued at $2.7 billion.

in december 2019, the state of california said it would allow ‘light-duty’ autonomous delivery vehicles to hit public streets across the state with a requirement test vehicles without a backup driver will need a certified link to a remote operator that can take control. at the time, nuro said it would apply for a permit to test the r2 in california, having already tested the vehicle in arizona and texas.

[ nuro ] dave ferguson and jiajun zhu have devoted their careers to robotics and machine learning, most recently as principal engineers at google’s self-driving car project (now waymo). they founded nuro in 2016 to harness the power of robotics and artificial intelligence to solve new challenges at a global scale. today their team consists of veterans in robotics, consumer electronics, autonomous vehicles, and automotive — from google, waymo, apple, uber, tesla, and gm.

life-size sand traffic jam seen on miami beach during design miami/ 2019. leandro erlich.

Nov 10, 2019

above > traffic jam (order of importance)

the beach has been a symbol of leisure and prosperity for so many years, and in particular for miami but now there is a frontline feeling about the beach. it has become a different kind of stage. ~ leandro erlich

last year at art basel 2018 in ruth benzacar‘s booth (above) a maquette of buenos aires artist leandro erlich was shown for $18,000. titled ‘traffic jam (order of importance) – the art is a miami beach-appropriate installation where cars, suv’s, taxis, etc., are moulded in sand – actually a mix of sand three types of salt which form a hardened crust. the vehicles seem to rise from nowhere, form a traffic jam, and then fade away.

erlich has a reputation for whimsical perception-bending optical-illusions. this 2018 maquette became the concept presented to the city of miami that will be shown life-size on miami beach during art basel 2019. the city has contributed $300,000 towards his most monumental work. the work will have a life of just fifteen days. but…there may be more to this concept though details are not fully available at this writing. possibly, this concept may become an off-shore reef. the reasoning comes from erlich’s interest in climate change and all that threatens humans, animals, architecture, and civilization.

his first climate related work was for the 2015 climate change summit in paris, maison fond. to evoke global warming his installation was an image of a building melting: the ground floor of this small parisian building has already almost completely disappeared.

and the world’s coral reefs are dying. this artificial structure (traffic jam) could both be a symbol as well as an artful prototype.

“the beach has been a symbol of leisure and prosperity for so many years, and in particular for miami,” says erlich. ‘but now there is a frontline feeling about the beach. it has become a different kind of stage.”

[ information ]
leandro erlich; design miami/ @designmiami #climatechange

mary quant at the v&a museum in tandem with london design festival 2019.

Oct 23, 2019

the whole point of fashion is to make fashionable clothes available to everyone ~ mary quant 1966

dame mary quant defined the young, playful look of the 1960s, becoming britain’s best-known designer, a fashion icon, and a powerful role model for working women. harnessing an explosion in shopping and the media – in photography, graphics, journalism and advertising – she helped shape a forward-looking, innovative identity for post-war britain.

above > 1944 sketchbook by mary quant
made when quant was just 14, this sketchbook shows her early interest in drawing figures, here in the nostalgic style of mabel lucie atwell. in her 1966 autobiography, she recalled admiring a childhood friend’s short black skirt and tap shoes worn for dance lessons – the sort of clothes which later inspired her designs for the miniskirt.

above> courtesy of victoria and albert museum collection

quant was a self-taught designer, attending evening classes on cutting and adjusting mass-market printed patterns to achieve the looks she was after. once technically proficient, she initiated a hand-to-mouth production cycle: the day’s sales at bazaar paid for the cloth that was then made up overnight into new stock for the following day. the look was fresh and competitively priced.

1960-64 victorian-modern
quant combines victorian nineteenth century fashion with a fruitful source of inspiration often resulting in surprising styles which helped to get publicity for the mary quant brand.

above – below > early 60s – death of the debutante
snobbery has gone out of fashion / fashion editors endorse bazaar with its distinctive designs, witty window displays and jazzy fashion shows. quant’s shop becomes a destination for professional women seeking streamlined, modern fashion. buying a new dress is a new rite of passage for london’s fashionable elite, as aristocratic customs such as ‘deb of the year’ and court presentations become outdated.

above > 1960-64 – english eccentrics
like a good dancer, she accommodates her steps to the changing rhythms of fashion / quant brings an entertaining slant to fashion. repurposing victorian frills and childrenswear, she play with color and silhouettes. inspired by serviceable cottons and dependable woolens and tweads, she works directly with weavers and manufacturers in wales, wittshire, and yorkshire. at the same time she revives the boyish look of the 1920s flapper. he bewigged, gawky mannequins strike unusual poses in bazaar’s window displays, alongside props such as live goldfish, stuffed birds or dead lobsters. passerby stop to stare.

above > 1963-65 the ginger group
quant clothes at budget prices to buy a piece at a time / quant strides into new territory with her ginger group collection. the name is a political term for a pressure group, derived from the use of ginger as a verb to pep things up. the first ginger group collection is based on the american sportswear principle of interchangeable separates. with a new graphic identiy and a lower price point, the range provides countless mix-and-match possibilities combined wit the cachet of quant.

above > 1963 – 65 the wet collection
bewitched…with this super shiny man-made stuff and its shrieking colors…its gleaming liquorice black, white and ginger / quant launches her wet collection in april 1963 at the hotel de crillon, paris. the collection features a relatively new material called polyvinyl chloride (pvc), a shiny plastic-coated cotton which reflects increasing fascination and modernity. because of mass-production delays of sealing pvc seams the collection takes two years to launch on the high street.

above > 1966-75 style evolution
switching to the sounds of the seventies / having created the minimal look which defined the 1960s, quant’s style becomes eclectic and retrospective amid the economic and political uncertainties of the 1970s. still combining victorian details with bright colors and a clean modern finish.

above > 1965-75 liberated fashion
i didn’t have time to wait for women’s lib / in this time of growing activism and struggle for equal rights, quant has a visionary take on the role of women. her assertive, liberating minidresses express the changes of post-war-briton, giving women an independent style of their own. she credit’s her king’s road customers as her inspiration and the ones leading the feminist rebellion. in 1967, she describes the young as, ‘prototypes’ of a whole new race of women…it’s their questioning attitude that make them important and different.

above > 1966-73 girls will be boys
i didn’t want to grow up, perhaps that’s something to do with it / from 1966, tomboyish models like the teenaged twiggy promote the minidress-look in typical quant style: knock kneed in gawkish poses, often sporting cropped hair and resisting the constraints of adult stereotypes. these often provocative styles reflect increasingly relaxed attitudes in society towards sexuality in all its forms, reinforced legally by the decriminalization of homosexuality in 1967.

above > quant and vidal sassoon 1964

above > 1965-67 underwear
foundation garments needn’t be surgical. get a birthday suit and be your own sweet self (minus six pounds) / the silhouette of quant’s dresses requires a new kind of underwear or ‘foundation garment’. magazines aimed at adventurous young women feature ‘q-form’ worn by models in dynamic poses. the images promote unrestricted movement and the new ideal for a lithe, childlike physique. later these are replaced by quant’s simple ‘booby traps’ and knickers.

above > 1965-67 alligator rainwear
since when did the raincoat go wild? since mary quant designed for alligator / quant’s fascination with shiny, waterproof pvc is realized with her collaboration with alligator rainwear. alligator’s manufacturing expertise resolves the wet collection issues, allowing a new bright range of colors, capes, zips and contrasting collars.

above >1965-67 the jersey dress
i want free-flowing, feminine lines that compliment a women’s shape…i want relaxed clothes, suited to the actions of normal life / quant discovers a new type of wool jersey that’s heat-bonded to an acetate backing and available in the brightest, deepest colors. previously used in underwear and for rugby or football kit, jersey’s smooth, fluid qualities are perfect for quant’s signature sportry minidresses. worn with matching berets, tights and shoes giving a total top-to-toe block of color.

1962-66 the miniskirt
the shock of the knee / quant’s knee-skimming outfits are first noticed by the media in 1960. an emerging street style, shorter skirts develop in tandem with teenage dance crazes. quant’s designs, often based on practical schoolgirl pinafores, adapt the look for grown-ups with hemlines gradually rising to well above the knee. although exclusive paris couturier andré courreges achieves international publicity for the higher hemlines in 1964, quant, the female celebrity designer, becomes recognized as inventor and ambassador for the style. the miniskirt becomes an accepted part of fashion as well as an international symbol of london’s youthful look and of women’s liberation.

above > crêpe dress with frilled collar and cuffs by mary quant for ginger group, modeled by patti boyd with the rolling stones. photograph by john french, 1960s, london. museum no. ct64253. © victoria and albert museum, london

the above feature created from the victoria and albert museum‘s installation mary quant, open thru 16 february 2020

first amazon and now ford investing in all-electric pickup truck startup rivian.

Apr 28, 2019

last february, amazon announced a $700-million dollar investment in rivian to develop an electric delivery vehicle. now ford motor company is investing $500 million dollars into rivian. and though the small numbers of electrified vehicles on the road today, this announcement is another sign that automakers are eyeing evs as an element in their future.

ford is already developing an electrified mustang and a battery-powered version of the f150, the best-selling vehicle in the us. ford declined to name the product it will build with rivian.

founded by ceo rj scaringe in 2009, rivian employs about 700 people at its michigan headquarters, technology and engineering operations in california and recently acquired a vehicle assembly plant in normal, illinois, for a bargain from mitsubishi motors.

“ford has promised a portfolio of electric vehicles, including a pickup truck, as well as other models,” said michelle krebs, an executive analyst at autotrader. “rivian has a well-developed, innovative approach to electrifying trucks that is ready to go. rivian has the benefit of ford’s leadership position in the truck market — ford has something like a 70% loyalty rate in trucks — with its wide distribution network and raft of potential customers, most importantly commercial fleet customers.”

above > the front charge indicator on rivian’s new rit electric pickup.

above > “gear tunnel” — a storage area that spans the width of the vehicle

[ vitals ]

> up to 400 miles per charge – $90,000 usd / 230 miles – $70,000 usd
> zero-to-60 mph in three seconds
> quad motor system – for superior on road control and way off
> wading depth of three feet
> a debut at the 2018 los angeles autoshow

production motorcycles turn into icons but what about custom bikes?

Feb 15, 2019

above/below > white falcon / ian barry / 2013 / unique

how can one-off machines compare to production models beloved by the masses? can we draw any conclusions looking at a few very exceptional motorcycles ? and if you’re more comfortable comparing another category of objects go ahead, the rules apply to anything:

[ the production objects ]
production motorcycles can be judged somewhat objectively: by their performance, innovation, their pedigree, their impact on the larger motorcycle world.

above> vincent black shadow / built 1948 – 55 / hunter s. thompson once remarked that “if you rode the black shadow at top speed for any length of time, you would almost certainly die.” the 50-degree v-twin was completely baked in black enamel and produced enough grunt to carry riders to 125 mph in an era where the 100 mph benchmark was barely attainable. the vincent employed extensive amounts of aluminum throughout, and its motor hung from the cross-bar, acting as a stressed member. this kept weight down to 450 pounds, which meant the vincent black shadow would balance a see-saw with contemporary 500cc singles. innovative front forks, a four-speed transmission and finned brakes at both front and rear rounded out a package widely regarded as the world’s first superbike.

above > harley-davidson xr750 street tracker / built 1970 – 79 / essentially a parts-bin special slapped together to meet changing ama dirt-track rules, the xr750 is an example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. after years of domination, harley’s racing department were forced to completely rethink their efforts for the 1970 season. so in under a year they did — and in doing so created the winningest race bike in the history of the ama. thankfully, homologation rules stipulated that 200 race-ready road-goers be made available to the public; a legend was born. evel knievel began jumping the xr-750 at the height of his career between december 1970 and october 1976 (although a failed practice jump was made in january 1977 and captured on film). prior to the failed practice jump, knievel jumped either cars or trucks (or a combination of the two) on the xr-750.

above> ducati desmosedici rr / built 2007 – 08 / only 1,500 models of this street-legal version of ducati’s 2006 motogp entrant were produced. the all-new 200 hp, 90-degree “double-l twin” v-4 engine would scream through its vertical exits in the rear tail all the way to its 10,500 rpm redline and 194 mph top speed. componentry was top notch all around with ohlins, brembo and marchesini put to the task of keeping riders alive and justifying the $72,500 sticker price. the desmosedici rr is often regarded as the ultimate ducati experience, a mechanically and aesthetically faithful reproduction of a genuine motogp racer — it even came with sponsorship stickers, were you so inclined.

[ the custom objects ]
custom motorcycles, as they divert toward art, demand a more subjective judgment: the celebrity of the artist, a track record of recognized style and quality, and in the artworld’s subjective judgment, the black and white of the price of the art for confirmation.

above> white falcon / built in 2013 / acrylic, 7075 + 6061 aluminum, brass, cloth, chromally, copper, enamel, epoxy, glass, light-emitting diodes, leather, magnesium, nickel, pyrex, rubber, silver, springs, stainless mesh, stainless steel, steel, titanium, 1967 works ‘squish head’ velocette venom thruxton engine, gp carburetors, avon venom tires, 21″ wm1 avon, 19″ wm2 borrani, archimedes mount / 33 x 30 x 73 inches – sold for a rumored $750,000 at the kohn gallery in los angeles.

below> bsa 500 black / hazen motorworks

“every bike that I create is 1 of 1, made by my own 2 hands here in my workshop, each bike is unique and never replicated. i push myself to make something new with every project and build the most interesting designs that i can think of in the most elegant way possible.” ~ max hazen

below > captain america / built c 1967 – 68 / arguably the most famous iconic custom bike because of the 1969 movie, easy rider. called “captain america” and before it was customized it was a 1952 harley-davidson hydra-glide police bike built by two chopper builders, cliff vaughs and ben hardy. the bike kept its original h-d panhead engine. two captain america bikes were made but before the movie aired one was stolen and parted and the other bike was crashed in the last scene of the movie.
[ npr backstory ] [ captain america sells for $ 1.3 million ]

[ 51 most iconic motorcycles of all time ] [ art demystified: what determines an artwork’s value ? ] –