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The CONST Lamp by Thailand-based Thinkk Studio first struck me with its odd mix of materials and shapes. An octagonal base is anchored only by the weight of a hunk of marble with a stepped-out, ridged design for holding pens and pencils. I’ll admit that at first I wasn’t sure what to make of it. I like that it incorporates elements of play – not just the call back to handmade wooden toys but the motion of adjusting the lamp feels a bit like playtime. And now, after coming back to it every day for the past few days, I have to say it really delights me. I love that it’s technically a marble lamp that’s the complete opposite of everything else a marble lamp has ever connoted. Moreover, it’s so different from every other desk lamp I’ve seen lately. It’s not sleek. In fact, it’s clunky, and this is probably the first time – for me, anyhow – that clunky isn’t a bad thing at all.
If you’re in Milan you can see it for yourself at At Spazio Rossana Orlandi. From the designers:
“The main idea behind the desk lamp CONST are three basic components; base, body and shade. Keeping in mind these simple elements and their role, The design playfully combines expression with function. The marble base keeps the octagon-shaped wood body balanced and at the same time, one can adjust the angle of the shade by rotating it. Reminiscent of playing with block toys, CONST gives one the ability to have fun with functionality.”
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Stockholm-based studio Claesson Koivisto Rune have an impressive showing at Milan Design Week, with over twenty projects being exhibited at thirteen different booths, but out of all their impressive work that includes furniture as well as architecture, I like Ray, the LED pendant lights made for the Dutch retailer NgispeN.
Named after the rays of a sun in a child’s drawing, the shade is laser-cut from thin metal that can be bent or adjusted into a variety of angles. Clustered tightly together, the light will focus strongly on one point, but open up the rays and you get a softer effect. The lights look great clustered together in one color as well as in multiple shades (I smell a restaurant interior…) or alone. Even though this takes its inspiration from children’s drawings, I could really use something bright and cheerful in my grown up apartment. Let’s hope NgispeN makes them available to the public soon.
You can see the light at NgispeN’s booth as well as the Temporary Museum for New Design in Superstudio Piu. [ claesson koivisto rune ]
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Milan 2010: at Salone Internazionale del Mobile this week Dutch designer Marcel Wanders presented a chair made by a blow molding technique used to manufacture water bottles.
The Sparkling Chair is made out of PET plastic and produced using the same blow molding technique commonly used for water bottles. After the molding process, the hollow spaces are filled with high pressure air to strengthen the design. With this technique the plastic usage is minimal and the total weight of the chair is only around 1kg. The legs are screwed onto the shell.
Specifications:
Product name: sparkling chair
Color: transparent green
Material: PET plastic
Width: 42.3 cm
Height: 77.6 cm
Depth: 49.0 cm
Designer: marcel wanders
Producer: magis
The following words from the Minispace…She loves the ocean, is great at entertaining guests, and likes to hang out in style outdoors.
You already know the Airstream trailer from supporting roles in Hollywood films, and as a favored mode of transport for nomadic hipsters. Now, the iconic “silver bullet” is hitting the party circuit.
above: the swan and egg chair by arne jacobsen inspires the bullet’s interior.
Who’s playing chauffeur, you ask? Why, a brand new MINI Cooper S Clubman, of course! The trailer, which showcases an über-chic custom-made interior by Copenhagen’s Republic of Fritz Hansen, will be making cameos at events, exhibitions, and design fairs around the world. The first spotting will be at the Salone del Mobile show and the INTERNI DESIGN ENERGIES exhibition in Milan, Italy (April 21-30 2009).
A bit of an odd market ? Well, image is everything and this hasn’t been tried before. Upon reading the copy before seeing the images one expected the Clubman “woodie” with “bullet” in tow.
Milan, design capital of the world, will soon have a new ecological hotel called Green Business Hotel.
The brainchild of architect Giuseppe Tortato and Milano Layout, will turn an old mill into an innovative four-star hotel in the heart of Milan. The “carbon free” hotel will use only renewable energy technologies.
Sprawling over 13,000 square meters, the place will comprise 120 rooms, restaurant, lounge bar, gym, spa, conference rooms, hanging gardens, courtyard, garden and a roofed parking lot 3000 square meters in size. Chief attractions of this hotel will be its lovely green area and state of the art technology. The hotel will in fact feature a complex computer network, combining hospitality, technology and love and respect for nature.
Designer: Giuseppe Tortato
via archiportale
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