Museu Serralves

The Serralves Foundation Museum was designed by Portuguese architect Álvaro Siza Vieira and completed in 1999. Located in the Quinta de Serralves, a large property close to the center of Porto, it was the first large-scale contemporary art museum in Portugal.

The entire building is an exercise in quiet contemplation, from the very beginning at the entrance patio to the smallest details of furniture, fittings, and signage. The silent, almost monolithic structure is occasionally interrupted by strategic openings onto the surrounding green, creating an interesting cadence of open/closed and naturally/artificially lit spaces. The vast surrounding landscaped gardens were designed by João Gomes da Silva and currently display sculptures by minimalist artists such as Dan Graham and Richard Serra.

Dual Cut

Hong Kong born and Canada based designer Kitmen Keung has collaborated with Belgian furniture label Sixinch on their début project, Dual Cut – a modular furniture piece that employs the simplest production processes true to its materials with minimal wastage.

The design features two ergonomically comfortable L-shaped foam blocks and a multi-formation ability to compose a one seater with a side table, a chaise lounge or a corner table. Dual Cut is available in Light Grey and Dark Grey and with a three-layer-system coating, it’s suitable for both indoor and outdoor use.

Windows 8 Logo

Microsoft has developed a new logo, for its new operating system, Windows 8, based on the concepts of simplicity and clarity and using just a single blue colour.
The new logo design has been made by Paula Scher at Pentagram.

Drawing Vessels

Fumiaki Goto has designed these  drawing vessels inspired by the most basic element of the pencil: the lead. Pencil lead is a type of ceramic, therefore Goto has fittingly designed a vessel made of pencil lead. The process of creating the vessel is part factory manufacturing and part art. The vessel is made with the same recipe as pencil lead-part ceramic and part graphite-but it is baked using the traditional methods for ceramics.

The design allows the user to hold the white end and draw with the darkened point. The gradient look is visually appealing and highly functional. Holding the white end of the vessel ensures that the user’s hand won’t dirty from the graphite. Each vessel comes with its own little stand. The stand allows the contents of the vessel to stay in place and keeps the graphite from marking unwanted areas.

Drawn Pink

Drawn Pink is a forty-foot installation by Kansas City based artist Anne Lindberg, currently displayed at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts in Omaha. The work is comprised of threads of Egyptian cotton held in place by staples. Over 23 miles of thread was used for the piece.

The object looks like a pink pencil drawing suspended in the air.

There is a time lapse video of the installation. Drawn Pink is part of a group show, titled Placemakers, which will run at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts till March 31, 2012.

Villa Roces

In the area of Bruges in Belgium, the local architects Benny Govaert & Damiaan Vanhoutte designed Villa Roces, a family house and a conceptual home. The oblong terrain and the wooded surroundings led the architects to the designing solution of a wide glass box with a high degree of transparency in order to provide a response to the minimum light. A big wall along the house was also built for the same reason: the intention to reflect the light and the presence of the forest.

The design of the interior follows the overall visual pavilion impression too. The two levels of the house are developed in such a way to maintain and intensify the idea of the box while white, clearly defined boxes form the interior space, incorporating the structure elements and reflecting the light.

Photography: Tim Van de Velde.

Product Fitness 80

Japanese brand Muji has a clear expression of minimalistic principles.

On the one year anniversary of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami, Muji presents the Product Fitness 80 exhibition at the Design Museum, proposing a reconsideration of the way in which design impacts on the way we use energy.

Following the Japanese concept of monozukuri, which means the state of mind of crafting with a minimalist focus while designating a commitment to society and to the planet, Muji’s products have always reflected the search for comfort and purpose. Product Fitness 80 is another step in that direction, representing the firm’s will to raise awareness by reviewing their own conduct and setting an important example.


Photography by Joe Humphrys.

Rechner

Colorado based design studio Berger & Föhr practice cohesive visual communication characterized by modernism, minimalism and objectivity. Recently they launched Recher, world’s first gesture based calculator. Rechner has gestural functions for +, -, = and clear. There is a hidden actions drawer for x, ÷, ±, √,  % and erase.

Rechner is now available on the AppStore.

Bottle Humidifier

The Bottle Humidifier by Seoul-based design studio Cloud and Co is an attempt to visually reinvent a familiar household item and turn it into a device both elegant and efficient.
The matt antibacterial shell rests on the thick glass reservoir, which allows the user to see the water level inside. The retractable USB power cable is convenient and allows flexibility during travel.

Egg Bank

Based in New York, Jim Schatz designs and handcrafts ceramic products from the inside out to make common objects in a wonderfully unique and innovative way.

A perfect receptacle for money, these elegant Egg Banks have been handcrafted in durable stoneware and are available in glossy Bright White, Gold and Platinum. The eggs measure 8″ high x 6″ wide with a 1 1/4″ x 1/8″ wide money slot.

The Albatros

The Albatros, created by London based product designer Oscar Lhermitte,  is a brand new kind of bookmark that follows your reading. There is no need anymore to remeber the page number of the book you are reading. The Albatros is a clever bookmark tool that each time you turn a page, inserts itself at the right place.

The Albatros, available in 7 colors, consists of a thin piece of polyester that one easily inserts in a book. It is due to the structure and shape that every time you turn a page, the bookmark follows it. When you are finished with the book you just leave it for the next reader or discard it.

Beige

The Japanese based firm Nendo completed this store interior in February. The store is called Beige, also based in Japan. Beige offers women simple and functional clothing made with indulgent fabrics. Nendo’s interior was inspired by the store’s philosophy towards clothing design.

Nendo places utility and materiality at the forefront of his design methodology. Beige features three main architectural elements: c-beam structural steel frames, white walls, and sheer curtains. The relationships between these elements adds a complexity to the design and allows the store to rearrange in countless combinations. The black and white undertones emphasize both the materials of the structure and of the clothing.

The store is reminiscent of a gallery, allowing each article of clothing to be displayed as a work of art.

Casa Amalia

Located in the island of Formentera in Spain and designed by architect Marià Castelló, Casa Amalia is a reformation project of an existing building originally constructed at the early 70s. The refurbishment was carried out between 2008 and 2010 and the main architectural concept was that of creating a contemporary version of the local architecture while introducing fluid and open spaces in the interiors.

No building interventions were made except that of a perimeter foundation that redefines the way the building contacts with the ground. This platform not only protects the house from the water runoff but also separates the house from the natural terrain giving shape to the terraces-viewpoint.

The limited use of materials and colours and the simple, geometrical volumes help achieve an attractive and sophisticated mix of the various phases of the building and create serene and elegant interiors.

Photography: Estudi EPDSE

Photographer’s Studio

This house, built by Canadian company dh3, is drenched in light. The owner wanted to have a photo studio, where soft natural illumination would be constant. In order to accomodate this wish, the architects created a north-facing fasade, made entirely of certified Starphire glass, famous for its transparency and ability to maximize light. The result is a photographer’s paradise with a beautiful, ever-changing backdrop of the landscape.

The glass structure is rested on a granit plinth, which uses solar energy to power up all active systems on winter days, while the lakefront site allows the use of a deep-water exchange to heat and cool the building year-round. The glass panels of the fasade slide open, allowing for natural ventilation, which is another clever eco-friendly detail.

All private areas of the house, i.e. bedroom, bathroom and closet, are combined into one mezzanine-like assembly above the main section. Sliding fritted glass conceals these areas, allowing the studio to remain pristine and work related.

Block vases

Japanese studio Nendo design of the Block vases are a set of delicate, small and stackable bud vases that form part of the collection of new additions to their 1% products, to be presented in Milan’s Salone del Mobile this coming April.

The vases are carefully measured and designed to fit in stackable formations, never disturbing the vase on the bottom. There are four sizes and each can accomodate one flower, but once stacked they can also fit a tall stem through the different combined vases.

DL 2 Euclides easy chair

Family-run German furniture manufacturer, Loehr, have designed the DL 2 Euclides easy chair – a lounge chair with a attractive minimal form.

The austere geometry of the frame made of 25mm tubular steel and the two-cushion removable upholstery, blend with simple elegance. With a seat height of 410mm and 800mm wide, the DL 2 chair offers a generous seating area, and is suitable for any lounging environment. The frame is available either in high gloss polished stainless steel or powder coated steel. As for the upholstery, high quality leather or selected fabrics are available.

Photography by Stafan Höderath

Capi

This laconic and visually stimulating packaging has been recently unveiled by Australian beverage manufacturer Capi. The company specializes on carbonated drinks and mineral waters. Capi’s brand claim includes producing pure, clean, and refreshing beverages from the finest natural extracts and botanicals.