Sorry Giotto

Sorry Giotto is a new LED lighting collection by Italian brand Catellani & Smith. The name refers to the legendary perfect freehand circle drawn by Italian painter Giotto di Bondone in the 14th century. The modern circular objects in question are made from hand painted copper and LED, projecting warm light on the vertical surface. The collection includes a wall and a floor versions, the latter of which has already scored the ‘Best Floor Light’ award at the Wallpaper Design Awards 2012.

Yi Fang Wan Fall/Winter 2012/13 Collection

Yi Fang Wan’s new collection for Fall/Winter 2012/13 presented in London’s Fashion Week. A very promising young designer, from southern China who recently graduated from the Central Staint Martin’s College of Art and Design and was awarded the L’Oréal Professionel Young Designer Award at the college’s BA Fashion degree in 2010. College’s graduates also include Alexander McQueen, John Galliano, Stella McCartney and Hussein Chalayan.

Simple, elegant lines and high quality materials manage to create feminine and elongated silhouettes.

A great proposal for a contemporary style with all time classic elements.

Monolithe

Monolithe is, in my opinion, a fantastic radiators line by the newly established brand Needo. It is a new concept, which cleverly combines heating and lighting with mobility. It has a an impeccable and elegant design, far different from that of traditional radiators.

Monolithe has an innovative and patented system for optimally distributing warmth without energy waste, spreading a more homogeneous heat, which generates a perfectly safe atmosphere thanks to technology that does not dry the air.

The recycled aluminium radiator also has an LED light on the top, completing its impressive design.

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.