1-Space within space
As part of Vancouver-based Molo Design’s continuing exploration of space making, new colours of their softwall + softblock modular systems were unveiled at M&O that are intended to enhance the qualities of light reflection and absorption by each of the two materials they are available in: indigo for craft paper softwall + softblock; pale yellow for textile. molodesign.com
2-Hanging with attitude
Bau, a sculptural hanging lamp designed by Vibeke Fonnesberg Schmidt for Normann Copenhagen, combines colour, composition and geometric shapes in interlocking circles. The immediate pattern is broken up by the discs’ colours, sizes and off-centre linkages, making the lamp both vivid and organic in expression as one’s position changes in relation to it.
normann-copenhagen.com
3–Collected nature
This year at M&O, the Thai firm Deesawat debuted several new additions to its outdoor living collections, including the Nest Partition. Utilizing small cuts of teak to create mischievous floral patterns in a circle bench, shade, side table and partition, they also support plant growth and encourage interaction with wildlife, such as birds. deesawat.com
4-The ordinary less ordinary
Wood Lamp by Muuto (whose name, inspired by the Finnish word muutos, means “new perspective”) “is a low-tech antidote to the usually very modern work desk lamps” say the designers, Stockholm-based TAF Architects. “All the details are pragmatically chosen with every screw visible.” muuto.com
5-Peculiar indeed
d.lab, one of several Singapore-based studios exhibiting as a collective at M&O, showed off its Daily Objects collection, developed with fellow Asian artisans. It includes a new series of products for daily use around the house, such as this lamp titled Peculiar Attachments. Designed by Chung Sui Fai, it is made of aluminum, steel, maple and balau wood.
dlab.com.sg
6-Bright idea
Glass tubes can be bent is many different shapes. So why are there thousands of manufacturers but only three basic energy-efficient light bulb designs? The Plumen 001 by Samuel Wilkinson for Hulger, a London-based boutique electronics brand, is attempting to remedy consumers’ ho-hum attitude (yet implied moral obligation) towards the dull regular shapes of existing low-energy bulbs. In addition to evoking a bird’s show feather (hence “plume”), it uses 80 per cent less energy than the traditional incandescent bulb and lasts eight times longer.
plumen.com
7-Nordic dream
Lena Bergström has expanded her Björk collection for Design House Stockholm with a small rug and a stool, inspired by birch tree stumps found all over Sweden. The woven structure’s marbled effect comes from cotton intertwined with wool, simulating the black and white trunk of the birch, while the leather represents the inside of the bark.
designhousestockholm.com
8-School’s out
The Back to School stackable chair is part of the 2011 collection for Zuiver, a fairly young Dutch design label, and an ode to old school models in a contemporary vivid reinterpretation. The back and seat come in varnished beech, and the steel frame is available in eight electric colours.
zuiver.com
9-Fusion infatuation
Two separate Mandarin words combined – qi expresses air, breath and energy, while diàn means cushion – is a good way to describe this eye- and thought-provoking chair. The Qi Diàn, designed by Benoit Lienart and Paul Chen for Cerekapery, uses a rigid resin shell to support a soft pliable cushion that moulds to fit the user’s form. cerekapery.com
10-Mining memories
Marimekko dove into its legendary print archive to find inspiration for 2012, and came back with Per Olof Nyström’s Helsinki-Helsingfors print from 1952. Inspired by Helsinki’s Art Nouveau buildings, this spring 2012 interior decoration collection begins Marimekko’s year-long celebration of World Design Capital Helsinki 2012. The Helsinki series includes Oiva mugs in two colours with accompanying trays and snappy kitchen towels. marimekko.fi