a detail of one of the flying fish
image © designboom

just an update from experimentdesign amsterdam 2008. nothing design group, who just participated in
designboom's tokyo mart were also participants of the urban play exhibition which was part of experimentadesign.
the group of young korean designers, directed by koo jin-woog, presented 'fish in the sky' as their contribution
to the exhibition. along the IJ riverfront, transparent wind vanes in the shape of fish, were attached to flag poles
and soared above. the fish were meant to be a school of dutch herring, with the flag poles acting like
fishing rods, which have caught the fish swimming through the sky.


the fish are meant to be a representation of dutch herring
image © designboom


image © designboom


a member of nothing design group preparing one of the fish
image © droog design


fish flying high along the IJ riverfront in amsterdam
image © designboom

nothing design group: http://www.designnothing.com
droog design: http://www.droog.com
urban play: http://www.urbanplay.org
experimentadesign amsterdam: http://www.experimentadesign.nl

Another excellent program on This American Life today all about the financial crisis. If you remember back in May I recommended their program called The Giant Pool of Money which explained in easy to understand terms how the sub-prime lending debacle happened. Similarly today's program titled Another Frightening Show About the Economy explains in easy to understand terms how this all happened.

The financial players on Wall Street had essentially placed "bets" in the form of complex financial constructs called Credit Default Swaps. These were placed by the banks against one another making them all interdependent and likely to topple if one fell. These were first conceived as a form of insurance, later used as more or less a bet. There is no regulation of these financial devices, and hence no overall picture of how over leveraged the industry was. Incredibly irresponsible.

I highly recommend getting the podcast from their site if you have any interest at all in understanding what just happened to you and me - it is a free download for the first week following the show. Here is a link to their site:

http://www.thislife.org/

Or if you are an iTunes user you can subscribe and get the show from there.

marieke staps is dutch product designer who is the creator of the ‘soil lamp’. unlike most lights, staps’
uses free and environmentally friendly energy sourced from mud. the metabolism of biological life
produces enough electricity to burn the led light on the top. by adding a touch of water to the base of
the lamp, the natural life force in the dirt conducts electricity through copper and zinc, powering the
small bulb.

http://www.mariekestaps.nl

As the climate crisis mounts and Arctic icebergs slip away, polar bears are suffering starvation, population declines, and drowning as they must swim further and further to find food. Seeking to raise awareness for the endangered species’ plight, ADDI Concepts has taken wildlife preservation literally by designing a life-vest for displaced polar bears struggling to stay afloat as their homes sink into the sea.

(more…)

tokyo art beat have released two new shirts for their 2008 fall collection.




'appenzell tyo' by so + ba

so+ba is alex sonderegger + susanna baer, are a swiss duo that have been working in tokyo
for more than 10 years. they created a design inspired by the traditional silhouetted paper cut-out
art from the swiss alpine region of “appenzell”. the design include scenes and symbols that populate
daily life in tokyo.




'huge tokyo mansion' by paramodel

paramodel are yasuhiko hayashi and yusuke nakano, an artist duo from eastern osaka formed in 2001.
for tokyo art beat they created a patchwork of apartment layout plans found in japanese real estate
agencies to create a huge fictional mansion that spells out the 3 kanji -  big, grand, tokyo.

more:
http://www.tokyoartbeat.com

Image: Happy 3rd Birthday by Laura-Beth Wow I almost missed it yet again! Yesterday, November 09, was Design Sojourn’s 3rd birthday. It has been 3 great years of blogging and to mark this event it I have been thinking about what I should do to celebrate it with you dear reader. Oh before I [...]

alissa and carly at coe and waito have launched a beautiful new series of ceramics. their existing collections have been smash hits and i have a feeling these pieces will be welcomed with the same enthusiasm. i love their coral vase (above) and the sweet scalloped bowls below. they would both be perfect for holiday gifts and they’re all between $56- $200 so there’s something for everyone. click here to check out their new collection and place and order.

Hey, DMI seems to slightly open up towards the social web! Something I’ve tried to convince them on a while ago ;-)

Therefore under the lead of Scott Lerman they’ve set up a Ning where you can socialize and get in touch with other Design Management professionals across the globe that like to hang out at DMI conferences once in a while. Well done, DMI!

So in case you’re planning to attend the annual DMI conference in early October 2008 you should definitively join. Otherwise for lurking and networking join as well at: JoIN the REMIX >>>

On September 8, 2008 at the Ars Electronica digital media festival in Linz, Austria, 170 people from fields spanning business, culture, arts and technology gathered at Mission Future to explore the power and potential of open innovation and collaboration. Under the theme „We’re Open“, participants spent the day immersed in presentations, panels, interviews, breakout sessions, Future Slams, a Future Hunt, music and interactive art.

Over 25 speakers lead discussion, sharing their expertise and opinions on topics including the future of intellectual property, open source, crowd-funding, social networking, the future of creation, open community, open business and open arts. Over the coming weeks and months we’ll be posting video clippings and summaries of Mission Future 2008 sessions on the Mission Future website, so visit http://missionfuture.trendpool.com/ to find out what went on.

An enormous amount of gratitude is due to all the speakers for sharing their foresights and insights with us, and equally sincere thanks go to our participants, whose contributions were key to the success of the day, to Ars Electronica Linz for their support in realizing this first major undertaking of Mission Future, and to our sponsors, the Berlin School of Creative Leadership, Weingüter Retzer Land, Art Directors Club, Red Bull, Carpe Diem, Linz 09, Indigo, Der Standard, Linz Tourism, Groupile and rebell.tv.

Building on the success of the 2008 event, the goals for Mission Future 2009 are now far loftier. We intend to receive speakers of the same high calibre as those we were privileged to hear this year, to tap into the knowledge and experience of participants to even greater effect, and to further advance Mission Future’s initiative to create tomorrow’s economy.

(Photo: Oswald Schröder, Elizabeth Stark and Joichi Ito discuss the future of intellectual property. Credit: Ars Elelctronica)

This article reflects on a phenomenon I stumble across more and more. While for most companies the question of having a Chief Blogger is not 1st priority the fact to think about the impact of social media is very often neglected not only in the DM domain.

I received an email from Professor Sunny Cai, who teaches architectural design at a college in Beijing , China. He mentioned his interest in ancient Chinese architecture, especially the earthen buildings called “tulou,” and he sent me some pictures of these rammed earth buildings.

I had never seen anything quite like them, so I queried him further about how they were made and used. He replied, “The foundation was built with rocks, 2 feet high all around. The juice of glutinous rice and some lime is mixed into the earth for strength, and then sliced bamboo, reeds, and sometimes pieces of wood are also used.”

This picture was taken in front of a rammed earth building with Sunny Cai and his students.

I did some further internet research and found out more about these interesting structures. Tulou are traditional communal residences in the Fujian province of Southern China, often of a circular configuration surrounding a central shrine. Some of these vernacular structures were constructed of cut granite or had substantial walls of fired brick. The end result is a well lit, well-ventilated, windproof, earthquake resistant building that is warm in winter and cool in summer.

There are more than 20,000 tulou in southern Fujian, and these were designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2008 as “exceptional examples of a building tradition and function exemplifying a particular type of communal living and defensive organization, and, in terms of their harmonious relationship with their environment".

Actually the Tulou were built by a minority called the Hakka, who were originally Han who fled south to escape war and famine during the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC). As they gradually moved they changed the local architecture by incorporating Han styles and that produced the tulou. Not only were the high walls built for defense but they were also the result of traditional Han architecture. Tulou were mostly built between the 12th to the 20th centuries. The oldest one was constructed over 1,200 years ago and is regarded as a “living fossil” of the construction style of central China.

There are three types of Tulou. The Wufeng has three halls and two side rooms and are said to be the result of a redesign of the Han courtyard. The oldest tulou are the rectangle ones, and the most emblematic ones are round. They are typically designed for defensive purposes and consist of one entrance and no windows at ground level. The biggest round one can have up to five stories with three interior rings. The largest houses cover over 40,000 m² and it is not unusual to find surviving houses of over 10,000 m². Most round tulous are three or four stories, with family kitchens and livestock on the ground floor. The next floor becomes a storage room for food and furniture (with no windows), and above that are the bedrooms.

These structures are exemplary of sustainable architecture in that they are built of local, natural materials with simple techniques. They have good thermal attributes, with the massive earthen walls to help buffer temperatures. They are obviously built to last, and house many of the necessities for life. And they embody a communal life style that conserves energy and resources; these represent a form of ancient co-housing.

"The only woman-run, hybrid specialty garage has opened in the Bay Area, which has more Priuses ? 70,000 as of 2006 ? than most states... Ms. Coquillette, 30, an Ohio native, hopes to become a prophet of the all-electric future that some Californians dream of... But being a prophet is different from making a profit." Thanks, Lincoln. (via NY Times)

Architecture & Interiors by: SPLYCE
Location: Vancouver, Canada
Specialty: residential and commercial renovations to custom furniture and landscapes
Project Highlights: Renovations of West2nd and West 7th private residences
Interior Photography: Michael Boland Photography

The great thing about blogging is that I have gained such a great sense of community, meeting so many amazing talents from all corners of the world and also reconnecting with the local design scene. Earlier this year I was honoured to read a kind comment from one of Vancouver's most talented architects, Nigel Parish of SPLYCE. I came across his work last year while sourcing images for modern west coast architecture. Over the past months, I have been lucky enough to learn more about Nigel's work and approach to both architecture and interiors. You can see through his work the merging of the structure and interior volumes of space holds a strong relationship and is seamless. I admire his keen sense of attention to construction details in exploring natural materials in flush exterior cladding and the combining of economical yet quality materials.


To see more of Nigel's work, see slideshow

A shot of the corner of the living room today from the owners of the OK Tray House. They are moved in, but not unpacked, and they promise more photos to come once they are settled.



So what do we have here. Well open up the catalog page so you can look at the floor plan. This photo is taken from the living room, looking into the study. We can see a stone wall which is flanking the fireplace, and above it we can see the gridded window wall which sits above the fireplace. I'm real excited about that since it looks like they did a really great job with that. Out the window we can see more of that nicely stained siding. To the left we can see the front door and the entry vestibule. In the study we see the side windows, and a couple of modern chairs? Man after my own heart! And upstairs some cable rail, and a glimpse of the bedroom ceiling. It looks awesome - can't wait to see the rest of the house!

And don't forget the flickr set of photos of this project from start to finish.

Technorati Tags: house plans, modern design, modern house, Tray House

Another Japanese wonder, HOUSE kn by Kochi Architect's Studio. Beautiful [sigh]. The floor plan is very nice and the outdoor space is wonderful.


Nice treatment of parking space too. My pet peeve is nice homes ruined by ugly attached garages and bad driveways. HOUSE kn gets it right.

Via the girl in the green dress. It's a wonderful design blog, so please do click over and take a look. You'll be delighted.

Image credit - Kochi Architect's Studio site.

• Design Research Conference 2008, IIT Institute of Design; Chicago
  One of a few conferences I've never been to so far is the IIT Design Research Conference held each year in Chicago the home of IIT (Illinois Institute of Technology). Unlike many other conference organizers they are releasing the conference videos quite shortly after the conference has ended and that's what I've appreciated over the last years. While very often the selection of speakers tends to be the outcome of buddy networking there are from time to time some good talks available to be found in the archives.

  Pretty much the same counts for their other conference they are hosting each year the 'IIT Insitute of Design Strategy Conference' to be found here: http://snipurl.com/iitstrategy [trex_id_iit_edu]

  (tags: conferences conference design research IIT designresearch 2008 strategy&design)

Well, in contrast to the usual news that happiness is THE key to a better living I found that this article share some interesting sources on quite the contrary. Similarly have you ever thought about how our world would look/feel like if everything is 'designed' well? For me this triggers quite a few follow up questions like: How about Design's role as 'styling' then in contrast to 'Design' as a source for innovation? And re-phrasing Naish's words: 'Bad Design is the driver of human endeavour'! What do you think?

the k:fem department store by wingårdh architecture is located in the vällingby development, just outside
of stockholm. the store was conceived as a new beacon for the community serving to inject new life into
the area. the exterior is covered in a milky glass which get increasingly see through toward the top,
merging into the red overhang above. the list of stores inside are displayed on the overhang, all in white
on red. a pedestrian street cuts-through the department store, dividing it from the adjoining solo retailer.
inside the store, the semitransparent theme continues. the most unique features is the light filled central
core which is open to the sky.

http://www.wingardhs.se










via arch daily

On Saturday I was hanging around the architecture section of my local Barnes & Noble, looking for something new. I found a nice book on houses by Tom Kundig of Olson Sundberg Kundig Allen Architects. I also just caught this post on Shedworking covering several of the firm's brilliant cabin-like houses.


I resisted buying the book, though I'd really like to have it. It's very nice and Kundig's work is amazing. The house on the cover, Chicken Point Cabin, has been shown everywhere, and for good reason. It's pretty spectacular, and that giant, tilting window and the unusual mechanical folly for opening it are sublime.


Visiting the OSKA site, I found that the house I liked most wasn't one of the groovy cabins I'd spotted in a lot of the blogs and architecture mags. I was taken by the "The Brain," a fascinating concrete monolith built for a filmmaker.

"The form is essentially a cast-in-place concrete box, intended to be a strong yet neutral background that provides complete flexibility to adapt the space at will." - OSKA site

That's wonderful. I love the way the house rests on its site, half hidden, with creeping vines growing all over it. I hate big ugly garages hanging off the side of a house, parasitic, distorting proportions, so I was delighted to see this house with the garages tucked neatly underneath, buried into the slope of the landscape. No yard either - excellent!



The austere concrete exterior belies a more playful space inside: wonderful bookshelves (just look at 'em!), interesting lighting, a fireman's pole, and an amusing custom staircase.




Yes, this is a house I can see myself living in. The only exception I take with it, and with most Kundig houses frankly, is that they all look like bachelor pads. I'm married with children. But I think the wife and kids could adapt. Who wouldn't want to live in a house with a fireman's pole?

_____________________________________________________
Addendum:

I should have pointed out this very good Seattle Times article about "The Brain." I've realized since writing this post that "The Brain" is a garage/studio, not intended to be a residence. Thanks to those who left comments pointing that out. It is also worth noting that Kundig received an AIA award for "The Brain" in 2004.

Oh well, even though it's not technically a house I'm still very inspired by it!

Image credits - Amazon listing (book), OSKA Architects site

kokuyo design group holds an annual workshop with student designers in japan called tukurite.
the workshop partners the student with in-house designers to create new product ideas for kokuyo.
products featured this year included jewelry, coasters, a tape measure and vases.


'instant pinhole jewelry' by sasaki taku
image © designboom