Patricia Urquiola continues to charm

Like Pompeii, it used to be that Milan annually spewed out a flow of bad antique reproductions. Now it is simply a flood of mid-century modern furniture reproductions that come out year after year after year. Contemporary used to mean "of the current times" now it seems to mean "more of the same."

However, there is one designer in Milan who truly designs in the spirit of "contemporary" and that is Patricia Urquiola. Every season her designs are original and enchanting. Not afraid to use color, this Spaniard has given us a delightful new design vocabulary. Whether designing wire chairs for EMU, fabric-inspired plastic chairs for Kartell, or a whimsical set of fine china for Rosenthal, Urquiola creates fresh and exciting interpretations of traditional forms for today. Find out more about her in an interview on the Designboom website.

A solar Rube Goldberg machine

"A" for effort and an "F" for looks. The Sunray golf cart by Cruise Car is recharged by a solar panel. Does it really have to be so obvious? Also obvious is that this company has not heard of "Design."

Must they be so ugly?

Maybe Herwig's book Universal Design: Solutions for Barrier-free Living will finally let the world know that universal design does not have to be ugly. I always hate checking in late to a hotel, only to find myself with the handicap room with its on-so-ugly bathroom. Europeans just do these things much better, HEWI products are available in a decent array of colors at plumbing supply houses here, but I have only seen them at trade shows. What a shame!

Universal Design can be beautiful

Design Week reviews the book: Universal Design: Solutions for Barrier-free Living by Oliver Herwig which will be published in September. With a rapidly aging population, all interior product producers must be sensitive to this issue. Interior finishes are little affected by this topic other than the need for slip resistance in floors and an overall requirement for ease of maintenance. However, universal design should be given equal consideration with sustainability in the marketing materials for all interior products. OXO kitchen gadgets have long been developed for "universal design" and everyone loves to use them - as James Irvine says in the book "good design is universal design." Design Week shows the lovely SimpliciTEA ceramic teapot with pourer stand, designed by Lotte Alpert - I hope it makes it to our marketplace.

Further information on universal design is available from The Center for Universal Design (CUD), a national information, technical assistance, and research center that evaluates, develops, and promotes accessible and universal design in housing, commercial and public facilities, outdoor environments, and products.

Yves Saint Laurent R.I.P.

These quotes from Yes St. Laurent give us a small insight into why he was an important part of the fashion and cultural scene. He was always paying attention!

"I participated in the transformation of my era. I did it with clothes, which is surely less important than music, architecture, painting ... but whatever it's worth I did it."

"Like Proust, I'm fascinated most of all by my perceptions of a world in awesome transition."

"The street and me is a love story. 1971 is a great date because, finally, fashion took to the street."

"I have often said that I wish I had invented blue jeans: the most spectacular, the most practical, the most relaxed and nonchalant. They have expression, modesty, sex appeal, simplicity - all I hope for in my clothes."

"To be beautiful, all a woman needs is a black pullover and a black skirt and to be arm in arm with a man she loves."

"The most beautiful clothes that can dress a woman are the arms of the man she loves. But for those who haven't had the fortune of finding this happiness, I am there."

This reminds me to go searching for my copy of Julia Cameron's "Artist's Way" and my favorite dog-eared Vogue article "On Paying Attention" that was incorporated into the book. I haven't read it for awhile and as Woody Allen would say: "I need the eggs."

"The quality of life is in proportion, always, to the capacity for delight. The capacity for delight is the gift of paying attention." Julia Cameron

More musing on ICFF 2008

I took the pictures of HansandFranz stools for their wonderful collection of colors, but walking the sterile Bernhardt Design space I was left in a quandary. Above to the left is a collage of fabulously and shamelessly decorative furnishings from young entrepreneurs showing - often for the first time at the show. It seems corporations are commissioning the same sterile looks that those of us "of a certain age" have been seeing our entire careers. Does the future of design really hold more of this? We do live in a time of "anything and everything," but I can't help but be more inspired by the more hand-crafted looks presented by the entrepreneurs rather than the machine-age modern also still prevalent in the Italian booths at ICFF. I do think it is time for a change.

Musing on ICFF 2008

I kept meaning to blog about my visit to the Kitchen and Bath Show, but there was truly nothing inspirational about the show - even though it it the industry in which I work. I will try to forget the large scale images of Kelly Ripa and her cupcakes at the Electrolux booth. However, I was impressed that finally this year a little reality hit the industry - the focus was off the massive collection of shower heads seen in the past - gee! the industry finally figured out they are a waste of water... and who has enough water heaters in their house to keep them going anyway? It seems this year we will be vibrating in the tub and doing aromatherapy and light therapy in the shower instead of gallons and gallons of water. Large corporations do take so long to catch on.


But ICFF, now that is another story - there was much that inspired. Some misguided, like the plastic blow-up chair filled with garbage...but so much more that was thoughtful and thoughtfully "green" as well. Yothaka, the Thai company that first gave us water hyacinth furniture has created an elegant and beautifully colored seating series made of pineapple fiber - like water hyacinth-normally thrown away. A chaise is pictured above.

The Adults have left the Building at P&G

Tone-on-tone labels for shampoo and conditioners that can't be read without glasses- and who wears their glasses in the shower? "Fortifying fortifier" - why not fortifyingly fortifying fortifier for further emphasis? Graphically tone-deaf and functionally illiterate MBA's have taken over at P&G. What's next - a pastel tone-on-tone redesign of the iconic Tide label for this company that is considered to have the "best marketing practices"? Whether they will catch themselves or continue on this new path remains to be seen. The problem with a "best practices" survey is that the surveys go to agencies and other marketers - and they all blow sweet nothings in each other's ear. They should ask a few articulate consumers what they think about such tag lines as "Fortifying fortifier."

Fabulously "Green"

Sometimes you see something so new, so stunning and so fabulous, it takes you breath away. The theme for the 2008 New England Flower Show was "Rhapsody in Green," and this breathtaking display garden was created by Peter R. Sadeck of Lakeville, MA. The sense of tranquility of this bamboo fantasy was palpable even in the midst of the din of the throngs at the show. I wanted to stay forever.

"You don't need fashion, but poetry"

Ludovica and Roberto Palomba, Palomba Serafini Associati are interviewed by Alice Liao in Kitchen and Bath Business in the March 2008 issue. They discuss their inspirations and articulate their design philosophy which explains the beauty of the products that they produce. "Our work combines a contemporary vision of society and users' needs with an extensive knowledge of the historical and cultural roots of design, producing results that blend the past with the future." Poetic objects require more flourishes, but their radiator design for Tubes Radiatori is simply the essence of elegance - . In their interview they remind us: "To complicate is easy, to simplify is hard."

Frank Lloyd Wright Color Palette

From the Wright Library

The Wright Library

If you have an interest in Frank Lloyd Wright, this is the place. They have assembled nearly 2,000 books, periodicals and items related to Wright, including many rare books. The number of books, articles and pamphlets written by and about Wright is overwhelming. The purpose of The Wright Library is to document and preserve them. Of particular interest are the product catalogs of the materials designed by Wright.

Another fun website from that era is the Prairie Mod blog where Teco pottery and other items of that era are available along with updated items of design interest. You can also download a copy of the USONIAN font that I use in the Wright color palette above at this site.

Electric Fountain

Tim Webster and Sue Noble’s Electric Fountain — a 35-foot sculpture simulating cascading water and made from 3,390 glittery LED bulbs — at Rockefeller Center. The fountain will be up until April 5th, but this delightful artwork will probably remain on youtube forever.

Why classical styles continue to endure

I rushed to see the Samuel McIntire, Carving an American Style exhibit at the Peabody Essex Museum before it closed and was justly rewarded. The exhibit explores Samuel McIntire's contributions to the American design vocabulary. As woodcarver, architect and designer, he was among the first to carve eagles in wood to ornament buildings, furniture and other decorative art objects. The eagle came to signify the power of a nation, what came immediately to my mind- what does today's obsession with skull motifs signify? What does it mean that someone paid $122M for Damien Hirst's diamond encrusted skull? Why do Heidi Klum and Seal travel with a $2000 bag covered in skulls?

The following day, the inside cover of the NY Times magazine had a Honda ad with the American eagle dominantly featured. Graffiti will inform design in the short term, but on this President's Day I'm convinced that the powerful iconic symbolism of the classical will continue to endure.

LED throwies Demo

And can light graffiti be far behind the serious use of LEDS? Today things happen in a heartbeat and it is hard to know which will push the trend to expanded use faster. What I could have done with this at those famous Rehobeth parties in the 70's?

Interactive LED Coffee Table Demo

Ingo Maurer did it first, he made art and his work remains relatively obscure - know only to the design community. This video has been viewed over 2M times in four months, it's lots more fun.

Spring 2008 Color Trends

In case you were skeptical of the 60's Peter Max look returning, check out this fashion video. I will let you know how well this retro look is catching on in fashion by what is left on the mark-down rack at Saks in the summer. This palette has a future in interior products because LED lights offer an exciting way to create this palette in an interior, and even offer the opportunity for a 00's "psychedelic" effect. With the "teens" just around the corner as far as finish product development - a 50 year celebration of a 60's color palette is in order.

San Miguel de Allende, Arroyo Gallery

I whipped up this youtube spot for an artist and designer friend that is opening a gallery in Mexico. The colors that surround her inspire her art.

Pecha Kucha Training Bite

Pecha Kucha is a wonderful tool to force the focus of any message or information.

More inspiration from the Archives

Square Feet, the real estate column in the NY Times in "Nods to the Old Country in a Modern Space" describes the inspiration for the interior of the new 5th Avenue Ermenegildo Zegna store. Designed by the architect Peter Marino as modern homage to the textile heritage of the company with displays of menswear with literal references to fabric bolts and looms. It is becoming more essential to share the stories of who you are with every medium at your disposal, and that certainly includes the interiors of retail spaces and showrooms.

Atmospheric Images in NY Times Sunday Magazine

In time for the Oscars, The NY Times Magazine has an article entitled Breakthrough Performances of 2007. (The link is to the slide show with commentary.) Move over Arnold Newman, there is a new portrait photographer in town. Now that everyman can shot a "perfect picture" with a digital camera, artists are moving beyond static images. RYAN McGINLEY shot the riveting atmospheric photographs of the stars for this article. This series of images is a must-see for anyone that works with aesthetics in any format.

You may wonder why this is important. I had a history professor at UNC-G who made his world history classes read the Sunday New York Times and tested us on it on it every Monday - a life long habit was born and come rain or sleet or snow, I read the NY Times on Sunday even when on vacation. What I now have is a history that tells me that stories and images published in the Times are culture defining. Despite their strongly held political opinions, I have found their influence on cultural trends holds more sway and influence on the entire country than their editorial and op-ed pages. I have since added the Thursday Home section to my "must read" list. I still like reading print, but I go to the website for the video, slide shows and better quality images than is possible on newsprint.

If you are responsible for product photography, imagine the interesting possibilities this style offers in truly focusing on a product. Expect to see more of this style in the future.
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Peter Max's 7UP Butterfly and "Me"

I started thinking about the interior finish trends from the beginning's of my career. Very few companies connected to current culture at the time. Interior design training centered on historic styles up to and including Bauhaus (what we now call mid-century modern.) I have no memory whatsoever of "looking forward" in my design education. History is instructive, but much like using last year's sales as an indicator for tomorrow, time marches on.

We were boomers, and from our days on college campuses we were used to starting revolutions and interiors definitely needed a revolution - but corporations were not really ready for us. We made ourselves heard anyway, this model home family room in central Florida was my first bit of daring in a traditional corporate culture. We were on a tight budget, and all it took was a phone call to 7UP and they sent one of their fabulous Peter Max posters - without hesitation. I was working for Armstrong at the time, and they may not have been on the leading edge of product styling, but I got away with this unusual stunt because they were, without a doubt, the most progressive marketers in the entire interior finish industry. The story about the how the advertising department of the company created a "brand" before that word took on a life of its own, has been chronicled in How Armstrong Floored America-the People Who Made It Happen, 1945-1995 by Eugene Moore published by the Lancaster County Historical Society.

When I rediscovered this picture, I realized that I had found the centerpiece for the narrative I am compiling of how color trends in finishes have continued to change since corporations started tracking trends rather than leaving product aesthetics up to the tastes of individual stylists and the whims of marketing executives.

Journal from World Economic Forum 2008

Jay Nordlinger of National Review writes a charming daily journal from the Davos World Economic Forum 2008. Links to each entry are on his archive at National Review.

Apparently it wasn't all economics all the time, some fun topics included:"The Scent of Success," "Classic Clarets," "Reveal Your True Colours" and "Brands: Today's Gods." I am curious who was on the "color" panel, but "googleing" offered no answers. Webcasts and videos of many of the sessions are available on the official site.

Scion xB transformer commercial

Toyota marketed this car, with many customizable features, to young drivers and are finding that boomers are buying it as well. The interesting thing is that this is the way American's used to buy cars, until the Japanese invented "packages." It seems what is "cutting edge" today evokes more than a few "back to the future" concepts.

Adidas Originals

Adidas shows attitude with their new marketing campaign, who wouldn't want to shop in their new store concept? Is Germany the new go-to country for the new marketing? Adidas will reformat some of its 80 worldwide stores into Originals, an "atelier" concept, allowing visitors to design their own shoes and send pictures and videos to a large wall within the store. They are also collaborating with hip jeansmaker Diesel in time for New York Fashion week.