PRODUCT> “Le Corbusier and the Power of Photography”
“Le Corbusier and the Power of Photography”
Though books typically fall outside the scope of what we consider to be architectural products, we’re making an exception for Thames & Hudson’s new publication, Le Corbusier and the Power of Photography. Those familiar with Corbu’s much photographed architectural work may not know that he was something of a shutterbug himself. According to the publisher, he not only “harnessed the power of the photographic image to define and disseminate his persona, his ideas and buildings,” but his influence on the medium led to the rise of photography in general. From another perspective the book provides a more intimate way to access Le Corbusier’s creative process and some of the surprising inspirations behind his work, including images of him in his preferred office attire—his birthday suit.
PRODUCT> Boardwalk Bench Uses NY’s History To Fund Its Future
Boardwalk Bench by Forms+Surfaces
For the Boardwalk Bench, the latest addition to its product line, Forms+Surfaces sourced 142-year-old reclaimed FSC-certified Cumaru hardwood from the original slats of the Atlantic City Boardwalk. The naturally oiled slats are arranged in an asymmetrical pattern to salvage as much wood as possible while trimming imperfections.
Right now all proceeds from the sales of the Boardwalk Bench go to the Red Cross for Sandy relief efforts. Read More
PRODUCT> Niemeyer Inspired By Curvaceous Brazilian Women For His Converse Collection
Oscar Niemeyer for Converse.
Though you might not know it to look at them, Oscar Niemeyer’s new line of sneakers for Converse are apparently inspired by his country’s greatest natural resources, namely its mountains, rivers, and its bodacious women. The Chuck Taylor All Star Hi sneaker is still the classic shape, but on his version Niemeyer has emblazoned one of his most famous quotes, in Portuguese, of course. Here’s the English translation:
“It is not the right angle that attracts me, nor the straight line, hard and inflexible, created by man. What attracts me is the free and sensual curve – the curve that I find in the mountains of my country, in the sinuous course of its rivers, in the body of the beloved woman.”
PRODUCT> Herman Miller’s Special Edition Eames LTR Table
Special Edition Eames Wire Base Low Table
Herman Miller launched their Select Program in 2008 to offer their customers an extra way to connect with the brand and enhance their collections with limited edition pieces. As part of their 2012 program, Herman Miller is offering the Eames Wire Base Low Table (also referred to as the LTR table) in three special colors on sale now until Spring 2013, when production will end. Read More
Product> Minuetto: A Side Table That Seats Ten
The Minuetto table transitions from a side table to a ten-seater dining table.
We’ve all seen space-saving furniture at work in micro-miniature apartments that demand militant organization and fastidious housekeeping. We ooh and ahh at the bed that’s also a sofa that’s also a writing desk that folds up and gets tucked away into a narrow panel in the wall. But unless you have an ecclesiastical devotion to sweeping and vacuuming daily, there are very few who are capable of living like that, although many of us have apartments small enough to warrant such behavior. Still, there’s another way.
PRODUCT> Baring it All: New Lighting Embraces the Naked Bulb
From the latest issue: Lighting goes minimal with fixtures that embrace the bulb. See our six favorites from lighting superstars, independent studios we scouted at London Design Festival, and Artek’s foray into the previously under designed world of light therapy.
PRODUCT> M2L brings Thonet’s Gebrüder T 1819 to the US
The special “knotted” version of Thonet’s coffee house chair.
Ever since Michael Thonet established Gebrüder in 1819, the brand has been at the forefront of mass producing the now iconic bentwood and tubular steel furniture by designers from the Bauhaus era as well as contemporary designers and architects, as well as Thonet himself, of course. Gebrüder is not only one of the oldest modern design brands and manufacturers, it’s also one of the few that are still family owned and managed. The 5th generation of Thonet’s (Michael’s great-great-grandchildren) currently run the company in Germany, but a few days ago they announced their new partnership with M2L to distribute classics like Mart Stam’s chrome-plated cantilevered chair and the Vienna coffee house chair that started it all to the US market.
PRODUCT> Cersaie 2012: Patricia Urquiola for Mutina
While it seemed as if almost every ceramic tile manufacturer at Cersaie was debuting a new line of faux wood grain textured panels, Patricia Urquiola, Creative Director of Mutina Ceramiche & Design, embraced the artisanal tradition of hand painted 20 by 20 cm decorative tile with her new collection, Azulej.
PRODUCT> Heart of Gold, A Kitchen Made into a Jewelry Box
Steininger’s Heart of Gold kitchen.
The Product Page in AN‘s current print issue, “Turn Up The Heat,” rounds up six solid stand-alone kitchen units with a focus on minimal, streamlined design, optimal storage for a clutter-free workspace and enhanced performance for demanding chefs. Most of the featured cooktops, like Binova’s Anima, Boffi’s K20, Leicht’s FS-Topos, Rational’s Solo and Valcucine’s La CucinaAlessi are light, clean, sleek and bright white Corian, while Rossana’s DC10, Eggersmann’s Unique and Steininger’s Heart of Gold are decidedly darker, heavier—even brutal—pairing matte metals and deep wood tones with rectangular blocks of stone and slate.
PRODUCT> London Design Festival 2012 Preview
London Design Festival 2012 officially opened last week, but the multitude of events don’t really kick off until tomorrow night, when most of the exhibitions and showrooms open to the public. We’re particularly excited to visit The Tramshed at designjunction, which has been a great success ever since De Le Espada’s founding director, Luis de Oliviera, initiated it in 2010. In just two years it’s established itself as a carefully curated, yet authentic lifestyle event and has become a must-see for “a thoughtful and diverse selection of both established and emerging firms who are known for the vibrancy of capacity to innovate.”
PRODUCT> Roman and Williams for Waterworks
Though the ten-year-old design firm Roman and Williams has worked on high profile projects for NYC’s Ace Hotel and the Breslin restaurant, The Standard Hotel and its “iconic” Boom Boom Room, the new food hall for Facebook’s campus, celebrity homes for Ben Stiller and Gwyneth Paltrow as well as their own two homes/design laboratories, founders Robin Standefer and Stephen Alesch have never launched a product line of their own. For their very first collection they collaborated with Waterworks on R.W. Atlas, a series of industrial yet elegant bathroom fixtures inspired by traditional American craftsmanship.
A marble slab tops the Metal Two Leg Single Washstand (below), an Unlacquered Brass stunner that speaks to the collection’s overall masculine/feminine power play. “R.W. Atlas is part of our ongoing interest in embracing the idea of American utility, but imbuing that with a sense of glamour and sophistication,” explains Standefer, principal of Roman and Williams. Like the rest of the collection, its primary components are made from brass and are available in a variety of finishes, including Burnished Nickel and Carbon. Read More
PRODUCT> Christen Maxwell’s Architecture-Inspired Fall/Winter 2012 Collection
Textiles and soft goods in patterns that reference European motifs from sewer caps to temple ceilings.
After a recent trip to Paris, Rome and Marrakech, designer Christen Maxwell was inspired by “the incredible motifs that have been seen for centuries by millions of people – from everyday pedestrians to monarchs – and translate them into modern designs.” Specifically, Maxwell cites how a geometric pattern on a manhole cover in Rome, the ceiling of the Pantheon and the glass pyramid of the Louvre influenced a Fall/Winter 2012 collection of textiles and furnishings that mixes natural linens with ever popular metallic accents and pops of neon.
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