I went to the Visiting Practionier Talk at the Lecture Theatre at Wilson Road. The guest was Sebastian Bergne, a British Industrial Designer who is based in London.

He showed us lots of different projects of his work. He told us about the importance of colour, material and shape. Was very interesting and inspiring.

After the talk we went to our exhibition. He gave us a very good feedback of our projects.

At first it was hard form him to understand the project, so I definitely have to find an easier explanation for the project, if it is too complex than it is confusing and not interesting for the people.

I should try to reduce the number of components and use them all, maybe as application, but every object should contain the same pieces of material in various arrangements.

The next improvement proposal was to show the connections of the wood, otherwise it looks like clean architecture and this is not my aim.

Should try to use round wood as well, for example he told me about the stool from Marx Bill. He said the special thing on that stool is the round wooden pole. And if I´m using brackets I should always arrange them as a rectangular, otherwise it is too confusing for the viewer.

At the end of the 2^nd term the MA Designer Maker are always making a work in progress show. This means a show where all students of the Designer Maker course are exhibition their work, but not the finished work rather the work in progress. The aim is to inform the people what we students are doing and make them curious about the final projects, which will be exhibited in July.

We managed the whole show on our own, with help from the tutors. We build shelves, arranged the work and made posters for the event.

I exhibited my models, an explanation of the work and the prototype. The models are on the shelf with the explanation on the wall. In front of the shelf on the floor is my object. I used black electrical tape for making rectangles with the same sizes of the different sides of the object on the floor. The reason for the tape on the floor is to show the visitors that they can turn around the object.

My aim is to make 23 objects in 23 days. The number 23 is based on the amount of humans chromosomes couple.

Therefore I developed a system for the numbers, which is based on the Roman numerals. But in comparison to the numerals my system don´t have a direction. You can read them from every side. This is important if you turn around the object. I marked the objects with numbers because than I can see the process of the 23 days.

I made one real size prototype. I´ve chosen invisible biscuits for the connection of the components and glued them together with wooden glue. For the two wooden stripes I used invisible pegs, because the biscuits are too big for this size.

The next step was the colour. I taped a few parts of the object and put on a mixed acrylic colour. The last step was the protection of the wood. I used two layers of bee wax to protect the wood from scratches, spots and water.

I started to make models in scale 1:5.

The pattern of the design is based on the big five personality traits, plus one, because there is always something subconscious. So I have chosen a square with the size of 45x45cm (standard high of a stool) and divided it into 5 different rectangular pieces. The idea behind the different sizes is based on the big five personality traits. Every person is made out of different amounts of:

Openness to experience
Conscientiousness
Extraversion
Agreeableness
Neuroticism

Each object is arranged in a slightly different way. Each object has different faces. You have to look carefully at them if you want to understand them.

You can turn them around, arrange them in different ways, build them up. There is no up or down.

Every object is unique.
There is also a limitation of objects. My aim is to make 23 objects in 23 days.

Mixture of colours

Colours are important for the first impression. Each object has a different colours. They are all mixed.

Colours are like resemblance with your relatives. Nearly everybody can see it, sometimes it is hidden but you can find it. Sometimes i put the colour inside the objects, so you can´t see them from every point of view.

Furniture/objects should be interesting, you should look at them carefully and for a long time, otherwise you cant understand them. In the same way as you should look at people. Everyone is different in a special way.

I´m trying to compare objects with people.

First impression of something is a surface impression.
If you really want to get to know someone you have to spend a lot of time with him/her.

Started to combine different shapes, that the object looks different from every point of view. Got lost. Had to reduce the form and amount of different surfaces.

Did research about the different distance spaces:
Object deals with the 4 different distance spaces. (details, colour, shape, wood,…)

Intimate space: 0-60cm (pale colour, small details,..)
Personal space 60-120cm (hidden colour blocks,…)
Social space: 120-300cm (coloured edges, bright colour on surfaces,…)
Public space: from 300cm (shape and the colour of the wood)

Inspiration:

Looked at the projects of Gamper, Thaller, Marrigott, Aloson, West,…

Today I went to the Collect an international Art Fair for Contemporary Objects. My focus at the whole fair was on colour and shapes.

04

http://www.craftscouncil.org.uk/what-we-do/collect/

At the Collection Displays Material and Objects exhibition at Tate Modern I saw the fabulous sculpture by Richard Tuttle an American postminimalist artist.

“System VI, White Traffic brings together materials with different shapes, textures and colours, highlighting their variety in one carefully composed structure.

Richard Tuttle works across painting, sculpture, drawing, assemblage and poetry, creating unique and varied artworks that defy classification. One constant in Tuttle´s work is a curiosity about materials, leading him to experiment with their physical properties as well as with their meaning and role in everyday life. Here, for example, wood, clay, foam, Spandex mesh and an aluminium sheet cut into a geometric pattern, are held together with steel cables, bolts and nails in a seemingly haphazard construction. Some of these elements are painted black, white or with bright colours, and a bulb crudely hangs from above.”

By Walking around the sculpture I could see lots of different components and relationships of the different materials and colours.

I thought about colours again. How do they affect objects? How important is colour for a mood?

At the beginning I mixed lots of colours. After a while it was too much and I started to sort out. I started with 2d colour arrangements but than I understood that the combination of colour is very different in a 3dimensional way. With a third level there is more space for different compositions. It is getting more complex.

I made a short move about the different compositions with the 3d colour blocks:

IMG_0745

Today I tried silkscreen on wood. I used very transparent colours and made different shades of one colour by printing more layers on the wood. The picture of the silkscreenprint are clouds. I want to combine the hard surface of beech plywood with the image of a soft texture.

A big furniture and design shop in London, Shoreditch. New inspiration for colours, shapes from Designers all over the world.

On the 14^th of February we are going to Brompton Bike in London. In order to get our visit approved every student need to submit a piece of work.

My idea:
Gloves with a reflective material for a save trip during the night.

One object – three functions.

Imagine, you buy one object and you can use it in three different ways. One day you use it as a napkin ring, the other day as an eggcup or you arrange them in different shapes and sizes of candleholders.

You don’t have to buy a pack of 4 or 6 or even 8 pieces, you can choose every object on your own and decide if you want to remain on one colour or mix different colours together.

By choosing the amount, the colour and the arrangement of the objects the costumer of “ONE TO THREE” is a part of his final product. 
The main idea behind this product is that the unique pieces get even more incomparable through different mixtures and settings.

During the week in Montalcino I would love to focus on multifunctional objects and figure out different shapes based on the waste of marble. The aim is to produce a multifunctional object with as less tools and steps as possible.

For example:
How could it look like?

Same idea- two possible ways of production and appearance:

Dress the cylinder of the marble waste on two sides that the circle receives two secants. Drill a whole with a diameter of 35mm in the middle of the object and cut it into slices and drill again a second whole into each slice and mix and match different colours as you want.

Cut the natural marble slab into similar squares and drill two different wholes in the slab. At least one side of the square should be rough and natural broken that you can see the natural beauty of the marble.

Based on the colour wheel by Johannes Itten I modified the colours by increasing the transparency and the amount of black.

Different combinations by layering two colours revealed lots of well-paired colour shades. Also thought about different textures. Different layers of colours trough soft textures like clouds, fabric,...

Josef Albers was a German - born American artist who did lots of studies of colour. Trough the transparenz of colour he created new shades of colours. (last picture)

The size of the objects

Based on the standard size I figured out three different sizes of the object:

75x45
45x45
30x45

I decided to choose the 75cm, because this is the standard size of a table. The 45cm are the standard size of a stool and the 30 fits as a combination to the other two sizes.

I also thought about different details for the cuboids.

• A cut edge for different possibilities of arrangement
• Incisions in the wood to fix the individual objects
• Special corner detail with a 45 degree angular
• A stock to make the cuboid more stable and use it as grasp to carry the box around

Here is a short video of the arrangement of the objects:

IMG_0573.MOV

Workshop Thinking Through Moving Image 

The Workshop „Thinking Through Moving Image“ was at UAL Chelsea with David McGovern. His work fuses fashion, fiction and new media.

I did the workshop cause I want to get to know new ideas and inspiration for presenting my own work. Moving images are a smart way to present 3d works in a 2d form.

We used Vine Camera and iMotion on the phone and made short videos as part of the lecture.

IMG_0560

IMG_0551.MP4

Central Saint Martin Material Library

Today I went to the Materials and Products Collection.

Lots of different Materials and Colors of known and new materials are shown a short description and the label/name of the company who produces the material. This was a real eye-opener to me. I should definitely test out more materials in my projects.

http://www.arts.ac.uk/study-at-ual/library-services/collections-and-archives/central-saint-martins/

RCA show Kensington and Battersea

On the 20th of January I went to the Work in Progress Show of the Royal College of Art in London Kensington and Battersea. Both were amazing. One of my favourites was the Textile Exhibition in Kensington. Most of the projects occupied with haptic and colour.

The different ways of presenting a project was inspiring for my own work.

Lecture Jonathan Kearney

What is literacy?
What literacies are being used in our work?
What is the most/less important literacy for an artist and/or designer?

This lecture makes me thinking of the importance of literacies. As an artist and designer its very important that you are aware of the usage of the different literacies.

Matter of Stuff Briefing - MOS

On the 19th of January we had a briefing about Matter of Stuff. The workshop will focus on marble waste use to create an object of tableware commissioned by Matter of Stuff. Every student is allowed to hand in one idea/concept for a product made out of marble.

Deadline: 2nd of February 2017 - Here we go!

Minimalism - A Documentary About the Important Things
2015 (USA)

Joshua Fields Millburn & Ryan Nicodemus, known as “The Minimalists” to their 4 million readers, help people live more meaningful lives with less through their website, books, podcast, and documentary.“ (originator: http://www.theminimalists.com/netflix/)

I come across that Documentary on Netflix. The displayed minimalist way of living is very important for my project. Maybe the products are able to help the owner to live a minimalist life without clutter?

Gerardo Osio is a product designer with a special focus on costumer needs. He created a series of transportable objects that were inspired by Japanese culture and traditional crafts designed to be taken from place to place, as a way of always having something familiar with you.

http://design-milk.com/objects-inspired-by-japanese-tradition-for-the-modern-nomad/ (17/01/17)

Aram Gallery

The exhibition „Joints+Bones“ is about new methods of combining materials, a stretch of fabric, a hose clip or 3d printed connections are displayed in usage. In the picture is the silkscreen printed stool by Michael Marriott.

Participants: 1882 Ltd, Adam Guy Blencowe, Bonsoir Paris, Hunting & Narud, James Shaw, Marina Stanimirovic, Mx Frommeld, Micaella Pedros, Michael Marriott, Raw Material, Rita Parniczky, Rive Roshan, Soft Baroque, Studio Ilio, Studio Minale Maeda and Tomas Kral.

https://www.thearamgallery.org/next

The Aram Gallery
110 Drury Lane, Covent Garden, London, WC2B 5SG

Work in progress show at Central Saint Martin

Exhibiting the developing work from across the postgraduate courses:

MA Architecture: Cities and Innovation | MA ARCH Architecture | MA Communication Design | MA Industrial Design | MA Performance Design and Practice | MA Narrative Environments | MA Material Futures | MA Character Animation

The most interesting part of the show was the section of Material Futures.

I tried different ways of colouring the surface of wood. Therefore I used one colour and different amounts of water.

glaze
dab
mask sth. of
splash
colour just the edges
press two surfaces together with colour inside
shades of colour
…

I was interested in the different outcomes by using just one colour.

An inspiring Designer using coloured wooden surface for furniture:

Michael Marriott a British furniture and product Designer has designed a plywood stool for fashion brand Paul Smith. Comes boxed and flat-packed in five parts with four zip ties. Each of the 100 limited stools is individual with a hand-finished and colorful geometric screen-print. His aim was, that the stool fits into the modern daily life - easy to move, construct or deconstruct.

https://www.dezeen.com/2009/09/11/stool-by-michael-marriott-for-paul-smith/

http://www.michaelmarriott.com/installations/AB/

The inspiration of Marriotts stool is the use of screen-print. Silkscreen on wood is an other option to color the wood. Maybe with color blocking. Different shades of one color should be printed on wood. I will try this next week in the silkscreen studio in Camberwell.

What am I doing? What is it for?

My vision of my final master’s project is something three-dimensional between art and design, made out of wood, with an attractive surface and a sense of colour.

Within our own personal environments, we arrange the objects in different ways. Every person, every flat and every day is unique. The objects I´m designing are furniture, which fit in every room in different ways. This furniture should make life easier for people who move a lot.

Following my research in Tokyo in November 2016 I became really interested in the way Japanese people live especially in central Tokyo where the flats are very tiny and it´s not possible to own as much stuff as when you are living in a big house. Sometimes they don´t even own a table, because of the lack of space.

This has led me to believe that the function of the object should be multifunctional, without a special assignment. Based on the idea of a traditional Japanese House, the rooms originally had no special fixed purpose. Every room was covered with tatami mats. The people who live there used one room for many different purposes. I want my products to work in the same way. They are not designed for a special use. You can use them as a coffee table, a bookshelf, a stool, a table or even as a bed.

One example of this belief in practice is the Van Bo Le-Mentzel designed the “Berliner stool“ for the Maxim Gorki Theatre as a scenery. In 2011 it became low-budget furniture for everybody. €10 - 10 minutes - 10 screws. The stool can also be used as part of a shelf or coffee table. Therefore you just have to return the object.

http://hartzivmoebel.blogspot.co.uk/p/berliner-hocker.html

Another interesting multifunctional furniture is the “Ulmer Stool“ (1954) by Max Bill who designed it for the students of the University in Ulmer. It can be used as a stool, a tray, as part of a shelf, a coffee table,…

Or the Authentic Wood by Le Corbusier at Cassina, 1950
https://www.dezeen.com/2011/01/22/authentic-wood-by-le-corbusier-at-cassina/

What does it look like?

Surface

“Colours and surfaces are crucial when it comes to the effect of a product. They influence ones first impressions and have a lasting effect in terms of the product’s emotional aura.“ Hella Jongerius, 2011

Hella Jongerius is a Dutch industrial designer. Her work is about collections of textile, furniture and tableware with a special focus on colours.

Colour Lab
The Colour Lab is about research for a new color range for virta products.

http://www.jongeriuslab.com/work/colour-lab

Colour Wheel

http://www.metropolismag.com/April-2016/The-Dutch-Designer-Behind-Vitras-Color-Revolution/

Colour in changing daylight

http://www.jongeriuslab.com/work/colour-in-changing-daylight

As Hella Jongerius said, the sense of colour is very important for an object. My aim is to figure out a color palette where every colour complements each other. The user can decide then decide which colours he or she likes most and build up sculptures like kids used to do that with building blocks. As the objects are coloured the person doesn´t have to paint the walls of their flat, which is most annoying when you are moving a lot.

To pile the objects up into a shape they need to be cuboid. The size of the object is standard that it could be used as a stool, a table, a bed,..

These objects are an intersection between Japanese aesthetic and Scandinavian design.

What do I mean with Japanese aesthetic?

I admire the minimalism of Japanese Design. In comparison to the western minimalism, they often choose natural materials, which makes the room in my opinion more livable.

 In the book „ Wabi-sabi für Künstler, Architekten und Designer.“ edited by Dietz Matthias, Japanese aesthetic is based on clearness and repetition. The design medium is material poverty and the refuse of lush decorations. Cause of that there is more space for mental wealth. (s. Dietz 2011, S. 76)

Dietz Matthias (2011): Wabi-sabi für Künstler, Architekten und Designer. Aus dem Englischen von Leoard Koren, Tübigen: Wasmuth

…and Scandinavian Design?

Beauty and function where independent, timeless furnitures were meant to be used and affordable for majority. A main characteristic of Scandinavian Design are the soft curves, simplicity and the use of natural materials. (s. Gura, p.14)

(Sourcebook of Scandinavian Furniture. Designs for the 21st century, Judith Gura, 2007: W.W. Norton & Company, London)

So in my opinion, scandinavian design and traditional japanese design have lots in common. The two main aspects of my product should be the simplicity and the natural material.

Dice by Torafu Architects

This is a six-sided piece of furniture by Japanese studio Torafu Architects which can be flipped over for different functions.

"We designed a piece of furniture with multiple resting positions that can be used by young children up until they reach adulthood by rolling it over like a dice," said the designers.

"By avoiding the constraints imposed by single-purpose furniture, we created a multi-purpose piece of furniture that can be used as a companion evolving with us through life so that we can continue using with nostalgia our childhood furniture even after we become adults," said Torafu Architects.

https://www.dezeen.com/2014/08/12/torafu-architects-multi-functional-dice-furniture-adults-children/

http://torafu.com/works/dice

Torafu Architects based in Tokyo are one of my favourite architects. They direct their attention to colour, shape and material in all of their projects, no matter if it is a building or a product.

Hi there,

I´m currently studying on the MA Designer Maker programme at University of the Arts London, Camberwell.

I’m a minimalist, with a keen focus on details yet with a touch of emotion. My projects are an interface between Art & Design. Whereabouts? This varies.
My vision of my final master’s project is something three-dimensional, maybe a product, perhaps an art object, made out of an interesting material, with an attractive surface and a hint of colour. At Camberwell College of Art I want to discover ways of translating this vision into reality.

On this blog you can follow my work in progress, research linked to the project and of course lots of different sources of my inspiration.

best wishes,
Natalie

Hi there, welcome to my blog!