Beyond Couture, Studio Färg and Blanche, Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair

Stockholm Design Week starts Monday February 06, with its key exhibition Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair opening Tuesday 07 till Saturday 11 February. ARTS THREAD previews the highlights.

The most talked about exhibition at last year’s design week was 20 Designers at Biologiska, picked up last year by ARTS THREAD as our one show not to miss. Curated by Fredrik Färg and Emma Marga Blanche, now known as Studio Färg and Blanche, the duo are now producing an installation called Beyond Couture specifically for next week’s fair. It will be a textile exhibition/bar, combining fake nature filled with dressed-up animals and kilt tribes Most of the objects have been specially created by hand in their studio for the exhibition, featuring some 35 seats, 10 tables, 25 lamps and much more. We can’t wait to see it!

In addition, Studio Färg and Blanche are also part of a one day exhibition on February 08 entitled Extra Material, alongside designers Simon Klenell, Vivianne Hedberg Perron, Alexander Lagergren, Sylvain Runberg and Hanna Gradin. Extra Material is about ‘B-sides, extra material, out-takes or bonus material. The creative process often causes a huge amount of material apart from its main product. Material that is worth taking care of.’

Extra Material; In progress to progress, Linnaeus University

During the four days of the exhibition, Linnaeus University will present the work of nine students from different courses at the Schools of Design in Växjö and Kalmar. This year’s title for the booth is In Progress to Progress and the students’ work from Växjö focuses on sustainable development, while the course at Pukeberg (Kalmar) shows works from students of both BA and MA product design students.

Swift, Johanna Stridh, Linnaeus University; Grow, Steneby, The School of Craft and Design

Never Mind the Object #1 from Beckmans College of Design on Vimeo.

Beckmans College of Design, based in Stockholm, is presenting Never Mind the Object. ‘Why should you care about objects? It is not until objects are filled with content and reason that they become meaningful. This exhibition is about ideas which require the observer to dig a little deeper, penetrating the surface. Welcome to the exhibition Never Mind the Object and have a closer look at ten personal projects by the third year students of Product Design, Beckmans College of Design.’

Everyday Tools, Aalto University, School of Arts, Design and Architecture

Mumrik, Petra Wester Nordgren; Felia, Anna Jonsson, The Swedish School of Textiles

The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, The School of Design will present a unique selection of uplholstered furniture under the theme RÅSTOF and TEKO, VIA University College in Denmark will showcase work from upcoming furniture designers.

Träakademien-Mittuniversitetet

Stockholm Design Week runs February 06-12 and Stockholm Furniture & Light Fair February 07-11 February.

Colleen Ellington/ Lucy Alice Porter/ Sophie Adamson

Interiors UK 2012 showcased the work of this year’s New Design Britain Awards finalists with the winners in each design category being announced on the 23rd of January. Each winner in the four categories (furniture, furnishing accessories, surfaces and fabrics) were awarded a placement within the industry.

Although Colleen Ellington and Lucy Alice Porter didn’t take home first prize in their categories, we were really impressed with their work. Colleen, who graduated from Cleveland College of Art and Design, created some vibrant, luxe surface designs for interiors covered with decorated with animal and figurative motifs. Lucy Alice Porter’s series of owl and squirrel shaped wall decorations were also really eye-catching.

Heriot-Watt University – School of Textiles and Design graduate Sophie Adamson scooped up the top prize in the fabrics category for her Pouffe design. Drawing inspiration from bird feathers, Sophie created a wonderfully thick yarn which incorporated both hand and machine knitting techniques.

Rachel Hagger

Taking home first prize in the Surfaces category was Rachel Hagger who designed hand-printed wallpaper covered with an architectural motif. Drawing inspiration from Cavern Home interiors and Trove wallpapers, Rachel layers the different images to great a busy, bustling cityscape.

James Uren/ Roland Beaven

James Uren was lucky enough to take home both the people’s choice award and the award for best furniture design. James’ Luso Lounger is a modern reinterpretation of the classic Chaise Longue while his Dorso Stool is an investigation into different ways of joining wooden components together using a second material. Roland Beaven was awarded the prize in the furnishing accessories category for his Peaucellier Lamp.

La Noir dans la Méditérranée: Ayda Pekin; Marion Vidal; Lara Khoury

We were drawn to the exhibition La Noir dans la Méditérranée at Who’s Next/Prêt-à-Porter – a display of seven designers, all from countries around the Mediterranean, who all worked on a project around the theme of Black.

These seven designers were chosen in April 2011 to spend six months in Marseilles, guests of the Mediterranean Fashion Institute and were challenged to produce one piece on the theme of Black – a colour that is widely present in all the Mediterranean countries, used in different places and times for a wide variety of symbols and symbolism.

Lara Khoury is from Lebanon. A gradaute of the Ecole Supérieure de la Mode in Paris (ESMOD). After working with designer Elie Saab in Beirut, Lara set up her own business in 2009 in the same city.

Elie’s description of Black: ‘Lebanon can be defined by the diversity of its cultures, traditions, religions and people. Its is like a cloth made of different threads woven together over the years…Striving for a better life, the white of hope blends with black to form a dense fabric. It is the Lebanon that we dream of.’

Turkish designer Ayda Pekin studied at the Marmara University in Istanbul and at Arti Orafe in Florence, launching her brand in 2006 and her own boutique in the Galata district of Istanbul n 2009.

Ayda’s description of Black: ‘At the beginning of the Baroque period, black was the predominant colour of the aristocracy. Sparkling white collars and cuffs flattered the hands and face. Only those white elements were washed. Here, the silver-plated necklace and bracelet ornamented with Swarovski crystals evoke an ostentatious 17th century focused on the cult of appearances.’

French designer Marion Vidal graduated from the Antwerp Academy of Fine Arts, after having trained as an architect. Marion Vidal now has her own studio-store in Paris and also designs for designer labels such as Céline and Lacoste.

Marion’s description of Black:
‘Dune-dress, landscape dress.
Necklace dress or dress-necklace,
this is where the light is dancing.
Black ceramic and silk
with gold sand folds.’

La Noir dans la Méditérranée: Evgenia Tabakova and Pedro Noronha-Feio; Mariem Besbes; Artsi Ifrach

White Tent’s description of Black: ‘Great discoveries, exchanges, women waiting for the return of their men at sea. Black the triumph of Catholicism as a refuge to protect sailors…we are in Portugal in the era of Saudale and uncertain times. It is the era of widows, women wearing long black shawls made using the Bilros technique here reminding us of fishing nets.’

Tunisian designer Mariem Besbes studied applied arts at the Ecole Duperré In Paris before returning to Tunisia to start her own business specialising in textiles, for names such as Hermès and Li Edelkoort studio.

Mariem’s description of Black: ‘Black is here like a space to express all the colours at once. Using a handwoven seven metre length of fabric…sometimes shiny and light, sometimes matt and heavy, the weave is like an antique drape, allowing the body to move freely.’

Artsi Ifrach from Morocco is known for his brand Art/C that combines vintage fabrics, unusual prints and mixes of materials.

Artsi’s description of Black: ‘This piece was made using traditional Moroccan techniques of craftsmanship. This deep black look, emphasised with gold, beautifully combines masculine strength and feminine softness. It is a very personal interpretation of the traditional burqa.’

Mediterranean Fashion Institute

Urbanisation, Sarahjane Harrison; 3D projects, Karin Soderquist

Design Village also includes all manner of marvellous delights, including B&B installations by Donna Wilson, House of Hackney and Morag Myserscough and Luke Morgan.

B&B Installations: Morag Myserscough and Luke Morgan; Donna Wilson; House of Hackney

Design Village by Designersblock at Interiors UK continues until Wednesday 25 2012.

ARTS THREAD at Indigo Paris Home; Simon Ashby

Simon Ashby from the UK told us to look out for large watercolour florals, designs featuring birds and birdhouses and vintage postcard-style designs using both imagery and text.

Pixtil

Susanna Samson; Lee Design Studio

Susanna Samson based in London specisalise in vintage prints and are now branching out into selling prints for interiors, with top sellers being 40s and 50s florals, paisleys and toile de jouy designs.

Diane Harrison; Sandra Jacobs

Diane Harrison studio told us that requests were very varied, with a lot of vintage, plus bold colourful graphcs and textures.

Indigo Paris Home
Simon Ashby
Pixtil
Lee Design Studio
Susanna Samson: susannasamson@aol.com
Sandra Jacobs
Diane Harrison

Indigo New York

Emily Gup of directional pattern site New York Pattern Pulp talks about the trends from last week’s Indigo New York.

If you’re a fabric fan, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and wish that you could start snapping up some of the beautiful pieces on display. Cruising around the show’s three floors of fabrics and prints, you see many standbys such as plaids and florals, but it’s the new designs and burgeoning trends that make the trip a treat.

What really caught our eye was the bevy of hand-painted and hand-drawn prints and patterns. Painterly patterns ranged from luxurious splashes of colour to loose but detailed geometric patterns softened by the smooth, organic lines of paint. Brooklyn based Abby Lichtman debuted her line of stunning one-of-a-kind hand painted, occasionally digitised patterns. Her fine use of colour and detail made her a favourite and a most definite designer to watch. Colour was a key point here, as most painterly pieces didn’t shy away from making it bold.

Indigo New York

Overall, the bounty of digital effects certainly caught our eye, as photorealistic images were digitally layered with other photographs or often included unexpected hand-drawn elements. Creating an interesting visual texture that coalesced into a cohesive eye-pleasing piece seemed to be paramount. Peagreen and Garreau Designs both had some standout pieces.

Peagreen; Indigo New York

Large prints and patterns were popular, too, and many felt organic and freeform with movement and not hindered by pattern convention. This ranged from a sort of pattern dip – a sort of play on the two-tone dipping and color-blocking popular across the design board – to a slew of butterflies on their own off-kilter path across the fabric. Anteprima had some lovely examples.

Coming out of the show, and perusing our notes, the words “movement” and “transition” seemed to pop out as a good way to sum up the design themes, as many designs feel like they, themselves, are trying to “move” or are pieces that are transitioning away from stark limitations or older traditions. We look forward to seeing where things go from here.

Indigo New York
Abby Lichtman
Collete & Blue
Peagreen
Garreau Designs
Birds of Ohio
Anteprima

Rosemary Anrude/ Daniel Schofield/ Stuart Melrose

Following our successful collaboration at the Farmiloe Building during the London Design Festival, ARTS THREAD are once again teaming up with Designersblock to bring you the best emerging graduate and student design work. This time we’re heading up north to Birmingham where we will be taking part in the UK’s interiors trade exhibition Interiors UK – and we’d like you to join us! Visit our Designersblock competition page for further details on how you could be exhibiting your work in front of Britain’s top retailers and buyers.

In the meantime, we preview a selction of talents on show with Designersblock in January in Birmingham.

For this year’s Interiors UK, Designersblock are curating a village complete with local bar (co-hosted by our own Alex Brownless), market stalls and shops where visitors can become fully immersed in the latest furniture, lighting, accessory and lighting designs from the country’s top creatives.

Whilst wandering around the village, visitors will uncover the work of furniture designers such as Sheffield Hallam University graduate Daniel Schofield who will be presenting his ‘Out Kid’ and ‘Slide and Hide’ designs, Kingston University graduate Rosemary Anrude and Exeter School of Arts Stuart Melrose who will be showcasing his new furniture created in collaboration with Corian and Puff & Flock.

POSTextiles/ Patrick Stevenson-Keating

Amongst the textile designers on show, visitors should keep an eye out for the work of the twelve St Martins graduates who have formed the experimental textile collective POSTextiles. Patrick Stevenson-Keating, winner of the Designersblock award for outstanding creative thought at New Designers 2011, will also be in attendance presenting ‘The Quantum Parallelograph’ and his ‘Home Particle Accelorator’ alongside some new work.

House of Hackney/ Donna Wilson

In addition, Designersblock have also commissioned three leading contemporary designers to create their own interpretation of the classic British Bed & Breakfast. We can’t wait to see the incredible interior spaces which House Of Hackney, Donna Wilson and Studio Myerscough will come up with!

Interiors UK runs from 22 – 25 January 2012 at the NEC, Birmingham.
For opening times and further details visit the Interiors UK website.
To apply for our Designersblock competition, visit our ARTS THREAD Opportunities page.

Jen Cheema, Chelsea College of Art & Design

Second year BA (Hons) Textile students studying at Chelsea College of Art & Design showcased some excellent examples of their work at an exhibition staged at the college late November 2011.

Working with the abstract theme From A to B and back again, students in print, weave, knit, stitch and digital textiles produced some diverse, experimental and exciting pieces of work. ARTS THREAD chooses some highlights.

Jen Cheema’s graphic prints and photographic collage illustrations stood out. Jen’s work has a great youthful vibe and her individual approach and assured use of colour is distinctive.

Harrison Butterworth; Federica Corbetta, Chelsea College of Art & Design

Maria Nuottajarvi, Chelsea College of Art & Design

Mariana Giraldo; Liv Petterson, Chelsea College of Art & Design

Kazusa Takamura, Chelsea College of Art & Design

Egle Jauncemaite; Alicia Robinson

Lauren Maun; Elena Shvab, Chelsea College of Art & Design

Elena Shvab revealed loose textured weaves which exuded a great lively energy, zinging with citrus bright colour and applied embellishments.

Lou Ran; Wangui Wanjau, Chelsea College of Art & Design

Lou Ran’s wooden pieces were printed with images from the Chinese city, Dali. Subtle, muted colour and soft matt, chalky surfaces made this a favourite exhibit.

Alicia Nader; Alexandria Coe, Chelsea College of Art & Design

Finally, Alicia Nader’s glossy coated surfaces showcased great futuristic pattern and iridescent colour applied to coated fabrics.

These are just a few examples of some impressive work in progress from the second year textile students at Chelsea. Their next exhibition will be at Indigo Paris in the spring of 2012.

Chelsea College of Art & Design Textiles BA (Hons) on ARTS THREAD

Texprint Prize-Winners/ Como archive

Four Texprint prize-winners participated in the ComOn initiative, held in Como Italy from October 17 to 22. Now in its 4th year, this great event celebrates and supports emerging European talent in textiles, fashion design and art and is the perfect introduction to the strengths of the Como textile industry. Prize winners David Bradley, Harriet Toogood, Chloe Hamblin and Emma Shipley travelled to Como for the week’s series of presentations, workshops and visits to some of Italy’s most prestigious mills.

Joining them in this wonderful experience were two other designers from Texprint 2011; Carol Pau who won an internship with Clerici Tessuto and Amy Jo Lewis who will intern at Taiana.

Highlights of ComOn this year included high profile visits to the Como Silk Museum and The Antonio Ratti Foundation where the young designers had the opportunity to see some of the foundation’s tremendous archive which dates back to the 15th Century. Curator Chiara Francina presented some of the textile treasures to the group. The group also visited the Ratti group’s design studio to see some design work destined for top-flight Italian designers and their state-of-the-art print production processes. A Texprint alumnus Andrew Boyd, winner of the 2010 Colour Prize, is happily employed by the Ratti group following his success last year.

Texprint Prize-Winners, museum visit/ Carol Pau

Inspiring presentations during the week included a dynamic and somewhat provocative talk given by David Shah, the respected owner and publisher of Textile View, and a thought-provoking presentation from Li Edelkoort, the renowned trend forecasting expert, on future trends for Spring 2013.

During the week, Texprint’s Carol Pau won a competition to create beachwear designs organised by Como based brand Parah. Alongside the event, Francesca Coloussi, another designer highlighted at this year’s Texprint showcase had the opportunity to participate in an intense 3 week textile course organised by the Ratti Foundation. This course is led by Tal Lancman, one of the founders of the Interweave studio in Paris, and a former creative editor of Textile View.

The Italian trade organisation Confindustria organise ComOn, and it represents the core 300 of Como textile companies. Their generous support and connection with Texprint has provided an invaluable and unforgettable experience for some of the talented designers this year. ComOn’s mission to be a ‘hub of creativity’ in Europe perfectly fits with Texprint’s own ethos to support and highlight some of the best emerging UK textile designers.

For more information visit the ComOn website

Helen Stevens, 'SurfacePhilia'

Surface Designer and Illustrator Helen Stevens, founder of design brand SurfacePhilia recently launched her gorgeous ‘Navajo’ wallpaper range at Tent London. The range holds five distinctive designs which draw inspiration from American bird types, feathers and the patterns found within Native-American jewellery. ARTS THREAD caught up with Helen to talk about her career, university days and future plans for SurfacePhilia.

ARTS THREAD: Talk us through your creative process

Helen Stevens: I am interested in pushing boundaries between many areas of design such as illustration, repeat pattern, traditional painting and drawing techniques and surface embellishment. I like to play on the unexpected and introduce unusual combinations of imagery into my work and products. With my wallpaper designs I tried to bring as much innovation into flat print as possible, by playing with scale, heavy patterns, colour and overly complicated repeats.

AT: What made you want to become a designer and more specifically what lead you to specialise in surface design?

HS: As a child all I ever did was draw, paint and observe how things look, from flowers and birds to the fashions and interiors in films. I was lucky enough to travel the world at a young age due to my fathers job, I saw many interesting sights, colours and textures. I think things you absorb as a child form who you are as an adult. I have always been interested in both fashion and interiors and couldn’t decide between the two subjects. Studying a drawing and pattern based course made sense and I found that the Textiles and Surface Design course at CCAD would enable me to be involved with both fields of design and also continue to expand my drawing skills.

Helen Stevens, 'SurfacePhilia'

AT: What would you say was your first ‘big break’ after graduating?

HS: When I graduated I moved to London and began designing prints for Red Or Dead. It was a great experience and I learned a lot about working within industry and designing on a commercial level. Getting a break doesn’t necessarily come easy, with so many design degree’s and thousands of students leaving education each year, only the more determined and motivated will stand a chance of employment or becoming recognized as a standalone designer.

My biggest break has only been in recent months after the official launch of my surface design business, at London Design Festival. My work was picked up by Liberty London who are now wanting to represent my debut wallpaper collection in store. I also made contacts with international agents, interior designers and stylists who are interested in working with me. Again, this required a long period of hard graft, manufacturing issues, marketing, generally juggling of a lot of balls! It doesn’t come easy.

Helen Stevens, 'SurfacePhilia'

AT: What do you wish you had been told in college/university about the real world of working?

HS: Whilst in university you are concentrating on developing your style and being as innovative as you can be – whilst you can, before moving into industry. I would have benefited from learning all about the ‘business’ side to design, such as finances and marketing. And being told about the realistic side to self employment, your earnings, out goings, the jobs you have to juggle in order to support your dream of designing. You sacrifice a lot – long working hours, putting any spare cash back into the business, the many roles you have to play within the business, but I definitely wouldn’t want it any other way!

AT: If you could travel back in time, what advice would you give to yourself as a student?

HS: Concentrate and commit to your studies from the first year. I lectured in Textiles and Surface for seven years and students always step it up in the final year, I did it as well. Something just clicks (I think it might be called pressure!?) and you see some amazing results, even squeezed down to the last months. You always hear stories of regret after seeing what can be produced in such short periods of time. Many students feel they could do with an extra year afterwards to keep going at that standard and producing more incredible portfolio work.

Helen Stevens, 'SurfacePhilia'

AT: You set up Designers Marketplace three years ago, what was the reasoning behind this idea?

HS: Working as a lecturer for those years and also running my own design business (on a smaller level) I recognized the need for support and encouragement for designers after and outside of education. If you’re in certain areas of design and want to work within industry the likelihood is you will have to leave your area and move to London or abroad. Having left London to move back to the North East, I really felt isolation in what I did. It was taking the idea of a Portobello or Spitalfields and bringing it back north, using it to encourage people to continue using their skill sets, knowledge and talent after graduation.

AT: How do you see the ‘SurfacePhilia’ brand expanding?
HS: I have a lot of ideas for the future but I need to remember to take baby steps, learning to walk before running and making sure my standard of work remains high and my business remains loyal to what I want it to be about, rather than moving down every commercial route possible.

Right now I am launching my debut wallpaper collection and working on lifestyle products such as cushions and china ranges to sit as a collection. What I am really interested in is working with large companies and organisations on a commission basis, working with interior designers, stylists, other design brands, hotels. Mural painting and collaborative projects with other designers is also what I want to focus on. I am still very keen on experimenting with techniques and applications within surface design including screen printing and hand embellishment. I want a strong conceptual and innovative approach behind my ideas for both the commercial and not so commercial side of the business.

SurfacePhilia website.

Designers Marketplace website.