OBSERVEDS/S 15 GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION

STORIES

MEDIATED

HARNESSED

CAPTURED

NO.1

NO.2

NO.3

The computer screen and lenses distort, filter and refract our view of nature in this technology-focused era.

Tools enhance our experience of nature as we strive to rekindle our relationship and understanding of the natural environment.

Plant life is captured in artworks or allowed to envelope architectural projects in a bid to question man’s relationship with the natural environment.

MEDIATEDOBSERVED

NO.1

Senses are challenged as natural textures, colours and scents are encapsulated in glass, distorted by lenticular frames or translated into colourless 3D prints, paralleling our increasing desire to view everything through a digital screen.

BACKGROUND

HARNESSEDOBSERVED

NO.2

Our relationship with nature is restored as we synthesise forests to combat CO2 emissions, plant fields of grass-like carbon rods to harness wind energy and construct trumpet-like structures to encourage us to stop and listen to the sounds of our natural environment.

BACKGROUND

CAPTUREDOBSERVED

NO.3

BACKGROUND

Nature is observed and studied as architectural projects are slowly and deliberately engulfed in vine-like structure. Household plants are trapped in layers of coloured wax and local landscapes are framed in abstracted, billowing curtains.

KEYTAKEAWAYS

Natural materials are distorted by screens and lenses

Vine-like plants engulf architectural structures

Textures are impressed, encapsulated and transferred

Experiential design brings us closer to nature

OBSERVED

RESEARCH & REFERENCE

TOUCHING WITH THE EYES 3D PRINTED PHOTOGRAPHS

THE HEAR HERES THE WINDSTALK

GREEN BOX MARJORY’S WORLD

Reflecting our increased reliance on digital technology, our senses are tricked by Adeline de Monseignat’s object as we attempt to grasp the tactility of the encapsulated material. We can only imagine the texture of fur as it lays trapped behind a smooth glass dome.www.cityandguildsartschool.ac.uk

The birth of new machines is changing future design processes, leading us into a crafted industrial age. Right now, manufacture is in a state of flux, oscillating between the digital and analogue eras. This trend looks at this moment of transition. The birth of new machines is changing future design processes, leading us into a crafted industrial age.www.instructables.com

An immersive and interactive experience, the Hear Heres by Studio Weave magnifies the sounds of the English countryside. Installed within the grounds of Kedleston Hall in Derbyshire, the trumpet-like metallic structures amplify the gentle humming, rustling, rippling and rumbling sounds found in nature.www.studioweave.com

A new concept in natural energy by Atelier DNA envisages giant carbon-fibre rods replacing traditional wind farms. Current-generating shock absorbers at the base of the structures activate as the grass-like stalks sway in the wind, forming a balanced relationship with the surrounding flora and fauna. atelierdna.com

A framework of lightweight galvanised rods by Act Romegialli engulfs a disused alpine garage in vegetation. The plants have been carefully selected to ensure light but continuous flowering throughout the year.rebeccajreeve.viewbook.com

Highlighting our own mortality, Rebecca Reeve scavenges old curtains to frame landscapes of the countryside in Florida, reminding us of the delicate balance between ourselves and nature. The project highlights the vulnerability of our surrounding natural resources.www.actromegialli.it

OBSERVEDS/S 15 GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION

VITAL

GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION SPRING/SUMMER 2015

INTRO

A fresh approach to design combines light-heartedness with thoughtful sensitivity. Natural materials are rendered luminous through high-energy vitamin colour, while contrasting elements such as marble, resin, plastic, foam and metal are harmoniously balanced and creatively combined. Health and wellbeing give us a renewed perspective of design, products and environments.

VITALS/S 15 GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION

STORIES

TACTILERENDERINGS

REVEALED GRAIN

COLLAGED MATERIALS

NO.1

NO.2

NO.3

Digital textures are applied to physical environments and surfaces for colourful computer-like effects.

Natural patterns emerge through opaque colourful layers for new synthetic grains.

Material, form, texture and colour are harmoniously balanced for a fresh and inspiring design approach.

TACTILE RENDERINGS

VITAL

NO.1

Real, tangible objects take on the appearance of digital renderings. Trompe l’oeil illustrations show optical passageways and rooms, while artwork blurs the boundaries between the tactile and the digital with textures that appear to be manipulated in Photoshop.

BACKGROUND

REVEALED GRAIN

VITAL

NO.2

Ancient Japanese carpentry techniques are key. The soft wood is carefully removed from prepared Cypress wood, leaving a pronounced grain. Textures are traced, tracked and exaggerated through sanded but vibrant layers of paint or ghost-like pastel rubbings.

BACKGROUND

COLLAGED MATERIALS

VITAL

NO.3

Traditional architectural interiors and material compositions are re-evaluated, renewed and re-balanced, carefully combining multiple textures, materials and shapes in a bid to bring lightness, health and wellbeing into our day-to-day lives.

BACKGROUND

KEYTAKEAWAYS

Marble, resin, plastic, foam and metal have equal value

Dimensional material surfaces simulate digital renderings

Carpentry techniques redefine wood grain

Contrasting materials are stacked, composed and combined

VITAL

RESEARCH & REFERENCE

FIBRE-WOVEN WALLS CLEAN TITLE, NO ACCIDENTS

COLOURED PENCIL TABLES COLORING FURNITURE

SKYHOUSE ALLEY-OOP

An installation of woven and printed panels by Wies Preijde shows images of corridors, windows, walls and rooms. Unexpected gaps in the translucent walls lead you through a maze of optical illusions and imaginary spaces.www.wiespreijde.com

What appears to be a digital Photoshop rendering combining crude carbon marks of photocopies with solarised Airtex textures are actually carefully executed, tactile artworks by Joe Reihsen. They are created through the use of pneumatic devices and commercial painting tools. www.anatebgi.com

Tables made from Cyprus wood by Nendo are carefully prepared using the Japanese technique of udukuri, removing the wood’s soft grain to leave the harder grain pronounced. Covered in paper and then carefully rubbed with coloured crayons, the natural texture is highlighted in whitened pastel shades.thisispaper.com

Prepared using the udukuri technique of removing soft grain, the ColoRing furniture series by Jo Nagasaka with Schemata Architects further exaggerates the natural texture of wood by painting with multiple layers of paint. This is then sanded back to reveal a vibrant, multicoloured wood grain.schemata.jp

The gutted interior of a 19th century New York penthouse is radically redesigned by David Hotson & Ghislaine Viñas. A tubular steel slide winds through the four stories while interconnected rooms and levels balance light, space, materials and geometries for a fluid living space that promotes health and wellbeing.hotson.net

The collaboration between artist/furniture designer Eric Trine and record-sleeve designer/illustrator Will Bryant results in a lively and fun collection of powder-coated steel furniture and mixed media objects that are stacked, layered and balanced into totem-like structures designed to brighten up our day-to-day lives.www.willbryant.com

VITALS/S 15 GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION

DOCUMENTED

GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION SPRING/SUMMER 2015

INTRO

As we examine the real possibility of bringing extinct creatures back to life, an understanding of the past enables future design solutions. Mysterious prehistoric materials such as fossilised matter and bone take on a contemporary relevance. Modern applications, technologies and finishes are beautifully crafted from historical fragments into macabre and surreal designs.

DOCUMENTEDS/S 15 GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION

DE-EXTINCTION

OSSIFIED

ARTICULATED

NO.1

NO.2

NO.3

Designers and scientists collaborate using the latest insight and technology to reconstruct extinct animals.

Strong, yet lightweight bone is transformed with modern coatings and materials for new products.

Crafted robotics, skeletal frameworks and surreal animal-like forms provide a new direction for domestic products.

STORIES

DE-EXTINCTION

DOCUMENTED

NO.1

Artists and designers collaborate with zoologists and paleontologists to reconstruct extinct animals with greater accuracy than before. Fossilised remains can be scanned and studied in minute detail, with the breakthroughs in technology revealing the previously unknown sounds, colours and textures of long-forgotten creatures.

BACKGROUND

OSSIFIEDDOCUMENTED

NO.2

Animal bones are salvaged to create sculptural artworks and useful products. The macabre association with bone diminishes as the benefits of its lightweight, yet strong structure and wide availability as an industrial by-product is recognised.

BACKGROUND

ARTICULATEDDOCUMENTED

NO.3

Lighting and furniture take on a Surrealist form with long sinuous carved legs and skeletal articulated joints. Mechanical puppets from wood and paper are powered with robotics that mimic the movements and characteristics of their real counterparts. They serve as a crafted antidote to mass-produced machines.

BACKGROUND

KEYTAKEAWAYS

Bone structure is imitated for lightweight, yet strong materials

Sinuous anatomical forms are crafted from wood

Ancient materials are combined with pearlised lacquer or industrial gloss

Paper and plastic film is warped, manipulated and layered

DOCUMENTED

RESEARCH & REFERENCE

THE EXTINCTION OPERA MICRORAPTOR RE-LIVED

HONEBANA BONE FLOWER THE ICELAND WHALE PROJECT

ENVI A POSSIBLE LANDSCAPE

Artist Marguerite Humeau collaborated with zoologists and paleontologists to recreate the sounds of extinct animals by recreating their vocal tracts. The results have been made into an opera of prehistoric creatures where the extinct animals were represented in milled polyurethane foam with vocal cords made of plastic tubes.margueritehumeau.com

Through the study of micro-structures in fossils that are particularly well-preserved, scientists Jakob Vinther and Jason Brougham can determine the colour of feathers from extinct animals. Until recently the long plumes of the Microraptor were thought to have evolved to help it fly, however, it is now believed that they were iridescent to attract a mate.www.jakobvinther.com

Hideki Tokushige dissects mice and rats, meticulously cleans the skeletons and reassembles them into delicate flowers. Tokushige’s work is driven by a fascination with birth, death and decay; once the sculptures have been photographed, they are broken down into fragments and buried in the earth.www.ne.jp

Bones from beached whales, washed-up plastic and shark remnants were the raw materials collected from the desolate shores of Iceland for a project from Swiss design school ECAL. The materials were made into a collection of innovative objects that combine the primitive with the modern.ecal.ch

The Dali-esque furniture by Italian craftsman and designer Umberto Dattola is made from old beds, desks and drawers that he has transformed into sculptural pieces with long, sinuous legs. The furniture looks as though it has come alive, giving a dreamlike, surrealist character to these compelling pieces.www.clab4design.com

Two elephants, a tortoise, a gazelle and an exotic bird are the latest creations of Amit Drori. The movements and characteristics of the animals are incredibly realistic, yet the robotic workings are left exposed beneath the crafted wooden chassis. thecreatorsproject.vice.com

DOCUMENTEDS/S 15 GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION

IMAGINED

GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION SPRING/SUMMER 2015

INTRO

A powerful connection between traditional craft and radical futurism manifests in products that express change in cultural identities. Old materials combine with industrial processes to shape rough-hewn objects into modern artifacts. A contemporary overlay of oxidised iridescence and dichroic patinas infuse materials with mysticism.

IMAGINEDS/S 15 GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION

STORIES

REIMAGINED CULTURES

SENSE OF PLACE

EARTHY IRIDESCENCE

NO.1

NO.2

NO.3

The origins of traditional materials are re-contexturalised, lending a mystical, otherworldly feel to products and environments.

Found materials are worked by hand into objects and talismans with personal significance and meaning.

Ancient materials with raw surfaces have contrasting industrial coatings or highly polished facets.

REIMAGINED CULTURES

IMAGINED

NO.1

Forgotten stories are told and cultural identities are preserved through the patching of traditional and futuristic materials. A floating school improvises with plastic barrels to buoy the building, future-proofing it against the increasing risk of severe floods.

BACKGROUND

SENSE OF PLACE

IMAGINED

NO.2

Materials that have personal importance to an individual are made into spiritual products that comfort or act as memory triggers. The smell and texture of materials such as unrefined clay, rosin, horsehair and shiny metallic twist ties hold a sense-of-place; they remind us of a specific location.

BACKGROUND

EARTHY IRIDESCENCE

IMAGINED

NO.3

Elemental and earthy materials are coated or finished using techniques from the industrial age; polished copper has an oxidised iridescence and raw granite is coated with tar and enamel. These unusual combinations invoke mysticism and a new preciousness in the objects surrounding us.

BACKGROUND

KEYTAKEAWAYS

The smell, texture and physicality of materials evoke a new nostalgia

Natural elements are overlaid with iridescent and dichroic coatings

Memories are embedded in personal and found objects

Natural materials are favoured, such as clay, rosin and horsehair

IMAGINED

RESEARCH & REFERENCE

AFRONAUTS MAKOKO FLOATING SCHOOL

MEMORY CARRIERS THE SOUZOU

IRIDESCENT COPPER NON-SMOKERS

Photographer Christina de Middel’s Afronauts series tells the story of the failed Zambian Space Programme in 1964 that aimed to put the first African on the moon. The combination of traditional African wax-cloth textiles with foggy orbs set in sparse environments preserves the culture. www.lademiddel.com

NLÉ architects has designed and built a school for a settlement on the outskirts of Lagos, Nigeria. The three-storey, solar-powered school floats on 250 salvaged plastic barrels and could become a model for coastal communities, protecting them against rising sea levels and flooding.www.nleworks.com

Brínea Costa draws on the powerful feeling of nostalgia and comfort that the scent of materials can invoke. Her jewellery is made from sandalwood, rosin, horsehair and old books, personal materials from her past; when rubbed and scratched they help her to recall memories.brineacosta.wix.com

A collection of ceramics, textiles, drawings and sculpture by 45 artists who attend social welfare organisations in Japan is on show at London’s Wellcome Trust. Found materials, off-cuts and scraps are thoughtfully and imaginatively crafted into sculptural objects that have individuality and character.www.wellcomecollection.org

Germany-based Studio Besau-Marguerre adapts the ancient technique of mirror-making by using highly reflective polished copper which is then combined with an iridescent heat-derived patina.www.besau-marguerre.de

Berlin-based Argentinian artist Santiago Taccetti coats natural lumps of rough granite with tar and enamel. The artist uses the combination of a simple geological form layered with refracted colour to represent our relationship with the natural world.www.taccetti.com

IMAGINEDS/S 15 MATERIALS DIRECTION

GROWN

GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION SPRING/SUMMER 2015

INTRO

Nature’s complex structures and organic growth systems inspire networks and patterns. Micro-crystals, minute nano-forms and bacterial traces provide a myriad of intricate and mutating structure, pattern and surface possibilities.

GROWNS/S 15 GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION

STORIES

GROWTH SYSTEMS

BACTERIA BUILDING

BIO MIMICRY

NO.1

NO.2

NO.3

Nature’s intricate growth patterns are manipulated by science or imitated with technology to create intelligent physical and virtual networks.

Microbial bacteria and slime growth formations inspire decorative surfaces with health benefits.

New innovative architectural and automotive projects are engineered using the principles of the scientist Fibonacci’s patterns and bio-mimicry.

GROWTH SYSTEMS

GROWN

NO.1

Organic networks are manipulated with new technologies to create intricate, man-made systems. 3D printing and molecular modelling software create nano-scale art, while micro-crystals are manipulated to resemble botanics.

BACKGROUND

BACTERIAL PATTERNS

GROWN

NO.2

Bacteria is used to create portraits, artworks and even bespoke footwear. Bacteria is cultivated on petri dishes tracking growth patterns and bacterial social systems, while a student’s footwear projects aims to fill the spaces between toes to minimise the spreading of microbes.

BACKGROUND

BIO-MIMICRY

GROWN

NO.3

Natural systems inspire new breeds of architecture and automobiles as designers use bio-mimicry to build stronger and more efficient structures. Concept cars are inspired by the Fibonacci patterns while engineers emulate construction methods from silkworms building their cocoons.

BACKGROUND

KEYTAKEAWAYS

Natural growth systems advance the field of bio-mimicry

Crystal forms are curved rather than angular following new scientific research

Bacteria formations inspire surface, pattern and form

Nature’s networks inform new ways of engineered construction

GROWN

MADE

GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION SPRING/SUMMER 2015

INTRO

Materials are forced, extruded, pushed and pulled using gravity and restriction. Both lo-fi craft techniques and technological processes yield highly tactile surfaces and imprecise forms, exploring oozing expanding foam, drippy ceramic glaze and gestural, air-set 3D printing technology.

MADES/S 15 GLOBAL MATERIALS DIRECTION

ENERGY ANXIETY

FORCED FORMS

EXTRUDED

NO.1

NO.2

NO.3

Synthetic non-biodegradable waste is reconsidered as a valuable resource in a new approach to upcycling and thrift.

Process dictates form as material is forced into gravity-defying forms and products.

Extrusion continues as a construction technique; allowing for both haphazard outcomes and precision engineering.

STORIES

ENERGY ANXIETY

MADE

NO.1

The value of plastic is increased as designers explore the meaning of synthetics in an age where waste becomes a useful commodity. Material combinations contrast the luxurious with the throwaway as synthetic materials begin to gain a new prestige.

BACKGROUND

FORCED FORMS

MADE

NO.2

New ways of making form emerge as designers experiment with restriction, gravity and inflation. Materials are forced to react in unpredictable ways, resulting in plump, inflated surfaces and product forms that appear to be set in flux.

BACKGROUND

EXTRUDEDMADE

NO.3

Basic extrusion machines and lo-fi form-making present a back-to-basics take on 3D printing. At the same time, the technology itself is more intuitive and expressive, offering designers the chance to sculpt in mid-air.

BACKGROUND

KEYTAKEAWAYS

Viscous, oozing and dripping surfaces take over objects

Plastics and other synthetics develop in intrinsic value

Lo-fi craft methods encourage unpredictable material outcomes

Inflated surfaces and piped structures expose the design process

MADE