Light my pulp

A lovely design process by Enrique Romero de la Llana. The designer created these lamp shades using old newspapers, mixing them into a paste and drying them out into various simple and organic forms. I have totally developed a fetish for lamp shades these days!

Over at Design Milk, they observed the upcycling of the newspaper into a somewhat celebration of the tree that once was the paper. I find this to be the case because of the texture that the designer achieved for the lamps. It  reminds me of old gnarly and fairy like trees.

Images below from design milk

Ebony Bizys - Everyday Tokyo

These photos by graphic designer Ebony Bizys are just the type of everyday landscape that I am researching for my own design projects.

I love how this landscape of pots and interior furniture and fittings represents ordinary everyday life of the city's inhabitants and their desire to make a mark on their surroundings. Claiming a little bit of space, growing, nursing and caring for a little bit of life, a small scale intervention in a 21st century large scale city. You might want to check out: urban interior, a group of researchers based in Melbourne that recently released a book exploring the idea of urban interior.

image via otherpeopleshouses

image via otherpeopleshouses

image via hellosandwich

image via hellosandwich

Roskilde wee tree pee

p-tree by Aandeboom, via dezeen

I LOVE the Roskilde festival, I used to religiously go every summer back in my teens and I LOVE this clever urinal solution by dutch designers Aandeboom. I guess the only criticism I have with this intervention is: how will the ladies go with it? I guess in the state that I put myself in on these festivals, personal space is sort vanished anyway, bloody heck, I used to shower butt naked with thousands of people and nobody frowns upon it, so perhaps this critique doesn't belong here?

The urinal can be connected to the main sewer system or a tank via pump. I guess if it was a lemon tree that wouldn't be necessary because apparently the thrive in a p-environment. (do not take this too seriously tho)

Although, it would be nice to see a picture of a female using this.

p-tree by Aandeboom, via dezeen

p-tree by Aandeboom, via dezeen

Drawing on old chests

drawers remade into kitchen units, via dornob

drawers remade into chest, via dornob

These reinvented chest of drawers are amazing. Not only is the process of salvaging individual drawers from a life in despair at the local landfill commendable, but the combining of separate drawers with completely different histories and origins into a new frame of life is truly inspirational. That is the romantic DRAWING card for me here; igniting new life into the old and creating a unique aesthetic and functionality to each piece. I absolutely love the aesthetic of this work.

Although Hamburg based design company entwurf-direkt creates single drawer-shelves as well for attachment on walls and also for stacking; I have to  point out for my own records that although old is brought into new life, it is still serving the same function as it once had and has not completely been remade and rethought into a new function. It is a combination of the two. Hence, an alternative take on the idea of remaking. 1/2 remake.

I also like how the designers stamp and number their works. This creates another meaning to the pieces as they make their way out into the big world of people's homes and become part of a larger system.

assorted pieces. via dornob

It's interesting that some photos are taken outside of the chest of drawers. Interesting choice of environment. I wonder how this concept could be translated into an intervention in the landscape. Reinventing drawers from the landscape. How can I conceptualise the idea of drawers into the landscape?

Bird Hotel not in trees

bird cafe by Teddy Luong and Dennis Cheng for Umbra

via designmilk
This is a nice little design but I can't help pondering the designing of the birds actual habitat in the form of trees. The spatial qualities would improve with the planting of trees and shrubs instead or in addition to.

Unless, of course, you designed this little bird house for an urban installation. It has a quicker impact on the site than waiting for a tree to grow. So here it is: install this little bird house design whilst you wait for their actual tree/shrub habitat to grow in the meantime. Greatness!

Sick Cocoon and Sick Ball by Jeannine van Erk

photo via designboom, image courtesy of bel+bo

These stunning lanters are actually made from custom-dyed medical bandages. The designer, Jeannine van Erk, carefully layers the dyed bandages around the balloons with an adhesive, allows it to dry then pops the balloons and off you go with these beautiful and earthy coloured lamp shades. They are subtle and welcoming, inviting and non-pretentious. Perhaps a reflection of the designers personality. I LOVE the idea of turning bandages into lampshades. Re-making a material from one purpose to the next. I also adore the idea of each lampshade being different from the next due to them being handmade. There is something very lovely about a handcrafted work that you just don't get with mass-produced and factory made items. The knowledge that somebody has carefully crafted something with their own hands (I am known for having a hand fetish) appeals to me. It feels as if an object has reached its full potential when it is hand-crafted as the maker has given everything in his/her physical and mental capabilities at that point in time and that to me is intriguing, it tells a story, it has a narrative, it has meaning.

Jeannine van Erk works for Berlin based design studio bel+bo and exhibited these works at the DMY Berlin (Berlin International Design Festival) held this earlier this month.

This is how the designers describe these products:

Cocon- Malade and Boule Malade are unique, handcrafted lampshades.

Their individuality is achieved by hand-made, specially dyed natural materials.

Because of the craftsmanship of the Dutch designer, Jeannine van Erk, each lampshade is different.

Their special quality is warm, atmospheric light in a simple, yet contemporary design.

The color chosen for an order is never exactly the same as shown. These are natural pigments,

so they will vary slightly.

They are available in 7 different colours

detail view of sick cocoon bandage lantern via designboom

cocon and boule malade, assorted colours, image via designboom, image courtesy of bel+bo

designer making the sick lanterns, image via designboom, courtesy of bel+bo

State of Design 2011 Festival Guide - Now available

This years State of Design festival guide has been launched and is available from their website, here.

The theme for this year's festival is Design that moves. Personally, I am interested in the interventions that take place outside in the urban fabric, such as the Landscape Urbanism 72 Hour Urban Action in the Docklands that sees teams of architects, builders, landscape architects, urban designers etc...live, eat, sleep and work on their chosen sites and construct new urban forms through site specific interventions. (Correction, the name of this event has now changed to Urban Realities, Landscape Urbanism 3 Day Design Challenge.

Chasing Kitsune, from here

Hassell's Chasing Kitsune which is a Japanese food truck that will make its way around the city and adapt to its imnmediate surroundings, Mapping the Burbs, which is an Architectural discovery tour conducted on your bike.

 Camp Street CampOut + LookOut, which invites you to design and recreate the tent city for a day. Participants are invited to pitch their designs for a tent and display it in Alfred Deakin Place, Ballarat. Using recycled fabric, everyone is invited to tailor their tent claim a little bit of this public space.

Other than what's happening outside on our streets and beyond and true to my personal interests, there is also a worshop called MakeUp which takes you through the art of reusing and upcycling material. From transforming unwanted vintage wallpaper to reusing old yacht sailcloths and turning them into teepees.

This and much much more stuff to do in Victoria from the 20-31 July 2011.