Eric's Salone 2013 Top 10

Fresh off the plane from Milan, Dzine’s head of furniture Eric Zimmerman shares his impressions on his top 10 picks from the most anticipated design event of the year. 

1. The ‘Mikado’cupboard, one of Front Design’s latest pieces for Porro, has a light wood slat structure that lets you catch a glimpse of what is stored inside. The slanting and staggering of the wood slats gives the cupboard an exotic yet playful feel, adding a little flair to any austere modern interior.

2. The ‘Helen’ lounge by Flexform is simply a beautifully crafted chaise. The seat is made of woven leather braided around Flexform’s trademark sleek nickel-satin frame.  

3. ‘Stelle Filanti’ by Venini comprises of a glass pendant light held in place by a cage-like leather harness. It’s strange beauty makes it more akin to an artwork than a light fixture.

4. Another Front Design design, the ‘Doodle’ sofa for Moroso has an intricate pattern quilted in the leather, giving it a quirky yet luxurious effect.

5. Nendo’s ‘Deep Sea’ shelving for Glasitalia features glass shelves in deeper and deeper gradations of blue, creating the effect of looking down into a large body of water. This piece really captures Nendo’s quintessentially Japanese minimalist beauty. 

6. Modeled on the ‘Quattroporte’ by the famous Italian car manufacturer, the ‘Maserati’ chair by Zanotta breathes comfort and luxury. 

7. ‘Mate’ by A+B for Living Divani is a versatile chair cum ladder cum clothes valet, which could find its place in any interior with its discreet but distinct personality. 

8. ‘Aim’, by the Bouroullec brothers for Flos, is an adjustable pendant light which can be tilted in all different directions. An interesting piece on its own, it looks particularly animated in groups. 

9. A highlight of the fair year after year, Paola Lenti’s presentation of their outdoor furniture collection with a palazzo backdrop is a sight for sore eyes. Their vibrant rope finishes create fields of color in all kinds of comfortable looking variations.

10. The real showstopper of this year’s Milan fair however was undoubtedly the Moooi presentation on via Savona. A juxtaposition of vignettes, each one more lavish than the next, the space was filled with quirky out-of-scale accessories, dripping with gold and delicate pendant lights and adorned with wall-covering photos by Erwin Olaf.

by Claire Toussaint

Sum of its Parts

Alone, each element doesn't make much aesthetic or conceptual sense. Assembled, the group creates a considerable visual impact. Here are a few examples of modular systems that really pack a punch. 

Designed by the Bouroullec brothers, these faceted fabric tiles join to create large nebulous masses, organically covering walls, acting as partitions and defining spaces.

Like a party-girl standing in front of a fan, the Wind Portal at SFO airport BART’s tiny sequins shimmer in unison at the slightest breeze. Who says BART isn’t the glitziest way to travel?

How many clocks does it take to tell the time? According to design studio ‘Humans since 1982’: 576.

‘Algues’ by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec for Vitra comprises of thin, branch-like plastic pieces which create rich seaweed-like curtains that can be used as room dividers or wall coverings (or the stage curtain for a school production of ‘the Little Mermaid’)

60,000 optic rods were used to create this sea-urchin effect on the outer surface of the UK Pavilion at the Shanghai Expo 2010, drawing light in during the day, and out in the evening. Each rod contained plant seeds at its tip, and was distributed to Chinese and UK schools after the structure was dismantled. 

Philips Lumiblade has partnered with numerous designers to come up with installations using OLED modules. ‘Mimosa’ by Jason Bruges Studio (pictured above) has come up with an animated flower-patch of light panels, which responds to hand movements above it.

 Jaime Hayon’s ‘Elements’ are strangely shaped pieces that each have a function within the home, but only truly make sense in a totem-like pile with their other strangely shaped counter-parts.

Charles Sowers’ ‘Windswept’ installation comprises of 612 blade-shaped weathervanes that bring to light the surprising wind patterns swirling around the surface of San Francisco’s Randall museum.

Konnex by Florian Gross is a modular bookshelf composed of interlocking cubes, with a very modern graphic quality somewhere in between a Malevich, a Mondrian and the opening credits of ‘Funny Face’.

Shigeru Ban’s 10-unit system is entirely constituted of slightly curved L-shaped pieces, which are attached in different directions to create chairs, benches, tables, etc. The pieces can even be lined up in endless undulating benches, like a solitaire kill screen.

by Claire Toussaint

The New Cubicle

Let’s face it, cubicles are back.

We’re not talking your garden ‘Dilbert’ variety though; gone are the days of three walls surrounding an individual rectangular desk you wheel your task chair around in.

Cubicles today are about escaping the hustle and bustle of the open-plan office for specific tasks: meeting, emailing, napping, etc. They help office workers join and separate from the rest of the team when needed, and create different environments to provide a change of scenery and seating positions.

Premiered at the Orgatec 2012 Office furniture fair, Workbays by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec are a system of sheltered work spaces which let each individual pick the environment that suits them best for the work they are planning on doing.

Another Bouroullec Bros. design, the Alcove, which started as a sofa in 2006, has now morphed into a workstation.

 After the Alcove Work, which provides a space for an individual to work on a laptop, the new Alcove Meet creates a meeting space wrapped up in a cozy sofa, insulating a group of up to four from the sights and sounds of the rest of the office.

For those less fortunate workers in a spatially challenged office, there is also the option of making a cubicle directly out of the office chair to find a little relief from their open-space neighbors; like in this hooded configuration of Citterio’s ID chair concept.

To escape the office completely, there is always the option of Vitra’s 15 minute Power Nap; or in extreme cases the Ostrich pillow by Kawamura-Ganjavian should do the trick.

Cubicles can also be used to encase other activities which would normally disrupt the work environment. Docklands by Bene and Pentaphone by Robert Stadler are designed to muffle mobile phone conversations for a little privacy.

With offices so well endowed, home offices have developed major cubicle envy. Here are a few of our favorite home versions:

By Claire Toussaint