industrialdesign

The F.O clock is a playful digital clock inspired by Japanese wrapping cloth: Furoshiki, and Japanese paper folding: Origami. Hence, the clock can be folded and unfolded, concealing all the internals utterly, yet able to reveal them as well.

We first picked up on graphic designer Malika Favre's remarkably expressive vector artwork last year and she's pleased to present her latest project, the cover illustration for the forthcoming Penguin Deluxe edition of the Kama Sutra.

Favre gladly shared some insight into the brief and process:

I was approached last summer by Paul Buckley at Penguin US about designing the cover of a new Deluxe edition of the Kama Sutra for Penguin.

This book is part of the Graphic Classics series: Basically every classic they re-edit is paired up with an artist that pretty much has free range to design the cover. The whole concept of this specific range is to make each classic a collectable item and to push the boundaries of book cover design.

The book itself is the original text written by Vatsyayana (no pictures inside the book) so the challenge was to make the cover sexy, modern and daring without being vulgar or over the top. I decided to create a very bold and playful alphabet that would run across both flaps and front and back cover spelling KAMA SUTRA.

Once folded, the words become hidden and the big letters themselves turn into acrobatic positions.

As with our previous post on Favre, it gets semi-NSFW after the jump... in extremely good taste, of course.

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Applications are now open for the Summer Workshop of the new MFA Products of Design program. Held at the beautiful Domaine de Boisbuchet in Southwestern France, this year's workshop will run for 10 days, inviting participants to immerse themselves in the evolving field of product design.

The Products of Design Summer Program in France offers hands-on, collaborative experience and instruction in rapid sketching, materials investigation, prototyping, iteration, narrative creation and environmental stewardship. In addition to work completed during the days, participants will enjoy opportunities to sight see, socialize with designers from around the world, and attend lectures in the evenings.

The program invites applicants from various backgrounds: design professionals, students (in at least senior standing at an art & design college), or graduate students in any field. Faculty will be MFA Products of Design chair Allan Chochinov and faculty Emilie Baltz.

All info is at the site: http://productsofdesign.sva.edu/curriculum/summer/

Products of Design Summer Program in France June 17-27, 2012 Domaine de Boisbuchet, Southwestern France Tuition: $2,500 (includes room & board) Applications due: February 10, 2012

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While the last entry saw me complaining about an example of shoddy Chinese manufacturing, now we'll look at an example of Chinese manufacturing might. In this six-minute video currently making the blog rounds, we see an astonishing feat of design, engineering and execution: The 30-story T30 Hotel constructed in Hunan Province, taking just 15 days to erect.

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contemporary multi-directional LED table lamp which consists of five segments, moving them you can change the shape of lamp.

Ikea has just introduced two LED pendant lamps, both so new that at press time they were not yet posted to Ikea's website. We were excited to get an early look at their VASTER (first shot above), made from steel and acrylic, and their KLOR (second shot above), made from nickel-plated steel and polycarbonate, as well as hear the design stories behind them. (Note that both stories have apparently been translated from Swedish--or it's Ikea policy to drop the article and refer to objects as if they're people.)

VASTER, interestingly enough, started with a design failure:

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At last year's Interior Design Show in Toronto, Ikea pulled the sheets off of their bold country kitchen look, an aesthetic departure from the blonde-wood kitchens with which their showrooms had become associated. The kitchen won the show's Gold Booth Award and our entry on it quickly caught Facebook fire.

At this year's IDS, the design pendulum has swung the other way: Ikea's display kitchen features a distinctly sleek and modern look, one reportedly inspired by "the classic fashion combination of a black dress and pearls." In sharp contrast to last year's kitchen, where pots, pans, and kitchen storage objects were all made visible, this year's kitchen design renders most objects invisible, tucking them away behind glossy surfaces. In a second nod to the fashion world the backsplash tiles are meant to evoke patent leather quilted handbags and the island has received special focus.

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Walter Dorwin Teague in his office-photo WDTA archives

Raymond Loewy

Terschelling, Netherlands-based Bart de Graaff has got good hands and an imagination to match, as evidenced by the copious renderings in his book. With expressive work spanning graphics, transportation, and conceptual design of the sort you'd find in a sci-fi movie, de Graaff could be mistaken for a grizzled vet of the design field. Which makes his personal statement all the more surprising:

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I read an article about a summer camp where one of the activities was showing the kids a bunch of old pieces of technology, and having them play around with them. The astonished author reported that most of the kids could not figure out how to dial a number on a rotary phone; they'd place their finger in the hole for "0" and drag the dial to the number they wanted to "activate," then release the dial.

This video here is similarly funny: Writer and blogger John Scalzi shows his 13-year-old daughter a vinyl LP, something she has never seen (or apparently heard of) before:

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We are so hungry after perusing the Design in the Wild entries from the EAT category! Incredible readers from around the world submitted beautifully designed everyday objects that help them prep, cook, eat and drink. Whether it was your kitchen's 1985 General Electric Stove or a seat at your favorite cafe, we were delighted to be a guest at your dining table in this round's EAT submissions. Today we're opening up submissions for our second theme, PLAY, and announcing the jury and popular pick theme winners—theme winners receive their choice of Braun products and are qualified to move forward into the final round of voting for the grand prize of a notebook computer and tablet!

Without further ado...

JURY WINNER Cutlery Felix Stark, Germany

Cutlery of the armed forces of Germany. The fork functions like a spring to fix everything in the carrying case which is also a can opener. I am not a fan of collecting military items, but the cutlery works really great. I always showing it to my students as example of great functional design.

POPULAR WINNER Citrus Squeezer Taylor Welden, United States

We didn't have these when I grew up in the Northeast. When I moved to the South, Texas specifically, there is much more citrus (limes are 12/$1) and the need to extract the juice from citrus increases dramatically. Margaritas are an every day type of drink here, not something fancy for Saturdays. Lime and lemon juice are used in all types of cuisine, especially as an element Mexican dishes. That being said, when I moved here, I knew exactly what this item did the first time I saw it. I purchased mine for $3 or $4 almost 10 years ago, it still looks and performs as new. Heavy duty aluminum parts, nice colorful thick coating, no plastic parts anywhere, no branding anywhere. A simple tool, easily overlooked. It squeezes every last drop out of the citrus, quickly, easily, efficiently. No mess and no acid in the eyes either. Squeeze, juice pours out, open it up, the citrus half pops out to be easily discarded. Perfect. Genius.

NOTABLES We love the product photography and compositions of these submissions!

SPAGHETTI MEASURE - Teodora Altomare, Italy

A TOAST TO ILLUMINATION - Igor Tolkach, United States

HONEY DIPPER - Elina Salmi, Finland

And here's to WILD thinking outside the box!

I LOVE MY BLACKBERRY - Gwendolyn Thompson, United States

LEAF BOWL - Michael Tatang, Netherlands

STREET (FOOD) ART - Aart van Bezooyen, Germany

Don't miss out on your chance to win a notebook computer, tablet and/or your choice of Braun products! Enter our next round of Design in the Wild competition, PLAY, today!

We can turn nearly anything into a game, but design can significantly improve the experience. Is table tennis better inside on a wooden table, or outdoors on a concrete one? Which apps are you drawn to over and over, and what board games have passed the test of time? What are the brilliant tools you use to paint, to crochet, to solder, or to hack with?

Design in the Wild is presented with the support of BraunPrize 2012. Established in 1968, the international BraunPrize competition is a triennial design competition aimed at promoting the work of young designers, highlighting the importance of industrial design and increasing the profile of innovative product ideas globally. This year's theme, "Genius design for a better everyday," emphasizes the importance of well-designed products that enhance the everyday lives of consumers around the world. Visit the BraunPrize 2012.

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Möwe – Dream Paper Concept looks at the possibility of having intelligent paper that prints, auto cuts and folds 3-D paper projects. A lot of folks indulge in 3-D scale models and it is an interesting hobby. Mac takes the idea a step further by suggesting that what if we could control “where and how far to fold and also when to fold via Bluetooth or WiFi, it means you could move paper as you like without touching it. (It’s like embedding Javascript in paper!)” Building models from Google 3D Warehouse would be child’s play even for the non-devout! Awesome!

Designer: Mac Funamizu

---------- Yanko Design Timeless Designs - Explore wonderful concepts from around the world! Yanko Design Store - We are about more than just concepts. See what's hot at the YD Store! (Paper Cut was originally posted on Yanko Design)

Spanish decorative lighting manufacturers Estiluz offers creative Balloon Lamp that will perfectly suits child room and bring positive emotions to adults as well. This ingenious lamp hide ugly energy saving fluorescent bulbs thank to a shade made of satinized polyethylene. For the wall version, the fine red cable that hangs from the shade also serves [...]

Only two weeks left in the regular entry period for the 2012 IDSA IDEA Awards. Since 1980, the IDSA has been honoring design excellence through their international awards program. This year, the program includes categories that encompass products, ecodesign, interaction design, packaging, strategy, research and concepts. Get your work in front of leaders within the field of design including Core77 friends Tad Toulis, Lance Hussey, Mike Kruzeniski, Jan Chipchase and more. For our Brazilian readers, register for the IDEA/Brasil Awards here!

Check out some of our favs from 2011—bronze, silver and gold—for inspiration or head over to the IDEA2012 website for more details and to enter! The deadline for regular submissions is February 10th, 2012 (with late registration continuing till February 17th, 2012.)

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The Sólo is a modular traffic signal that can be easily disassembled and used for other purposes. A good example is the event of a road mishap, and how the lights can be intelligently used to create a detour for oncoming traffic. Even for road repairs; if the street is closed, may as well use the lights for marking out the hazard space! Clever use of LED lights ensure eco-sense and the modular format give the lights the versatility to be used in numerous circumstances.

MODULE: H: 300mm; W: 290mm; L: 168mm | weight: MODULE: 2.3 kg

Designers: Matheus de Luca, Moreira Pinto & Porto Alegre

---------- Yanko Design Timeless Designs - Explore wonderful concepts from around the world! Yanko Design Store - We are about more than just concepts. See what's hot at the YD Store! (More Than Signals was originally posted on Yanko Design)

Headset control panel with cable management solution

UI Designer Spotify New York, New York

Spotify is looking for exceptional designers to make the Spotify of tomorrow beautiful, usable and inventive. Working from our brand new New York office, the UI Designer will be part of a small and rapidly growing team. His or her responsibilities will range from ideation and mocking up new UI features to creating well balanced layouts and stunning new icons.

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The best design jobs and portfolios hang out at Coroflot.

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The second UK Designers Accord Town Hall was held on January 19 at The Design Council offices in London. The event was organised and facilitated by Engage by Design, with sponsorship from The Design Council Challenges Team. People from different industries and ages came together to explore the theme of Social Innovation and what we can do to insure its success. Following an introduction from Zoe Olivia John of Engage by Design and Marianne Guldbrandsen, Head of Design Strategies for the Design Council Challenges Team, six speakers delivered fantastic and thought-provoking presentations:

1: Tools & Skills - The Kaleidoscope Project - Engage by Design Engage by Design kicked off the presentations with the short film 'Tools & Skills' from 'The Kaleidoscope Project,' which focuses on using four key values (Balance, Culture, Meaning, and Innovation) to frame the question: "What tools and skills do we need to build a better future?" This was a fantastic way to stimulate the attendees and get the creative juices flowing. Watch all the videos in the series on the Engage by Design website.

Tools & Skills, The Kaleidoscope Project from Engage by Design on Vimeo.

2. Fiona Bennie - Forum for the Future "How can we enable people to share in a low carbon economy?" "How can designers make sharing cars appealing?" "How can low income families save energy?" "How can looking into the future help designers?" The prices of everything from food to cotton are rising. As humans and consumers, we need to truly evaluate how we will spend our money. Forum for the Future believes it is all about changing demographics—carbon reduction targets of 50% by 2025 will force people to realize there must be a big change in what we eat, how we travel, and many other things that can easily pass without thought.

Check out this great link from the presentation: Wikihouse bringing affordable housing to the masses in an accessible way.

3. Mike Smart - Challenges Team, The Design Council"It's all about being smart with what you can get your hands on, creating 'low-fi' solutions to social problems." The Challenge Team's Mike Smart showed us how this is already being done in concrete and non-traditional ways:

• Jamie Oliver is not only a celebrity chef, but also someone who picks issues and creates campaigns to make change in an accessible way. He makes things visual and tangible, importantly starting on a small scale.
• Untergunther is another example - they are a group "with a mission", breaking into abandoned public monuments in order to restore them.

Check out how the Challenges Team is continuing this work with their current projects: The Amazings and Casserole.

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Architect-turned-interaction-designer Nitipak "Dot" Samsen first caught our attention a couple years ago, when he'd just completed his MA in Design Interactions at the Royal College of Art. For the 2009 thesis show, he exhibited series of coin flippers, a diverting exercise in iteration and probability if nothing else.

For his latest project, he's shifted his attention from the element of chance to a sort of economic determinism, exploring the hypothetical evolution of currency in the near future.

The short film TRAIL$, produced as part of Samsen's award-winning project "The Money Trailer," is an all-too-timely tale of capitalism in the digital age:

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Inspired by his grandfather who has been in a wheelchair since the age of 20, designer Oscar Fernandez created the electric Independent Wheelchair Assistant to help users independently access their local communities in a safe and easy way. The design utilizes the user’s own wheelchair, acting as a true assistant and eliminating the need to constantly transfer between other devices like scooters or power chairs. Hit the jump to check out its unique functionality.

The user attaches to the device from the rear via a small bracket that must be attached to the wheelchair. The bracket slides into the back of the IWA, lifting the two front castor wheels of the wheelchair off the ground. The bracket locks into place, securing the chair and transferring the weight evenly across the four large wheels of both the IWA and the users’ wheelchair. Equally simple controls allow the connection to be made or released with the press of a single button. There’s even a headlight for night riding!

Designer: Oscar Fernandez

---------- Yanko Design Timeless Designs - Explore wonderful concepts from around the world! Yanko Design Store - We are about more than just concepts. See what's hot at the YD Store! (Independent Wheelchair Assistant was originally posted on Yanko Design)