New Kids on the Block
The Trendease Team has been keeping an eye on Designersblock over the years and is impressed to see how far the platform for revolutionary design and new talent has come.
At the 2008 London Design Festival Designersblock was not found in an obscure location on the London city map, but rather at the well established location of the piazza at Covent Garden. Additionally, with its designers the creative platform had the opportunity to curate seven display windows at the prominent department store Selfridges. The windows were filled with the imaginations of Charlie Davidson, KithKin, Matthew Plummer-Fernandez, PostlerFerguson, Secret Wars, Toby Summerskill & Jim Rokos, and WEmake.
The windows, up through October 25th, are thought provoking and different from what mainstream may consider high street merchandising. Designersblock breaks free from the box and thinks well outside of it.
“I thought it would be funny to pose someone beneath the light like they were held within its glare... Because of the window’s size, it seemed natural to have a “couple” of mannequins standing side by side and sharply dressed ready for an occasion, oblivious to the ridiculousness of their head gear. To animate the whole affair, the chandeliers rotated around the heads of the two motionless bodies...” -Charlie Davidson
Apifera is the Latin name given to flowers that attract bees. While considering the company/customer relationship, the Plummer-Fernandez team found themselves “comparing it to the function of flowers; the part of a larger organism that is responsible for attracting other living species for its survival.” This ‘flower’ is intended to increase footfall into the department store.
KithKin’s Reveal was divided into six sections. The sections were revealed on a weekly basis, hence the piece’s name. As you may remember us mentioning in Newsletter #238, the section entitled To Let was auctioned on eBay. At the time of writing, with 13 hours left, the bid on the space was up to £156.00.
PostlerFerguson’s Olympus: a Rolls Royce Concorde Jet Engine. Eighty-nine kilonewtons of thrust hurl the world of engineering into our everyday lives at supersonic speeds.
“Fight Club with pens.” Battling only in black and white, Jimi Crayon, Stika, and Mr. K. created what Jimi called a “Secret Wars inspired Selfridges window,” meaning they drew cool stuff everywhere while trying to one-up each other.
Designer Jim Rokos and photographer Toby Summerskill team up to create this multifaceted and mirrored kaleidoscope. The sculpture’s mirrors are covered by a new radiant light film from 3M which creates a chameleonic effect when viewed from different angles.
In the world of WEmake, a new life awaits those lamps carelessly thrown away. This second chance entails equipping them with energy-conserving bulbs and covering them in a preservative. Screens fixed in a bed of scrap parts document the lamps’ rebirth. Those on the wall are named to emphasize just how unique they really are.
Back at the Covent Garden location, visitors could find a vast array of interesting products. Lighting made of reused plastic soda bottles wrapped in fashion tights bring about an unexpected elegance. A pitcher of milk is playing with our heads in the form of a floor lamp. Sea urchins crawl from the depths acting as comfy cushions on a pool of carpet decorated with mirrored coy. Bowls become animated cogs spinning on the tabletop (kids, stop playing with your food—play with your bowls instead!). Comical ceramics turn our soup into a lake for fishing or encourage us to finish the entire serving to read the story printed beneath. Art and textiles abound. Even if you arrive with an empty stomach, you leave not only full of new ideas, but full of food if you stop by the gnocchi lounge!
Designersblock has come a long way and will continue to spot and promote rising stars via its platform. Trendease is determined to be right there next to them to spread the word on emerging talents where evolution is spiced up with revolution.
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