Under DMY Berlin 2011 lancerede Daniel Wahl aka Weltunit sit nye skrivebord Wilbur.

Bordet er specielt designet til den klassiske Egon Eiermann bordramme, og Wilburs primære funktion er at hjæpe brugerne med at genvinde kontrollen over deres arbejdsareal.

Hvad de fleste ikke ved er, at Egon Eiermann udelukkende designede bordets ramme, da det var meningen at brugeren selv skulle levere eller fremstille deres egen bordplade – mange af Eiermanns studerende brugte eksempelvis gamle døre på toppen af deres bordrammer.

Dengang blev alt lavet i hånden på papir, og derfor var skrivebordsorganisering hovedsagligt et spørgsmål om hvordan du stablede dine dokumenter. Derfor var bordpladen i sig selv mindre vigtig, den behøvede ganske simpelt bare at være flad.

I dag har situationen i høj grad ændret sig, hvem kender f.eks  ikke til problemet med kabel-spaghetti og skriveborde fyldt med opladere samt andre af den moderne verdens nødvendige onder?

Wilbur er Daniel Wahls svar på disse problemer.

En ‘tunnel’ under bordpladen har plads nok til at rumme både kabler, opladere og eksterne harddrives – og teoretisk set også dine kiks eller småkager, hvis dine arbejdskolleger mangler respekt for de søde sagers ejermand og dennes ejendom!

Adgang til tunnelen opnåes via en udskæring i bordpladen, en udskæring der er udsmykket med slidser/åbninger, som tillader kabler at komme igennem.

Det er alt sammen så simplet at det er til at græde over.

Wilbur produceres i Tyskland hos MDF og findes i en række forskellige størrelser, farver og materialer, og med flere muligheder for udskæringens placering, alt afhængigt af hvor dit kabel skal placeres.

Yderligere information kan findes hos www.weltunit.com

Luddites!

Not a phrase normally associated with (smow)

To the best of our knowledge no (smow)employee has ever smashed an iPad or capped a WiFi service in protest at the creeping and increasingly obsessive proliferation of technology into our lives.

Despite that, the early summer weeks in the (smow)HQ were dominated by the preparation and production of the very first (smow)catalogue.

That’s print catalogue.

So on paper.

With ink.

Luddites?

Au contraire nos amis!

Not only is the production of such an analogue catalogue technologically more challenging than coding with that “any-fool-can-do” HTML; but, just as the mechanisation of the textile mills offered the oppressed masses their first, golden, taste of leisure time – so does a print catalogue help us to regain that.

Turn off the computer, enjoy a break, peruse a catalogue. And then turn the computer back on and order.

In addition to featuring a selection of products from the (smow) range the (smow) Designer Furniture Catalogue 2011 also includes biographical information on some of the most important designers and a range of specially commissioned photos of products from USM Haller, Vitra, Moormann, Richard Lampert et al

And is a mighty fine piece of work. Well done to all involved!

If you’d be interested in seeing the finished work, or know someone who would appreciate a copy, please contact service@smow.de (NOTE: It is only available in German)

And at facebook.com/smowcom we have posted a photo gallery documenting the production process.

(smow) Designer Furniture Catalogue 2011

During DMY Berlin 2011 Daniel Wahl aka weltunit formally launched his new desk top Wilbur.

Specially designed for the classic Egon Eiermann table frame, Wilbur’s principle function is in helping the user regain control of their workspace. For all cable organisation.

Unbeknown to many, Egon Eiermann only designed the table frame – the intention was that user should supply their own top.

And indeed many of Eiermann’s students simply used old doors on top of their frames.

Back then everything was done on by hand on paper and so desk organisation was essentially a question of how you piled your documents. And so the nature of the top itself was less important. It just had to be flat.

The situation has changed, and who doesn’t know the problem of cable spaghetti and desks over-populated by chargers and other necessary evils of our modern world.

Wilbur is Daniel Wahl’s answer.

A “tunnel” beneath the table top is spacious enough to accommodate not only cable but also chargers and external hard drives. And theoretically also biscuits: if your office colleagues are no respecters of confectionery proprietorship!

Access to the tunnel is achieved through a cut-out in the table top, a cut-out that is decked by cover with slits that allow cables to come through.

Its all so simple it really does make you want to cry.

Wilbur is produced in Germany from MDF and comes in a range of sizes, finishes and with various options for the cut-out cover depending on where your cable needs to be.

Further information can be found at www.weltunit.com

Stak by Patrick Frey gets some experts attention.

In addition to his Kids Only Collection, Richard Lampert presented two new products in Milan: Stijl by Alexander Seifried and Stak by Patrick Frey.

Just as developing a kid’s range was long a wish of Richard Lampert, so too was the rehabilitation of the much-maligned kitchen corner bench, once so popular in alpine homes.

We know people who are of the opinion that there is no need to rehabilitate the unparalleled genius that is the corner seat bench. Why have your kitchen chairs standing in the way in the middle of the kitchen when you can have them as a part of the table? Why?

But we’re not everyone.

Deliberately reserved, Stijl is technically not a corner bench unit, but rather is a table bench combination that can supplied as a “normal” table/bench or as a “in our opinion much better” made to measure corner unit.

Constructed from spruce Stijl simply looks like it belong in a kitchen. Which is the whole idea.

Similarly deliberately uncomplicated is Stak by Patrick Frey .

A modular bent steel storage system that can be endlessly extended Stak is available in one depth, two heights and two widths and the individual units simply slot into one another thus allowing tool free construction.

There is in all honesty not much more to say, other than for us it is a sensible extension of the Richard Lampert collection which, apart from the Egon Eiermann shelving, has always lacked storage and shelving.

Stijl by Alexander Seifried for Richard Lampert, shown here with the Prater chair by Marco Dessi

Stak by Patrick Frey for Richard Lampert

Eric Degenhardt presents his new Tur-Tur. In the foreground the new kids In-Out lounger

Richard Lampert is no newcomer to the world of kids designer furniture: products such as the Eiermann Children’s desk – a reduced, child friendly version of the Egon Eiermann table frame – or the Turtle kids swivel chair by Peter Horn having become established family favourites.

However, irritated by the general lack of high quality, designer furniture available for children, Richard Lampert decided to initiate his own range – with the help of a wonderful array of young international design talent.

And so it came that to pass that the new Richard Lampert “Kids Only” range was officially launched at IMM Cologne 2011.

Like an indoor tree-house “Tur-Tur” by Eric Degenhardt reminds us a lot of the Bouroullec’s 2000 Lit Clos concept piece.

Just for kids! Which is obviously no bad thing.

In 2010 we threw a huge fit over the seemingly endless stream of “high chair” pieces we were being confronted by at design fairs and student shows.

Tur-Tur however appeals to us because unlike all the other works we’ve seen which are intended for adults looking to re-find their inner child: Tur-Tur is for real kids.

High up above the adult world kids not only have their own space in which to develop – but also that wonderful feeling of being allowed to do something special, something that only you can do.

Which as a kid is unquestionably one of the most liberating feelings.

In addition the steps can be used for hanging things on and over, there is storage space on the back and one can also “camp” under it.

Degenhardt’s fantastic 2008 “In-Out” lounger has also been re-sized for children.

We obviously didn’t test it – but it does look every bit as good as the adult version.

Dutch wunderkind Bertjan Pot, meanwhile,has produced – in our opinion – one of his best works in recent years with the tyre shaped bean bag “Pit Stop”.

Rocker by Doshi Levien - winner of a Best of Best, Interior innovation Award 2011

It might not be the most innovative piece he has created; but it is without question the most functional and most practical piece he has created in recent years.

A real highlight of the collection for us however is Rocker by London design studio Doshi Levien.

Formally reminiscent of Walter Papst’s Rocking Sculpture – Rocker is a much simpler, much more interactive design which we’re certain the average child will not only use for gently rocking forward and backward on.

Rather as a general instrument for exploring and testing.

And for adults, the mix of wood and plastic not only give Rocker the allure of being some forgotten 1970s Danish design classic – but means that it won’t look out of place in any room of a house. Meaning the temporary appearance of kids furniture in your house needn’t interrupt your own styling concept.

All in all the Richard Lampert Kids Only collection is a well-balanced and intelligently compiled range.

And more importantly one that, for us, has set the bar in terms of designer kids furniture just a little higher.

Through the keyhole: Richard Lampert introduces his new Kids Only Collection

Richard Lampert and the Kids Only Collection designers

For us the highlight of the new Richard Lampert Kids Only collection: Rocker by Doshi Levien

Pit Stop by Bertjan Pot

Back in October 2010 the design blog pixelgangster.de ran a competition with a Richard Lampert Egon Eiermann desk – supplied naturally by (smow) – as the first prize.

Entrants were asked to say why they deserved the desk.

In his winning entry Benjamin asked his friends why he deserved the desk – would your friends be so generous?

Ours probably wouldn’t.

But then we already have an Eiermann Desk!

Benjamin’s winning video (in German with English subtitles)

While critics denounce such as an easy and obvious way to generate content – for us reviewing the past year is an important step in planning our activities for the coming year: where to go, who to talk to, what to sit on and, just as importantly, what to ignore or give up.

The only real problem for us is that in preparing such we realise just how much material we haven’t had the chance to use – and so receive an impression of how much more material we will acquire in the coming year.

Heck!

Reading Table by Uli Budde @ Designers Fair 2010 Cologne

The year started, as ever, with IMM and Designers Fair in Cologne. Aside from the opportunity to roll out a few anti-carnival gags the trip introduced us to some wonderful new products/designers, specifically; Uli Budde, Christian Lessing, Martin Neuhaus, Alexander Gufler, maigrau, Tim Baute etc, etc, etc…

A further highlight was the introduction of Herbert Hirche’s Interbau 57 armchair through Richard Lampert.

Negative was the lack of innovation and – if we’re honest – quality on display at IMM. For Germany’s most important furniture trade fair it just simply wasn’t good enough.

Let’s see what IMM 2011 brings.

In February we were then on much safer ground with the opening of the VitraHaus on the Vitra Campus in Weil am Rhein and a visit to the MoormannHaus in Aschau in Chiemgau.

Moormann Haus, Aschau in Chiemgau

Aside from the way the VitraHaus majestically appears before you, for us the real joy is the decision to include “non-Vitra” items in the displays – very much in the spirit of Charles and Ray Eames‘ “Collage” principle of interior design.

If we did have one wish for 2011 it would be that rather than only including established designers, that Vitra include one or the other design from a young designer or two in the VitraHaus exhibition space.

VitraHaus is big enough to give young talent a chance.

While the MoormannHaus is every bit as spectacular a piece of architecture as Vitra’s, the real highlight of the trip to Aschau was Berge - the Moormann auberge

Much more than a delightful base for a trip to the Bavarian Alps – Berge is much more a wonderful introduction to the Moormann philosophy.

In March (smow)airport systems premiered their range of USM Haller based airport solutions at the Passenger Terminal Expo 2010 in Brussels. Created in cooperation with USM Haller , (smow) airport systems have developed a range of solutions for both operative, Lounge and Retail areas of airports – solutions that were very well received by the PTE visitors.

The company name and structure may have changed since PTE 2010 but we will be at PTE 2011 in Copenhagen to both follow the development of the project as well as to report on other developments in airport / public area furniture world.

Full house in the (smow)room for the Leipzig Buchmesse readings

Back in Leipzig March is Buchmesse and March 2010 saw the most successful series of readings ever in the (smow)room in Burgplatz.

Ever!

Starting with Grillsaison from Philipp Kohlhöfer and then moving on over “New voices from Switzerland” to “Meine Frau will einen Garten” by Gerhard Matzig the three readings provided three very different if equally enjoyable experiences.

More so in 2011 !

Strahlend Grau Herbert Hirche Exhibition, Museum der Dinge Berlin

Because our article on the new London bus has been delayed by a broken water main at Tooting Bec, we’ve decided instead to do an impression of a typical London bus user.

“Typical, wait ages and then two come along at once! I blame Ken Livingstone!”

Ahead of the opening of the Dieter Rams retrospective “Less and More: Das design ethos von Dieter Rams“,  yesterday saw the opening of a second exhibition dedicated to the life and work of a former Braun designer.

The Werkbund Archive Berlin’s Herbert Hirche exhibition “Strahlend Grau” is a beautifully compact overview of a designer who, despite his relative anonymity, is equally as important as Dieter Rams, Egon Eiermann or Ludwig Mies van der Rohe: just three of the grand doyens of German design with whom Herbert Hirche collaborated.

Strahlend Grau: Herbert Hirche on the roof of Bauhaus Dessau, 1932

And a fitting event to celebrate Herbert Hirche’s 100th birthday.

Born in Görlitz on May 20 1910, Herbert Hirche studied at Bauhaus in Dessau and Berlin. Following the closing of the institution in 1933 Hirche joined the office of his former professor, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, remaining in his service until Mies van der Rohe fled to the USA in 1938. After a year freelancing, Herbert Hirche joined Egon Eiermann’s Büro where he remained until Eiermann left Berlin in 1945 ahead of the advancing Red Army.

To lose one employer to a totalitarian regime is unfortunate; two starts to begin to look like a curse.

In the post-war years Herbert Hirche was closely involved with the rebuilding of Berlin in addition to teaching; initially at the Hochschule für angewandte Kunst in Berlin-Weißensee and subsequently at the staatliche Akademie für bildende Künste Stuttgart, where he also served as rector between 1969 and 1971.

Curated by Nicola von Albrecht, Strahlend Grau presents a chronological journey through Herbert Hirche’s life, wonderfully illustrated with original letters, documents and photographs. One of the highlights for us being a letter from Egon Eiermann confirming that Hirche could take up a position in his office: little things like that really bringing the otherwise abstract concept that is someone else’s life to well … life.

Strahlend Grau Herbert Hirche's contribution for the exhibition Interbau Berlin, 1957

And Strahlend Grau is full of such moments.

What it is not full of however is furniture.

Largely because much of Herbert Hirche’s work never proceeded beyond the prototype stage, and consequently his legacy is largely only on paper.

The exhibition does however include four Herbert Hirche items from the current Richard Lampert collection; the Hirche Barwagon, 1953 Lounge Chair, H57 armchair and Rattan chair “Santa Lucia”.

As far as we are aware these are the only examples of his work currently in production; and that despite Herbert Hirche working for producers as varied as Knoll, Wilkhahn or Wilde + Spieth.

Rattan chair Santa Lucia by Herbert Hirche through Richard Lampert

Richard Lampert himself was also present and he told us how he came to Herbert Hirche; and fortuitously it was not through long research in a stuffy archive while looking for commercial opportunities in forgotten designs.

No, Richard Lampet’s introduction to Herbert Hirche was during a long evening in the convivial and non-stuffy surroundings of Stuttgart’s legendary Santa Lucia restaurant; a restaurant for whom Hirche not once but twice conceived the interior design and for whom he created the Rattan chair.

Having been initially sceptical about the chair, Richard Lampert was so impressed with it that he returned the following day to ask where it came from.

And so began a wonderful relationship, whose latest chapter was the awarding of the “Classic Innovation” Award at the 2010 IMM Cologne for the relaunched H57 armchair.

Such stories always cheer us up as they prove that good, honest design will always succeed over hype, star names and large marketing budgets. And that gives us hope for the future.

Herbert Hirche: Strahlend Grau

Strahlend Grau is not an expansive exhibition, nor is it an exhibition that can be passively viewed. A visit to Strahlend Grau means actively searching for and considering the presented information. But the effort is worth it and there are some true gems to be found.

And more importantly it is a wonderful introduction to a designer who deserves more credit than he publicly gets and for all to an era of German design that has much more to offer and was much more instrumental in shaping European industrial design than many people are prepared to accept.

Strahlend Grau runs at the Werkbundarchiv – Museum der Dinge until September 13th.

Werkbundarchiv – Museum der Ding
Oranienstraße 25
D-10999 Berlin

Opening time: Fr, Sa, So, Mo 12 – 19 Uhr

www.museumderdinge.de

Strahlend Grau: Herbert Hirche's 1953 lounge chair from Richard Lampert

In what is quite possibly the most eagerly anticipated announcement of 2010, Apple Supremo Steve Jobs will unveil the companies latest product in San Francisco on Wednesday.

Is this the iSlate?

Rumoured the be called iSlate, or possibly iPad or iTablet, the product is expected to combine the functionality of the iPhone with that of the iMac in a flat, transportable, keyboardless computer; thus allowing the user to write, draw and calculate anywhere.

In effect a chalkboard for the 21st century.

Hence the name.

What may surprise many of you, however, is that not only is the history of the chalkboard itself Germanic, but also Apple’s approach to design has it’s roots in Germany; and indeed even Apple’s nomenclature system is based on historical German syntax.

The iSlate is, therefore, German.

The centre of the global chalkboard industry was Steinach in Thuringen. From this idyll of forest and streams some 30 million chalkboards were produced and shipped to all corners of the globe, before production finally ended in 1968. The towns “Chalkboard Museum” provides a wonderful overview of the history of chalkboard production in the area and is well worth a visit next time you are on the Rennsteig. According to the operators, the decision as to whether the iSlate will feature in the exhibition will be made after Steve Job’s official unveiling.

And confirmation that it is called iSlate.

The classic Eiermann Desk by Egon Eiermann from Richard Lampert

But long before Jonathan iVes started reinventing the way we think about products, the Germans were already doing just that.

The iRmann desk by Egon Eiermann is perhaps the best example of just where the Apple approach to product design originates from.

Just as Jonathen iVes strips products down to the bare minimum before relaunching them in a pseudo-post-Dieter Rams format; so Egon Eiermann stripped desk design down to just the frame before relaunching it in a pseudo-pre-Dieter Rams format.

The name “iRmann” originates from a popular anglo-frisian construction whereby the phonetic “i” was treated as inferior in written forms and so the second letter was written as a capital. The lower case i remaining for sake of clarity alone. Popular in Egon Eiermann’s native Brandenburg and neighbouring Berlin, this practice died out as ingvaeonic languages finally ceded to modern German in the 1980s.

It is generally accepted by academics that Apple’s use of the lower case”i” in front of words such as iPod or iPhone has similar origins and is associated with Steve Job’s Frisian ancestry.

Today the iRmann desk is produced by Richard Lampert; albeit under the name Eiermann Desk

And today both Apple products and iRmann desks are used globally by architects, designers and other creative people.

Which can’t be a coincidence.

The iRmann desk is wonderfully complemented by George Nelson’s iClock from Vitra.

The name iClock is a cheap pun we thought up to fit the article into this post.

But we do like it.

You can read full details on the iSlate here, once Apple have made the formal announcement in San Francisco

iSlate and iRmann desk with a panton chair... is this the future of creative office design?

Richard Lampert promised a celebration of Herbert Hirche’s 100th birthday here in Cologne; and in the end could “present” the late Prof. Hirche with an award for “Classic Innovation” in the 2010 Interior Innovation Awards.

Interior Innovation Award 2010 presented to Richard Lampert

The jury, featuring amongst others the Milan based British designer James Irvine and the London based Japanese designer Tomoko Azumi,  selected Hirche’s 1957 “GFK Schalensessel für die Interbau Berlin” ( a fibre glass armchair Hirche created for the 1957 “Interbau” exhibition in Berlin) as one of the best examples of classic innovation here at the IMM.

Not that the chair is in anyway a bare fibre glass creation a la the Eames A-shell.

Hirche’s chair originally came with a lush green valour, and it is true to this version that Richard Lampert have re-introduced the piece. In addition the GFK Armchair is available with anthracite valour or leather upholstery. A version with a “bare” back is also in development.

Herbert Hirche Lounge Chair

With the obvious nods to the likes of Charles Eames, Finn Juhl or any other of Hirche’s contemporaries the GFK armchair is obviously a piece from a specific time in design history; but just like the best designer furniture it remains a piece that has it’s place in an time or space.

We remain undiluted fans of Hirche’s 1953 Lounge Chair, but in the GFK Armchair see further verification of Herbert Hirche’s role and importance in the context of German design.

Egon Eiermann Paravent

In addition to celebrating Herbert Hirche, Richard Lampert also presented some new products from their Egon Eiermann range; including Eiermann’s 1968 room divider – that once elegantly screened the seating areas in the Bundestag in Bonn – and some upholstery for the E 10 rattan chair.

Ours are covered in vegan sheep skins – as you’d expect – but we do know a few people who would appreciate a properly crafted cushion for their E 10. And so good to see Richard Lampert offering the option.

And congratulations on the award.

Herbert Hirche GFK Schalensessel fur die Interbau Berlin ... and the master can relax