Back in March 2011 we bemoaned the position of the fence surrounding the Vitra production facility in Weil am Rhein, and for all the disruption to the view across the Vitra Campus.

Before the construction of the VitraHaus the fence offended no one, but since….

“Mr Fehlbaum, tear down this wall! Or at least move it a little bit. Please.”, we cried. Paraphrasing the lonesome cowboy.

And much like Mikhail Gorbachev needed two and half years to respond to Ronald Reagan, so too will it take some 30 months before our challenge has been answered in the positive.

However by November 2013 visitors to the VitraHaus and Vitra Design Museum will be able to move much freer and more independently around the Vitra Campus.

A wonderful, wonderful development.

Or almost. For unlike the fall of the Berlin Wall the fall of the Vitra Fence is only a partial fall.

In the coming months the progression of the fence will be altered from its current course on the edge of the car park and instead will make a sharp left at the Buckminster Fuller Dome and then lead on to Alvaro Siza’s production hall.

To complement the new fence Alvaro Siza has devised a new path that follows the line of the fence before taking visitors beyond his production hall and on to Zaha Hadid’s Fire Station.

The redesign is then completed by a new “meadow” in front of the VitraHaus with seating. And more cherry trees.

The architecture remains however behind the fence and so the view of the Buckminster Fuller Dome, Jean Prouvé petrol station et all remains through the fence.

That said, visitors will not only have the opportunity to view the works from differing perspectives but also the extra public space around the VitraHaus should have the positive effect of making the whole areal appear less claustrophobic and crammed than is currently the case.

We still see no reason not to place the fence next to the road, so between the Frank Gehry production hall and Jean Prouvé petrol station, thus making all objects freely accessible.

Yes that may mean that fewer visitors pay for the architecture tour, but we believe the majority would still choose to view the objects in the company of a guide. They are after all there to learn and experience.

And so excellent and welcome as the start is, we do have David Hasselhoff waiting in the wings … and he really, really likes the idea of appearing at the “Campus Summernights” concert season!

The Vitra Campus, featuring the new fence position and new path.

Ostensibly established as a location for presenting and archiving Vitra CEO Rolf Fehlbaum’s private collection of designer furniture, the Vitra Design Museum has developed into one of Europe’s most important centres for design, design history but for all, for explaining design and making design accessible.

A large part of the museum’s success can be credited to founding Director Alexander von Vegesack who led the institution from its opening in 1989 until the end of 2010.

In January 2011 Marc Zehntner and Mateo Kries took over the reins as a joint management team; Marc Zehntner responsible for the management of the museum, Mateo Kries for the programme.

Shortly after the first anniversary of their succession we caught up with Marc Zehntner and Mateo Kries and before we got round to asking how/if the dual leadership was working, started by asking them if the opening of the VitraHaus had had any noticeable effect on visitor numbers in the Design Museum?

Marc Zehntner, Vitra Design Museum Director / Management

Marc Zehntner: We had no real idea how things would be and so in advance we worked through various scenarios; less visitors, same level and more visitors. And at the moment we can say numbers are steady, tending to positive. It is of course strongly dependent on what we are showing, but in principle there are two distinct types of visitor. Those who come specifically to visit the Design Museum, and who then may go into the Vitrahaus, and then those who come specifically to visit the Vitrahaus, and we can motivate some of them to then come and visit us. But it’s not the case that all Vitrahaus visitors come to us; which given the size of the museum is good, because we wouldn’t have room for them all….

(smow)blog:  In that sense was part of the thinking with the “new” Vitra Design Museum Gallery, that you could maybe attract more Vitrahaus visitor with smaller, less intense exhibitions?

Marc Zehntner:That was something that we calculated in the planning, but the real thinking was to be able to offer a wider range of events, also during the transfer phases between exhibitions when the main museum building is closed. With the gallery we can now offer visitors an exhibition every day, except for the three days in the year when we are closed. And that wasn’t the case before.

Mateo Kries:  Another idea behind the gallery was the museum is in good health, is running well, but the question was how can we grow. And that needn’t just mean more exhibitions in the Gehry building. With the gallery we have the opportunity to organise exhibitions and events at relatively short notice and so offer exhibitions that are maybe more current than is normally the case. In the main museum we have a preparation time of around two years for a new exhibition. In contrast the planning for both the recent Jerszy Seymour event or the current Bouroullec exhibition started last summer.

(smow)blog:  And so in general how long do you need for the gallery exhibitions, is it a matter of weeks, or months or…

Marc Zehntner:At least a couple of months, but it obviously depends on what we are doing. If we take something like the Jerszy Seymour action, that was something new that hadn’t been done before, which is a different scenario from an exhibition primarily featuring items from our collection which again is different from something such as Album, which is an existing exhibition that needed to be adapted for our space.

Mateo Kries: For example, while the Bouroullecs was a relatively short run-up, during Art Basel we’ll have an exhibition featuring 6 Dutch designers which, in relation to the size of the gallery, is a much more complicated and intensive project that takes a little more time to compile. But we want keep the preparation times as short as possible because we want to be able to offer more up to date shows.

(smow)blog: In addition to the exhibitions here, you also have the travelling exhibitions. How important are the travelling exhibitions, firstly financially and secondly in terms of marketing and advertising the Vitra Design Museum?

Marc Zehntner: Centrally important. The touring exhibitions have always been part of the museum’s concept, the founding director Alexander von Vegesack developed the idea and while today many museums do such, back then it was more the exception than the rule. That the Vitra Design Museum is so globally known and recognised is largely due to the travelling exhibitions. And from the financial perspective it’s almost impossible to make a profit from an exhibition, but with the travelling shows we can, in the ideal case, break even.

(smow)blog: How many exhibitions do you currently have “on tour”

Marc Zehntner: At the moment it is 12. Last year we had 19 openings globally, not including those here in Weil am Rhein.

Mateo Kries, Vitra Design Museum Director / Programm

(smow)blog: One of the more interesting sources of income for the Museum is the miniatures collection. A collection that has grown steadily over the past 20 years. Who decides which models will be newly added, or what criteria do you apply?

Marc Zehntner: That is initially a team process involving the curators and those team members who look after the collection, but also, for example, the marketing department. And so first we compile a tentative list – what would we ideally like? What makes sense, especially in context of a forthcoming exhibition, for example we brought out an anthroposophic chair last year on account of the Steiner exhibition. The final decision to produce a miniature however is always “Can we produce the miniature close enough to the original and achieve our quality standards?” And many of our wishes go unfulfilled because they can’t be realised, or at least not to a price that is realistic…..

(smow)blog:….and in that context is it correct that you also pay license fees for the miniatures just as with real chairs?

Marc Zehntner: Yes, which can also be further reason why a miniature doesn’t make it onto the market. But that is less often the case, normally we reach an amicable agreement with the license holder.

Mateo Kries: But not just the license fees are analogous to the “real world”, everything is exactly the same as with normal product development. We often need to develop special machines or tools, for example, to create the wicker work or moulds etc. Just the same as with full size objects.

Marc Zehntner: And when we’re fairly certain that something will be produced then come prototypes that are tested, inspected etc and so it is essentially the same process.

(smow)blog: Which we presume also means just as with a real chair you can invest months in model and prototype building; and at the end of the day have nothing to show for it?

Mateo Kries: Yes, that happens often. We’ve a long, long list of products that either didn’t work or didn’t meet our quality standards.

(smow)blog: To finish, for the past year you’ve shared the management of the Vitra Design Museum. Is that working, or …?

Marc Zehntner: Clearly the double leadership is a test, and even though the plan had been worked out and refined over a number of years before we took on the jobs, no-one could say for certain how it would develop. But it’s working out very well and we’re both very happy with the situation. And the museum itself is also developing steadily and currently finances itself to a great proportion, which is unusual in the museum world. We have a good, motivated team, interesting projects and so we can look very positively into the future.

(smow)blog: So no risk of the ideas running out?

Mateo Kries: The problem is more that we have too many possibilities! For the next three or four years we have so many options our biggest problem will be realising everything we want to. But it is fantastic position to be in. And even though we took on the museum in a very good position, we feel we’ve brought it on and are bringing in positive, new ideas. In the spring, for example, we will relaunch the website, which will include the first online impressions of the collection, plus we currently have a discussion or similar event here every couple of weeks and we notice that the public are responding very positively to the new fuller, livelier programmes. These are obviously all small steps, but together they will see the museum change and evolve as institution and see it become a much more vibrant location that doesn’t just present exhibitions exploring the most important design themes and topics but much more asks question of the visitors and so becomes more of an experience.

Marc Zehntner: And ultimately it’s the same for any museum that really uses its collection; there are enough stories we must just pick out those stories we want to tell. And that’s what makes the work so special.

Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein. In the background the VitraHaus

Ronan Bouroullec

Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec are without question two of the most important designers of their generation and are currently being honoured in two shows. The retrospective “Bivouac” currently on show at the Centre Pompidou Metz, and Album, an exhibition of their drawings and sketches that premiered in Bordeaux and is now on show at the Vitra Design Museum Gallery, Weil am Rhein,

At the opening of “Album” at the Vitra Design Museum Gallery we spoke to Ronan Bouroullec about drawing, getting older, and – once again – how he wants to accept less commissions…

(smow)blog: The obvious first question, do all your projects start with drawings ?

Ronan Bouroullec: No, not always. Some start just by thinking in very abstract ways. It has however changed a lot over the years. For my part, I participated in my first collective exhibition when I was 17. I am now 40. And so obviously my methods and my understanding of design have changed a lot over the last 20 years, I was very naive at the beginning.

(smow)blog: And did you also draw more in your early years? Does modern technology play a bigger role today?

Ronan Bouroullec: Drawing is something I have always done, longer than design and is something very important to me. If I stop designing I won’t die. But I can’t stop drawing. And I think in design drawing brings in a good balance. Design is a very long process, a very frustrating process. It can take years from the first drawing until the finished work and so it is important for us to be able to express ourselves in a clear, concise way through pictures and through drawing.

(smow)blog: Does that mean through the drawing you can better control the design process?

Ronan Bouroullec: The process in our studio, and in our minds is very chaotic. It doesn’t follow straight lines. And also each product has its own organic flow. And so its very difficult to describe it. Because we are so chaotic. Which of course is something that is never expressed in the results of our work which always seem so clear, simple and direct. But to arrive at this is a very, very chaotic process.

(smow)blog: In addition to Album, there is currently also the retrospective “Bivouac” showing in Metz. Viewing these two exhibitions can you see how and where your work has changed over the years ?

Ronan Bouroullec: I think at the beginning we were more optimistic and naive, but now we know a bit more about the whole system which is good, but that can also be limiting and can create imaginary walls. Projects actually take longer now than 20 years ago. When we were younger we were more intuitive…

(smow)blog: … and now you’re more careful, or… ?

Ronan Bouroullec: I’m not sure exactly why, but obviously there is more pressure on us, people are looking more closely, expecting things from us. Expecting a statement.

(smow)blog: Album and Bivouac are obviously chances to look back and reflect; looking to the future….

Ronan Bouroullec: I don’t feel the necessity to do so much now. We have a very small studio and I don’t really want it to expand, we never wanted to have a large studio. But because we are so well known we receive a lot of proposals. But I’m not really interested in doing everything that is offered, but instead try to concentrate on those that interest us. And to try to find some time to draw.

Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec “Album” can be viewed at the Vitra Design Museum Gallery until June 3rd 2012

Vitra Design Museum Gallery: Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec "Album"

Vitra Design Museum Gallery: Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec "Album"

Tilbage i februar fejrede VitraHaus i Weil am Rhein sin første fødselsdag. Vi talte med Vitras chefdesigner Eckart Maise om VitraHaus og om planerne for fremtiden.

(smow)blog: VitraHaus er nu ét år gammelt, er du tilfreds med det første år?

Eckart Maise: Ja, VitraHaus har været en stor succes og ‘resonansen’ har været meget positiv, både med hensyn til antallet af besøgende samt den feedback vi har fået. Eksempelvis er besøgstallene for ‘Vitra Campus’ nu tredoblet i forhold til tiden før VitraHaus. Vi havde over 350.000 besøgende sidste år, hvilket bestemt overgik vores forventninger. Vi havde forventet et stigende besøgstal, men ikke i så høj grad.

(smow)blog: Er opmærksomheden omkring brandet Vitra ligeledes steget?

Eckart Maise: Ja, helt sikkert. Man kan eksempelvis måle det i form af antallet af artikler om VitraHaus i pressen. Jeg har været hos Vitra i 16 år, VitraHaus er den første nye bygning på Vitra Campus i lang tid, og man kan tydeligt se at pressedækningen er af helt andre dimensioner end når der f.eks. lanceres et nyt produkt.

(smow)blog: I hvor høj grad er Vitra-møbeldesignerne involveret i indretningen af selve VitraHaus?

Eckart Maise: Først og fremmest er det indvendige design organiseret af vores in-house team som består af flere designere og stylister. Indimellem er møbeldesignerne involveret hvis der er fokus på et bestemt produkt. Lige for tiden er Suita-sofaen udstillet, og i den forbindelse talte vi på forhånd med Antonio Citterio, lyttede til hans feedback og optimerede derefter et par forskellige områder. Mange af møbeldesignerne er i regelmæssigt kontakt med vores in-house indretningsarkitekter, og der foregår altid en udveksling af idéer.

VitraHaus Weil am Rhein

(smow)blog: Man lægger straks mærke til at der i VitraHaus også findes produkter fra, lad os sige, ikke-Vitra designere. Et eksempel på dette, som altid fanger vores opmærksomhed er Spin fra Tom Dixon …

Eckart Maise: .. Ja, det er et bevidst træk fra vores side. For os er ‘collagen’ den indretningsstrategi, som bedst passer til vores måde at tænke på. Det vil sige, at variationen af interiøret bliver en kvalitet i sig selv – også variationen i de enkelte ‘værkers’ oprindelse, og at rent Vitra interiør ikke nødvendigvis er det bedste. Derfor har vi her i VitraHaus netop tilbehør, belysning og tekstiler fra andre producenter, som komplimenterer Vitraprodukterne.

(smow)blog: Og så kan vi også forvente at forskellige designere i fremtiden vil få lov til at skabe egne rum i enkelte dele af VitraHaus?

Eckart Maise: Ja, vi er netop ved at planlægge dette, og det var faktisk planlagt helt fra starten, men ikke realiseret før nu. Vi ønsker ikke at være et museum, hvor der eksempelvis vises en udstilling af Bouroullec eller en udstilling af Citterio, men naturligvis er der mulighed for at bede de designere som aktivt er involveret i husets interiør, eksempelvis de to Bouroullec-brødre, om at skabe et rum på den betingelse, at det ikke skal være en monografi over deres værker, men i stedet en collage som også indeholder produkter fra andre Vitradesignere.

smow(blog): Så, eksempelvis, ‘her er et bud på hvordan man kunne indrette en hems på 20 kvadratmeter’?

Eckart Maise: … præcis. Der er flere forskellige muligheder, og vi håber at kunne begynde i de kommende måneder.

smow(blog): En yderlige udvidelse af Vitra Campus er Vitra Atelier. I øjeblikket kan man se, hvordan en Eames Lounge Chair er konstrueret, har du tænkt dig at udvide konceptet?

Eckart Maise: I princippet er det et fleksibelt koncept, men i øjeblikket vil det være begrænset til Eames’ Lounge Chair. Det vigtige for os, er at kunderne kan se det håndværk der er involveret i produktionen, og at det er lavet her i Weil am Rhein, og ikke i Kina eller andre steder for den sags skyld. Kunderne har også mulighed for at se, hvordan deres egen Lounge Chair er opbygget. De kan for eksempel komme til VitraHaus om morgenen, se hvordan den konstrueres, og tage den med hjem om eftermiddagen. Denne stol er formentlig et af de møbler som ejerne har den mest følelsesmæssige forbindelse til, og som spiller en central rolle i disses hjem, og netop derfor er det for os den perfekte genstand for Vitra Atelier.

Vitra Atelier - Vitra Campus Weil am Rhein

Back in February the VitraHaus in Weil am Rhein celebrated its first birthday.

But was it all worth it?

To find out more we spoke to Vitra Chief Design Officer Eckart Maise about one year VitraHaus and the plans for the future.

(smow)blog: The VitraHaus is now one year old, are you satisfied with the first year?

Eckart Maise: Yes, the VitraHaus has been a huge success and the resonance has been very positive both in respect of the number of visitors as well as the feedback. The Vitra Campus visitor numbers, for example, have tripled in comparison to before the opening of the VitraHaus. We had over 350,000 visitors last year which vastly exceeded our expectations. We had expected an increase but not such an increase.

(smow)blog: And has awareness of the Vitra brand also increased?

Eckart Maise: Yes, definitely. One can measure it, for example, in terms of the number of press articles about the VitraHaus. I’ve been with Vitra for 16 years and the VitraHaus is the first new building on the Vitra Campus in that time, and one sees that the press coverage is of a completely different dimension than that when launching a new product.

(smow)blog: Turning to the VitraHaus itself, in how far are the Vitra furniture designers involved in the interior design decisions?

Eckart Maise: Principally the interior design is organised by our in-house team of designers and stylists. Occasionally the furniture designers are involved where there is a product focus. For example at the moment the Suita sofa display. We discussed that with Antonio Citterio in advance, gathered his feedback and then optimised a few points. But also many of the designers are in regular contact with our in-house interior designers and so there is always an exchange of ideas.

(smow)blog: One notices in the VitraHaus that there are various products from, let’s say, non-Vitra designers. The example that always catches our attention is Spin from Tom Dixon…

Eckart Maise: …yes that’s a deliberate feature from us. For us the Collage is the domestic furnishing strategy that best correlates to our way of thinking. That is to say the quality of an interior comes from variety, also variety in the origins of the individual pieces, and that a pure “Vitra interior” isn’t necessarily the best. And so here in the VitraHaus we have lighting, accessories, textiles etc from other producers that compliment the Vitra products.

(smow)blog: And so can also we expect that in the future part of the VitraHaus will be given over to individual designers to create a space?

Eckart Maise: Yes, Yes, we are planning such and that was indeed planned from the very beginning, but until now not realised. What we don’t want to be is a museum where we say here is a Bouroullec exhibition, or here is a Citterio exhibition. But naturally one can ask those designers who are actively involved with interiors, for example the Bouroullecs, to create a space with the condition that it shouldn’t be a monograph of their work but rather a collage with products from other Vitra designers.

(smow)blog: So, for example, here is an example of how you could organise a 20 sqm loft space…

Eckart Maise:.. exactly. There are various options and we hope to start in the coming months.

(smow)blog: A further extension of the Vitra Campus is the Vitra Atelier. At the moment one can watch how an Eames Lounge Chair is constructed, do you plan to extend the concept?

Eckart Maise: In principle it is a flexible concept, but at the moment it will remain limited to the Lounge Chair. What’s important for us is that customers can see the handcraft involved in the product and that they are made here in Weil am Rhein and not in China or wherever. Also customers have the option to watch how their own Lounge Chair is constructed. They can for example come to the VitraHaus in the morning, place and order, watch how it is constructed and then take it home in the afternoon. The Eames Lounge Chair is probably one of those furniture objects to which owners have the most emotional connection, and which plays a central role in the owners home, and so for us it is the perfect object for the Vitra Atelier.

Since over one year part of the Weil am Rhein landscape - VitraHaus

Vitra Atelier - Eames Lounge Chair construction LIVE!

This year we are finally going to make it to Design Basel.

In the past something else always seemed to get in the way; be it illness, other appointments or a feeling deep in our stomachs that it was all just a touch too elitist and too far removed from the world of the normal designer furniture customer to justify the trip.

But this year we’re healthy, free and a little older and wiser.

It in its 6th year Design Basel features exhibitions from 43 international design galleries showing an impressive array of both “historical” design – i.e from the early 20th century – and contemporary works.

Now you know us, we’re not the sort who get excited and carried away ahead of an event.

It could all be rubbish.

However among those galleries we are particularly looking forward to are Dansk Møbelkunst who’ll be doing what their name implies and showing works by Danish designers; Paris based Galerie Downtown François Laffanour promise a few interesting works from Le Corbusier, Charlotte Perriand and Ron Arad; while Priveekollektie Contemporary Art | Design will be showing works by, among others, Arik Levy, Reinier Bosch and Rolf Sachs.

A further highlight promises to be two structures by Jean Prouvé: Jousse Entreprise will be presenting a section of Prouvé’s 1957 Ecole de Villejuif and Galerie Patrick Seguin will be staging a live show featuring the daily construction and disassembling of a 6 x 6 metre bungalow Prouvé designed in 1944 to house war victims in Lorraine.

We must admit to still having a slightly uneasy feeling about the whole adventure; however, we are looking forward to some long, detailed discussions with the gallery owners and hopefully learning a little more about the whole gallery circus, what they do all day and how they help and advance furniture design.

And we’ll probably also visit the VitraHaus and take a few squint photos.

Design Basel takes place from June 14th-18th and full details can be found at www.designmiami.com

The wonderful view from the Buckminster Fuller Dome at Vitra Campus: A fence

Last Friday we spent a highly enjoyable – and successful – day at and with Vitra.

Texts to follow.

We were just a little irritated by two demarcation issues.

Like an analogy for the anthropogenic absurdity that are national borders, Basel Airport sits in both France and Switzerland.

And has two passenger exits: One into France, one into Switzerland.

We left through the Swiss exit. Our driver was waiting in France. Between us in the terminal building a glass wall. Outside a fence.

What do we do? How do we solve this? Panic!

The answer is you go upstairs to the departures floor where you can freely move between France and Switzerland.
Once you know this the glass wall in the arrivals level is less a division between two countries and more a clever piece of cultural criticism.

Despite the amount of Vitra chairs in Basel Airport, Vitra are obviously not responsible for glass wall/fence.

The second demarcation that got our goat is however very much in Vitra’s  responsibility area.

The VitraHaus and Vitra Design Museum stand directly in front of the Vitra production facility in Weil am Rhein.

A production facility that is sensibly separated from the rest of the world by a fence.

The problem is, that behind this fence is the Buckminster Fuller Dome and Jean Prouvé’s petrol station.

We’d always been aware of this fence, and irritated by the fact that it made taking usable photos of the Dome and viewing the petrol station impossible.

But had never questioned it.

Until on Friday when we stood on the production facility side of the fence and realised that there is no physical reason not to move the fence so that it runs parallel to the road between production facilty and Dome/Petrol Station, turns right at the petrol station and then joins its original route behind the Dome.

Such a move would not impact on the safety of visitors who obviously need to be separated from the activity of the production site, and poses no extra security risk.

However, with such a simple move visitors to the VitraHaus/Vitra Design Museum have not only two additional interesting and important buildings to enjoy as and when they want, but also a lot more interesting photo opportunities.

We never thought we’d follow in the footsteps of Roland Reagan but: “Mr Fehlbaum, tear down this wall! Or at least move it a little bit. Please.”

The border fences at Basel Airport may be a monument to the noble art of diplomatic logic – those at the Vitra Campus can be moved.

Just an idea……

And we’ll be back on topic shortly

The Vitra Campus Wall. Those in West Vitra Campus enjoy modern homes, those in the East tents. Possibly.

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 !

Michael Thonet: A life's work as a life's philosophy

On the last Sunday of the school summer holidays over 35 production companies in and around Kassel stage an annual collective “Open Day” – Blauer Sonntag.

The name may be an extremely complex and over ambitious pun – the idea is however much more agreeable and this year we took the opportunity to visit Thonet in Frankenberg(Eder).

For not only was Blauer Sonntag the first “official” event for the new Thonet Wohnshowroom, but visitors also had the rare opportunity to observe the Thonet wood bending process.

The Thonet Wohnshowroom may not have been designed by Herzog and de Meuron; but that doesn’t make it any less of a visual illusion. Dating from 1889 the half-timbered house stands next to the Thonet factory and is the former family home of company directors Claus, Peter and Philipp Thonet. The Thonet Wohnshowroom isn’t especially large; however, all internal connecting doors are open which, coupled to the well-considered removal of a couple of internal walls and wonderful window placement, produces the effect of a space about twice the size that it actually is. As with the VitraHaus, the Thonet Wohnshowroom has been conceived as a product showroom; however, as the Thonet Wohnshowroom is a real house, with real proportions, the effect is in many ways better. The natural size limitations of the rooms creating a more authentic and personal atmosphere. One highlight for us, for example, was f/p design’s System 7000 shelving which shone a lot more in Frankenberg than was possible in Milan.

Cobb grill and Thonet - the perfect combination for winter, autumn, spring.. or summer

In the publicity press release Phillip Thonet states that he finds the conversion so appealing he could well imagine spending an afternoon alone in the Thonet Wohnshowroom.

We too.

And not just on account of the Cobb Grill in the conservatory.

Equally impressive is the Thonet Museum. When we spoke with Thonet creative director James Irvine in Milan he enthused about the number of fascinating items in the Thonet archive. Yeah Yeah! we thought, nice soundbite for the camera. It took less than five minutes in the Thonet Museum for us to realise that he genuinely wasn’t exaggerating. Alone admiring and investigating the 1884 “Day Bed” took us some 20 minutes. Just genius.

1884 Thonet Day Bed

If we did have one moan it was the somewhat “over-optimistic” Verner Panton corner: Panton and Thonet may have worked together on numerous projects, but not that many ever reached production. And “not many” is in itself extremely optimistic.

The real highlight of the afternoon however was the Biegerei. The English term “bending shop”, though correct, somehow doesn’t seem to do the institution justice.

As any fool know, in the 1840s, and after 20 years research, Michael Thonet perfected a process for bending wood to create furniture – and with chairs such the (2)14, more or less, invented the mass production of furniture.

The real beauty of a chair such as the 214, however, is the hidden complexity in a design that ouses simplicity and an innocent “anyone could make that” charm.

Watching the Thonet workers in action makes it clear just how brilliant Michael Thonet’s process is.

In modern industrial design a lot of time, sweat and money is spent refining processes and materials to improve stability and reduce volume. Michael Thonet did exactly the same. And not only the end result of his life’s work has changed little over the years.

The ghost of Michael Thonet still haunts the Thonet Biegerei

The tables on which the hot wood is bent have changed little since Michael Thonet devised his process in the1840s.

The old Biegerei in Frankenberg has changed little since Georg Thonet rebuilt the bombed factory in the early 1950s.

Even the surnames of the workers who bend the wood have changed relatively little over the decades.

But perhaps most comforting is the fact that in all probability it never will change.

It’s barely imaginable that robots and computers will ever be able to make a chair as complex as the 214 and so in the future he who buys a Thonet bent wood chair can be certain of getting a 100% hand produced product with an inbuilt, inherent 160 year old quality guarantee.

And for those of you who don’t know what the twist with Michael Thonet’s concept is, we’ll reveal it soon.

Habeas cathedra!

Thonet is one of those companies that it is all too easy to ignore; but only because their products are so widely copied. And that is wrong. Thonet remain the company who helped introduced series production, who made quality furniture accessible for a mass public and who were at the forefront of two of the most important innovations in furniture design: “bent wood” and “bent steel tube”.

And perhaps more importantly they remain a family business who exist as an integral part of the community in which they are based.

A day such a Blauer Sonntag is therefore important not only as it allows the company to explain their background and philosophy, but also because they can show customers just what you get for money.

Each of the ca. 400 visitors who visited Thonet on Sunday and who saw the sweat on the Biegerei worker’s brows now knows that.

We left Frankenberg with just photos.... others with a little more.

And so with our camera memory cards full of data, our stomachs full of cake and a storm front hard on our heels, we headed home through the rolling green valleys of North Hessen.

And for all who missed Blauer Sonntag;  Thonet are hosting a special factory sale on September 25/26. The Biegerei is sadly not open that weekend; however the Thonet Museum and Thonet Wohnshowroom will be – in addition to the chance to purchase Thonet seconds and other “not for retail sale” items at reduced prices.

Further photos can be found on the smow facebook page

Organic Chair by Charles Eames and Eero Saarinen through Vitra

It may not be the most universally recognised example of either Charles Eames‘ nor Eero Saarinen‘s canon however their 1940 “Conversation Chair” is without doubt one of the more important examples of 20th century furniture design.

Designed for the New York Museum of Modern Art’s “Organic Design in Home Furnishings” competition the Conversation Chair was a concept piece and Eames’ and Saarinen’s first attempt at moulding synthetics.

At that time however the technology lagged somewhat behind the designers imagination and it was to be almost a decade before either Charles Eames or Eero Saarinen could transform the lessons learnt into commercial products: Charles Eames with his fibreglass/plastic armchairs for Herman Miller and Eero Saarinen with his Tulip Chair for Knoll.

Tulip chair by Eero Saarinen for Knoll

For the sake of completeness we should also mention George Nelson‘s Swag Leg Chair, a design which relies heavily  – albeit with permission – on both the technology and narrative of the Conversation Chair.

Currently marketed by Vitra as the “Organic Chair” Eames and Saarinen’s pioneer work remains a wonderfully confident yet unassuming chair that can be used in all domestic, commercial and retail settings.

And you can win one.

The designer furniture retailer network Creative Inneneinrichter – of which (smow) is a member – is offering an Organic Chair as first prize in their “My way to the VitraHaus” competition.

Second prize is a Vegetal by Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec and third prize a Panton Chair.

The rules are very simple: Document your journey to the VitraHaus; the most imaginative, creative and original entry wins.

And so whether your planning skydiving onto the VitraHaus, negotiating the Alps Hannibal-esque with elephants or rafting down the Rhein simply register at the Creative Inneneinrichter website and upload your photos/videos/certificates.

Full details can be found at “Mein weg ins VitraHaus”

Although Jasper Morrison built a bus stop next to the VitraHaus - travelling by bus probably won't win you the Organic Chair.