The Thaler's

Serious Goodness from (Brothers?) Harry and Walter Thaler. I am presuming there is a family relationship going on here as there is collaboration on certain works, but there are separate websites which illustrate a difference in thinking. Harry Thaler keeps it suprisingly brief as lots of the work here could command large images and lots of information, but i appreciate that fresh, forward thinking attitude. Walter Thaler's work appears more elemental and considered but none the worse off for it. Both are well worth a look.

Design against the clock

Informative video documenting the recent Design Against the Clock exhibition at Established & Sons. I think its important that you concentrate on what the artists and designers are saying and doing when viewing this, as it  unnecessarily over produced.

Studio Makkink & Bey

Not many press release images to fully eye this up, but i reckon Studio Makkink & Bey's upcoming show at the Spring Projects Gallery should definately be worth a look.
"The Crate Series is an enquiry into the delineations in public and private time and space as well as the role of the objects we use within these spheres. Just as the function of a singular household appliance doesn't mark or dominate a room with its purpose of existence, so the bed hidden inside the BedCrate doesn't denote the room as a bedroom nor the bath and basin to a bathroom. This is a unifying theme of the series as the ClockCrate attempts to smother its own ticking sound and the VacuumCleanerCrate cleans up after serving tea from its built-in trolley."

Von Tundra

Von Tundra explore some interesting ideas with pieces which have succinct and precise uses. This focus is something i really appreciate, because now it seems so much contemporary furniture is supposed to be multi-purpose. Von Tundra are also showing at the brilliant Specific Merchandise at the moment.

6 Mix

A quick one for Steve and Neil, (and all you electronic music heads out there), an interesting, sometimes dark mix from Alex Paterson (The Orb) on 6 music last night. Catch it here.

False dichotomy

To be or not to be, a group exhibition,  is currently showing in the basement of Shoreditch Town Hall, a brilliant subterranean labyrinth with an amazing sense of  history. This is not easy work, these are serious artists exploring serious ideas, but it is very, very good. It's on til the 27th, and is free.

Central Table

More Aluminium stuff, this time design megastars Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec strip the Paris bistro table down to the bare, elegant essentials.

Oldest Door

It's always a pleasure to get a commisison for a piece of furniture that somebody wants to one day hand down to their great grandchildren. It's obviously not the cheapest as the materials have to be the best available and most importantly the construction process has to be very sound, but its also a very interesting process design wise, as it has to transcend current aesthetics, be timeless.
Anyway, I digress. Really looking forward to finding out more about this 5000 year old door,  recently found under the streets of Zurich which according to the chief archaeologist, "is solid and elegant, with well-preserved hinges and a remarkable design for holding the boards together".  

Cheers

Just wanted to say a big big Thank You to everyone who sent very positive emails regarding the Grand Designs episode last week. If anyone missed it, you can still catch it on 4 OD.

Fiona Banner

 

Fiona Banner's show at the Tate Britain is not getting a lot of press, why? i have no idea, because it's epic, serious and humbling, all at the same time.

20 ltd

The keener folk amongst you may have figured this lead on from the recent Matt Siber post, but for those who did not here it is. 20 Ltd sell limited edition stuff, from design to photography (including Siber). There is some amazing work on here, but it somehow feels as though there is a tiny bit too much, almost going against the 20 Ltd ethos. Anyway, highlights for me are Peter Anderson's "Set Piece" chair, Michael Wolf's micro/macro photo's, which have a circuit board feel to them, and Stanley Greenberg's, process inspired images.

Trinity Buoy Wharf

Trinity Buoy Wharf is simply brilliant. Directly opposite the millennium dome, right on the other side of the Thames, with the best view of Gormley's Quantum Cloud, architecture and studio's created out of old shipping containers, an amazing sense of history coupled with a super good contemporary/creative vibe, and for this week only, a walking boat. What more could you possibly want?

Arflex

Apologies if i have mentioned this before but have just revisited Claesson Koivisto Rune's 'Hillside' range for Arflex. From the front view the complex form is difficult enough to construct when you are aiming for this (extremely high) level of finish, but when you start playing with angles and asymmetry in plan as well it has to be admired. Also really like the light reflecting differently on the undulating facade (top), it has a kind of pantone/paint swatch tonal gradient feel to it.

Points to Note

I feel i was slightly down on Zaha Hadid's MAXXI museum in the last post and wanted to clarify. It is a very good building, i like it a lot and we need big architecture, particularly in times when arts funding is being slashed. I am sure it will have a huge impact on the city as well.
I think my frustration was the RIBA Stirling prize shortlist itself, none of the buildings could breathe. Three museums, two schools and Bateman's Row, a really interesting urban solution, but which did not stand a chance against the others. It's interesting, useful and probably right to try and pick a 'best' building, but in reality you never can. Are there any more important buildings than emergency shelters in Haiti after the earthhquake, or the flooding in Pakistan? Is there a more commendable green project than Black Architecture's Deckhouse? I there a more inspiring and boundary blurring structure than Heatherwick's Dandelion? It's impossible to pick a winner, but it creates a whole lot of buzz, which is definately a good thing.

Stirling Prize

Although i knew who won the stirling prize, i have only just managed to catch up with the programme on the i-player. I (anyone) could have told you a month ago that Zaha Hadid would win for the MAXXI museum in Rome. Unfortunately Hadid has taken a while to be accepted in this country, being a foreign national women in the male dominated british architecture clique has not helped. But, this is not reason to give her the prize alone, the buliding is not Hadid's best and not THE best either. It won the award because it is Big and Bold, that's all, the president of the MAXXI foundation admits as much.
As for..."Rome needed a building like this", what in the hell does that mean? That means, you cannot be considered a contemporary city without a hugely expensive, trophy building, a new landmark. All the other buildings have been shoe horned in, two of them are buildings within buildings, one is an extension. The only other stand alone structure is Christ's College School Guildford, the reverse of the MAXXI as it's the least successful visually, but the most successful in doing its job, as a machine.  So, where does it leave us, if you gave me about £130 million pounds to build a gallery in Rome, i reckon i could do a half decent job, but £14 million to design and build a school, which transforms the area, is a much harder brief. Guildford really.. 'needed a building like this'...in the most basic, real terms.

T.V Debut

A quick heads up, I am 99% sure that the Grand Designs featured house i recently worked on will be aired on the Channel 4 show, on 20th October. I may come across as a bit of a muppet as i found the filming quite nerve racking, so i am hoping they have edited me out and concentrated on the work, which is much more assured.

Reclaimed Rustic

Very unusual for me to be working in a farmhouse, reclaimed style, but i really enjoyed making this table. I liked the honesty of the construction, no mechanical fixings at all, just wood, joints and glue.

Fouth plinth

Have you say regarding the next Fourth Plinth sculpture here. Not the strongest line up to date but i like this Organ with integrated ATM, which plays when you enter your PIN number and withdraw money.

Matt Siber

Matt Siber is featuring in The Independent on Sunday for the next few weeks, with his altered landscapes, and should be looked at in detail. His 'floating logos' series are photographs of American signs and adverts but with their support structures photoshopped out to leave these other worldly images. Siber is an investigative artist, he is very considered and intellectual. His 'The Untitled Project' consists of street scenes with all text, advertising and signage removed, leaving arresting but serene images. And the ongoing 'Structures' series examines what is behind the sign, rather than just erasing the surface. I admire the way Siber thinks and talks about his work, and i highly recommend you read the full project statements on his site for more insights like this....
....."While the objects in this project reference the structures of public advertising, the experience of these pieces is not intended to be referential the way pictorial art is. Most advertising, which usually includes photography, serves to transport the viewer’s mind to another place and time. Advertising’s aim is to present the viewer with a better time and place to consider, implying that the current time is not as good as it should be. These pieces aim to keep the viewer’s minds in the present time and space by creating an experience rather than a referent. The pieces are meant to be phenomenological in that they are supposed to be experienced in person. They are about the object and the space in the present time, in contrast to photography which references another place in the past."

Framed

I did not get a chance to see Stuart Haygarth's 'Framed' installation at the V&A in the flesh, but i have been looking closely at it the images. Haygarth is famous for his brilliant found object lamp shades involving party poppers, spectacles and old plastic bottles. But 'framed' is very different, using new, highly painted sections of picture frame to clad a section of staircase. I think it is impressive in scale and the way the light affects the surface is interesting but i just don't quite get it. Haygarth says he has tried "tried to create a work akin in 3D graffiti on a traditional staircase reminiscent of the yellow brick road in 'the wizard of Oz'" but it does not evoke or present this. The key to Haygarth's work for me has always been that the materials have an inbuilt narrative, tell a story, have a history. Party poppers collected from the Millennium celebrations were obviously fired in a frenetic atomosphere, but when calmly and orderly suspended they become something very different. I think the V&A just lacks some of the usual emotion, but that may not come through in the photos alone.
Did anyone see the show?

The Wheel House

The Wheel House in Falmouth is a fine example of less is more, in every respect. A friend of mine went to review it, was given plates of free food and was then politely told by the owner if they could write about somewhere else because the place was full of locals every night, and that suited them just fine, (so i am going to spin this as an interior review). The place is simply a collection of stuff, almost like the owners had started gathering/finding for the place and opened when they had enough furniture. The menu is limited, scallops or oysters (depending on the season),  crab (3 kinds last night), mussels (2 ways), and prawns (2 ways), skinny fries, side salad and White or Red wine. That's it. So, how can such an amazing atmosphere and environment be created with so little. It is amazing how hugely food can inform a space, the ambience and character. Its because of the nature of shellfish, (astonishingly well cooked with lashings of butter and garlic) coupled with the small interior, there is just no where to hide. You have to get invovled, get messy. It's quite grotesque (even carnal) in a way, but everyone is breaking crabs, beheading prawns, mopping up mussel stock and generally making a lot of noise getting covered (and covering people) in food. It is hugely successful for that reason, its SO basic, but so emotionally enriching for that.

Richard Neutra

I have been doing some research on modernist Architecture for an upcoming project and was looking at Neutra, when i came across this. Architecture of this era does get pigeonholed somewhat because of it's difficulty to fully understand, (much in the same way someone who does not know or like classical music might think it all sounds all the same.) Neutra is famous for his more unforgiving, formal work, but this house has a lightness of touch, emotional understanding with its surroundings, and knowledge of the vernacular which display a very free, natural approach from the designer.