October 13th, 2009
Eco 7 is a bicycle prototipe created by the mexican designer Victor Alemano. Extremely compact, its wheels are made with six detachable parts, which can be assembled in three ways: with the bike’s body, with the chain and amongst themselves. The tires are not inflatable, and the central structure is divided in five blocs.
Besides saving money in gas, folding bicycles are a great promise for the future because they save storage and parking space, and can be very practical.
The Contortionist, that we’ve written about a while ago, is as compact as the Eco 7, but has real tires. Another one is the Yike Bike, that presents itself as the face of transportation in 2010 and is already taking reservations from potential buyers.
The hope in relation to bicycles prototipes is so big that an award was created specially for the category, to help develop new alternative transportation projects. Victor Alemano, like many others, believes that people don’t need two tons of metal to go get groceries. Because of that, he has designed the beautiful shapes you’ll see after the jump.
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October 9th, 2009
Used for more than 3 centuries to define a mixture amongst the senses, Syneasthesia tries to create sensations of correlation amongs cognitive plans, like colors that smell, sounds that have forms, etc.
With that in mind, the journalist and sound stylist Jackson Araujo created Shhh.fm. The site invites us to have a multi sensorial vision of carefully choosen themes. The posts gather together images, sensations and sound textures to express a theme, using different senses.
Syneasthetic constructions like Shhh.fm have been appearing in different and creative ways all around the world, like in retail stores, drawing tools for blind people that transform colors in heat and movies that are almost surrealistic.
Hear, see and feel one set of Shhh.fm that we’ve selected after the jump.
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October 8th, 2009
The flight of the bees was what inspired Nissan to create their first prototype with nature inspired technology. Released in 2008, the so called BR23C was based in the 360° vision that these insects have, with the capability of automatically swerve from any object that would risk a collision.
Based on that, the technological news for 2009 is the EPORO, a new car tech advancement that is similar to the way that fish swim together, deflecting obstacles, and transmitting messages to each other using vibrations.
The fish inspiration comes from the study of their way of functioning, a study that is becoming very popular these days called Biomimicry, an effort to look carefully at what nature has constructed and after observing the way they function, to propose new solutions for old problems.
An example of that would be the accumulation of carbonic gas and the traffic lines that fill up the cities, two factors that go through our head when we consider the future of automobiles. From that comes the name of the car. EPORO means Episode 0 Robot, a reference to a mark zero in history where there was no global warming or traffic jams.
Nissan’s intent here, is just to materialize a technology that can be used in automobiles in the future, so that they will be able to drive automatically, like the ATNMBL, for example.
More photos and a demonstration video after the jump
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October 5th, 2009
Bike Furniture Design is a design studio that specializes in building furniture out of scraps of used to be bicycles, steel parts, aluminum and other metals that they find in junkyards. Andy Gregg - the designer responsible for the studio - draws inspiration from the curves and ergonomy of modern and minimalist designers like Charles and Ray Eames e Warren McArthur.
Working with recycled materials since 1990, Andy is considered to be an artist by some - as he revealed during an interview last year -, and his pieces with tires and steel bits are a hit amongs collectors in Chicago. A part of the Recycling movent, he has not invented the wheel, he gave it a new use.
The movement, which has been around for a while, counts with the support of big brands like Coca-Cola, and has generated independent productions, like furniture made from ski boards, exquiste lamps made with pet bottles and even New York’s trash being transformed in a gift.
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October 2nd, 2009
Lovos, which stands for Lifestyles of Voluntary Simplicity, is the name of a conceptual project developed by a student called Anne Forschner for BMW. The car is designed to absorb and to move using solar energy, using a series of plates that remind us of the Block 16 building by Renée van Zuuk. The 260 plates cover the whole car, opening towards the sun, generating energy. They are also installed on the wheels and take the shape of turbines when the car starts to run.
Besides that, the prototipe has delicate headlights decorated with Swarovski, the famous cristal that has a website full of fashion videos and is responsible for the Lake of Shimmer.
This futuristic design is part of a list of prototypes that use solar energy and have itens that go from fashion accessories, animated solar panels to organic energy.
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October 1st, 2009
Eco-Pods is one of the proposed projects for the reform of the old Filene building, that has been abandoned since 2008. The structure needs to be occupied, and to find the best project, they organized a contest similar to Reburbia to help in the search for innovation.
A creation by Höweler + Yoon and Square Design, Eco-Pods is specially build to work with research of algae and micro organisms, in order to generate renewable energy. Its capsules format is projected to allow the flexibility to work in modules, so they can perform a wider variety of experiments. Besides looking a little like the traditional Capsule Tower that we have posted about a while ago, this flexibility is needed because some species need to be in a specific position in regards to the sun and the wind.
One of the most efficient ways to produce energy is to grow this type of sea weed. According to the project’s report, 10.000 square meters with this technology produces around thirty times more power than any other type of plantation in the same area.
Working with micro organisms has been growing in relevance in a daily basis, we have other examples of similar work, like the bacteria that converts CO2 in energy or the Saara solidification plan, that we have written about here.
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September 28th, 2009
Part of the London Fashion Week, Blow Presents is a runway show dedicated to present the most avant-garde happenings of the english capital. For the Spring 2010, the event presented the creations of Charlie Le Mindu, a designer that uses human hair to build his clothes. Recently elected one of the 50 coolest people in the UK, Mindu presented coats, shoes, sunglasses and other different objects, and everything was made with hair extensions.
The show, which reminds us of the Dolce&Gabbana coat from their Winter 2009 collection, was made possible because Mindu has been developing the technique for years, since he started his career as a hair stylist. The same idea seems to have inspired Baron&Baron, which has just launched a redesign of the traditional Papilion Chair for this month’s Wallpaper. The artist, besides being an inspiration for other designers, has been creating special wigs for Lady Gaga, has some of his creations for sale in the Maison Martin Margiela and works for magazines such as i-D e and other clients.
The stylist is also well known for his inventions, such as creating one of the first pop-up hair salons, for celebrating the Eiffel Tower during the London Fashion Week, and for producing Peaches’ last music video, as you can check out after the jump, along with more photos from the fashion show.
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September 25th, 2009
BrandNew Store is an evolution of the pop-up retail concept. Created by a dutch company, the stores can be rented for at least 2 weeks (1 month being the maximum period of time). They come without any interior decoration, but are equiped with the latest technological gadgets, like LCD screens, interactive projection system and a scent dispenser.
While pop-stores drew attention as to the importance for the market to adjust to the way things change faster, the BrandNew Stores go a step further and also work with the consumer’s senses. Their multisensorial appeal, which affects touch, vision and the sense of smell, seems like a perfect match for a world where we are try to connect with everything using all the resources we have.
The first BrandNew Store has just opened in Amsterdam.
September 23rd, 2009
With the task of congregate revolutionary designs that have something to say, this year’s Designersblock will happen on September 24 to 27 in London, together with the 100% Design event. We have selected three of the projects presented, to give a preview of what will be displayed during the exhibit.
The first is called Tactile Wonderland, a partnership between the consultants Rebecca Otero and Ninette van Kamp. Combining their background in arts and lingerie, the two aim to analyze the interactions between objects and users through the mediums. The results are beautiful compositions using fabrics.
Created by Celene McDowell, Whistle while you Wait are mugs for hot drinks that, when blown, produce sounds.
The Poor Little Fish, by Yan Lu, seeks a direct way to approach the need to save water. The project features a tap connected in an aquarium where a fish swims. Once the tap is turned off, the water level returns to normal.
The rest of the designs are available on the Designersblock website and, of course, on display at the exposition.
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September 22nd, 2009
Operated by an electric motor, it was designed to bring more life to the urban spaces, helping to illuminate rooms and make them more flexible. It helps, too, to end with that feeling of being boxed, typical for those who live in metropolitan areas. Made of steel, glass and aluminum, it is extremely resistant, guaranteed by the manufacturers.
Blowframe was the winner of the well known Wallpaper* Design Award 2009, in the Most-life-enhancing-product category, and also took the first place in contests like the Audi Design Award 2008 and the Red Dot Design Award 2008 Germany, plus was nominated for Design Award of the Federal Republic of Germany 2009, Index Design Award 2009 Denmark, Nomination MKB Innovation Top 100 2009.
The product is available in the Netherlands.
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