Notiser

D&G launches dandgstore.com, their first online boutique, starting on June 23rd. The design of the boutique is inspired by games, a fun and immediate way to shop, without any space or time limitations.
The online store will make it possible to buy all D&G apparel and accessories, both men’s and women’s, with the addition of D&G Beachwear, D&G Underwear, D&G Eyewear, D&G Time and D&G Jewels. The store is also reachable from the D&G main site.

D&G store
D&G main site

The brilliant Detour project has been shown in numerous cities worldwide. Next stop is Philadelphia, followed by New York. The purpose with Detour was to add a new dimension to motorists’ experience of Norway’s natural landscape, with eye-catching architectural projects located along Norwegian tourist routes.

The travelling exhibition was curated by Barbro Westling and Peter Johansson and has been a major success. Image show the Bicyclists’ house by architects 70° Nord, Gisle Løkken (Photo by Steinar Skaar).

The “puckelball” field is an interactive art project created by the artist Johan Ferner Ström. It will be set up in Malmö in September in full scale, 25x40 meters to be precise. The piece is an artistic impression of the phenomenon football and how it compares to the playground of life which is neither equal nor level. The ball doesn’t go where you want, the different halves of the field are not the same for everybody and the goals are definitely not the same size. In puckelball you don’t even have to be good to have a chance of winning.

Johan Ferner Ström

The Clandestino Festival is this weekend in Gothenburg! There will be a unique mix of poetry, talks, music and other cultural happenings. The festival is specialized in putting together hard to find artists from all over the world. Among the artists you will find DJ Gavana, Buju Banton, Daito Manabe, Orchestra Baobab and many, many more.

Clandestino Festival

We’d like to congratulate the designers of Norway Says, who celebrate their first ten years as a design office. During the past ten years they have placed Norwegian design on the world map. Since the start, Torbjørn Anderssen, Andreas Engesvik and Espen Voll have designed furniture and other products for clients like LK Hjelle, Swedese, Muuto and Stokke. To celebrate the grand jubilee there is an exhibition at The National Museum of Art and Design, with retrospective works.

Norway Says

The architects of Foster + Partners have created architectonic landmarks all over the world and have won numerous awards for their prestigious projects.

The exhibition ”Foster + Partners Working with History” at the Danish Architecture Center will focus on the projects where modern architecture meets history. June 19 – August 30, 2009.

DAC
Foster + Partners

Currently we invite new writers and collaborators to SuperLounge. Our mission is to inspire and share knowledge about interesting creative phenomena in the Nordic region.

Ever since takeoff, in the year 2000, SuperLounge has provided an independent space for creative and global souls. With an editorial content presented in a unique, positive and personal manner we attract visitors from far away and close to home, all with a special eye for progressive design. Welcome to get in touch if you like to share your passions and be part of our special writer’s lounge!
info@superlounge.com

Sweden’s most beautiful parks have been selected each year since 2003, as an effort to draw attention to the public parks and gardens. Similar contests are organized in Germany, Italy, France and in the U.K. The winners will then meet in the European final.

Out of criteria like availability, architecture, engagement and how well the parks are kept, ten Swedish Parks have been selected by a jury. Now it’s time for the general public to vote for their favourites. The image shows Grönsöö Slottspark in Enköping. Website in Swedish.

Sveriges vackraste park

The 29 artists selected for the 8th triennial at Designmuseo bear witness of strong innovativeness and vitality. Among them there are representatives of traditional techniques, those who operate with conceptual works and those who concentrate in surface, materials and textures. Textile art approaches often the visual arts while remaining true to its roots. The exhibition is organized by the Finnish Association of Designers Ornamo's art section. 5 June - 30 August 2009

Designmuseo

POP cph continues to create fashion and events, now with the brand new summer collection and a number of evenings of Miami Disco Club.

“This Summer's hangout downtown Copenhagen is a soft cruise to Miami '83 and an adrenalin trip to the future, a colour palette of bright pastels & neon lights in the dark and a sound of disco, electro & tech.”

POP cph

As you may have noticed, it’s time for the summer exhibitions at the museums all over the Nordic countries. Louisiana’s big summer exhibition focuses on new departures in architecture that meet the need for sustainable development. The exhibition is part of Louisiana’s series Frontiers of Architecture I-IV, which is being shown in the years up to 2011; a series of exhibitions that shed light on new and alternative architectural movements in the force-field between science and architecture.

Louisiana

The whole of Copenhagen will buzz with design activities and events when the first international Copenhagen Design Week is launched from the 27 August – 6 September 2009. As a prelude to the UN’s Climate Conference COP15 in December, the theme is sustainable design. There will be a focus on design and architecture that matters for society and the climate, presented via exhibitions, trade shows and seminars. During the week, both established and new design events are brought together to give participants insight, vision and inspiration.

Copenhagen Design Week

As the third and last bar designer in the Smirnoff Limited Edition project at Rose, Fredrick Federley has created the bar of his dreams: A fairy tale world in ice. On weekdays Frederick is a politician for Centerpartiet, but as the host for the dream bar his drag-queen alter ego Ursula stood in focus in the shape of an ice queen.
Just as the bars by Mange Schmidt and Josefine Crafoord, this bar will only be up for three days as an exclusive event in the night life of Stockholm.

Smirnoff Limited Edition

New Nordic Photography is the annual summer exhibition presented by the Hasselblad Foundation, exhibiting new works by emerging Nordic photography artists.

The exhibition hall, Hasselblad Center is located at Gothenburg Museum of Art. New Nordic Photography 2009 will be on display June 5 - August 23 (Image: From the series “in-between” by Gustavo Perillo).

Hasselblad Foundation

More than 100 years have passed since Adolf Loos wrote his manifesto against ornaments. Now, Arkitekturmuseet in Stockholm puts the ornaments in focus for the summer exhibition, trying to describe their status in contemporary architecture. What used to be expensive ways of manually decorating buildings is now challenged by modern technology and today’s production and modelling methods.

Arkitekturmuseet

The Biennale exhibition displays 30 interpretations of sustainable craft and industrial design. No fewer than 178 of Denmark’s leading and most creative craft and industrial designers have submitted entries to the Biennale Secretariat in an effort to win the Biennale Prize of DKK 100,000. Projects range from jewellery, textiles and ceramics to means of transport, methods of production and furniture. All entries reflect the concept “sustainability”, which is this year’s theme for Biennale 2009 for Craft and Design. The exhibition runs until September 6.

Trapholt

Three personalities, three visions and three bars. That’s the concept of Smirnoff Limited Edition, now moving on to step two in the series of three exclusively designed dream bars at Rose. The first bar was created by Mange Schmidt. Josefin Crafoord has now created her bar inspired by American trailer parks. The three bars will only stand for three days each, and the Trailer Park will be taken down on Sunday 31st, making room for the last bar in the project. Who the third person will be is still a secret.

Smirnoff Limited Edition

21 Norwegian design bureaus reveal how they are inspired by nature. The light-hearted works of the designers present a cross section of the contemporary design landscape in Norway; a world in which nature has been used in various forms as an ingredient in illustrations, animations and advertising campaigns. The exhibition was previously shown at the Berlin International Design Festival DMY2008. Now in Oslo, starting June 3rd.

Norsk Form

The exhibition “Genesis – Future, Here We Come!” of the Kuopio Academy of Design, presents a selection of works and projects by students of design and media. The exhibits reflect various areas of design, from concept design to complete solutions for products. 8–31 May 2009 at Design Forum Finland.

The images show “Wide pockets coat” by Teija Vartiainen and “Käpyseni felt place mat” by Annika Nousiainen and Annastiina Paakkunainen.

Design Forum Finland

Kimono Fusion - From traditional fashion to the ultra modern cutting edge designers and japanese subcultures. Exhibition at the Museum of Far East, Östasiatiska, during Autumn of 2009. The exhibition will show the Japanese subcultures that use the old cultural heritage, including Kimonos, and "deconstruct" them into new creations with their own expression.


Östasiatiska Museet

Lena Mellander is the founder and designer at Baby Compact, a company with focus on developing functional products for parents.

“Carry” is the adjustable harness that distributes the weight of the child to both hips and shoulders. It can also be used in shopping carts or to change a regular chair into a child’s chair. Combined with the inflatable pillow “Sit”, the parents will get a multi-functional product that will come in handy at home, restaurants or when travelling.

Baby Compact

Experiencing Landscape in Aalto's Architecture. The exhibition is based on the Alvar Aalto Museum's drawing and photography archives. May 20 - September 27, 2009

"In Aalto's architecture, interior and exterior spaces are often linked together. The transition from outdoors to indoors is sensitive and discrete. A connection between the building and nature is also achieved by means of views from the interior out to the surrounding landscape or garden."

Alvar Aalto Museum

Soft but sturdy, the lounge chairs Roo and My are designed for casual, relaxed seating. Both designed by Ulla Koskinen for Woodnotes. The lounge chairs received the Interior Innovation Award at IMM Cologne in February 2009. With regard to My and Roo, the jury paid special attention to the combination of material and function. The jury commended the lounge chairs for their natural feeling and was particularly happy to see a new way of using paper yarn fabric. My is smaller and perfect for watching TV for example. Roo is longer and divan-like, inviting you for a moment of rest.

Woodnotes

The new electric bicycle Lifebike Hybrid works just like an ordinary bicycle, except for the extra convenience of not having to sweat it during long up hills and headwinds.

The motor is battery driven with a distance range of 70 kilometres and a maximum speed of 25 km/h. The bicycle is available in two frames, for women and men. Lifebike Hybrid will be marketed through TV commercials, starting May 18th.


Lifebike

Stelton was recently awarded the "red dot: best of the best" design award for Shopnic, a basket for picnic and shopping. When not in use it can be folded to a minimum of 7 cm in height. Supplied with a spring, the basket is able to be unfolded like a magician's hat. It’s washable and available in numerous colours.

Shopnic was designed by Klaus Rath, who was also the designer behind the Take away, one of Stelton’s most successful products last year.

Stelton

Creators Inn is a “hotel in hotel”-concept developed by Elvine, the Swedish streetwear brand making sophisticated clothes for unsophisticated behavior. One room at Scandic Malmen in Gothenburg has been re-designed and transformed into a special room optimized for short term visiting creators. The visitors might be DJ’s, designers, artists or musicians and stay free of charge. The concept has now expanded to Stockholm.

Creators Inn
Elvine

At Sergels Torg in the heart of Stockholm an international World class street market will take place 16 - 24 May, with market traders from Germany, Spain, France, Belgium and Greece.

There will be exotic food, fruit, rare French cheese and German sausages. The visitors will be able to taste the prime groceries at the spot, or bring some take-away for later. Mon–Fri 10-19, Sat 10-18, Sun 11-17.

The Young Designer of the Year Prize of 2009 is awarded to Mikko Laakkonen (born 1974) and Terhi Tuominen (born 1979).

The prize jury states that the awarded designers have introduced a new look to products that have been designed innumerable times, such as chairs and tables. Their works exhibit new freshness and sensitivity. The products are playful and light, while also clear-cut and functional in a sensible manner.

Design Forum Finland

June 12 will be the last day for leaving entries to the competition Swedish Design Prize 2009. The Jury will then select nominees for the public to vote for. The event will be completed at the grand festive award ceremony at Moderna Museet in Stockholm, where the winners will receive their medals (website in Swedish).


Svenska Designpriset

Beckmans is preparing for their Degree exhibition which will open on May 18, with music, mingle and drinks. You will get a chance to meet the 37 Bachelor Degree students that show their work.

In addition to the exhibition there will be seminars, or talks, at the café during the week. The seminars will focus on today’s financial situation and the new terms and possibilities that come with it. The exhibition will be open until May 24.


Beckmans

Does your pasta or potatoes end up in the sink when pouring the water off the pan? Well, a plastic strainer might be a solution, but industrial designer Mattias Mikaelsson has created a new invention where the strainer is integrated in the lid. This makes it possible to pour off the water without removing the lid. In Supreme, the series of pans for OBH Nordica, he has also made handles that facilitate pouring. OBH Nordica is a Nordic company with Swedish roots.

OBH Nordica

For about a year, more than 150 trainees of Daimler AG have worked on the F-CELL Roadster project. The prime objective was to integrate the topic of alternative drive systems into training with hands-on experience.
The F-CELL Roadster uniquely combines state-of-the-art technologies with the history of vehicle construction. As an allusion to the Benz Patent Motor Car from 1886, the vehicle is fitted with large spoked wheels. The vehicle is powered by the emission-free fuel cell, and with a power rating of 1.2 kW the F-CELL Roadster reaches a top speed of 25 km/h and has an operating range of up to 350 km.

The Masters of Arts Festival is a celebration as well as a tour de force of the new Master degree students. The festival is the yearly event for art, design and visual culture organized by the University of Art and Design Helsinki.

This year’s festival program consists of theme days, seminars, fast phased discussion, film screenings and parties ranging in subjects like games, designers new roles, social responsibility, collaboration etc. MoA09 is open for public May 12.-24. 2009.

Masters of Arts

The Beefeater Design Challenge will be settled for the third year in a row. Ten invited designers will meet up at Rörstrand’s old porcelain factory to create products for the bar environment. Each designer is given two days and three kilos of clay. The products will then be glazed in bright red and transported to Designgalleriet in Stockholm for the exhibition starting May 22.

The 2009 line up: Our Children’s Gorilla, Save Our Souls, IDAG, Cate & Nelson, House of K, Daniel Enoksson, Maria & Maria, Transformer, Louise Hederström and Dizel & Sate.

Opening next week, this year’s exhibition will be special since the degree students have gathered together, at the same time and place. For the first time in Konstfack’s history you can see all the degree projects at the same time, including the work of Bachelor’s degrees as well as the former and new Master’s degrees.

The Konstfack’s MA and BA Exhibition 2009.
Tuesday May 12 - Sunday May 24

Konstfack 2009

Cane-line makes furniture for relaxation for indoor use as well as for the garden or terrace, or as the company puts it: In the room between outdoors and indoors. The philosophy is “Life made comfortable”.

Johannes Foersom and Peter Hiort-Lorenzen have created several pieces of furniture for Cane-line, and the latest addition is a lounge chair for the Savannah series.

Cane-line

For the sixth time, Grönstedts honours the National Day of Sweden by releasing a venerable cognac: The Grönstedts National Vénérable Extra 2009. It is limited to 1 700 numbered bottles and expected to become an exclusive collectors’ item. Available at Systembolaget from June 1, 2009.



Grönstedts

Galleri AHO displays the exhibition "The nine gardens of the Bank of Norway 1-19" (2002), with photographs by Ingrid Book & Carina Hedén. Official opening on Wednesday April 29th.

The series of photographs was originally displayed as part of the 2003 exhibition Temporary utopias at the Museum of Contemporary Art.

AHO

Club Social in Gothenburg organizes the Swap-O-Rama on Saturday. The event is a joint happening where people meet, mingle, eat, drink and swap clothes. There’s a different theme each time, with various DJ:s, bands and interiors. The event is organized as an alternative to seasonal consumption of clothing and no profit is made. There are rules connected to the event to create an attractive and fun activity out of the old idea of exchanging clothes. Limited number of participants. Website in Swedish.

Swap-O-Rama

Södra is a provider of raw material from the Swedish forests. Together with the design trio Claesson Koivisto Rune they have developed the “Parupu” chair made from paper mass. The chair is designed for children. It is durable and waterproof, despite having the look and feel of ordinary paper. It is recyclable, environmentally-friendly, stackable, colourful, and made for fun and games (Photographer: Denise Grünstein).

Södra

The Greener Grass series by Swedish designer Cecilia Lundgren is shown to the public for the first time at the Salone del Mobile in Milan, 22 – 27 April. The collection suggests that we can either look upon life from a rather greyish perspective, or from a more colourful one. The upholstered sofa and easy chair combine simplicity and complexity, with the shapes that twist and bend until they meet in an endless line.

Cecilia Lundgren

Li Edelkoort presents MONOLOGUE at DogA on May 6th: Fashion, colours, trends and textiles autumn/winter 2010/2011. A stiller life: Lifestyles, design and interiors 2011.

Edelkoort is one of the world’s most renowned trendforecasters. Her inspiring presentations are a mix of photos, music and own reflections. Li announces the concepts, lifestyles, colours and materials, which will be in fashion two or more years in advance.

Creative Sustainability is a new international cross-disciplinary programme on sustainable design at the Aalto University. The programme is targeted for master level students from the fields of architecture, urban planning, landscape planning, technology, business and design. The aim is to educate world-class architects, designers, engineers and business managers in sustainable design.

An introduction will be held in English at TaiK in Helsinki on Monday and Tuesday (27 – 28 April).

TaiK

Norsk Form follows up the success of last year’s guided tours in the urban surroundings of Oslo. All tours are baby carriage friendly and proceed for about an hour each. Four different tours are scheduled, with individual themes that start off from different historically interesting parts of Oslo. The tours will pass through modernist concrete building blocks, residential districts and atrium houses and will be lead by art historians, journalists and writers. In Norwegian only.

Norsk Form

Diagonal is a combination of sofa and space divider for public indoor spaces that is intended for large groups and private conversations. It consists of basic elements: a padded seat and a screen that can be placed as desired. It has a ”worktop” which is set slightly above the level of the rest of the sofa. Diagonal is designed by the Stockholm based design office o4i for Finnish manufacturer Martela.

o4i
Martela

The launch of the iiamo Go feeding bottle, designed by Karim Rashid, is an exciting world premiere. It’s a self heating baby bottle – the first of its kind. Heat up the baby’s bottle in just 4 minutes, whether you are in your car, on the plane, at the café, beach, park….

iiamo Go heats up the milk (to approx. 37 degrees) in about 4 minutes without the use of batteries or electricity and cords, just an organic heating cartridge. The feeding bottle is 100% Danish and produced in Denmark.

iiamo

Anne Romme was the winner of Time to Design of 2008. Now it’s time for this year’s competition, in which the winner will be offered a residency at The National Workshops for Arts and Crafts in Copenhagen, with own mini studio as well as access to workshops and guidance. The concept behind the award is to give an opportunity for young designers to develop talent and skills under the best possible conditions. The resulting works in the studio will be exhibited at the flagship store of Normann Copenhagen in November.

Time to Design

A mobile exhibition called “The jewellery as a self portrait” shows the works by seventeen jewellery design students from HDK in Gothenburg, along with each designer’s material or inspirational library.

Parts of the exhibition were shown at Escola Massana in Barcelona last year and now the gallery of Nääs Arts and Crafts outside Gothenburg is hosting the exhibition. The website is mostly in Swedish.

Nääs Arts and Crafts

Design Hotels™ represents and markets a hand-picked collection of more than 170 hotels in over 40 countries across the globe.

The new book from, and about, Design Hotels contains striking photography of the member hotels and in-depth personal portraits of the people behind them. Focusing on design along with emotions and experiences it can create, the book appeals to “design aficionados” and lifestyle travellers alike. Available in white and black hardback cover.

Design Hotels

State of the Arts is the yearbook of Oslo National Academy of the Arts, KHiO, and was designed by former KHiO students Carl Gürgens and Henrik Fjeldberg. The book has been picked out as the second most beautiful book of 2008 by Grafill and is shown at The National Library in Oslo together with the other prize winners. The exhibition will be open untli April 24.

State of the Arts describes KHiO’s four faculties, which are distinguished in the book by different paper, fonts and colours.
(Photo: Einar Aslaksen)

Dutch designer Maarten Baas will talk at Röhsska in Gothenburg on Tuesday, April 7. Baas is known for shaking up fixed ideas of design through his unconventional works. In the lecture he will give an insight in his ideas on beauty, perfection, intuition and the design World. He will show an overview of his works while telling about the inspiration behind them.
The lecture is held in English.


Maarten Baas
The Röhsska Museum

Thomas Bernstrand has designed yet another outdoor bench for Nola, and with “Kajen” he presents a modular type of construction. In addition to the bench itself, you may add a footrest, with an optional link piece if you would like a chaise longue kind of seating. The design invites those seated to put their feet up and just sit back and relax. The bench is made with maximum comfort in mind.


Bernstrand & Co
Nola

Next winter the 20th Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi will be built, and that calls for new and exciting ideas for suite designs. Icehotel invites artists from around the world to send proposals for the suites of 2009-10.

This winter the hotel will be open until April 18th, so there is still time to experience it and to get inspired. You can also browse though the image archives of the website to see the art work of Icehotel #19, as well as previous creations.

Icehotel

The kitchen is in focus at the Alvar Aalto Museum. Students at the University of Art and Design Helsinki have created four compact kitchens and three sets of tableware. Alongside the students’ work you can also see examples of some of the latest ideas on compact kitchens produced by Aino and Alvar Aalto in their own era.

Image: “Take your places”, by Jooyeon Lee, Kaisa Luukkanen and Katharina Schmidt. Photo by Veera Lipasti.


Alvar Aalto Museum

During the day and evening of April 4th, you will be able to listen to the elite of Swedish poetry at Bruno Götgatsbacken, Stockholm. Bruno is a place for shopping, events and exhibitions.

Laura Wihlborg, István Molnár, Bita Yari, Bob Hansson, Carl-Henrik Svenstedt and Eric Fylkesson are some of the poets that will be on stage, reading and playing records, for one hour each.


Bruno

On display at Trapholt is an extensive retrospective of Danish furniture design from the beginning of the twentieth century up until the present day. Classic designs by Kaare Klint, Børge Mogensen and Finn Juhl meet contemporary works by Nanna Ditzel, Niels Gammelgaard, Niels Jørgen Haugesen, Komplot, Bernt Pedersen and Torben Skov.

A new book entitled Stolen (Danish for The Chair) was introduced and is available at Trapholt.

Trapholt

At the moment the two week long City Move Interdesign workshop is taken place in Gellivare with 40 participants, from Sweden and such distant countries as Ghana, Canada, Colombia, India and Indonesia. Forced relocation of cities is an issue that occurs Worldwide.
In the northern part of Sweden the mining industry continues to expand and, in certain areas, the ground is crumbling under entire cities. One of the subjects on the workshop is how we can use modern design methods to facilitate city relocation.
The image shows the beautiful midnight sun over the town of Gellivare.

SVID

The tough financial situation makes American restaurants look for new ways to attract diners. The new trend of mini food can be spotted on restaurant menus ranging from casual to fine dining in the U.S. According to market research firm Mintel, three of last year’s top trends had to do with downsizing: mini food, value pricing, and lighter food options. Popular mini-sized meals are the mini sandwiches, bite-sized desserts and “sliders”.

Image: A Pint-Sized Creme Brulee with vanilla bean custard, chocolate and caramelized bananas, from the Yard House, Fashion Island, California.

For the upcoming spring/summer season David design fashion will add a new collection of sunglasses to its product range.

The collection is designed to match the stylish menswear range, however; the glasses are defined as unisex. Distribution will be through fashion and eyewear retailers as well as selected opticians.
The sunglasses will be available in stores from March 2009.


David design

Lars Marcus Vedeler has been awarded 3rd prize in The Young Talent Award, a part of the annual Award for Design Excellence.

His project explores the possibilities that come with the technology of growing meat from stem cells, a technology that has big potential for environmental protection. By rolling and spinning thin threads of meat, you can weave, tie, knit and fold them to create food with a totally new aesthetic look.

Lars Marcus Vedeler has visualized nice food creations that give a hint about possible future connections between design and food.

Nordic House in Reykjavik will be hosting the first Nordic Fashion Biennale, starting today, March 19.

The event will highlight outstanding fashion and jewelry from Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and Greenland, with shows, seminars, exhibitions, cultural happenings and parties. Nordic Fashion Biennale is a forum for professionals as well as city-dwellers and visitors, and a place for inspiration and critical thinking.

Nordic Fashion Biennale

This year Electrolux celebrates its 90-year anniversary with its Design Lab theme: Designs for the next 90 years.

Electrolux is looking for the next great idea in home appliances with the 7th edition of its global competition. Design Lab invites undergraduate and graduate industrial design students around the world to submit their innovative home appliance ideas. Entry deadline is May 31, 2009.

Electrolux Design Lab

To attract attention to the global manifestation Earth Hour on March 28, students from HDK in Gothenburg will enter the city dressed up as endangered species.
A penguin takes the tram and a polar bear grabs a beer at the bar. Due to climate changes they have been forced to leave their natural habitats to adapt to a new environment. The animals carry suitcases to symbolize the escape from melting polar ice.
Earth Hour has grown to become a major event worldwide, and this year the number of participants is expected to 1’000’000’000 people.

Earth Hour
HDK

The illustrator and artist Klaus Haapaniemi has designed a new decoration for Iittala known as Satumetsä that continues the mystical forest theme he first introduced with Taika, which has been a hit with consumers worldwide. While the owls and foxes in Taika live in a snowy winter landscape, the Satumetsä design brings a breathe of summer. A young deer acts as the main feature and appears in a range of light blues surrounded by pale green leaves and grass.
These will be seasonal products and will be available from mid-April to the end of 2009.

Iittala

The new iPod shuffle is half the size of the previous generation, yet there’s room for so much more. With 4GB of storage, it now holds up to 1,000 songs, and lets you enjoy multiple playlists too.

Instead of the ordinary display navigation iPod shuffle introduces the new feature VoiceOver. It speaks 14 different languages, so no matter if it’s a French love song, a Spanish bolero or an Italian cantata, it can tell you song titles and artists correctly.

iPod shuffle

Daniel Franzén celebrates his tenth year anniversary as a designer in an exhibition at Designgalleriet in Stockholm. A book will be published in conjunction to the exhibition. Previously a member of the architect office TAF, Franzén went on to found his own design brand Bunker Hill in 2005. His main goal is to create design that reflects our society.
The umbrella shaped lamp on the left picture shows a piece from a lighting series designed by Daniel Franzén and Marie-Louise Gustafsson. Designgalleriet, March 12 – 28.

Bunker Hill
Designgalleriet

Today it’s the Design Day, with seminars, award ceremonies and (not to forget) a festive evening with good food and drinks – an opportunity for everyone to celebrate! Design Day is Norway’s largest design related event aimed at the design community.

One of the events in the vast program is “Fifteen designers in fifteen minutes”, a brand new presentation concept by the Norwegian Design Council. Each designer has 60 seconds to present a creative message. Some guidelines have been given to the participants, but apart from that it’s up to each designer to present their message the way he or she prefers.

The stillness and sense of melancholy peculiar to Northern environments are expressed in the photographs of a group of artists who have taught or studied at the University of Art and Design in Helsinki. Until May 24th 2009, these artists present their works at the Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg.

Photos: Anni Leppälä (left), Pernilla Zetterman (right)

Kunstmuseum Wolfsburg

The boutique and label Spaksmannsspjarir is based in Reykjavik and run by the designer duo Björg and Vala. Inspired by the surroundings and the people of Iceland, their goal is to design classic utilitarian, yet beautiful and unique clothes that can be worn for years.
The duo wants to make their eco-footprint as small as possible by using high-quality textiles and not follow the international fashion game of designing for seasons. For Spaksmannsspjarir, it’s about quality, not quantity. At their web shop you will find a selection of their designs.

Spaksmannsspjarir

Play is a series of quality children’s furniture designed by Jesper K. Thomsen for Normann Copenhagen. The series features a different and humoristic approach, consisting of table, bench, chair, board and a soapbox cart.

The expression is random and home-made, with oblique lines, compound angles and contrasting yellow and green colours. Play is handmade and manufactured in Denmark in a local carpenter’s shop.

Normann Copenhagen

The profile for The Øya Fesitval is one of the three nominees for The Honours Award for Design Excellence 2009. For two consecutive years The Øya Festival has been Norway’s most popular music festival. At DogA in Oslo the project is showcased until March 11 together with the other two nominees: Jensen Furniture and SeaBed Geophysical.

From left: Are Kleivan designer and Arnt Olaf Anderssen, marketing director for Øya. Foto: Johnny Syversen/Norsk Designråd.

Are Kleivan
The Øya Fesitval

Dear Area from Gothenburg is a company with the mission to create a genuine and thrilling customer experience in your store or exhibition area. Along with the core values of their clients, they work with presenting concepts that attract all senses.

Sara Lindström and Kristofer Olmarker of Dear Area work with everything from interiors to exhibition stands, stores and conceptual design. The image shows their showcase design for A Taste of West Sweden, the exhibition centre in Eriksbergshallen and at Kungstorget in Gothenburg.

DEAR AREA

Come and celebrate the International Women’s Day, March 8, at the Röhsska Museum in Gothenburg. A new exhibition by FRONT will open and the entrance is free all day for women.

Charlotte von der Lancken and Anna Lindgren from the design group will be present at the opening of Magic/Found. Inspired by magic, FRONT has created design that appears to move against the laws of nature.

FRONT
The Röhsska Museum

Norwegian visual artist and sculptor Marianne Heyerdahl has created the terracotta army of women to express her love for peace.

Her version of the army consists of 57 women. Both feminine fragility and strength are integrated in the masculine power of the terracotta soldiers.

From behind they look like the originals; the Terracotta soldiers from Xian in China. But from the front side her sculptures are women, each one with an individual personality and message.

Charlotte Engelkes is the choreographer, dancer and performance artist who uses different stage languages, such as dance, music, theatre and stand-up.

When playing her great international success Miss very Wagner for the first time in Stockholm since the opening at Dansens Hus 2006 she invites over 20 performance artists, musicians, actors, dancers, photographers and costume designers to contribute with their image of a real Wagner woman. Kulturhuset 7-8 March. Photo: Anna Diehl.

Charlotte Engelkes
Kulturhuset

Moonspoon Saloon is an art and design project and a limited edition fashion label from Copenhagen. They will do 99 designs in 99 editions each. Then the project will be completed. All items spring from artistic ideas developed in an interdisciplinary collaboration.

The people behind the project are designers, artists, photographers and stylists, known for their humorous style. In stores the label will be represented in a special Moonspoon Saloon universe installation. A peculiar short film on the website presents the collection.

Moonspoon Saloon

Bang & Olufsen Earphones are designed to fit the individual ear and deliver unsurpassed sound quality.

These earphones are specially developed to closely match the contours and curves of the ear – so you hear the sounds that would otherwise slip away. Each element can be manoeuvred up or down and side-to-side to ensure the perfect fit.

The earphones are crafted from anodised aluminium and hard rubber giving them both flexibility and robust durability.

Bang & Olufsen

For fourteen years, Esterni has been working to highlight public spaces as the place where cities develop. After years of actions, projects and ideas they present a festival aimed at designers and architects, for public administrators, artists, students, companies, and citizens. A festival dedicated to public spaces and to how they are conceived and designed, or, on the contrary, neglected.

The first edition of the Public Design Festival will be held in Milan on April 18-26 2009. It will be nine days of installations, projects, meetings and workshops

Public Design Festival

With the vintage trilogy, Carlsberg wants to raise the bar for brewing and challenge the luxury wine segment in the gourmet restaurants.

Vintage No. 1 was launched a year ago and created interest all over the world. Now it’s time for Vintage No. 2, which is sold for the price of more than 250 Euro a bottle, and only 600 bottles of this exclusive beer are brewed. Each bottle is labelled with a hand stencilled lithographic print made by the artist Marco Evaristti.

Vintage No. 2 has been stored in French oak casks for 100 days and has a jet-black colour and espresso-like foam. Does that sound delicious or what?

Danish shoe designer Cecilie Toklum creates exclusive women’s footwear inspired by the old film noir universe, Hollywood glamour and bygone divas.

By creating a unique mix of inspiration, design work and Italian handcraft the exquisite stilettos appeal to the international market. The design philosophy is to search the boundaries between fashion, art and design.

See the collection for the summer of 2009 at the website of Toklum.

Toklum

In Hans Alexander Huseklepp’s project Immaculate the intention was not to imitate the ordinary, but to aim for the extraordinary.

Rather than trying to resemble a natural arm, the project explores the possibilities of a prosthetic arm, both functionally and aesthetically. The Immaculate prosthetic limb becomes a carrier of identity, just like glasses.

Huseklepp is a student at the institute of product design at The Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO).

The competition Fennia Prize is held biennially in odd years, with several prize winners. This year its finest prize, the Grand Prix, went to Genelec Oy for its 5040A active subwoofer. The unconventional design is by Harri Koskinen. The subwoofer has a distinctive character of its own and its minimalist appearance makes it suit a variety of interiors. The remote volume control unit features the same shape in miniature and controls the whole speaker system.
At Design Forum Finland's website you will find the complete list of honorary mentions.

Design Forum Finland
Harri Koskinen

At Kreative Oslo 09 you will be able to meet and listen to people and firms within culture related fields. Some of the participants are the industrial designers StokkeAustad, graphic design studio Yokoland and Kari Korkman from Design Disctict Helsinki.

In the Oslo region, culture is the fastest growing sector in terms of economy, with increasing affect on employment and the quality of everyday life.

Friday March 6, 2009 at Doga. Website in Norwegian.

Kreative Oslo

Søren Severin is one of the graduates of 2009 at Danmarks Designskole. In his project, he focuses on developing a visual identity for the small jazz record company Cowbell Music in Copenhagen, including print, typography, photography, logo design and motion graphics.

The artwork is held in strict colours and is more abstract than figurative. It was inspired by the traditional jazz aesthetics, without copying the biggest clichés.

Søren Severin

The Stockholm based design group Fuldesign (Ugly Design) was founded in 2005 with the ambition to be an alternative to design that is quiet, clean and perfect. With one foot in the crafts tradition they interpret the present and invite a new audience to the design world. Designgalleriet in Stockholm, February 18 – March 7.

Fuldesign also runs their own web shop called fulshop.se (ugly shop), with lots of cool and ugly stuff.

Fuldesign
Designgalleriet

The exhibition Olla Valotila in Helsinki shows the results of the workshop Light as Art, initiated by French artist and art teacher Nathalie Junod-Ponsard.

Twelve students were brought together in Helsinki to develop artistic visions representing light as physical material. The resulting exhibition consists of twelve spaces that are autonomous visual events and which propose new ways of perceiving light and space. The exhibition will be open until February 22, 2009.

TaiK
Nathalie Junod-Ponsard

The works of textile artist Siri Ensrud reflects memories and stories connected to the textile as a material. By structuring and categorising like a true collector; small details, buttons, zippers and spools come together into new contexts.

Her works can be experienced at Format Gallery in Bergen until March 1, 2009. Images show details from "snittmønster #II" and "trådsneller".


Galleri Format

Coinciding with the Fresh Fish fashion fair and contest in Gothenburg, its founder Ali Davoodi presents his own brand called Davoodi by Friends.

The premiere collection is exclusively for girls and is inspired by fashion from the late sixties and early seventies. A Tribute to life, fashion and friends. In stores during Autumn of 2009.

Davoodi by Friends
Fresh Fish

By staging the exhibition, YES IS MORE, the Danish Architecture Centre (DAC) zooms in on one of Danish architecture's most successful and innovative architectural companies, BIG – Bjarke Ingels Group.

Within the time space of a few years BIG has created prize-winning projects, a long list of innovative buildings and an international reputation. The exhibition opens 21 February. Image: Escher Tower. Foto: BIG

BIG
DAC

By inviting designers to a competition, Tork received suggestions on how to develop their products. The winning contribution was the concept by internationally renowned Swedish-American designer Thomas Meyerhoffer.

Tork Elevation is their largest product update in ten years and has received the iF Product Design Award of 2009. The development of the new series was based on a large marketing analysis, revealing the needs for the future’s restroom products. Did you know that 31 % of the office employees sometimes use the men’s or ladies room just to get a break? Maybe that’s why they call it restroom...

Available from March 2009, the new book Limited Edition by Sophie Lovell is about designers who are making furniture objects outside of, and parallel to, the industrial manufacturing system.

Through design prototypes, limited editions and design-as-art objects, Limited Edition documents a growing phenomenon in contemporary furniture design. From over 40 interviews with key designers, manufacturers, gallerists, auctioneers and critics, the author Sophie Lovell has catalogued and compiled a unique and timely overview of one of the most exciting creative fields of our age.

Dutch design meets Swedish industry and Indian crafts in designer Hella Jongerius textile wall hangings for IKEA’s Unicef program, which helps women in India to start up small sewing businesses.

Sources of inspiration are the animals that feature in Swedish fairy tales: A goat, a fox and a rabbit. In the production process small scale craft production in India is combined with large scale industrial production by Ikea.

Hella Jongerius

Design without Borders is a non-profit program linking design skills to efforts for development and humanitarian aid. It was initiated in 2001 as a joint venture between Norsk Form and the design office of Peter Opsvik.

Through the project, Irish designer Sam Russell has developed life jackets for the fishermen at Lake Victoria in Uganda. On Tuesday (February 10) Norsk Form will host an evening seminar at DogA, Oslo, with Russell as a guest speaker.

Norsk Form

Two new exhibitions will open at Designmuseo in Helsinki on February 13th.

Head First explores design and culture related to the human head. It presents helmets, jewellery, make-up, glasses, hairstyles, implant technology and virtual reality.

Behind the Scenes introduces rare prototypes of Finnish furniture design. There are lamps, tables, divans and cabinets as well as various smaller items on display, but the main focus is on chairs.

Designmuseo

Designers Broberg&Ridderstråle always fascinates us with their striking designs. This new grill, designed for Röshults, is no exception.

Available in two sizes this is a beatiful piece to place on your roof terrace or veranda. Already looking forward to this years' barbecue season!

Röshults
Broberg & Ridderstråle

The fastest electric motorcycle, Mission One EV, was revealed Wednesday in California. The man behind the odd design is industrial designer Yves Behar, who has previously developed products for clients such as Apple Inc and Hewlett Packard.

Just as in any release of a new car or motorcycle, the design on this new electric motorcycle was debated. Making just about as much (or little) noise as what comes from breaking the wind, this vehicle will surely stand out from the crowd.
Photo: Mission

Dekka daybed, manufactured by Fredericia Furniture, unites Danish design and Arabic cultural heritage. The frame for one single daybed is made from 150 kg of solid aluminium and takes 40 hours to mill. The sofa is then upholstered by hand.

Bo Strange, Morten Kjær Stovegaard and Sara Vinther Martinsen at design studio FurnID originally created Dekka for an entry in a competition announced by Danish Furniture in 2007.


Fredericia Furniture
FurnID

The Danes at Komplot, Poul Christiansen and Boris Berlin, have designed a chair for Swedish producer Nola, though manufactured in Denmark.

The moulded concrete shape of this striking chair may appear to be massive, but its sculptural form was actually inspired by the weightless lines of the Grid chair. The Grid chair’s waveform metal structure creates the skeleton, while the concrete chair comprises the fleshy tissue around it. Like different sides of the same coin.

Nola
Komplot

The world’s first office chair developed and made specifically for women is manufactured by Officeline in cooperation with the designer Monica Förster. Lei is presented for the first time at the 2009 Stockholm Furniture Fair and is the result of an ergonomic study on female sitting posture compared to that of men.

Lei is revolutionizing the market; it has an innovative design solution, which offers support for the lumbar vertebrae and the curve of the spine with the patented LumbarFlex™ system.

Officeline

A long fascination for Tokyo’s taxi cars, Tokyo Takushii, has inspired Claesson Koivisto Rune, to make a series of carpets. The cars have been vigorously photographed by the designers during their frequent trips to Tokyo. From over hundred photographs, ten have been chosen as sources of inspiration for the graphical patterns on the carpets. The carpets have been produced by Asplund. Taxi Takushii will be shown at Designgalleriet at Odengatan in Stockholm, February 4-14.

Claesson Koivisto Rune
Asplund
Designgalleriet

Following the success of WATCH (1980), which is a permanent part of MOMA’s collections, its designer Flemming Bo Hansen has now created the next generation of watches for Rosendahl: WATCH V.

The new design gives more space to the clock face, which results in a more masculine expression, with strong contrasts between matted and polished surfaces.

Rosendahl Watches
Flemming Bo Hansen

The 4th annual Nordic Urban Design Conference will be the best yet, according to the organizers, with an extraordinary keynote line up.

Sustainable design as a concept and the talk of 2009 is in for a treat. Surprising and innovative talks will engage and provoke, inspire and increase the delegates focus, concentration and engagement.

The conference is aimed at architects, urban designers, landscape architects, politicians, artists, etc. Bergen, February 20.

NUDA

Multi disciplinary collective ACNE takes their first step into theater with their play called Brådis, written and directed by Jon Holmberg. It will be shown at Astoria at Nybrogatan, Stockholm. Premiere on February 7.

Brådis is en existential comedy about a group of friends struggling to keep up the image of them leading their lives the way they want to. Photo: Pysse Holmberg.

Brådis

Just when the Fashion Week in Stockholm ends, Nordiska Museet starts a retrospective exhibition focusing on Swedish fashion photography from the 40’s until today.

Among the photographers are Kerstin Bernhard, Lars Nordin, Georg Oddner, Hans Hammarskiöld, Olle Bogren (image), and more. There will also be seminars organized during the exhibition. January 30 – April 13, 2009.

Nordiska Museet

If you’re one of those who spend as much time looking on album covers as you do listening to the music, then Sleevage might be your thing.

Sleevage is a blog all about music cover art. From the LP’s of the 60’s to the digital artworks of now.

“We’ll post the best or most interesting covers everyday in an effort to become the world’s best resource for great music artwork.”
Sounds good? Well, it looks good too!

Sleevage

Last year Wästberg presented their premiere collection of lightings at Berns in Stockholm. Now they are back at Berns for an exhibition created by Claesson Koivisto Rune.

Wästberg at Berns will take place in the restaurant and bar and will coincide with Stockholm Furniture Fair.
Wednesday evening is the opening night, followed by breakfast seminars with Wästberg’s designers on Thursday and Friday, and a party on Saturday.

Wästberg
Berns Salonger

Indoor lighting is currently undergoing dramatic development. Some countries have already decided to ban incandescent light bulbs. But what will we get instead?

With an emphasis on sustainability and quality, the exhibition See the Light at DDC in Copenhagen presents the light sources that are available today and explores what possible light sources the future might bring. See the Light opens January 31. Image: Archimedes Dream by Makoto Tojiki

DDC

With a mix of guests, like music artist Marit Bergman and the keynote speaker Chris Anderson, Media Evolution 2009 will go to the bottom with the topic of developments in digital media.

Chris Anderson‘s coming book, Free! Why $0.00 is the Future of Business, provides the main theme for the event - Business by charging nothing (follow the link to find the trailer). Marit Bergman is the Swedish music artist who stopped releasing records and let her fans subscribe to her music from her own website.

Media Evolution

The exhibition Material Fatigue at Gallery Norsu in Helsinki consists of 25 Norweigan and 4 Finnish jewellery, metal and wood artists who deal with the concept of material and it's meaning to the artwork.

The exhibition is based on the Triennale 2008 which was previously shown in Trondheim, Norway. Images show Silje Iren Bergsvik’s necknace in papier maché and silver, and Nanna Melland’s ”687 years”.

Gallery Norsu
Triennale 08

Tempo multi stool, design by Andrea Ruggiero for OFFECCT, has been given Good Design Award 2008, the prestigious global awards for new product design and graphics.

Tempo and other products from OFFECCT will be presented at their brand new showroom, concept store and office at Torsgatan in Stockholm, and of course, at Stockholm Furniture Fair. Both open next week.

OFFECCT

IVAVAhelsinki will present their latest collection at the Copenhagen fashion week at the "Gallery Show Tent" on Thursday, February 5th.

IVANAhelsinki delicately brings together Slavic rough melancholy and pure Scandinavian moods. Paola Ivana Suhonen is the artist behind the fashion pieces, starting from her dark naive mind-landscapes, northern legends and western romantics, doing prints, graphics, short movies and well, everything that is involved with the visuals. She runs the family-owned company with her older sister Pirjo.

IVANAhelsinki

Every year about 450 films from around 70 countries are screened at Göteborg International Film Festival, and almost 123 000 tickets are sold. The festival is the biggest film festival in the Nordic countries and one of the biggest public film festivals in the world. There is also an extensive seminar programme called Cinemix. Every year about 5000 persons visit around 40 seminars.

Yet another week is still left on the festival in Gothenburg. It will proceed until February 2, 2009. Image is taken from the film Un novio para mi mujer.

Göteborg International Film Festival

Among the contributions to a design competition organized by Plantronics and Altec Lansing, the designs by Finnish designer Janne Salovaara caught our special attention.

The Orbit headset with its jewellery-like appearance is, according to the designer, easy and light to wear, with the orbit ring adding more support for busier lifestyle or even sports.

The hangin/bowlin speaker voices out in every direction so there is no need to try to direct it. It can be either hanging from the ceiling or just standing on a table.

Tensta konsthall opens the velvet room, a space for the presentation of video, film and new media. The screen will show works by artists across disciplines and will provide a forum for the presentation of longer time based works, feature film length screenings, curated and selected works, retrospective exhibitions and solo presentations.

The Velvet Room will open with a presentation of video works and an artist talk with Irish video artist Michael Fortune. Opening Thursday February 5, 6-8 pm. Still from My Grandfather was taken by the Faries, Michael Fortune, 2006.

Tensta Konsthall

Since 2005, POP cph has been hosting parties, in everything from designer shops and restaurants to cinemas, hotels and raw industrial buildings.

In 2008 they introduced themselves as a fashion brand, and next up is a party during the Copenhagen Fashion Week (5-8 February), in which they will present the Summer 09 Collection.

The image is from POP's second collection, Spring 09, which will be in the stores by the end of January. Photo by Maria Lomholdt.

POP cph

Anderssen, Engesvik & Voll at Norway Says have created Hotel for LK Hjelle. Torbjørn Anderssen describes the chair as light and comfortable. With a shell that goes around and over itself, Hotel resembles a shellfish or an image of spatial illusion.

The chair will be on sale from early spring 2009. LK Hjelle will present Hotel and other news at Stockholm Furniture Fair, starting February 4th.

LK Hjelle
Norway Says

Four historical movies related to the topic urban architecture will be shown at Tuengen Allé in Oslo, starting January 29. All films present their own visions of the future city, in which architecture is central. An introduction will be held before each film, and the entrance is free.

The films are Metropolis (Fritz Lang, 1926), Blade Runner (Ridley Scott, 1982), Brazil (Terry Gilliam, 1985) and The Fountainhead (King Vidor, 1948).

Norsk Form

“Ditte Hammerstrøm – Loungescapes” will open at the Trapholt museum on January 28.

The designer works with conceptual furniture, often with a dash of humour. She deliberately inhabits the grey area between art and design, refusing to compromise her ideas. Stubbornly and determinedly she interprets how and why we live the way we do. Ditte Hammerstrøm received the Walk the Plank Award 2008 – this exhibition is part of the prize.

Ditte Hammerstrøm
Trapholt

The new backside of the Swedish Crown is designed by Annie Winblad Jakubowski and has to be one of the most minimalistic Swedish coins ever made.

40 million of these coins will be produced in Finland and will attract attention to the fact that it is 200 years since Sweden and Finland separated into two countries. So this is not just for collectors – it will be in the Swedes’ wallets sooner or later. The theme of the new design is the horizon. The sea and sky that lies between the two countries.

Next time you're in London, don't miss out on visiting the brand new Molteni&C - Dada Flagship Store at 199 Shaftesbury Avenue. It's the third flagship store from the company after Paris and Madrid.

The concept of the store was created by Studio Cerri & Associati, and is distinguished by the architectural use of light: nine wide shop-windows and a luminated wall emphasising the internal perimeter of the shop - elements that highlight the products and the space.

Molteni

Bruno Götgatsbacken (Stockholm, Sweden) follows the "climate smart" trend in the best possible way and declares January 17th 2009 as a Swap Meet.

The concept is simple; bring your own CD's, DVDs, LPs or books and leave Bruno with fresh ones. At the same time you can treat your ears to great music from live DJs and sign up for environmentally friendly energy from Kraft&Kultur.

Bruno
Kraft&Kultur

The Seek volumes are a series of synergetic book design. Though based on journeys they are neither travel nor photographic books. Instead, they are personalized books of discovery and mystery.

On the Seek website you can browse through the volumes, named Iceland, Kyrgyzstan and Untitled. They are pure poetry! The design and photography studio Seek was formed by Nina Gorfer and Sarah Cooper, who first met at HDK, the School of Design and Crafts in Gothenburg.


SEEK

The Danish artists and architects at Bureau Detours is about to set up a temporary office in the gallery at DogA in Oslo. There will be a cocktail of forms, concepts, expressions and materials that together with the visitors will lead to ideas, discussion and design. The exhibition will focus on city planning and temporary architecture. Opens at January 15th.

Bureau Detours is a community that works in the borderline between art and architecture. They test the boundaries and limits for the public space, with great social engagement.

Bureau Detours

Soon the Stockholm Furniture Fair will open its doors, with the lounge design of this year’s guest of honour in the centre: Ineke Hans from the Netherlands. She has acquired a distinct identity as a designer whose work includes features of a sculptural nature. Her design is described as unique in its diversity and creativity, with touches of humour and sensuality.

Ineke Hans
Stockholm Furniture Fair

Light Battle - Contemporary Light Design from Denmark and Finland.

In Helsinki Danish and Finnish design will meet in an exhibition that explores over 20 different innovative lamp designs by 18 designers and architects. On show is a fresh selection of lamp designs and light fittings created within the last five years. The exhibition opens at Design Forum on January 17th.

The images show works by Janne Kyttänen and Yrjö Kukkapuro.

Winter is often recognized as a cold and dark period for Scandinavians. Luckily, the darkness can be used to create beautiful light experiences. See a new side of Copenhagen in an evening of light and performances. There will be music, art, refreshments and light installations.

The event is non commercial and free for all. When is it? Well… TONIGHT! (Website in Danish)

City Lights

Changing the world - one car at a time

TH!NK wishes to change the way people look at cars. Combining new technology and Scandinavian design they manufacture an electrical vehicle that meets the expectations of a modern city car.

In case you speak Norwegian you can hear Kathinka von der Lippe, Senior Vice President Design at TH!NK, in a morning seminar at DogA in Oslo in February.

TH!NK
Norwegian Design Council

The Röhsska Museum in Gothenburg presents perfume bottles as art objects, focusing on the packages and bottles rather than the contents. Classic perfumes from the 20th century such as Channel no. 5 and Guerlain’s Shalimar from 1925 are featured in a retrospective along with much older bottles.
The “Agonist” (right image) is a new and limited edition perfume with bottle design by Åsa Jungnelius, who describes it with these beautiful words: “The scent lies hidden in a black drop, elevated and wrapped in obscurity, blinded by jealousy. The transparent mass swelling over the edge – touches my skin like a weapon”.

The Röhsska Museum

Welldone is a silicone cookware by Anders August Kittelsen, student at The Oslo School of Architecture and Design. It is also the winning project at the national design competition organized by Electrolux.

The flexible material has inspired the designer to create bendable pans on which you simply press the sides together to enclose. The process of heating up a silicone pan is faster compared to steel and aluminium and the pan will also keep food warm longer. It could even be freezed or put in the micro wave. Follow the link to see the designer’s own presentation of the project.

The Welldone project

Designed for minimalist lovers, Move is a product series of small functional objects in brushed steel and orange rubber with a clear, distinct and unique identity. Move includes a money clip, a pill box, a tube keyhanger and a credit card holder and is designed by Marianne & Rikke for Normann Copenhagen. The accessories are meant to be products that people like to have in their hands when they are “on the move”.

Normann Copenhagen

Authentics is the company behind this amazingly light weight bag series designed by Stefan Diez; "It’s as light as paper, but absolutely tear-resistant. It looks like paper, but is extremely wear resistant - water and dirt can’t harm it. Its surface changes in daily use, which makes the bag an entirely personal accessory. It’s called PAPIER, but is made out of thousands of tiny plastic threads: the exciting new bag series by AUTHENTICS"

Stefan Diez
Authentics

Just like the previous yearly editions of Blossa Glögg, the blueberry flavoured mulled wine of Blossa 08 sold out in just a few days. If you missed out on the 2008 edition you probably have to rely on your family and friends in order to taste it. Or, you can just skip the latest edition and try this pack of previous Blossa yearly editions. Five 200ml bottles with flavours of Seville Orange (03), Winter Apple (04), Cloudberry (05), Lingonberry & Juniper Berry (06) and Sea-buckthorns & Cinnamon (07).

Blossa

Arkitekturmuseet's (Swedish Architecture Museum) yearly Gingerbread House Contest is now over. The theme for this year was R-eko and was meant to raise both economic, ecologic and acoustic (echo) answers. As always the contestants were divided into the following four categories; 1. Architects, 2. Bakers, 3. Persons aged up to 12 years, 4. Everyone else.

A total of 61 Gingerbread houses were entered in the contest.

Check out all the winners (in Swedish)

OK, this might not be the freshest post... but we await this product so eagerly that we just had to make another note about it. Developed by Cognitime, the Døgn wristwatch will surely change the way you percept time. Or as Cognitime say themselves; "A whole new way of looking at time".

Døgn has been designed by superb 360 Grader and is said to be released in the beginning of 2009.

Cognitime
360 Grader

The works of Eero Aarnio is in the spotlight at Design Forum in Helsinki. Aarnio is the receiver of this year’s Kaj Franck Design Prize. The exhibits will include a large number of new products along with popular classic designs. Many of his works in the spirit of pop art, such as the Ball Chair (1963), Bubble (1968), Tomato (1971) and Formula (1998) made international headlines and became design icons. Picture: “Swan” for manufacturer Melaja, 2007.

Design Forum Finland

Once again, for the third year in a row, the Stockholm based architect office TAF has been assigned to create the setting for the Greenhouse at Stockholm Furniture Fair. Gabriella Gustafson and Mattias Ståhlbom will do both the graphic and architectonic design. Greenhouse is the special section for selected international design schools and newly-qualified designers, individuals with more creative energy than financial muscle. The Greenhouse theme for 2009 will be “Focus”.

TAF arkitektkontor
Stockholm Furniture Fair

Well, since the buzz and craze around iPhone just never seems to fade away we wanted to take this opportunity to do a heads-up for Google's G1.

Designed by Mike and Maaike, running on the Googles Android OS and soon available... people don't forget it... this might just be the second best thing, or maybe even numero uno!