DESIGNEAST.EU » Product Design

Platter of Friendship – Hungary

Viola Mezo — Mon, 21 May 2012 08:52:22 +0000

Dombon a tanya (means ‘Farm on the hill’) is relatively new design workshop based in Budapest, Hungary. They create fresh forms of classic ideas and well-know objects, while staying close to folk art, and our national heritage. Lovable objects, smart design and quality craftsmanship are the trademarks of this fresh and unique spot on the Hungarian design scene.

Their latest collection is called ‘Komatál‘ (Platter or Friendship), which comes from the tradition of sealing friendships and other important relationships with exchanging fine food and great wine. Platters were also sent as expression of best wishes between family, friends or neighbors, or when a young man sent a platter to his loved one it was considered as a seal of love.

The collection consists of 8 different platters for 8 occasions: from kids party through wedding and lazy, summer afternoon meals. The minimalistic design and quality workmanship elevates this object from a simple traditional item to a 21st century tool for everyday use.

Designers: Anikó Juhász & Anna Nóra Nagy

Wood works: Zoltán Lang

Design theory: Petra Hoffmann 

Glass works: Árpád Orosz

Autoprogettazione 2.0: on display

Tomáš Kubata — Wed, 02 May 2012 07:21:00 +0000

Due to the fantastic response of the global open-source design challenge – Autoprogettazione 2.0, launched by Domus with FabLab Torino, the committee comprising of various personalities as curators and designers, has selected the seven very best projects which where exhibited during the Salone del Mobile in Milan. Two of these studies where made by designers from Eastern Europe. Wedge side table, by Andreas Kowalewski, made from plywood with its basic structure is very easy to pack, transport, assemble and use. Michael Tomalik, inspired by classic tool box, has created the work lamp which includes storage for tools. The whole object is constructed from 8mm plywood, simple fluorescent tube and its name is Lightbox.

Professional USB sticks – Russia

Viola Mezo — Tue, 01 May 2012 13:09:12 +0000

Russian designer, Alexey Chugunnikov has created a series of “Professional” USB sticks, made out of leather. The funny, little figures are all representing different jobs: doctor, soldier, teacher etc. Alexey won the Red Dot design award with his ‘little helper’ in 2009.

Web: http://chugi.ru/

QUBUS IN BRNO – Czech Republic

Olga — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 10:24:12 +0000

Leporelo+ and a studio Qubus Design Studio is going to open an exhibition called QUBUS IN BRNO which is going to take place in an interior of Leporelo+ designshop untill June of 2012. The exhibition opening has been set on the day of first anniversary of the whole concepet (made of café, restaurant and a designstore) in Brno House of Arts April 27.

Qubus Design Studio was based in 2002 by designers Jakub Berdych and Maxim Velčovský following the idea of untypical place that offers Czech and conceptual design to customers and produces designs under its label. Qubus Design Studio has produced amounts of collections and products with its typical signature. The label has been creating also interior, architecture and graphic designs too. In cooperation with gallery of contemporery art DOX Qubus Design Studio established and opened its gallery store with complete choice of Czech design reprezentation in 2008.

Leporelo+ has been oney year old private concept opened in The Brno House of Arts at the end of 2010 by an investor Petr Klimus. It´s been running on two floors of the building. Café and design+bookshop in a gallery and fresh restaurant with a garden sitting in the basement. The Design+Bookshop sells the reprezentative and the most popular sample of Czech and foreign design product and Café has been an organizer of amounts of design and cultural events, meetings and exhibitions there.

The exhibition program

27. 4. 2012 18 h opening + birthday

28. 4. 2012 – 3. 6. 2012

Tue – Sun / 10 – 18

Free entrance

LEPORELO+ Designshop / Café / Restaurant

The Brno House of Arts / Malinovského nám. 2, Brno / GPS 49°11’46.541″N, 16°36’52.933″E

Pleksimanija – Slovene jewelry story

Spela Leskovic — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 17:02:18 +0000

I like jewelry with a story behind. By wearing it, feels like being a part of that story. Today I wear silver carnation earrings from Pleksimanija, a Slovenian brand established by three young designers: Anja Šerc, Vanja Mihelič and Mito Mihelič. The design philosophy of Pleksimanija is to develop a clean line of jewelry that transcends its ordinary perception as a strictly decorative element and places it in a wider cultural narrative. The question of beauty is therefore set as an emotional quest for roots in the legacy of the Slovene folklore motif that seeks to revitalize the uniqueness of simple and traditional visual ethnographic patterns in the age of mass production. Therefore they deliberately use production associated with mass consumption, i.e. generic materials and modern laser-cut technology. This gives products a unique visual identity.

Pleksimanija offers two collections, Ethno and Urban. The Ethno collection is designed as a paraphrase of Slovenian traditional floral ornaments such as the carnation, rose and other floral ornaments. The Urban collection, on the other hand, plays with the traditional motives of cross and honeycombs that are by default more geometrical and abstract.

Way station at Milan – Slovenia

Spela Leskovic — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 07:33:45 +0000

It was late autumn when I saw the way station at the event in Ljubljana. It was the right time to start thinking about birds and how to help them trough winter. But designing a birdhouse that birds would accept is not easy. I learned this when I spend 60 euro for a design birdhouse made out of glass and discovered that birds were bumping into a glass surface from the outside, not knowing that the seeds they saw were actually stored inside of a glass bowl…

Anka Štular from Slovenia was thinking about birds a lot when designing her bird house. She researched their needs together with biologist and technologist. The openings are big enough for animals to have overview on the surrounding, so that they feel secure but small enough to keep bigger, more violent birds outside. The birdhouse is perforated at a bottom so the interior stays dry.

Way station is a modern birdhouse for the nomads of the vast sky. Providing what they need for the independent lifestyle they lead; protection from the rain and snow and a terrace for the sunny days. Winter is over and way station has successfully survived immediate burst of hungry visitors at Milan Furniture Fair this year.

Lets go out to the garden – Slovenia

Spela Leskovic — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 08:00:31 +0000

Spring is here and I like to do most things open air. With my laptop on my knees, a cup of coffee beside and a good book in case I ran out of battery, my day is just fine. But someday, when I will have a garden, I could invite friends over and say “lets go out to the garden!”

I’m sure Tina Rugelj, a young Slovene architect, had her garden in mind when designed this minimalistic collection of garden table with benches, garden sink, a doghouse and a modular wall made of cement-fibers. They would look perfect next to unorganized greenery, blossoming flowers and a vegetable garden.

The collection shows aesthetic qualities of fiber cement. It also serves to show another point of view to a concrete. It transforms a cold material into elegant shapes, thin objects into strong structures and gives a poetic dimension to a traditionally rough material.

If you are in Milan this year, you will find Tina’s concrete collection on her first solo exhibition on Salone Satelite from 17-22 April in Pavilion 22/24 on stand A21.

Cvetnoetno – Slovenia

Spela Leskovic — Sun, 15 Apr 2012 08:26:44 +0000

“Cvetnoetno” furniture was designed by Slovene architect Špela Leskovic and fashion designer Almira Sadar in cooperation with furniture company Mizarstvo Černe.

Ethno furniture connects contemporary design with Slovene cultural heritage and traditional knowledge of working with wood and textile. The design of the furniture derives from the tradition of rustic furniture, the logic of joining its individual parts into a whole. Its usability, decorations and use of natural material. The textile part shows the rich tradition of Slovene flowers patterns, which are interpreted in technology of crochet. Shapes that through history have been a traditional part of designing furniture are interpreted in a contemporary manner with an intention for everyday use.

Dissident wallet – Russia

Balázs Pajter — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 15:07:42 +0000

The Russian brand, Dissident showed us how a wallet can be made in the most minimalistic way. It was made of a single piece of 2.5 mm thick leather and there are no stitches or accessories that could complicate this simple conception. After folding, the wallet is ready to put the money and the credit cards into it, furthermore it is elegant and tiny, so it can be easily used every day, whatever you buy.
Website: http://www.thedissident.ru/

Transportation plates – Poland

Tomáš Kubata — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 07:20:59 +0000

Polish designer Boguslaw Sliwinski came up with a brilliant idea to ease feeding young children. His new collection of funny plates is very inovative attitude in a way of getting their attention while eating. However designers main idea has been to encourage kids to eat unpopular food as carrots or peas, with the Transportation plates, even an adult can bring back early memories from childhood and become a truck driver transporting carrot or salad. Sliwinski´s interactive plates are made from highest quality ceramics and method of application drawings, which guaranteed long life usage. Offered in two sizes and possible to buy on his website.