Design*Sponge » student design

stockholm design fair: chandelier installation

Amy Azzarito — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 14:00:14 +0000

It certainly says something about Sweden’s support for student designers that first-year design students were given the latitude to festoon chandeliers from the 1860s with mops. I’ve been raving about the student designers in Stockholm at the Furniture Fair all week (Part 1 and Part 2 here!), but this was the highlight of my time in Stockholm. I saw this installation at the Berns Hotel at midnight at the end of a day that had begun at 7am — but I was immediately reinvigorated at the sight of these massive chandeliers adorned with what at first glance looked like feathers. For this project, students attending the Beckmans College of Design’s undergraduate program in form design were given a tight budget and short time frame to come up with a way to embellish these historic chandeliers. The students were so bright and enthusiastic and creative — this was seriously the best part of my trip! — Amy A.

CLICK HERE for more of the chandelier installation and for information on purchasing the mops!

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stockholm design fair: greenhouse (part 2)

Amy Azzarito — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 13:50:10 +0000

Image above: Linda Vännström

Yesterday I began my look back at the Stockholm Design Fair with a nosedive into the student/indie work in the Greenhouse section of the fair. One of my favorite sections, in this, my favorite part of the fair, was by the students from HDK — School of Design and Crafts at the University of Gothenburg. All of the students were instructed to create a design keeping with the theme “Traces of a Passionate Collector” — they were told to imagine what might happen if we changed focus from consumption to that of a passionate collector — if furniture bore the traces of our memories, stories and origins. I just found these objects to be hauntingly beautiful and certainly hope to see some of them make it into production. -Amy A

Note: Greenhouse is a great forum to show your work on an international stage. If you’re interested in applying for Greenhouse 2012, you can go here for information. The deadline is September 22, 2011.

You just had an accident and the red wine is now on your furniture. Congratulations! Your piece of furniture just became more special and now carries traces from your life. A pattern that doesn’t get ruined by a stain, it gets enriched instead. — Linda Vännström

Image above: Maria Bergström

With my project, I want to illustrate the different methods of how we measure and visualize time and the traces they leave behind. The result is a tool that makes time visible and that facilitates the overview of future assignments. You can easily see what things you postpone, but at the same time it can help to create structure. In any case, time passes, regardless of whether you choose to procrastinate or if you plan your life into the smallest of details. — Maria Bergström

CLICK HERE for more of the Passionate Collector Exhibition!

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stockholm design fair: greenhouse (part 1)

Amy Azzarito — Tue, 15 Feb 2011 15:00:17 +0000

From BabyBjörns to Acne jeans, Ikea and H&M, Sweden is pretty much the modern design Mecca (and I’m saying that without an ounce of hyperbole). So when we were invited by the Swedish Institute to check out the scene at the Stockholm Design Fair, I pretty much ran to the passport renewal office (and at the risk of offending the federal government, let me just say that the appointment they make you get is totally superfluous). The trip was quick and the fair was absolutely huge, but I took my job to report back on the design scene seriously, so each day for the rest of the week, I’ll take you on a little photo tour of my favorites from Stockholm.

Literally every single person who knew I was going to the Stockholm Furniture Fair told me to not miss Greenhouse. So, I did not miss Greenhouse. Greenhouse is the exhibition of upcoming designers and student work held at the Stockholm Furniture Fair each year. I love seeing student work, so with 21 schools represented in one space, I was in total heaven. And while there might not have been as many espresso machines as in the main hall, the room certainly projected its own caffeine high. There was so much fun student/indie work that I had to split it up into two parts — Part 2 is coming tomorrow! — Amy A.

Image above: Bedding by Malin Akerblom

Image above: Handknotted carpet by Maria Sandberg

Image above: Shoe storage by Heidi Borthne (I want this! So practical for a tiny apartment with a shoe-obsessed owner!)

CLICK HERE for more student and indie design from Stockholm Design Week.

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great student work: nook coffee table

Grace Bonney — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 14:00:45 +0000

It’s always amazing to see what student designers are up to these days. This fantastic coffee table was designed by product design student David Pickett at the The Cleveland Institute of Art. Inspired by the idea of “a bookshelf crash-landing into a coffee table and creating a ’4th leg’”, David created a table that integrates a beautiful shelving unit. I love how simple but still complex this fields. I can already think of some beautiful coffee table books that would look right at home in here. Click here to check out David’s nook table online right here. xo, grace

weekly wrap up + kirath ghundoo wallpaper

Stephanie — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 18:00:19 +0000

The week has finally come to a close, and I feel like I’m making some progress on my resolutions/life list so far. Today I’m heading out early to find a used mandolin that I can use for my new lessons! Learning to play a new instrument was one of my favorite resolutions, so I decided to jump on it right away. Hopefully I can learn to play like this . . . one day. Before I head out, I wanted to wrap things up with this beautiful wallpaper from graduate student Kirath Ghundoo. I love being able to share student work, and Kirath’s final collection (above and below) for her master’s in textiles is just fantastic.

I love the bold, varied pattern and can definitely see the color palette connection between this design and its inspiration, Paul Smith’s Spring/Summer 2011 Ready-To-Wear collection. These wallpapers aren’t available for sale yet, but they’ll be on display starting January 15th at Huddersfield University. So if you’re in the UK this month, be sure to check out these papers in person. For the rest of us across the pond, I’ll keep you up to date if the collection hits stores or an online shop. In the meantime, you can check out more of Kirath’s work right here.

I’m off to see what sort of used instruments Brooklyn has to offer, so until Monday, have a wonderful weekend! See you on Monday. Happy 2011! xo, grace

Below is a summary of this week’s highlights:

Happy New Year!: 2011: Resolutions and Life List Goals
Sights & Sounds: The Music and Artwork of Superchunk!
New City Guide: Cincinnati
Biz Ladies: How to Sell Your Products on Your Blog
Living In: An Education
Sneak Peeks: Reiko Kaneko, Sam Horine, Lara Collins
DIY Projects: Flower Frog Wall Art, Vintage Dice Cup Vase Trio
What’s in Your Toolbox: Ashley Meaders
Before & Afters: Sarah’s Side Tables + Sara’s Pendant Lamp, Amy’s Drawers + Natalie’s Mail Sorter, Cat’s Kitchen + Jodi’s Mudroom
Before & After Basics: Spray Paint
Simply Color: Bladon Connor
In the Kitchen With: Tess Darrow’s Dutch Baby Recipe
Flowers A-Z: E is for Echeveria, Eryngium and Eustoma
Small Measures with Ashley: DIY Winter Hair Care
Artwork: Happy 2011 + Pretty Prints from the UK, Tahiti Pehrson, Marco Suarez Landscape Photography
Misc.: Waterdrop Workshop, Modular Plant System, Morning Wow: Moravian Star Cut-Out, Neutra Typographic Wall Calendar, Floris Wubben Bench No. 3, Clive Coffee Drip Stand, New Year, New Calendars + Cards

2010 design*sponge scholarship!

Grace Bonney — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 18:00:39 +0000

Today I am thrilled to announce the 2010 D*S Scholarship is live! Since I started Design*Sponge back in 2004, it has always been my first priority to celebrate beautiful design from artists and designers of all ages. I’ll never forget the first Pratt student show I attended and being struck by the overwhelming amount of talent that I saw in those young designers. From that moment on I knew it would be part of my mission to support and celebrate these up-and-coming designers. Not only because they could use our help, but because they were going to become the people we were writing about and being inspired by for years to come. So today I’m thrilled to kick off our third scholarship today with $10,000 to donate to both undergraduate and graduate students. Here are the details:

We will be awarding eight prizes:

Undergraduate Student Awards: 1st Place ($2,500), 2nd Place ($1,500), 3rd Place ($750), and 4th Place ($250)

Graduate Student Awards: 1st Place ($2,500) 2nd Place ($1,500) 3rd Place ($750) 4th Place ($250)

The scholarship is open to any art & design students are are currently enrolled in a full-time undergraduate or graduate programs (Proof of enrollment is required). This year we will be opening the scholarship to international students as well! Please note: all payments will be made in US dollars.

A big thank you to our sponsors this year: Glos and Room & Board. Glos has kindly provided our first place prizes for both undergraduate and graduate students and Room & Board has kindly provided our second place prizes for both undergraduate and graduate students. All remaining prizes will be supplied by Design*Sponge.

In addition, Glos will be giving all finalists (undergraduate and graduate) the opportunity to develop a collection of creative surface coverings to be sold through Julia Rothman has designed a flyer for the 2010 Scholarship that you can print out right here and post on your class room walls or places where students gather in your area. Thanks so much to Julia for helping us out with this year’s flyer and artwork and thank you to everyone for helping us spread the work! xo, grace

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL DETAILS AND ENTER. Applications are due Wednesday, December 8th by 11:59 PM EST.