Kitchen Trends - Environmental Variables Affecting Design

Hmm Ok, well it's been a while since I've posted. Anyways, trying to look at the "larger picture", the environment and trends, in this case, of the modern kitchen.

Top 10 Kitchen Trends


The A-Z of Kitchen Design Trends Kitchen Colour, Design & Style


The latest trends in kitchen units and furniture


Kitchen Trends

Points to note in terms of trends
1) Open Plan houses - incorporation of kitchen, dining, entertaining area all into one
2) Minimalism - "Minimalist, square lines, dark veneers and teppanyaki-style benches are some of the latest buzz words in kitchen design"
3) Ergonomics - Much more user centred design especially since DIY Flatpack kitchens are on the rise

Research and Rumination

Well, what happens when one falls, one gets up and tries and tries again.

Anyways, here are some interesting things I've come across while doing some research.

http://gizmodo.com/archives/kppersbusch-honeycomb-cooking-tiles-018006.php
Would you believe I was absolutely enthralled when I saw these. Yes, they're pricey per pop, but it's just so hmm, dare I say beautiful? There's something about geometric patterns that I love, patterns! Funny thing is, you can't read the product page.

http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/green-ideas/top-home-cooking-trends-for-2008-039523
There's a link for cooking trends of 2008. It seems that the trend for 2008 seems to be centred around the home and being au natural in terms of cooking whether it's the equipment or the benchtop. Seems that earthy tones the new black.

http://books.google.com.au/books?id=deRKF5kv5wwC&pg=PA445&lpg=PA445&dq=camping+cook+stone&source=web&ots=EtljKx65UL&sig=ZKr8i0BqkJT3dcicI-24e_KPrN8&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=2&ct=result#PPA449,M1
Now I know we live in Australia but just take a look at this. It's about cooking in the natural environment. Using fire, stones, wood, paper, you name it, it's probably used.

Today I was reading an old issue of Inside from last year and I came across an article where Karim Rashid puts across his view of design in the contemporary world. He put across such points as the fact that in today's world, brand loyalty no longer exsists, the fact that businesses will have to 'innovate or die', the fact that 'as children we are all creative, but in the past we have been forced to conform" which definitely struck a chord. I mean personally, after about a decade and a half of stringent and reinforced teachings which have probably been ingrained into the very fibres of my body, it's probably little wonder why I find it so hard to break free. So it's going to be tough. In any case, the last lines were very interesting.

"Today we can design our own lives. The true meaning of human existance is to create"

Let's see if I can be part of that. Let's see if I can create.

And she's over the fence!

The biggest drawback of ceramics that caused most of us to disregard ceramic's wonderful properties was the fact that it was brittle. So, why can they be used in springs?


Courtesy of www.nhkspg.co.jp/eng/corp/appl.html

Another site describing ceramic developments
http://www.dynacer.com/properties.htm

Hard thinking but no breakthrough yet ...

Ceramics

Has anyone realised that like every other material, ceramics are saturated in our environment? If it isn't the semiconductors in our appliances, it's the bricks of our houses, the plates that we eat off?

In history, it was one of the earliest ways of recording history. Every culture had their earthenware whether it was raw or glazed, clay or porcelain, embodying art or storing vegetables, ceramics are very much the foundations of culture.

But really where is that today? Lovely as ceramic sculptures are, many of them are in museums. The plates that we have, beautiful as it is, is probably the same as the neighbour's down the street. In the early 20th century in Africa, every household had a potter (a woman) who made containers for cooking and storing food. Today we're surrounded by injection moulded seats and die pressed cars [not literally, as in the body]. Where's the ceramic?

That, and is there a way to give ceramic a certain dynamicism(sp?). It seems as wear resistant, chemically inert, corrosion resistant, thermally insulated as it is, it's one major fall back, it's brittle. Most ceramic products sit. They stand around, might rotate in a socket or two, but overall they're pretty stable structures. And that's how we perceive them to be, that's how we recognise them, as static structures. Is there a technology that can give them freedom from that one achillies heel that will either make or break them?

Will keep you posted.

I really want to know about the ...

Story of a Design, Design Statement, Design Intent, Philosophy of a Design. All well and good, all bandied around.

Anyone care to elaborate on what it is and how we go about implementing one, let alone developing one?

Ipod who?

Was it Braun, or this man?



He's still not going to get enough to live off his pension.

Ceramics! Yeah I should be excited ...

Hmm, well it seems I shall be doing Ceramics for this new studio project as opposed to copper alloys. To be honest, probably a welcome change since it's probably better to have an actual group to brainstorm/bounce ideas. At that here are some pictures of a few ceramic designs I saw while rummaging through my books.

The first one are the "Stardust Vases" by Setsu & Shinobu Ito. From the original inspiration of leaves in sunlight, they've managed to create designs that interact with each other, a relationship between the positive and negative space of the designs.

The second and thrid designs are by Fernando Brizio, they are part of the "Painting with Giotto" collection. What you can see are felt tip pens bleeding their colours into the porous limestone creating a kaleidoscopic effect. For your information, there's 95 felt tips on first one.

The last design are the 'Spineless lamps" by Studio Frederik Roijé. It utilises porcelain's unique ability of memory. So the porcelain becomes deformed during manufacture and acquires its unique form.

In all of these, they're really trying to harness the material's unique ability in one way or another or create a form that uses the visual language of the material to greatest effect.

Considering the fact that Industrial Design is not just about delivering the technical package but form as well, I think now would be a good time for me to try and nut out my own process of developing form. This is going to be one tough project.

Patent Search

For anyone who's doing Patent search for Lance's Class, here is a useful site I came across while researching for copper.

http://www.copper.org/publications/newsletters/innovations/2004/02/Cu_Ptnts.html

It has a step by step example for copper patent. Hope it can be of use.

Good luck!

VIVID Furnitex Fair Exhibition

Well on the topic of exhibitions, here's one I prepared earlier haha. In the July holidays I went down to Melbourne to exhibit one of my projects in the VIVID section of the Furnitex Design Fair as it was compulsory otherwise you'd be taken off the shortlist (not that I didn't want to go, it was an awesome experience!) Wasn't expecting to win anything, and naturally didn't haha, but I suppose being a Finalist for the VIVID Green Award counts for something *shrugs* In anycase, what I believe was more worthwhile was the experience of actually exhibiting (it was for 4 days from 9 to 5, believe me when I say standing around is really really tiresome ...) and really getting a glimpse of the furniture industry. Definitely learnt a few things (always, always! make your contact details available, have a business card, or have a sheet where they can put down expressions of interest, otherwise exhibiting is pointless) and had a great time. They tell you not to take photos but Uli said we could take a few snaps (sorry for the massive noise in the pictures, was taken with my dying discontinued Canon compact).