design42day

Heath Ceramics Spring/Summer collection

2013-06-13T17:14:44Z

Heath Ceramics is a manufacturer firm of pottery founded by Edith Heath in San Francisco, California, in 1948. Beauty, without forgetting sustainability, by producing pieces which need a single kiln filing, at a lower than normal temperature. This means less energy for a long-lasting and non-porous product.

Sixty years have passed since its foundation but Heath Ceramics is still considered as one of the most enduring examples of mid-century design, with its masterpieces living in the permanent collections of temples of design such as the MOMA and LACMA.

Among its creative tableware and tile, a remarkable example is the new seasonal collection for spring and summer.

Try to think of being on a beach during a wonderful clear and sunny day. Now look at the horizon. Is it a bright saturated blue, right? Well, take that color and share it with the world in the form of hand craftsmanship. Simple design, but great quality with real history behind it.

Ceramic, wood, cotton and also leather are skillfully mixed in a perfect collection of elegant, clean and bright freshness. These pieces are available from April to October 2013 in limited edition. Don’t waste more time, summer in your house couldn’t be cooler!

King Edison pendant lamp by Young & Battaglia

2013-06-12T09:45:29Z

What an extraordinary flower-lamp, it can deceive even a bee! A tiny baroque chandelier suspended inside a glass giant lightbulb and hung on braided silken cable. The King Edison pendant lamp designed by Young & Battaglia combines the laconic simplicity of a Thomas Edison & Alexander Lodygin light bulb with baroque glamour of a Kings chandelier. It consists of a miniature brass chandelier inside a hand blown clear glass shade and satin chrome fittings. The King Edison lamp’s size of 15 cm diameter x 21 cm H guarantees a perfect view in the library.

British designer Brendan Young and Italian designer Vanessa Battaglia first appeared on the international design scene with their up-cycled furniture collection at Salone Satellite in Milan in 2003. Working initially under the name Studiomold, their early pieces included their 'Love 36' chair using reject Dunlop tennis balls, and the award winning 'Recycled Sound' speakers made from old vinyl records.

In 2011 they founded their own design brand Mineheart, which produces a range of interior accessories that includes wallpaper, rugs, art, lighting, and furniture,
all made in England. Anglo-Italian design duo Young & Battaglia presented King Edison pendant lamp for their design brand Mineheart at ICCF 2013 in New York last month.
Article provided by Russian Design Hub

Prishtina Central Mosque by Tarh O Amayesh

2013-06-10T09:26:06Z

A beautiful and symbolic structure dominates one of the main urban centers of Prishtina, Kosovo. With its impressive 103 meter high minarets and rotating dome, the Iranian office of consultant architects and town planners TARH O AMAYESH has projected a masterpiece Mosque. The design and conceptualization behind the edifice is particularly appropriate for a house of religion and faith: massive in size and composed of circular, ascending blocks of stone, there is a strongly figurative image of the mosque stretching out towards the skies exactly as the body reaches the soul in prayer. As a matter of fact, the project is intended as an emblem for movement and dynamics towards improvement, closely connected to the Muslim vision of the mosque as a space for becoming and spiritual rebirth.

The architects skillfully created an extensive stone surface on which the 99 names of Allah based on the Quran were beautifully carved in more than forty languages, while the minarets rising on its right side hold religious epigraphs in a continuum of the Muslim message towards the Kiblah. The mosque stands prevailing in a vast open space, untouched by the near buildings and enabling massive flows of people to access it and enjoy the prayer halls, restaurant, class rooms, library and multiple areas for social gathering. The design solution for the Prishtina mosque is clearly an effort to create a bridge between the East and West. Although a religious site for the Muslim faith, and therefore officially belonging to an Eastern culture, the city itself is strongly influenced by Western ways of life. The structure therefore also justly represents the social and historical compromise this geographic region has reached, in a progressive consolidation process of Kosovo's position in the Islamic world.

Snöbär Velvet Chair by Yonder Magnetik

2013-06-04T08:35:00Z

How about sitting on the clouds? The designer duo of the Serbian studio called Yonder Magnetik, composed by architect, Natasa Vukosavljevic, and self-taught creative, Nebojsa Gornjak, made a unique chair named SNÖBÄR (a Swedish word for snowberry).

This attractive piece of furniture, that resembles the juicy white berries, is composed of the oak wood, which was used for the four triangular feet, while the seat and low back are covered with the soft velvet upholstery. Thanks to the many contrasts that are an integral part of this composition, this relaxing piece is very versatile and can complement different environments – from the bedroom to the garden.

Yonder Magnetik was founded in the winter of 2009. The studio tends to mix the simplicity and functionality. The designers' concepts have been featured on several design exhibitions and furniture fairs. This particular chair was exhibited on ''Dan D'' Zagreb 2010 (Exhibition of 100 designers up to 35) and Belgrade Furniture Fair in 2012.

Archibald King Armchair by Jean-Marie Massaud

2013-06-04T07:10:23Z

The Archibald King Armchair from Italian furniture maker Poltrana Frau looks as elegant and regal as its name sounds. The chair is a remake of the 2009 Archibald Armchair, an iconic piece designed by the French architect Jean-Marie Massaud. A stately piece, the Archibald King Armchair looks like a cross between a luxurious seat in Marie Antoinette’s salon and a metal-framed Bauhaus chair. The Archibald King Armchair and its matching footrest come upholstered in exclusive Pelle Frau leather on the outside, and molded polyurethane foam padding on the inside—perfect for a soft yet supportive rest in a luxurious and modern living room.

The Italian furniture company Poltrana Frau, founded in Turin in 1912, specializes in high-quality seating in the tradition of fine Italian craftsmanship. With products exclusively made in Italy, Poltrana Frau sells furniture internationally. The company’s pieces are found in both domestic and office settings.

French architect, designer, and inventor Jean-Marie Massaud was born in 1966 and graduated from the École nationale supérieure de création industrielle (ENSCI) in 1990. Massaud founded Studio Massaud in 2000, and has aimed to create designs that question “the existing, in order to achieve progress and eventually propose answers to contemporary problems,” ever since. The architect’s designs focus on integrating design and environment in a holistic way that advances current styles. “A man of change,” Massaud has been named Designer of the Year many times, and has worked with Cacharel, Lancôme and Renault, among other companies.

Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG 6×6

2013-05-25T14:38:19Z

Mercedes-Benz, in collaboration with the AGM factory, announced the coming of an out-and-out new ''war car'': their new off-road vehicle, better known as the ''G63 AMG 6X6''.

The new road monster, elaborated from the basic frame of the indestructible Geländewagen, is endowed with almost disconcerting technical properties . An AMG Power V8 biturbo of 544 horsepower motor , 6x6 drive, seven speed gearbox, three sets of portal axles, five differential locks and huge 37 inch tires.

An unstoppable car, for which the desert downs becomes comfortable as normal paves and able to ford one meter.As its technical capacity, even its dimensions are megalithic: almost 6 meters of length, more of 2 meters for height and width, with a total weight of about 4 tonnes and a capability of loading up even 650 kgs. In spite of its impressive bulk, the G63 is able to reach 0-100 km/h in less than 6 seconds, but the full speed is of 160 km/h, electronically self-adjusting.
Nowadays it has been presented as a showcar, but a limited edition production of about 20/30 pieces a year is foreseen by the car company.

Though this one-of-a-kind car is a perfect example of technical know-how, even from a stylistic point of view its ''performances'' don't leave much to be desired.

Indeed behind its outside firmness there isn't a Spartan cabin, not nearly: its interiors are marked by the known Mercedes' attention to luxury. Endowed with sumptuous Design leather padding and high-quality materials, and full-optionals, are all hand-assembled with extreme care. Even the cargo bed of this exclusive pick-up has been bamboo coated and endowed with a steel roll-bar.

Windworks Furniture by Merel Karhof

2013-05-24T07:32:46Z

The design studio of Merel Karhof, colour mill ‘De Kat’ and sawmill ‘Het Jonge Schaap’ proudly present Windworks, an event that will take place at colour mill ‘De Kat’, at the Zaanse Schans in the Netherlands from the 12th – 19th of May 2013.

Windworks is a collection of upholstered furniture pieces, of which the wood, upholstery, dyeing and knitting of the yarn are all made with a free and inexhaustible energy source; the wind.

In 2010 Karhof made a ‘Wind Knitting Factory’, which is a wind-powered knitting machine. The blades embrace more than a meter in diameter, and the wind caught by them powers the ‘mill’. In this way it is possible to knit a long scarf. When it is windy the machine knits fast and with less wind, the machine knits slowly. Occasionally the knitwear gets ‘harvested’ and transformed into, amongst other things, scarves. Every scarf gets a label that tells the time and date on which the wind knitted the scarf. This mobile wind factory illustrates a production process and it visualizes what you can produce with the present urban wind.

Ever since she made her first knitting factory Karhof had the wish to use the harvest of her factory to upholster chairs and stools. And what better place to do this than in the world famous windmill area, the Zaanse Schans in The Netherlands. To create a collection of furniture, ‘Wind Knitting factory’ designer Merel Karhof initiated a collaboration between three millers: a saw miller, a colour miller and a knitting miller (Karhof herself). The Zaanse Schans is an area located on the river ‘Zaan’ in the province of Noord Holland and is home to a collection of well-preserved historic windmills. Each one of these produces a different kind of raw material. There is a colour mill called ‘De Kat’ (the Cat), which has been fitted out to grind colouring materials, as well as a sawmill called ‘Het Jonge Schaap’ (the Young Sheep), that saws planks from trees to old Dutch measurements.

For the occasion of this collaboration, Karhof designed a series of furniture pieces. The wood will be sawn by the wind and assembled at the sawmill; from there it will be transported by water to the pigment mill. Here yarn will be dyed with natural dyes, grounded by the colour mill. After the dyeing process, the ‘Wind Knitting Factory’ knits the yarns, and with each harvest, the wood structures will be upholstered.

Finally, the upholstery will be constructed from little pillows, each representing the amount of time needed by the wind to make it. The result will thus give an insight into how much time is needed to produce the upholstery.

For this special event, Karhof built a new ‘Wind Knitting Factory’ that incorporates a new feature; a pennon, that gives the machine the facility to turn away from the wind when the speed gets too high, therefore allowing it to operate independently.

The machine and the furniture will be on show at colour mill ‘De Kat’ for one week during National Windmill Day in the Netherlands. A small wooden house will be constructed to display the furniture and other wind-made products.

Windworks shows a production triptych between three windmills and it makes visible what can be produced with wind power. It shows how windmills working together can become a complete and holistic industry.

Ugol by Yaroslav Misonzhnikov

2013-05-24T07:10:45Z

Saint Petersburg designer Yaroslav Misonzhnikov has designed a table lamp named Ugol.

Plain form and performance is combined with unique mode of setting it up on a table, by the way already received a patent. All you need is a table angle and board of a standard thickness. A normal working table is usually from 1 to 2,5 cm thick. The lamp is putting on the angle and rests inclined by it’s weight, then the angle between lamp and the table depends on the thickness of the table itself. Ugol means “corner” In Russian language. The object is projected for recently founded by the designer himself Saint-Petersburg producer Imenno-design. The lamp will be realized in a limited edition and released in Saint-Petersburg and Moscow boutiques and also on-line in Imenno-design brand shop in the web.

Indy Roadster Concept by Zolland Design and Loors of Sweden

2013-05-24T06:24:13Z

This Indy Roadster body is designed by Zolland Design and Loors of Sweden. It is made from a Caterham or Westfield chassis but with a nice looking body. It could easily be manufactured as a kit for Sevens out there.

Butterfly Table by Angelo Tomaiuolo for Tonin Casa

2013-05-24T06:17:55Z

The table top is available in marble, wood or glass, supported by a base made in thermal curved plywood and veneered in black walnut, dark oak or lacquered white.

The audacious design of the base blends with the classicality of marble and glass, to uncover a table with timeless design.

The Butterfly House by Lippmann Partnership

2013-05-24T06:07:06Z

Lippmann Partnership was invited to submit a design to a property developer for his own house in Sydney’s eastern suburbs. The corner site faces due north and offers panoramic views over the city and harbour to the west. The client insisted that the house should have no straight lines due to his belief in Feng Shui principals – the Chinese study of space, the relationship of buildings to nature.

The stunning result is a sculptural curvaceous form of glass, aluminium, concrete and steel which has become a local Sydney landmark.

The 480 sq. metre house is organised over 6 split levels corresponding to a gentle fall across the site.

A basement garage and services level below ground level is topped by the two “butterfly wings” above.
Bedrooms are accommodated over 2 levels in the east facing wing enjoying ocean views and morning sunrise. Living areas also accommodated over 2 levels accommodate the west facing wing where sunsets over Sydney harbour and the city skyline form a stunning panorama.

The central staircase is part of the stack cooling natural ventilation system while high thermal mass allows the house to be low energy and green.

King Abdullah Financial District Metro Station by Zaha Hadid

2013-05-24T05:39:05Z

The ArRiyadh Development Authority has announced that Zaha Hadid Architects will build the new King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) Metro Station in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. With over 5 million residents, Riyadh’s population has more than doubled since 1990. To serve its fast-growing population, the city will build a new public transport system.

The 20,434 sq. m. King Abdullah Financial Disctrict Metro Station will serve as a key interchange on the network for Line 1, as well as the terminus of Line 4 (for passengers to the airport) and Line 6 of the new Riyadh Metro. The local monorail can also be accessed from the station via a skybridge. With six platforms over four public floors and two levels of underground car parking, the KAFD Metro Station will be integrated within the urban context of the financial district, responding to the functional requirements for a multimodal transport centre and the district’s future vision. The project extends beyond the simple station typology to emphasize the building’s importance as a dynamic, multi-functional public space; not only an intermediate place perceived through quick transitions, but also a dramatic public space for the city.

The design places the station at the centre of a network of pathways, skybridges and metro lines envisaged by the KAFD master plan. Connectivity diagrams and traffic across the site have been mapped and structured to clearly delineate the pedestrian routes within the building, optimize internal circulation and avoid congestion. The resulting configuration is a three-dimensional lattice defined by a sequence of opposing sine-waves (generated from the repetition and frequency variation of station’s daily traffic flows) which act as the spine for the building’s circulation. These sine-waves are extended to the station’s envelope and strictly affiliated to its internal layout, translating the architectural concept to the exterior.

King Abdullah has instructed the new Riyadh Metro be completed in four years. Prince Khaled bin Bander, the governor of Riyadh, said the project is progressing to plan and the ArRiyadh Development Authority has released details of the city’s public transport plan including the six metro lines that will serve as the backbone for public transport in the city.

The Belly Desk by Steuart Padwick

2013-05-23T18:48:26Z

The Belly Desk is an elegantly understated design. Featuring a curvaceous and full figured top with a storage underbelly, this desk maintains a deceptively slender silhouette with subtly sloping lines and smooth tapered legs. Its painted tabletop is perfectly balanced on solid oak legs, highlighting the purity of its form and providing rich contrast that warms any modern office or entryway. One deep drawer on traditional wooden runners offers ample storage space to conceal various gadgets, tools, and documents and keep its spacious surface free of clutter.

Tvortz AW 2013

2013-06-09T14:58:46Z

Although executed entirely in cold, mixed hues of blue and azure, Tvortz Autumn/Winter production for the 2013-2014 season looks incredibly warm. The show took place during the Fashion Scout Kiev event as part of the Mercedes-Benz fashion days, in which the talented designer Dasha Gluhova showcased her romantic collection. Five of the monochromatic pieces were idealized as the main components binding together her varied multitude of creations: a knit sweater with abundant applications of woolen strands on the entire front area, giving the impression of wearing a protective armor made in rich animal fur; a pair of comfortable, matching-blue cotton pants; an over-the-knee, regular-fit coat with clean lines and no visible closing points; a fancy wool playsuit decorated with voluminous sleeves and sparse silver buttons; an original hoodie-vest of tight elastic material, close to the concept of a scuba diver suit.

One of the distinctive features of the collection is the abundance of handmade elements and the way in which Dasha was able to create fresh solutions through the original combination of the most disparate textures. Cotton, leather, denim and wool were all employed, resulting in an interesting match of femininity and ergonomics. Thanks to her talented founder, after only five years of life, Tvortz is heading towards a stronger conceptual brand image, boosting its international visibility and developing new sales territories.

London Undercover Umbrella Stand by Method Studio

2013-05-23T09:35:46Z

Rainy days are not the best ones - we all know that. So this stand is perfect to start the day well and take your umbrella with you.

Handmade in the royal Scottish burgh of Linlithgow, this umbrella stand comes out by a synergy between London Undercover and Method Studio, and combines traditional woodworking techniques with artisan leatherwork and stunning elements of precision engineering.

All of these are obviously mutual features between the two ateliers and allow the creation of rich timeless and meticulous furniture.

The design itself is inspired by the very items it has been designed to hold, and why not by the sun rays.

Twelve solid oak staves, clear varnished and polished, are individually jointed around a specially designed waterproof upper ring and drip-tray base to create the typical splayed construction of umbrellas and to let air circulate and prevent rainwater from collecting in the tray.

A complex web of elastic spokes then grips the umbrellas in place, featuring pop colours like London Undercover’s signature orange and military green, an original touch that illustrates the label’s creativity and quirkiness.

Fine-tuned in size as well, the overall height is 70.5 cm whilst the overall width is 36.5 cm.

This umbrella stand is the excellent addition to London Undercover’s collection. Adding character to your entrance hall or living room, it is a superb object of design and virtuoso craftsmanship.

N by Z Belarus AW 2013

2013-05-21T14:23:43Z

The sixth edition of Belarus Fashion Week, the exhibit platform for the most talented designers in the area of Belaurs, has hosted the FW ’13 collection of one of the most promising talents form Russia, named Natalia Zlodyreva, whose brand, N by Z, has made a trio of apparently conflicting priorities the trait d’uniòn of all her collections.

The brand conception itself is a declared wish to create clothes to be worn by women with a strong propensity to feel free, unwilling to choose among comfort, beauty and elegancy: with N by Z clothes this choice is truly not necessary, since they embrace all these three features.

FW ’13 collection has been the purest confirmation of this statement: every garment is a celebration of lightness of materials, exacerbated by flight-recalling patterns, and morbidity of shapes. Soft jersey dresses are made up in no rigid frames, which adapt to any kind of silhouette, and delightful prints well respect the name of the collection, “Over The City”: actually all patterns represent sky multiples airships which are flying. This time lightness is not only “hidden” in fabrics, through a careful study of materials aimed at reaching stylish comfort, but it is massively repeated on fabrics themselves.

This formula works well for both day and night, since elegance is given to outfits thanks to wise combinations of light pastel colors: light green, soft yellow, pale blue are the main tonalities seen on this collection, which recall bon ton clothing style of early eighties, especially for the wide usage of pastel-colored transparent tights, which have almost disappeared from catwalks in the latest years, an oldie/goldie item that annihilates any daring trait of each garment and makes every outfit comfortably romantic and innocent.

N by Z FW ’13 is a modern metropolitan collection. Nevertheless, all its distinctive traits make it a definite departure from the well-known “metropolitan aggressiveness” we have become so used to.

GOPR Rescue Snowmobile

2013-05-21T13:07:53Z

Warsaw-based designers Gustaw Lange and Aleksander Lange, of design firm Lange&Lange are leading the innovation in rescue snowmobiles all over Poland. Due to the increasing demand for a machine that can blend functionality, robustness and maneuverability, the designers have created a stylish prototype for a snowmobile which goes above and beyond the basic requirements. It was initially intended for volunteer rescue teams in Cracow, but it is gradually emerging as the go-to alternative.

The snowmobile is an exquisite manifestation of the fusion between design and practicality, as it makes use of all available space in an ingenious way and ensures quality of transportation for the severely injured. However, the designers make no compromise in terms of appearance and give the traditional snowmobile a futuristic, up-dated look with smooth lines and vibrant colors.

Its only downside: the mere sight of the GOPR Rescue Snowmobile on the slopes might make some “accidentally trip” just to go for a ride!

Terho and Tatti

2013-05-21T12:39:26Z

Minimalistic and suave can best describe Maija Puoskari’s latest design project. The Finnish artist came up with a sympathetic and endearing lamp duo inspired by nature, timberland and reminiscing of acorns and mushrooms. Maija’s work is a tribute to her cultural heritage and her creations often remind us of Finland’s endless forests and their hidden treasures. Terho and Tatti make up for one funky pair, delicate and incredibly cozy.

Terho, the ceiling lamp, can be perfectly complemented by Tatti, it’s more down-to-Earth counterpart. Both of them are made out of opaque blown glass, garnished with a stylized hat coming in countless shapes. When lit, the little bubbles turn translucent and dimly shed their mild iridescence around, casting a wondrous allure over any space. The Finnish alder used for the top hats enhances the natural appearance and the lightness of the concept.

LELO Design Award 2013

2013-05-20T20:37:02Z

LELO Announces Global Search for New Forms of Pleasure, Launching the LELO Design Award 2013

Stockholm – April 25, 2013: Swedish designer brand and the world’s leading provider of intimate lifestyle products LELO today announced the launch of the LELO Design Award 2013. The new initiative is part of the brand’s “10 Years of Pleasure” anniversary celebrations and appeals to designers and artists everywhere to reveal new possibilities for pleasure across a variety of fields.

LELO is putting the challenge to a new generation of designers and innovators to discover new ways of sharing and experiencing pleasure, by stimulating more senses than those normally equated with sensuality.

As the vast majority of products available in the intimate lifestyle market rely on sight and touch to stimulate and excite, LELO is seeking fresh ideas on a multi-sensory experience – not strictly sexual – that push the boundaries of pleasure. The company invites award hopefuls to augment or improve upon designs of their own, or propose their original ideas using any variety of medium in one of two categories; FASHION & ACCESSORIES or PRODUCTS & SPACES.

The grand prize of 1,000 Euros is available for one winner in each category, with all entries being judged by LELO CEO Miroslav Slavic, LELO Art Director Sila Songkran, multimedia designer and founder of 10A Clothiers Matteo Cibic, as well as eminent design duo Lanzavecchia + Wai and award-winning erotic film director Erika Lust.

LELO has prepared a dedicated awards section on their website featuring a new promotional video intended to get designers’ creative inspiration flowing. Applicants should submit their work by August 1st, with the five best projects to be exhibited at September’s LONDON Design Week, as well as being showcased on LELO.com.

About the new initiative, LELO CEO Miroslav Slavic said, “Sleek, sophisticated design has been part of LELO’s DNA since we started our mission 10 years ago; we’re now thrilled to redefine the future of pleasure by offering an exciting outlet for designers to present their original design concepts on a global stage.”

Applicants interested in participating in the LELO Design Award 2013 are asked to visit www.lelo.com/award to pre-register.

Fur Garden Belarus AW 2013

2013-05-17T18:23:05Z

''Beauty will save the world.''. When Fyodor Dostoevsky wrote this famous sentence in his book called ''The Idiot'', little did he know that those words would echo in the minds of fashion designers almost a hundred and fifty years later. Thus, for her latest autumnal proposal, the Belorussian designer Yuliya Hilevich interpreted the impact of the Dostoevsky's heroines (Nastasya Filippovna from''The Idiot'' and Grushenka from “The Brothers Karamazov”) upon the image of a modern woman.

These femmes fatales of the 19th century or ''The Infernalers'' serve as the role models for many strong, confident and seductive women of our time, hence the aesthetics from the new FUR GARDEN collection corresponds to such profiles.

A series of romantic pastel dresses of various lengths from the beginning of the show was replaced by the frocks in bright red and yellow hues. The waist was accentuated in different ways, especially by narrowing and adding the thin black belts. The designer played with the materials and added the bow-like decorations on shoulders and hips. Many bodices had the panels made of the small loose squares in the same color, which contributed to the dramatic side of the rather smooth texture. The spontaneous folds and creases complemented the feminine silhouettes.

As the color palette became darker and we started seeing more elegant ensembles, we could notice that the designer experimented more. Some parts of the garments were adorned with the floral motives on transparent fabrics and wide seams with the laces running through them. One of the most daring combination of materials is the black dress made of silk velvet and leather, while the panne velvet, cotton velvet, cashmere, wool and sheepskin were also used in this offering.

The exquisite coats of various styles (animal print, black leather and violet fur) were some of the most statement pieces, which the designer kept for the bold finale of this young brand that was established in 2010 and has been promising us an ambitious and committed approach to design.

Maria Dubinina Belarus AW 2013

2013-05-23T14:26:19Z

Belarussian fashion designer, Maria Dubinina debuted on this year’s Belarus Fashion Week. Alongside other rising-star designers, Dubinina showcased her collection for fall, Shark.

The inspiration for the collection is the uncompromising, modern-day warrioress who, just like a shark, has to “eat” the weaker in pursuance of survival. The result is a line up of muted-colored, simple-formed plucky clothes that complement the idea of a refined predator. The designer played with tweed garments and charcoal coats to give the collection that edgy feel. Dubinina also incorporated an element of sportswear with glossy quilted jackets and vests that were very translatable to everyday street-style. The designer showed that there’s more to her protagonist than meets the eye – The elongated silhouette and powder pink and nude silky dresses expressed the protagonist’s softer, feminine side that lies beneath the bulletproof shell. With dramatic make-up, Max Mirnov’s clutch bags and large, teardrop-shaped Murano glass earrings courtesy of Laura Bareghamyan, the story for the fall was complete.

Maria Dubinina received her Fashion Design Bachelor of Arts degree in Minsk and successfully runs her own studio for design and sewing of clothes.

Sanan Gasanov Aurora Fashion Week AW 2013

2013-05-17T15:49:27Z

Sanan Gasanov’s austerity for the next cold season well reflects the mix between a certain modern St Petersburg aura and the traditional popular costume.

Almost severe, the collection presented under the spotlight of Aurora Fashion Week is the third of a designer that looks for inspiration travelling between East and West and thinking about the rigor and simplicity, at the limit with asexuality, of a Tilda Swinton kind of woman.

Not just for girls, the collection presents male outfits as well, drawing the picture of a nonchalant men with a casual and almost unenthusiastic attitude.

Accent on the fabrics used for the garments: only natural products, that have often undergone treatments: jacquard turned into silver, cotton into emerald and leather in metals, by this outstanding designer with a care for sartorial details and a fresh approach to lines.

House in Muko by Fujiwarramuro Architects

2013-05-14T10:27:07Z

The family house in Muko, Kyoto by FujiwarraMuro Architects, founded in 2002 by Shintaro Fujiwara and Yoshio Muro, is a reconciling oasis of Japanese zen with Scandinavian decor influences. A poetic treatment of light is the sweet spot of this house, glowing with all the exquisite simplicity of an haiku.

The exterior appears as a fan shaped building, following the semi-circled inflection of the road it rests on.

Huge, vertical louvres donate it a pleated appearance and allow for a natural filtering of the light, so that the movements of the sun can deeply penetrate its interiors all year round, while a variety of shadows are cast over the single-roomed space at different times of the day.

The louvered boardsalso conduct the flow of the artificial light to the outside of the building.

The golden lights of the interiors emanate a warm glow which contributes a cozy feel to the otherwise plain and simple surroundings.

On a fine day, a blue sky at dusk can make for a perfect mélange of blue and gold, water and earth, sea and sun.

When it comes to the interiors, the view can soothe a disquieted mind with a general overwhelming impression of peace and harmony. Luminous because of the tall sleek windows, but also because of the choice of materials and shades, soft colors, light wood and polished surfaces give an impression of cleanliness and purity. A smooth surface to slide on bare-footed.

An open space combining living room and dining room occupies the ground floor, and a bedroom filled up by a double bed is enclosed in its rear end. A staircase leads to the upper floor, where lies a children bedroom, on a floor which is set back from the wall so that it leans on the level below in a balcony-like manner.

Another staircase leads up to a third floor with bathroom and washroom and further proceeds upwards to a rooftop terrace, thus completing this layered, perfectly balanced architectural space.

Photos by Toshiyuki Yano

Aldo Pulella

2013-05-14T09:34:43Z

Creative in every way, Aldo Pulella has a passion for producing beautiful and useful things, ranging from photography to digital design; he basically turned his hobby into his career.

The last years he spent mostly working on projects involving digital design. Currently the 28 year old works as Art Director at OgilvyOne, a Johannesburg based company specializing in digital and interactive design.

Whenever there is spare time, Aldo experiments with multiple forms of designs to improve his skills and get inspiration for new projects, leading to a portfolio composed of diverse works and projects.

His approach and also secret to success is a very distinct and experienced approach to the creative process: “Absorb – collect – define – structure – craft – refine”. As he would say:” It's good to define your process and plotting your course through a project from start to end.” As the outcome proves, this defined approach definitely pays off. Companies like Coca Cola, BMW and Microsoft already profited from his talent to set objects perfectly into scene and create unique, memorable homepages and advertisements.

Inspired by the beautiful things in the world, he tries to absorb as much influence as possible from various forms of design such as photography, digital, sculpture, architecture and online media; but his most important source is still our very own natural surrounding. This can also be seen in his photography, mostly featuring impressive nature settings and beautiful landscapes.

His most outstanding works are a combination of his photographic work, 3D modeling and illustration techniques, influenced by motion graphics and sculptures.

Strong contrast and a great attention to details often incorporating a human portrait or an animal are probably the most distinctive features of the South African creative.

Lidia Demidova Aurora Fashion Week AW 2013

2013-05-10T18:23:37Z

The regulating line is a satisfaction of a spiritual order which leads to the pursuit of ingenious and harmonious relations’ said Le Corbusier in 1946, and more than 50 years later Lidia Demidova, a student of the St Petersburg Industrial Art Academy, couldn’t agree more. The collection presented at Aurora Fashion Week adapts Le Corbusier principles and semantics to fashion and more specifically to a collection that results harmonious and well-balanced in volumes.

The main idea behind the ensemble was to combine fabric handle and interesting shapes. A minimalist admirer, the designer’s intent is to use clear lines without needless details; a modern sobriety that finds in a dark color palette its natural expression. Lidia Demidova finds her inspiration in art: Mark Rothko and Lucio Fontana’s pictures inspired her next Winter collection, that coherently combines geometrical configuration and constructability.