In 1930, Thonet started producing tubular steel furniture by the architects Marcel Breuer, Le Corbusier, Hans Luckhardt, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Mart Stam, as well as many in-house designs.  Many of these design classics are still produced by Thonet today.

www.thonet.eu

Exploring the  world’s most famous modern art and design school, Bauhaus: Art as Life at the Barbican is the biggest Bauhaus exhibition in the UK for over 40 years.  A driving force in modernism, the Bauhaus sought to change society in the aftermath of World War I and find a new way of living. The exhibition presents the pioneering and diverse artistic production that makes up the school’s turbulent fourteen year history from 1919 to 1933. It delves into the subjects at the heart of the Bauhaus – art, design, people, society and culture.

Bringing together more than 400 works, the show features a rich array of painting, sculpture, ceramics, textiles, photography, furniture, graphics, product design, theatre, architecture and film. Some of our favourite objects included a ceramic coffee ‘machine’, puppets made by Paul Klee for his son Felix, glorious textiles by Gunta Stölzl, paintings and prints by Wassily Kandinsky, and furniture by Josef Albers and Marcel Breuer.

Award-winning architects Carmody Groarke, with graphic designers APFEL, have designed the exhibition using the Bauhaus’ own principles of colour, structure and typography.  Loosely chronological and arranged thematically, the exhibition celebrates the life and spirit of the Bauhaus – one that is characterised by experimentation, collaboration and play.  Go see!

Barbican Art Gallery, 3 May – 12 August 2012

www.barbican.org.uk

www.fadwebsite.com

Continuing our trip around Milan. We saw the Carwan Gallery exhibiting some new work from Middle East designers including Karen Chekerdjian, Studio mischer’traxler, Oeuffice, Philippe Malouin

Designer Lorenzo Damiani created a multi-material installation in Refin’s Milan showroom to showcase their Cromie collection. Fabric, laminates, metal and glass were laid side-by-side with tiles from the Cromie collection, showcasing the potential of this chromatic range to match with almost any design or architectural scheme.

The 30 brand new shades in the Cromie collection have been developed by Refin in conjunction with the University Politecnico di Milan and NCS – Natural Colour System; this is the first time a tile manufacturer has created a chromatic collection.

www.refin.it

Friendly furniture that uses colour, shape and texture that goes beyond traditional desking and swivel chairs.  Moooi, Magis, Hay and Bensen are some of the brands that make the Campus a unique office dwelling.

www.viaduct.co.uk

Jean-Philippe Delhomme is an artist, writer, cultural blogger and illustrator whose works have earned him worldwide acclaim. Our client, the luxury bathroom brand Burgbad, recently commissioned him to reinvent their creative campaigns.  Jean-Philippe helped launched the new look at Euro Bagno during Milan Design Week.

During his 20 years plus career as an illustrator he has worked on some award winning campaigns for Barneys, New York; Le Bon Marché, Paris and The Mark Hotel in New York amongst many others.  He has also directed several animated films including those for Sotheby’s, Saab and Visa.

www.burgbad.com

www.unknownhipster.com

Our annual office trip to Milan for the furniture fair and its sibling rivals was the usual feast of fun: clever, colourful and creative.  Our clients demonstrated the art of design in unusual and unexpected ways and the week whizzed by in a haze of divine inspiration.

Show 4  Food For Thought
23 March – 13 April 2012

Tania Johnson’s latest collection, Light, fuses texture and colour to create rugs with an almost magical sense of light, shadow and luminescence.  The constant interplay of light is captured in these rug designs where a palette of colours like indigo and charcoal contrast and diffuse with orange and lemon; whilst the silk, wool and pashmina combine to create texture and depth.
All Tania’s designs are based on her own photography, so whether it is capturing drops of light on a wall or the shifting patterns of the sun, she manages to capture a unique way of seeing light and transforming it into a textured surface.

Tania Johnson rugs are available in a variety of sizes in addition to her bespoke service.  The rug collections can be used in many different applications -  from residential to commercial, on walls or on floors.

Tania Johnson rugs are now available from Knots Rugs; for more designs, log onto www.taniajohnsondesign.com