John Neeman Tools | The Birth Of A Tool. Pt 1. Axe Making

"It is a tragedy of the first magnitude that millions of people have ceased to use their hands as hands. Nature has bestowed upon us this great gift which is our hands. If the craze for machinery methods continues, it is highly likely that a time will come when we shall be so incapacitated and weak that we shall begin to curse ourselves for having forgotten the use of the living machines given to us by God."

Mahathma Ghandi

Great Watch!

SM|ART Feature: v22000 Aluminum Bumper Case by S.K.Joo

Today we present to you the beautifully crafted Aluminum v22000 Metal Bumper Case. Korean born designer S.K.Joo designs bicycle frames as well as wheels, which gives an insight as to the type of background a designer who would develop such a case could have. less than 500 cases have been, by Joo with a colleague of his.

The process begins by preparing a aluminum sheet which has 2.5 mm or 0.098 inch thickness, followed by cutting the sheet to the same size as the case. Once prepared the aluminium sheet will undergo a makeover via a CNC machine. After sanding the surface, coloring the case Joo then laser marks the case.

The case comes in Silver, as seen in our pictures, as well as Black and Red which has reasently been added to the shortlist.

Black ”http://www.ebay.com/itm/300942105839”

Silver ”http://www.ebay.com/itm/290955771180”

Red ”http://www.ebay.com/itm/300972689570”

"The main purpose of this iPhone case is to make a friend all over the world." - S.K.Joo

Haze Chair By Wonmin Park Studio

Formed by basic geometric shapes the Haze Chair, as well as series, is created through a unique casting process. 

"With its combination of form, colour, opaqueness and texture the Haze series is a balance of rationality and the self in a life where the former often dominates to the detriment of the latter. Wonmin Park’s Haze series perfectly positions itself between the substantiality and insubstantiality of life."

text|wonmin

Skyroom Flat by Naruse Inokuma Architects

Renovated by the Naruse Inokuma Architects, this japanease flat is located inside an old, 80m2 flat. 

"Here, creating an expanse of space within a small, limited area was our biggest theme."

"We kept all the partitions at a height below the beams to create connected spaces while maintaining a sense of privacy." 

"The ceiling, crisscrossed with beams, was painted in five kinds of pale colours."

SM|ART Feature: 'Prehistoric' by Rick Owens at Carpenters Workshop Gallery

This week we had the pleasure of viewing some of Rick Owens exciting furniture at the Carpenters Workshop Gallery, who will be hosing Rick Owens exhibition till the 29th of November 2013.

The furniture, which he views as his haute couture, has a very minimal as well as industrial visual language, further projected by the contrasting palette of black and white that confirms the designer’s taste for the monochrome Looking at his body of work there is a clear consistency which feels like it can be related to his fashion. There is no compromise within his work which is clearly evident from how much a lot of his pieces weigh. We wont give too much away but the exhibition shows around 4 pieces which demonstrate his vision very well. From 500,000 year old fossilised wood to almost bleached furniture made from the ivory of a cow’s bone, the selection of rare materials is simply amazing. we look forward to seeing more of his work around the UK. 

Here are some if the images we took from the gallery located at:

ALBEMARLE STREET 

W1S 4HE 

LONDON

OPEN MONDAY TO FRIDAY 10AM / 6PM 

Images shot by Tawandda

Claudio Silvestrin | S Apartment

The Italian Architect and Designer Claudio Silvestrin recently invited the NOWNESS, the cultural platform, as well filmmaker Matthew Donaldson to conduct a feature for their Residence series.

His 180m2 London apartment, finished in 2009, very much shows of many of his minimal signatures. The home, which has a view on to a wharf on the Regent’s Canal, "consists of an open-plan living area and kitchen on the main level, with a study and private bedrooms on the mezzanine level.

The 5m-high open space, constantly bathed in natural light, is manifested through a complete stretch, longitudinally and vertically, of its architectural elements: wall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling windows, a white finish solid parapet at mezzanine level that expands from one side of the apartment to the other, and a free-standing white-finish dwarf wall which, while enhancing one’s visual perspective, also creates a seamless bond between the activities of dining, cooking, reading and studying."

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JJJJound Ebbets cap

Based out of Montreal, and known for founding the popular "wordless blog" JJJJound.com, as well as being part of the DJ collective of the moment "BEEN TRILL", Justin R. Saunders recently released his new twill cap with felt "JJJJ" appliqué on front. The 100% cotton cap is Manufactured in U.S.A by "Ebbets Field Flannels", and sold on J Shoppe, the retail front for JJJJound.com for $65.00 CAD in both Black and Natural.

The very tasteful shot where captured by Brian W. Ferry.

Björn Meier and Till Grosch for Ophelis | Docks Furniture System

Manufacturer Ophelis assigned designers Björn Meier and Till Grosch the brief of creating an office furniture system, which was then named Docks. 

From the designers

"In our view, the office is not only workplace but also habitat. Docks is one common furniture. The tendency for open, decentralized office models is a paradigm shift that is emerging on many levels throughout the working world. We view our design as bridging the tension between the demand for a permanent exchange of information and ubiquitous communications on the one hand, and the need for privacy and space for relaxation and concentration on the other.

By using the bench as a base construction we added lightness to the furniture system. The attached modules seem to be floating. It was important to us to develop interfaces that allow integration of various products. For example, lamps and side tables can be docked by slotted panels. By simple indention, they become an integral part of the furniture Islands.

When we were asked by ophelis to develop a piece of furniture that should populate the area between the workstations, the concept of ”Islands in the office” quickly emerged. It is important not to view the docks as separating islets. Instead, we have designed a system that makes it possible to connect people and areas, and to make use of these connections in a variety of ways. Docks are islands in the office and also the connecting web between these islands.

The challenge in the development of docks was to design a piece of furniture that can create blurry zones, while still pursuing a clear design language. With an almost unlimited number of possible combinations, we were focused on designing the individual parts so that each configuration is perceived as self-contained furniture. We see Docks as a flexible ingredient in the constantly changing world of work. Due to its modular nature it is designed to continuously keep evolving in line with the needs of a transforming work culture"

text|design.fr