KARIMOKU NEW STANDARD AT SALONE DEL MOBILE 2018

Collaborating with some of the most promising international design talents, Karimoku New Standard constantly expands its exceptional collection of wooden furniture. The Japanese contemporary furniture stands for innovative, joyful and functional furniture and objects that suit the ways of urban living in the 21st century. At Salone del Mobile 2018 all the new products are built of solid, sustainably sourced Japanese oak wood, with the deep understanding of carpentry craftsmanship of Karimoku, making them lifelong companions. In addition, a series of developments in existing collections and a new striking colour round off the comprehensive presentation.

With an exhibition design by Karimoku New Standard’s creative director David Glaettli, the presentation showcases in four interconnected rooms the contemporary collection of wooden furniture, emphasising the versatile and innovative, joyful and functional character of the products, made for natural life.

Panorama is a plain, universal chair, in the new colour Night Blue, made of sustainably sourced Japanese oak wood, that complements Karimoku New Standard’s iconic range of high-end wood crafted furniture. Designed by Geckeler Michels it offers high versatility with a focus on professional applications from meeting rooms, lecture halls to restaurants. The generously dimensioned and elaborately bent plywood seat and backrest have a striking, unique linear look, that evokes sheets of paper. The chair family features versions with compact yet comfortable armrests and with runners that allow a forward tilting sitting position for active working environments.

BIG-GAME sign PROP, a line of shelving and storage units consisting of low boards/ TV boards and sideboards in different sizes. The design is built on the bold, L-shaped side modules that give the shelf great stability while reducing its component parts and creating its characteristic appearance. The well-conceived proportions and details, with easy to use, removable sliding doors, make PROP well suited for storage and display in living rooms, hallways and offices. PROP is crafted from sustainably sourced Japanese oak wood and looks as beautiful from the back as it does from the front.

The Castor barstool with backrest is an addition to the Castor barstool introduced in 2017 and completes the successful Castor series designed by BIG-GAME. It adopts the same characteristic design language based on functionality and timeless simplicity. Its footrest is reinforced with a recessed stainless steel fitting for additional stability. The barstools come in two heights to suit different surroundings from the kitchen counter at home to counters in cafes, bars or lobbies.

The Elephant Sofa is a strikingly simple and elegant, versatile upholstery range, designed to function in private – as well as public places. Its calm and soft forms suggest timeless comfort and an unobtrusive cosiness. The curved armrests invite to relax and allow different sitting postures. Its elaborate details like the feet carved from solid chestnut wood, make the sofa a unique piece of furniture. The upholstery is firm but comfortable, containing a durable pocket spring core upholstered with a high-performance Maharam fabric made from recycled synthetic materials, with an appealing, woolly texture. The new 1-seater lobby chair and the Island module complete the series, consisting of a 3-seater, 2-seater, Ottoman and Chaiselongue.

While in the digital age we own fewer books, magazines, CD’s and records, the Archive shelf is conceived as a platform for the personal items we collect, keep safe and hold dear over the years. The shelves store and display everything we like to use, see or be reminded of every day. It comes in two sizes and together with a set of specially made book-stands. Making use of Karimoku’s expertise in wood craftsmanship, the shelves are assembled from slender beams and boards made of solid Japanese oak wood. The beautifully crafted details, elegant joints and slightly curved fronts make the ARCHIVE shelf a centrepiece in every room.

The bar table is an addition to the Scout table series and adopts the same characteristic details with its simple and elegant appearance. With its central leg with four integrated hooks for hanging bags underneath the table top, it is suitable for cafes, restaurants, hotels and public spaces. The table is made of Japanese oak wood and the table top is attached to the leg with a sturdy steel fixture.

GECKELER MICHELS

Geckeler Michels explores product functionality around human habits, with a forecasting eye on ever-evolving usages and market demands. The duo articulates innovative positions, deliberately embracing the history of design, contemporary technologies and digital design methods. Geckeler Michels’ functionalist approach is typically complemented by an intriguing detail or logic, lending the product a thrilling and thus long-standing narrative. David Geckeler and Frank Michels established their Berlin-based design studio in 2013. Areas of work include furniture, lighting, products and spaces.

www.geckelermichels.com

BIG GAME

BIG-GAME is a design studio founded in 2004 by Grégoire Jeanmonod (Swiss, 1978), Elric Petit (Belgian,1978) and Augustin Scott de Martinville (French, 1980). Based in Lausanne, Switzerland. BIG-GAME designs objects for companies such as Moustache, Galerie Kreo, Praxis or Materia. The three designers draw on a vast repertory of ideas and put them nonchalantly into unexpected contexts, following the credo “Confrontation is giving birth to progress”. Their creations are part of the collections of the Zürich Museum of Design, the Musée du Grand-Hornu, the Centre Georges Pompidou as well as the French National Fund of Contemporary Art. Their works have been shown in various exhibitions and been published in major magazines. The book ‘BIG-GAME Design Overview’ was published in 2008 on the occasion of their first monographic exhibition in a museum. Along with their design practice, the three founders of BIG-GAME are also professors at the ECAL/University of Arts and Design in Lausanne and won the Swiss Federal Design Award in 2006 and 2010.

www.big-game.ch

CHRISTIAN HAAS

German-born Industrial Designer Christian Haas began working in Munich before opening his Paris Studio in 2007, a move that extended his portfolio through multiple disciplines from lighting to furniture and interior design with an emphasis on porcelain and glassware. For his clients, he creates products that distinguish themselves through a harmonious balance between functionality and sophisticated expression. Since 2014, Studio Christian Haas is based in Porto, Portugal. Haas works with galleries such as Galerie Bensimon and renown companies such as Christofle, Rosenthal, Villeroy & Boch and Theresienthal.