A Few Good Things: New Designs From Norway
An exhibition celebrating the best in new Norwegian design For the sixth edition of WantedDesign – the three-day showcase of home-grown and international design talent held on 13–16 May 2016 – 10 of the most gifted Norwegian design studios are landing in Manhattan to present a selection of products and prototypes to the US audience. In a world full of ‘stuff’, where rampant acquisition has filled our homes with unnecessary objects and quality is often overlooked in favour of quantity, A Few Good Things: New Norwegian Designs has been created to make the case for restraint, arguing that what we need isn’t more stuff, but fewer, better-made objects.
Curated by Paul Makovsky, editorial director of Metropolis magazine, the exhibition uses the work of 10 Norwegian designers – both emerging and established – to explore how considerations of sustainability, conscientious uses of materials and design philosophies that champion clean-lined functionality can create products that truly stand out, in terms of both their aesthetics and their longevity.
“At a time when all have too much stuff, we need to rethink our approach to design. We talk about peak oil, peak meat, and recently Steve Howard, head of the sustainability unit at IKEA talked about ‘peak furniture’. In short: we have too much stuff in our everyday lives.” – Paul Makovsky, curator
All designed with thought for the user and crafted with meticulous skill, the products selected for the exhibition range from hand-made silverware and ceramics to tactile wooden furniture and beautifully woven blankets. Each new product and prototype represents the materials and ideas that drive the vibrancy and creative scope of the Norwegian design scene today. The designers themselves range from recent graduates cutting a swathe through the design world to well-known names on the international industry circuit. The exhibition is intended to introduce their work to the North American market, and to draw its attention to the possibilities of Norwegian design and manufacture.
With a stand created by NYC design firm Pure + Applied and graphics from Oslo/Vienna agency Bleed, A Few Good Things represents a unique opportunity for WantedDesign’s visitors to discover the best and brightest talents at work in Norway today.
A FEW GOOD DESIGNERS
Anderssen & Voll present sculptural cast-iron Ildhane candleholders and intricate Una blankets, produced in collaboration with Roros Tweed. anderssen-voll.com
Andreas Bergsaker showcases new prototypes of wooden products, including his Mushi and Piedistallo lamps, O’Clock desk clock series and Equal chopping board range. andreasbergsaker.com
Fimbul brings their versatile Mapu shelving design, stacking side-table set Soft Square, and elegant Canary Wharf shoe brushes. fimbuldesign.no
Kristine Five Melvaer exhibits the Vava stacking stool prototype, alongside the colourful, oversize doormats she created for new Norwegian brand Heymat and blankets from Røros Tweed. kristinefivemelvaer.com
Lars Beller Fjetland and Norway’s oldest silverware producer Theodor Olsen Sњlvvareverksted have created Monstera, a cold-forged cutlery range inspired 1950s design. beller.no
Noidoi are exhibiting a range of homewares and lighting, comprising Tube candleholders in various sizes, the On the Edge floor lamp and Bølgen, a new prototype trivet. noidoi.no
Runa Klock shows the tableware range created for Oslo design hotel The Thief, her natural-stone Core lamp, and two products created for social-enterprise: wooden serving boards for Moving Mamas, an organisation to help Norway’s immigrant mothers back into work, and textile designs for Pakistan’s Bokhari employment initiative. runaklock.com
Sara Skotte presents Vei ceramic tableware, designed to enhance the sensory experience of eating, and Dialog, a collection of vases in different materials. saraskotte.com
Sverre Uhnger is exhibiting the Trace range of serving platters, created to turn the imprints left by CNC milling into ornamental features, as well as wooden platters created for the Trefjola chopping board brand. uhnger.com
Martin Solem displays the Solem Table, intended for use in hotels. Innovative lightweight and minimalist, its hollow legs allow cabling to be concealed. martinsolem.com
A Few Good Things: New Norwegian Designs is produced by the Norwegian Centre for Design and Architecture (DOGA), in partnership with the Norwegian Consulate General in New York and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.