QC Design
Back for a fourth time at Wanted Design NYC, the Québec Design collective keeps growing stronger. This selected group of designers embody the present and the future of Québec’s Design expertise. Their work is the reflection of a unique vocabulary and sensibility that has defined Québec’s identity until today.
With the support of the Québec Government Office in New York, the collective is committed to promote Québec’s creative spirit through original, audacious and innovative design. qcdesign.weebly.com
Atelier B
AtelierB, a Montreal company that uses concrete as a fine material, offers a diverse range of flooring, countertops, panels, decorative accessories, and furniture for residential, commercial and outdoor use. Armed with detailed knowledge of every aspect of concrete, AtelierB and his team have high-level expertise in every stage of concrete production, from design to pouring to finishing.
By definition, concrete is a blend of largely mineral materials: aggregates (fine gravel, sand), binders (cement, clay) and water. Its low cost, ease of production and durability make it one of the world’s most popular construction materials.
Once used in essentially charmless ways, underestimated and simply left for crews to pour, in the last few decades concrete has reclaimed some of its noble heritage and, in different forms, has helped beautify our indoor and outdoor living spaces. Its raw, minimalist aesthetic, poetically celebrated by the likes of Frank Lloyd Wright, Zaha Hadid and Tadao Ando, is now part and parcel of today’s international architectural trends.
Despite its increasing popularity, concrete still holds a world of unexplored possibilities. AtelierB, like a true laboratory, explores, discovers and experiments with pushing the boundaries of this versatile material while respecting its intrinsic character and limitations. Working with the material without altering its fundamental nature, AtelierB devises unexpected uses for it, and executes its work with exacting control and attention to detail.
“We have mastered the delicate art of a rough material, to help concrete express its true nature,” says Mr. Tremblay.
In addition to the traditional uses of concrete, such as floors, countertops and furniture design, AtelierB has added an innovative new architectural product to its portfolio: the very high performance concrete panel. Available in three prefabricated models or to order, the panels have no visible aggregate or framework, giving them remarkable lightness accompanied by extreme durability. Inspired by concrete walls with imprints from plywood forms, the panels retain concrete’s aesthetic and authenticity, while being easy to transport and install. Modular and available in a range of colours and textures, they can be used horizontally as countertops or tabletops, or vertically as a wall finish.
Melding the spirit of craftsmanship with innovative practices, for more than 15 years AtelierB has enthusiastically created inspiring, accessible and durable products. atelierb.ca
DEAR HUMAN
Dear Human is the creative studio founded by Jasna Sokolovic and Noel O’Connell in 2011. Since then, the studio has developed a coherent body of work in various domains that include public space projects, product design and the applied arts. Their projects offer an alternative perception to overlooked everyday landscapes by revealing the hidden potential of places and objects.
After meeting at a residency in Denmark, Jasna and Noel immediately began working on ideas together and haven’t stopped since. The collaboration is rooted in their common interests in craft traditions, sustainable making, and unconventional material (re)use. Noel’s material expertise and attention to detail and Jasna’s improvisational sensibility and exploratory nature have led to a diverse portfolio.
They are presently based out of Montreal. dearhuman.ca
Hugo Cantin
After studying graphic design and multimedia, Hugo Cantin, founder of Mini-Loop, now experiments with light, vintage imagery, visual perception and illusions. He deconstructs visual elements from the past in multiple layers to create new contemporary designs with hologram-style depth effect. He creates unique collages that incorporate old archival films into repetitive patterns… fascinating textures made out of thousands of miniature images revealing lost stories, movements and rhythm.Nested into wood or steel boxes, Cantin’s works are brought to life and animated by LED lights. These conversation pieces can be customized with different sizes and color schemes. mini-loop.com
Jarre
Jarre proposes a cultural change to our relationship with food. Our products encourages the consumer to make environmentally conscious choices about the food they eat and exercise care in the ingredients they purchase by sourcing fruits and vegetables locally.
The motivation behind the company is to change our perception of food storage in the kitchen by privileging fresh produce stored out in the open air.
Our mission is to rethink the modern kitchen, to promote proper fresh food storage and to encourage good eating habits. The company envisions a pure, simple and aesthetically pleasing kitchen that promotes above all else a healthy relationship to our environment and the conscious responsibility of those who inhabit it. jarre.ca
Milan
Milan’s creativity rests on a contemporary look. Products that are both functional and ergonomic with a sophisticated and timeless design. Milan was founded by Tony Gaudette. He grew up within the Northern Coast Italian community and has been a passionate design teacher in the Quebec college network for more than a decade. His whole life, good food and the art of living were part of his universe. Several decades later, Milan has only one goal: reinvent those mythical kitchen objects that were part of the founder’s childhood.
In 2003, this designer and pedagogue took part in workshops of cabinet-making to learn all the secrecies of wood. After eight years of discoveries, he merged his love for design to its vocation of creator by giving birth to the first products of Milan.Design and communication graduate, he was always fascinated by the creation of culinary objects. With a master in graphic design and multimedia from Laval University, this craftsman had everything needed to bring his unique touch in the universe of culinary products. Tony Gaudette launched and founded Milan in 2011. milandesign.co
Panoplie
Panoplie was co-founded by Sarah Brousseau, Cleo Poirier Muszynski and Marie-Christine Rondeau in 2011. Its first product, Gluk, has been sold in more than 50 stores across Canada and USA, used as a marketing tool and offered as a gift in events. Panoplie participated in many fairs, appeared in various media and is now working on its market expansion.
Grants and awards were received on several occasions to support their venture in the business world.
Panoplie, now led by Marie-Christine and Sarah, is dedicated to provide design solutions that address problems of everyday life. Their creative process encourage collaborations while supporting local knowledge. According to them, good design brings out emotions, memories, stories, and create experiences.
Panoplie wishes to accompany people every day with useful objects that make you smile.
Simon Johns
Simon Johns is a Fine Arts trained designer and maker of furniture, lighting and the occasional accessory. His work draws from relations between form and impressions of weight or weightlessness. Informed by the studio’s rural wooded location, materiality is always present, but balanced. In the past, his practice has been focused on custom and made-to-order pieces for a select corporate and residential clientele in Montreal, based on word of mouth. Québec Design will serve to expand his work’s reach, to show a collection of goods ready for market, representation or distribution.
Among pieces shown will be the Protean Brackets. They are a collection of 4 different geometric shelving supports that can be assembled into many different combinations. A discrete continuum exists between the shelf and it’s support, overshadowing functionality to become a central piece in a room, large or small.
Simon Johns has a BFA from Concordia University, and creates furniture and lighting from a hands-on and computer based practice in the woods of East-Bolton in Quebec, Canada. simonjohns.com
PMO Design
PMO Design has been producing quality handmade designs using ceramic and other material for everyday use since its establishment in 1999. Products of PMO Design are carried in boutiques in Canada, US, UAE, Australia and Japan. Kwok Wai Lau, the owner of PMO Design, received his Masters Degree at the Glasgow School of Art, Scotland. His works are exhibited in Canada, Europe and Japan. pmod.ca
Tat Chao
With a background in Industrial Design, Tat Chao explores diverses aspects of design such as object, funiture, lighting and jewelry. He also tackles spatial and graphic design projects with passion and originality. Sensory, poetic, conscientious, eclectic are among many terms that characterize his unique work. Creativity and beauty has no boundaries. tatchao.com
