Over the first two weeks in July more than 3,000 graduate designers came together at the Business Design Centre, Islington to launch their professional careers in the creative industries. With over 16,000 visitors each year, New Designers is not only an opportunity for retailers, buyers and curators to snap up young talent but an inspiring showcase of innovative design and, of course, a prime opportunity to spot some exciting new trends.
Trend Bible’s Creative Assistant Alice Barnes, visited Part 2 of New Designers, 6th – 9th July 2011 to bring us the Furniture, Product and Visual Communication highlights from the show.
Digital vs. Tactile
The increasing backlash to digital formats and decreasing usage of social networking sites really got graduate designers thinking about how digital experiences need to develop in order to keep users interested. Two great examples of how digital and physical can combine were shown by students from the University of Dundee. Chris McNicholl’s TweetingSeat is “an interactive park bench which is designed to explore the potential for connecting digital and physical communities”, whilst Steve Murray’s Facebook box, inspired by his grandfather’s memory box, explores “the possibility of a physical social network by keeping every piece of digital activity as a physical document” making social networking a more tangible experience and giving “deeper meaning to the process.”
Let’s Go Outside
The stagnant housing market is evidence enough that the recession is still affecting the way we behave in the home; there’s a continuing trend for staying in rather than going out and enhancing what we have rather than moving house. Products that facilitate outdoor living were a big trend at New Designers; from multi-use gardening systems which double up as seats, to flat pack barbecues and beautiful vases to bring the outdoors in, the indication is that we’ll be increasingly inclined to spill-over into our gardens and outdoor spaces.
Tales of the Unexpected
Secret compartments and unexpected design features were seen across the board at New Designers, as graduates set to excite and delight consumers with clever storage solutions. We especially love Ethan Fitzpatrick’s Topsi Table – a child’s play table and chairs with hidden storage for toys, which when stacked back together converts into an adult seat, signalling that play time is over. We expect this trend for unusual, surprise elements will continue to add a freshness of approach to retail experiences and produts themselves over the next 12 months.
The Colour Orange
Whilst asking graduates designers why they had chosen certain colour palettes and combinations in their designs, one student told me that orange is the colour of creativity and enthusiasm, so what better colour for New Designers to use to grab people’s attention. The use of bold orange and untreated wood was used to great effect to showcase important design features in furniture and product design.
Lighten Up
Designers kept lighting simple with neutral base colours and natural materials, accented by small colour pops. We loved Charlotte Beer’s ceramic white lights with neon glaze and coloured flex. As predicted in our Utilitarian trend for A/W 2011/12, exposed components such as cables and light flex are on show to demonstrate a trend towards appreciating the art of manufacture.
Homeward Bound
Furniture designers took inspiration from textiles, weaving, binding, wrapping, plaiting and stitching wood panels and components together. Luke Diaz’s award winning Stitch-Wood Collection was a particular Trend Bible favourite from the show – we’re coveting the Button Stool, as were Ornella Stocco’s wrapped wood chairs. Following the lead of Tortie Hoare, our favourite New Designer of 2010, the trend for blending fabric and textile techniques and hard goods within furniture remains a strong look.
Back to Basics
Post-recession consumers have a better appreciation of craft, talent, skill, originality, beauty and authenticity in the wake of an abundance of mass-appeal goods. Furniture that combined flat urban grey upholstery with unpolished wood was a key trend in this pared-down, utility look.
James Uren’s award winning Luso Lounger, a modern day reinvention of the chaise longue, showcased these qualities to perfection and is a great example of fuss-free, functional design with impeccable construction.
Our Epicurean trend for Spring/Summer 2011 which we forecast back in August 2009 focused on a neutral palette to showcase the construction and materials used, so it was great to see graduate designers picking up on this direction.
Statement Typography
Statement typography continues to be a big trend, we loved Lucinda Ireland’s Typography and Handlettering work across ceramics and glass.
To check out our New Designers Report Part 1 click here, to see our New Designers report from last year, click here.
