When we featured the Furni ALBA clock a couple of months ago, we got some feedback decrying its minimalism and 70s’ roots, yet Furni’s fans are gung-ho about the quality and elegance of their products that come without pretension. We asked Devin Barrette and Mike Giles about the iconography linked to their work.





Your work provokes opposite reactions within different demographic groups. Although the emotional connection to the 70s works in your favour, how can you explain why a younger cohort embraces your designs while an older one is more dismissive?
I think it’s a rather simple explanation; the younger cohort embraces the 70’s design aesthetic because they’ve been lucky enough to have had all the ugly stuff from that decade filtered out for them. Most modern design books, magazines and museum collections focus on what I call the “good” 70’s, you know, the simple curves and minimalist lines. The older demographic had to grow up in all of the 70’s! Bellbottoms, giant collared polyester shirts, disco and worse! They didn’t have the luxury of the “filter” I guess the nostalgia of our designs brings back those repressed memories and with reminders like that, I don’t blame them from shunning us!!!

Recent MoCo submissions.

+ NYTO Studios has come up with the perfect solution for those wobbly table legs: the High’n’Low silicone shim, small enough to fit into a wallet. Whip it out and keep your drink from spilling, without having to resort to the ubiquitous Sweet’n’Low packet.

+ NoDesign's Mix and Match table allows for a variety of table top storage and uses, such as built-in fruit bowl, small boxes and cd holder. Watch the video.

+ Tancher Electronics has produced the Beacon, a wristband or lanyard embedded with tiny radio beacons that serves as a USB flash memory, but can also be used as a personal SOS device, especially during earthquakes and avalanches.

+ Indie American design makes its way to Sotheby's... not sure it's a first, but when a Newson sells for $600K+, this may be a trend to follow. Included in their upcoming auction of "Important 20th Century Design", is Chris Ferebee’s Hive shelving system.

+ Ben Oostrum and Rob Bonneur collaborated on original brick designs with the aim of changing the traditional brick façade. The designs are featured at the Brick Project exhibition in Rotterdam.

+ The world’s lightest Chess & Checkers set comes from Paradoxy Products, with flat game pieces that stand up on the board AND withstand strong winds and tempers.

At a trade show like ICFF "new" often means new colorways or fabrics, as was the case with a lot of the furniture on display in this edition. New ideas for seating were harder to find this year but could be found in the Wilsonart-SCAD booth, at council design, Mike & Maaike, BluDot, Laurie Beckerman, Stew, RISD, Thout and Kenneth Cobonpue.

Working Class Studio is a project within the Savannah College of Art and Design that allows interdisciplinary students to experience the entire process of design, from conception to production to distribution.

This year's NSS booth displayed a colorful mix of stationery, dinnerware, and home decor items. More after the jump. Jw

Tord Boontje tours the ICFF show floor in Cool Hunting's latest video. Some of the backstory to this piece, Tord couldn't walk three steps without being stopped by friends and acquaintances so the producers included it in the video. The reference to living in London and then "living spaciously" in France; real estate is so expensive in London with the advent of high speed trains and cheap flights the french country side is fast becoming a more affordable suburb of London.