KONSTAN TINE GRCIC MYTO CHAIR 2007
DESIGN & SOCIETY TASK
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Haruka Yamamoto_ 3542495_ June 2015
Freedom of Design
Konstantin Grcic
Haruka Yamamoto s3542495
Table of Contents
Introduction 4 Biography 5 MYTO Chair 7 Design Concept 1. Cabinets 8 Design Concept 2. Table lamp 10 Design Concept 3. Umbrella stand 12 Bibliography 14 Reflection 16
Introduction This task included research of a specific furniture designer of the past and present, who has left behind a significant impact to today’s furniture designing, or continues to do so. Leading off from the previous task in which we completed a written entry of said designer, the aim of this task lies in obtaining further understanding of their mindsets and characteristics(?), through the exploration of their works. However, as opposed to the previous task, which was very much word-orientated, this task allows students to visualise their findings with their own hands. This task is based around a German furniture designer, Konstantin Grcic, who still continues to produce outstanding furniture pieces today. This task includes a brief biography stating the background of the designer, alongside an in-depth exploration of a specific piece of furniture 4
work they have done in the past. Additionally, students created three design concepts with three sketch each, reflecting Grcic’s design ethics and style. The inspiration for these design concepts can derive from any design they have produced in the past. However, students are encouraged to explore an area of design their designated designer has not yet explored yet.
“The production process is what gives my work its context.” – Konstantin Grcic, from his first monograph KGID: Konstantin Grcic Industrial Design Konstantin Grcic is an established furniture designer and an industrial designer, celebrated for his ability to materialise, often modeling by his own hands, a design that transcends what many claims to be ‘restraints’. His design ethic is heavily characterised by his lack of interest in creating a design that serves a traditional and an outdated function, but rather he aspires to provide his audience a ‘chance’ to re-evaluate the function themselves. He looks closely into the relationship that a design could hold with its users, and dismisses the idea of designing furniture to only be put on a show in a gallery. Grcic grew up in Munich, Germany with a solid interest and love for building objects. He immediately went to work for an antique furniture restorer upon graduating high school, and in 1985, Grcic transferred over to Britain in order to enroll into a cabinet-making course at ‘The John Makepeace School for Craftsmen in Wood’ in Dorset, England – now known as Parnham College. He went on to study furniture design at the Royal College of Arts of London in 1988, which is now awarded to be the world’s number one design school. After his trainee days in 1990 at a British designer Jasper Morrison’s studio, he immediately went on to developing his own design studio ‘Konstantin Grcic Industrial Design’. The very reason why he so hastily developed his own studio lies in his innate mindset of design being a “two-way process” between him and a client. Designing without a client, or a set framework imposed onto him by a secondary source was unthinkable for Grcic. His designs are always first born from context – not from his creative side. He simply was not a designer who could continually execute ideas one after
another. His creativity only “start(ed) to unfold when (he was) faced with a topic that (he found) worthy thinking about” (Böhm 2005), derived only as a solution to a specific industrial problem. However, although Grcic’s earlier designs were heavily based upon their functional properties, he did not necessarily ignore the aesthetic components. As a result, Grcic only designed when he was commissioned to, in order to fulfil a society’s needs, and never for his own entertainment, or for his own sake. Grcic’s true strength lies in his knowledge of materials and its qualities. He continues to stress to the world, not necessarily verbally, but with both his design and its procedures, that the key concept of a great design is not in the wildest creations of one’s mind, but the designer’s rational, in-depth understanding of the materials and their manufacturing procedures. His success has blossomed from his abundance in continuous exploration. Although Grcic’s earlier passion clearly laid in furniture design, he did not limit himself. He worked with clients such as Lamy to design ballpoint pens, accessories, cutleries and tableware with smaller companies, as well as curating various exhibitions – many of them containing works of designers other than his own. Grcic is constantly exploring and reaching beyond his limits in terms of design, material complexity and even in the area that he works in. It can be said, that Konstantin Grcic, in the prime of his life, is still ‘learning’. Fundamentally, to Grcic, what many consider as “restrictions” or “constraints” of design, are merely the ingredients, or pieces that together form a solution.
Biography 5
Front View
Back View
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MYTO Chair It is simply undeniable that today’s technology is developing at a very rapid pace - even Grcic admits that “it is getting more and more difficult…projects are so much more complex and challenging”. This development of technology is what truly allowed him to bring his dream design to reality – a cantilever chair made out of plastic. At the time, cantilever chairs were predominantly materialised from tubular steel – and no designer dared to produce such a risky form of a chair with such a flimsy and brittle material, such as plastic. However for Grcic, who was commissioned by BASF, the largest chemical producer in the world to use one of their latest plastic at the time; Ultradur, it was a challenge that he would gladly take up upon. A cantilever chair was the perfect solution for the material he was given – the plastic was very strong, firm and had high
fluidity. Grcic was very much involved in the manufacturing process as he worked alongside the materials manufacturer, producer, the toolmaker and the builders. The finished piece, namely the MYTO chair, produced by Plank, was exhibited in 2007 at a trade fare for the plastic industry. A year later, the piece gained a position in New York’s Museum of Modern Art permanent collection, and in 2011, won the Compasso D´Oro, Italy’s most prestigious industrial design competition.
Side View
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Design Concept 1. Cabinets
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Although Grcic trained to become a cabinetmaker during his college years at ‘The John Makepeace School for Craftsmen in Wood’, there are no cabinet projects that he took on, upon developing his own design studio, known to the society. Finding this out, I was intrigued into thinking what his cabinets would have looked like if he was to ever design one in the future. Hence, the first piece of furniture concept is
Cabinets
Two compartments stacked on top of each other, balancing on two legs made out of thin layers of some form of metal. Translucent plastic compartment allows for easy identification of the content.
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Wooden cone-like shaped cabinet inspired from Grcic’s “Kanu” chair. Cylindrical wooden compartments are fitted in, in which the user must rotate until the open part in the cylinder is facing them. The cylinder is textured for easy rotation.
A cabinet inspired by Grcic’s “Traffic” furniture, using thick wires or steel poles to balance the plastic compartments. The steel can be bent into various forms, as shown in the sketches.
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Design Concept 2. Table lamp
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Mayday lamp is one of Grcic’s most famous pieces of design work that he has done in his career. The portable lamp can be used placed on a surface, or hanged from a wall, or held in one’s hand. However, Grcic has never attempted in designing a lamp solely to be used on a table. This is why I have decided for my second piece of design concept to be a
Table lamp
This light stand reflects Grcic’s use of bright colours in many of his design works. The light bulb is fixed within a hole in the steel, allowing for the light to disperse in extraordinary ways.
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In this table light stand design, I focused on the incorporation of the height adjustability. The light bulb is fixed into the mushroom-shaped component. Rotating of this component allows for the lamp to adjust height.
The shape of this table light is the number two from the side viewpoint. It was originally designed to be made out of wood. However, the addition of the adjustability of the neck will require the lamp to be made out of a more ductile material that has an ability to hold the shape in which it is moulded to.
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Design Concept 3. Umbrella stand
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Seemingly, not many furniture designers are willing to design an umbrella stand – as many upcoming furniture designers of the 21st century have ever explored umbrella stand designing. Similarly, Grcic seems to have never experienced designing an umbrella stand. As I personally find umbrella stand is a piece of furniture that possesses great potential to develop in shape and function, my third and last design concept is
Umbrella stand
This umbrella stand is composed of four bent steel. The bent sections in the steel allow for two umbrellas to rest on – which extends becoming the legs of the stand. Total of 8 umbrellas can be rested on this umbrella stand.
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Umbrellas are slotted into the cylinders. I focused on the aesthetics of this design – as Grcic has never neglected aesthetics for function. The composition of this design is mostly steel poles and steel sheets rolled into a cylindrical shape.
This simple umbrella stand has a wall in which umbrellas can lean against. This allows for the height of the stand to be relatively short, without the height and the weight of the umbrella toppling the stand over. Additionally, this umbrella stand can be used as a rubbish bin.
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Bibliography Books Ryan, Z 2009, Konstantin Grcic, 1st edn, The Art Institute of Chicago Yale University Press, Chicago. Böhm, F 2005, KGID: Konstantin Grcic Industrial Design, 1st edn, Phaidon Press, New York. Articles/Journals Anonymous 2009, ‘PROFILE: Konstantin Grcic’, Design Week, vol. 24, no. 42, pp. 13-n/a, viewed 28 April, ProQuest Central. Buxton, P 2009, ‘Konstantin Grcic’, Design Week, vol. 24, no. 42, p. 13, viewed 28 April 2015, Design and Applied Arts Index (DAAI). McKeough, TIM 2010, ‘For Konstantin Grcic, Fame Follows Function’, New York Times, 2 December 2010, viewed 28 April 2015, ProQuest Central. Web Herman Miller n.d., Konstantin Grcic, Herman Miller, viewed 28 April 2015, <http://www.hermanmiller.com/designers/grcic.html>. Minutillo, J 2002, Konstantin Grcic: Transforming design with everyday objects, McGraw Hill Financial, Inc., 0003858X, Interview, viewed 28 April 2015, <http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=7381548&site=ehost-live&scope=site>. SCP n.d., Konstantin Grcic, SCP, viewed 28 April 2015, <http://news.scp. co.uk/designer/konstantin-grcic/>. Images Jans, M n.d., Konstantin Grcic, photograph, viewed 15 May 2015, <http:// collections.hugoboss.com/dk/en/magazine/design/panoramic_view_the_ vitra_design_museum_presents_konstantin_grcic.php#>. Jans, M n.d., Konstantin Grcic with Myto chairs, photograph, viewed 15 May 2015, <http://www.art-magazin.de/design/6876/konstantin_grcic_ umfrage>.
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Reflection
Upon completing an in-depth study of Konstantin Grcic, it can be said that his design ethic is derived from the simplest idea; study. It is through thorough knowledge in materials, education in production strategies and a rational mindset that his design has come to life. In the 20th century, it is common for many designers to abandon this process for others to fulfil. Many leave the manufacturing process to the manufacturers, or the engineering to the engineers – and designers only design for aesthetics. It can be said that this mindset is what truly creates what many designers believe to be what restricts the “freedom of design”.
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This task allowed me to conduct an intensive exploration into Grcic’s world – including his design ethic, mindset and how his design has come to be. Additionally, through putting what I’ve acquired into practise, by designing three concepts, I believe I have come to understand Grcic’s mindset in creating simplistic, functional designs. I could have improved my exploration of a specific furniture design by using computer-aided design technology, if I have had the knowledge and ability to use these facilities. However, through intensive researching and literature readings, I feel that now I have a more thorough understanding of 21st century furniture designing.