DESIGN MAGAZINE 23 (MAY/JUNE 2015) by DESIGN MAGAZINE

EDITORIAL Tiago Krusse

Now I fully understood when German designer Stefan Diez told me some months ago that designers need a lobby. In fact they need a lobby, a strong network of designers throughout the World that could be able to protect their rights and duties as qualified professional workers they are. There are a significant bunch o people making huge profits while playing with words and events that supposed to be focused on designers and the profession. This quiet happy and very few bunch of “cultural” promoters managed to present these flaring and very shiny events all over the corners. Beyond that, these highly “influent” people still managed to play with politicians, who have a slightly wrong idea of what design is, obtaining official approvals and public money to be waste in spectacular happenings with loads of very important no matter what people and a copy/paste pr media to support them and also making money out of nothing. This is very creative indeed for this bunch of people. Things are changing and all this resplendent foam of the days is set to be ending, because a lie could not last forever. Industrialists, entrepreneurs, politicians, designers and a whole lot of companies are setting for a turning point. This turning point however has to be made with those really interested people in producing an evolution regarding the design affairs, focused on the designers but well connected with all partners involved in the sector. It has to be an evolution made upon values, principles, by mutual respect, recognition of qualifications, protection of intellectual property and copyrights issues, payment, teaching, business, economy, strategies and so on. These people have to seat down now and start discussing all structural aspects so that design and designers will become fully integrated in societies needing hardly their professional and spiritual contribution for a better living and a better environment to us all. I may be wrong but I sense that these matters are becoming priorities and all tomorrow design parties are set to become something completely different from the vacuum left nowadays. I would also like, as journalist, to give my contribution to the fully recognition of designers and to be able to continue a work of producing awareness among a wide public audience about the importance of designers to our societies and the World. Let there be designers!

VISIT AND DISCOVER FLORIANĂ&#x201C;POLIS, BRAZIL MAY, 15th 2015 TO JULY, 12th 2015 Come and explore design exhibitions, workshops, national and international seminars, and street events focusing on the theme DESIGN FOR ALL.

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DESIGN Interview Stuart Walker Interview Ana Brum Dsignio

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Well done Salone

Shoe Store in Melbourn Maredolce-La Favara

BOOKS Angola Cinemas The Dubai

MUSIC Afonso Pais Felix Laband

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Director/Editor - Founder Tiago Krusse Executive Designer Lucas Fernandes Text Contributors Francisco Vilaça (Stockholm) Hugo Poge (Reykjavík) Rodrigo Costa (Oporto) English editing K Photo Contributors João Morgado – Architecture Phtography Rui Gonçalves Moreno Advertising http://revistadesignmagazine.com/publicidade/ Office DESIGN MAGAZINE Jardim dos Malmequeres, 4, 2.º Esquerdo 1675-139 Pontinha (Odivelas) | Portugal www.revistadesignmagazine.com Publishing House K Innovative Diffuser, Sociedade Unipessoal Limitada Jardim dos Malmequeres, 4, 2 ESQ 1675-139 Pontinha | Portugal NIPC: 513 314 652 Juridic Consultor Dr. Maria de Lourdes Castelo Branco Accounting Auditoc Media founded in 2011. Officialy recognized by the ERC - Entidade Reguladora Para A Comunicação Social under the register number 126104.

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The International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID) presents the World Design Impact Prize 2015-2016. The nomination period will be open until the 29th of July of 2015. This biennial award was “created to celebrate, recognize and encourage impact design projects from around the world.” The mission under this initiative is to show to a wider public how industrial design driven projects can make a positive impact upon different realities of our social, economic, cultural and environmental quality of life. The World Design Impact Prize 2015-2016 is open to “everyone, designers and design enthusiasts alike.” A panel of experts will nominate projects and will gather a shortlist, with a maximum of seven projects, to be voted by Icsid’s members. The voting process will take place between the 17th of October and the 18th of December of 2015. The finalists will be announced on the 12th of January of 2016. Those finalists would be given the opportunity to show their work to members of ICSID that represents 167 organizations all over the world. The goal of the prize is to “bring attention to tangible examples of social impact industrial design that will help shape the future of the profession and create a better world through design.” 8

The first award was presented in 2012 to Kenyan-based Planning System Services Ltd. for their Community Cooker project. In the 20132014 cycle the prize was awarded to A Behaviour Changing (ABC) Syringe, developed by Dr. David Swann from the University of Huddersfield, United Kingdom. The 2015-2016 prize will be awarded during a ceremony at the World Design Capital International Design Gala, which in February of 2016 will be held in Taipei, in Taiwan the Chinese Taipei. The World Design Capital designation is a biennial city promotion project that celebrates the accomplishments of cities that have used design as a tool to reinvent themselves and improve social, cultural and economic life. More information - http://worlddesignimpact.org/

INTERVIEW

Stuart Walker

Professor of Design for Sustainability at Lancaster University, in the United Kingdom, and Emeritus Professor at the University of Calgary, in Canada, Stuart Walker is author of several books and his designs have been exhibited at several highly regarded institutions. After a review of the book “Designing Sustainability”, we’ve decided to reach his views about design, values, society and progress in a less academic setting. Interview by Tiago Krusse Photographs and images: Courtesy of Stuart Walker

How do you approach or define the meaning of the word design? The area I explore is product design or, more accurately, object design – as many of the objects I create are not what are normally considered to be ‘products’. To me, design is a discipline that combines two ways of thinking. When we design we require rational thought, objectivity and systematic intellectual inquiry and we also draw on intuition, subjectivity, the creative imagination and aesthetic sensitivity. This is the meaning of design for me – this integration – and I find it a wonderful and fascinating discipline because it reflects who we are as people – both sides of our nature, including our values, our priorities and our dreams. Why is there this feeling that there isn’t yet a clear perception of the discipline? Much contemporary design is too wedded to corporate models that promote consumerism for the purposes of profit generation and shareholder return. When design is positioned in this way it becomes just a means to an end. For design to have integrity, it has to be an end in itself - not simply a creator of discontent for the purpose of profit-making. Designing built-in obsolescence and slightly new models of the same product deliberately and consciously creates discontent. Why? Because it sells more stuff and generates profits. Profits are, of course, important for any enterprise but when profits become the raison d’être and other concerns are swept aside, then the priorities become distorted. When design becomes a branch of marketing and is used primarily to drive consumerism it does more harm than good. In your opinion who are the best contributors for the comprehension of the profession and those who left some good reflections or orientations of what it should be the work of a designer?

The person who called on designers to wake up to the realities of what they were doing, and to change course towards ethically responsible design was, of course, Victor Papanek. His Design from the Real World was published in the early 1970s and is still relevant today because it’s concerned with ethics and human values. His Green Imperative from the 1990s places greater emphasis on environmental concerns – and he discusses this in terms of people, localization and place. More recently, the Welsh architect Christopher Day and, in Italy, the academic Ezio Manzini also tie localization, people and place to the development of new ways forward. These approaches in design not only provide an alternative to globalization (a trend that especially suits large corporations) but they also prioritize the ethical, social and environmental considerations of design. I also find the work of Andrea Branzi to be inspiring in the way it addresses issues that matter. How do you evaluate the teaching of design worldwide? My impression from the places I visit and the work I see is that design students are doing very high quality work all around the world. I also see that they are hungry to deal with the big issues of our time. They are very aware that we cannot continue to think about design the same way as in the past. Design – like broader society – is in a state of transformation. We are (slowly – perhaps too slowly) leaving behind the priorities of modernity and postmodernity and evolving into a new era. This is partly driven by the potential of digital technologies and partly by the increased social and environmental awareness of the costs of consumerism. In this, digital futures is a two edged sword – on the one hand, development and proliferation of digital products is allowing us to communicate, share information and learn about what is happening in the world but on the other hand, this

The Quadruple Bottom of Line of Design for Sustainability (Walker 2011 & 2014)

Practical Meaning (utility for human benefits and the environmental consequences – few degrees of freedom – we have to furnish our practical needs) Social Meaning (a greater degree of freedom – we have the choice to act morally towards others) Personal Meaning (maximum degrees of freedom – we can choose to lead an examined like – or ignore this deeper aspect of the human endeavour and fill our time with worldly occupations and distractions) Economic Means (a means for achieving the other three – not an end in itself; even though it has become an end in itself in contemporary society) 12

“The design process is not easy – in fact it’s very uncomfortable because it’s very uncertain.”

proliferation is boosting consumerism even further – with huge costs in the form of socio-economic disparity, e-waste, emission and so on. On the whole, I don’t think design teaching is tackling these issues strongly enough or showing that new forms of imaginative design can actually provide creative ways forward to address these apparent conflicts. For example, product disposal and e-waste is, at least partly, a design issue. I’d like to see far more emphasis on these critical aspects – which are some of the defining issues of our time.

the decisions may be out of your hands. Or if you are an independent designer, not every project may align with your values and principles – but you also need to put food on the table. These are the dilemmas that face many designers. We do not live in an ideal world. I’m sure many designers try their best to do the right thing – but it’s not always easy – there are always conflicting priorities. This is life, this is what we all have to deal with – it’s a question of where you draw the line and trying your best to adhere to your principles and values.

How do you evaluate design students in terms of comprehension, skills and attitude? Students need to be informed – so they need to read extensively and understand these issues. Then they have to address these issues through design – and to do that they have to have at least some basic skills so they can externalize and develop their ideas. The key things in my view are an eagerness to engage with the source materials and become informed, and a passion for the subject, which is expressed through a willingness to struggle with complex ideas by engaging in the design process. The design process is not easy – in fact it’s very uncomfortable because it’s very uncertain. Creative ideas are hard won – so you have to have a passion for the subject. The skills can be developed over time, the more you engage in the process.

Why are you so critical about industrialization? It is not that I am critical of industrialization per se, I am critical of the way that a great deal of industry has developed and is operating today. Priorities have become very skewed. Too often, it seems, the primary objectives are short terms profits and shareholder returns and, because of this, other important considerations have been set aside, such as ethical behaviour and concern for good quality work, fair wages, the social good, preservation of the commons and environmental care. Milton Friedman style economics are still widespread but they are outdated and they are having a very damaging effect on societies around the world. But there are industrial models that operate in other ways – with different priorities. For example, there are industries that are based on different ownership and operating principles that take a more balanced approach to the purpose of industry. They do things rather differently – they take seriously the commitment to community, longer term thinking, social justice and environmental care. For example, many cooperative models, family owned businesses and grassroots enterprises can and do have different priorities. Also, I think the question of scale is important. When things become very large, people and broader values tend to get forgotten. Many years ago E.

Do qualified designers fully comprehend their role as professionals and do they keep their values and their sense of responsibility towards society to themselves? Practising designers are often caught between a rock and a hard place. They may wish to do the right thing – to work according to their values and their sense of responsibility to society. Some find a way to do this in their work – but if you work for a large corporation

“Also, we must not forget that there is a multi-billion dollar advertising industry – paid for by the manufacturing industry - that is solely geared to persuading us to buy more stuff.“

F. Schumacher said Small is Beautiful – and this remains the case today. At a smaller, local scale we retain connections with people and with the natural environment – and we remain more directly aware of the effects we are having – both good and bad when we produce, use and dispose of products. Most of the times we hear industrialists saying that it is up to consumers to force dramatic market changes by requesting better products with better made production procedures. Is there any reasonable point in this type of argument? No, this is a ridiculous argument. This is simply passing the buck and avoiding responsibility for your own actions as organizations. Also, we must not forget that there is a multi-billion dollar advertising industry – paid for by the manufacturing industry - that is solely geared to persuading us to buy more stuff. When ordinary people, grass roots organizations or NGOs speak out against such consumerism and when research is done that demonstrates the negative effects on the planet of such consumption – then big industry uses its substantial resources to thwart opposition and to confuse the debate. Look at what happened in the tobacco industry – it was known for years that tobacco products kill people – but the industry confused the debate and used their resources to create doubt and confusion in the minds of the public. The same is happening today – millions of dollars are being directed by big industry to confuse the debate about climate change – even though the vast majority of scientists agree that human actions are having potentially catastrophic impacts on climate. People can try to make more informed choices – but often the only choice is between virtually identical products with different brands. This isn’t real choice. In this, politicians should be playing a stronger role. Politicians should be striving to uphold the

interests of the people and the common good – but democratic politics is based on short-term thinking and often, it is big industry that is financing political campaigns – so you can see the problem here. Research and development departments - are they overrated? Independent scientific research and academic freedom in deciding what areas to research are critical to the advancement of knowledge. However, when we go from research for its own sake to the application of that research in the development of technological products for mass-consumption – we are faced with values-laden questions about purpose, priorities and effects – we need to pay far more attention to these questions. I would also add that within large corporations scientific research is rarely independent – it’s directed towards company goals. And increasingly, even academic research is being directed towards goals of economic growth and impact for industry – this is eroding academic freedom and it’s narrowing the scope and potential of research – this is a very dangerous road. If academics want to secure funding to support their research, increasingly they are forced to direct that research to extrinsic goals. This undermines academic freedom – to use Chomsky’s phrase, it’s a way of manufacturing consent. How can we substitute industrial capitalism for something balanced and focused on harmony between man and nature? The transition will, I think, have to be bottom-up – from grassroots organizations, from people developing new kinds of enterprises with new priorities. We have to change from a model based on consumerism, which uses advertising to constantly encourage the buying of new products, to a model based on the idea of sufficient consumption. Big industry has too much vested interest

Babel (left) – brick, slime, stone, and pitch (i.e. human made and natural) Cana (middle) – stone, water and wine Whereof one cannot speak, one should remain silent (Wittgenstein) References to the transcendent in the visual language of modernity and science

Land (disposable plastic ink cartridges – with toxic ink remnants) Water (disposable batteries – with toxic chemicals) Air (mobile phone charger) 15

“… in my view creative, imaginative design has an important role to play – designers have the opportunity not just to speak about a different way forward – but by using their knowledge, skills and experience they can show a different way forward.“

to change very quickly. It will be a slow process. But the only way change will occur is if people create change – people of goodwill and good intentions trying to do the right thing – and this starts in the local context. Policy changes within the political system could help bring about this kind of change. Pollution and environment issues are always in the agenda of so many different and important institutions and organizations. Why do most of the resolutions proposed not go beyond intentions? As I said earlier – there is much vested interest in global corporations to keep things the same. There is considerable power and influence today in global corporations. And contemporary democracies seem impotent when it comes to serving the common good. There is an urgent need for reform on many levels; for legislation that has teeth and for international agreements that are binding. Why is waste still tolerated in so many ways? Overproduction is very lucrative and therefore so is waste. Today, our products are far too inexpensive. This is because they are produced by low wage labour in countries with lax environmental regulations. Our products are so affordable because the companies that produce them ignore the costs of social division, social injustice and environmental pollution and waste. These costs are either picked up by the taxpayer or they are ignored. If corporations were more accountable – if they were responsible for their products at the end of their useful life, if they were forced to pay living wages, then products would be far more expensive. And if they were more expen-

sive they would not be disposable – they’d been repairable and upgradable. So there would be far less waste. What if companies that produced bottled water were responsible financially for the costs of their clean up? I think we’d find that water would no longer be sold in disposable plastic bottles – another way, a better way, would be found. Imagine a mobile phone or a laptop computer as a heritage item – something that lasts over generations – but which can be upgraded regularly? Why not? We do this with houses – they often endure over generations but are regularly refitted to suit contemporary needs. Transition to a different way of doing business will depend on increased awareness and on the development of new grassroots enterprises. And design can contribute to both of these. First, designers – especially designers in academia – can create visions of a different kind of material culture. This is a way of raising awareness – by creating and visualizing alternatives – this is where design can contribute to education in a broader sense – not just in the classroom. Second, designers can work with local enterprises to create new, imaginative design solutions that are both ethical and environmentally responsible. For you which are the most important elements to consider when we talk about evolution of human behavior? The enduring project of being human is to strive towards the good – to transcend selfishness and self-interest and consider others. Today, we also have to extend this to the planet itself. We have to work towards a society that is caring and compassionate, and which creates a desirable, livable and just place for everybody. Today, social equity and environmental care are two of the

most important goals that we should be striving towards. And in my view creative, imaginative design has an important role to play – designers have the opportunity not just to speak about a different way forward – but by using their knowledge, skills and experience they can show a different way forward. This can be a very powerful contributor to change because it allows people to see that an alternative way forward is possible – and design can visualize what a well-researched, creative alternative might actually look like. What is your vision of progress? Today the word progress tends to be interpreted as ‘technological progress’ tied to economic growth. This is an extremely narrow interpretation. Politicians talk about ‘winning in a global race’. This is nonsensical and destructive when that means more consumption, more waste, more pollution, more resource extraction and more environmental destruction. Within this kind of rhetoric there is no concept of sufficiency. It is a very destructive notion of progress that usually also means more privatization, an erosion of public services and less emphasis on the common good. For me, real progress is about more profound questions of human purpose. It’s about access to high quality education for all, advancements in the care of the most vulnerable in society – the sick, those living with disability, the aged, and it’s about a fair distribution of wealth – so that everyone benefits from the fruits of enterprise, not just the executives. The wealth is created by everyone so it should be fairly shared. And again, design has a role to play in this. Designers can work with enterprises to design products that are made in ways that produce good, interesting and fulfilling work opportunities. They can design products

that are worth producing and that make meaningful and lasting contributions to our material world – not just a disposable novelty designed to break and be quickly replaced. With the opportunities offered today by digital communities and digital services, designers can work in different ways – and contribute to new types of enterprise models that do things quite differently to the ways we have used in the past. This requires imagination, creativity and ‘good’ design.

Stonework A contemplative object This object, inspired by the work of Duchamp and Cage as well as the writings of Ruskin, is selected from Nature – a Nature-created ‘readymade’ as it were. As such it is beyond human conceptualization, beyond human expressions of the numinous, and beyond artifice. 17

INTERVIEW

Ana Brum

Ana Brum is one of the directors of the Centro Brasil Design, a consulting firm that has more than sixteen years of solid work with the purpose of clarifying the importance of design to Brazil but also providing knowledge, tools and strategies to make things work. When the small word is again being spread through the country like a samba tune, we seek what is really going on and if progress is been made. Interview by Tiago Krusse Photo and images courtesy of Centro Brasil Design

What is the mission of Centro Brasil Design? Since 1999, Centro Brasil Design (CBD) has been contributing to the evolution of design in Brazil, strengthening Brazilian competitiveness through design as a process and innovation. Always from a point of view that values sustainable development and strategic thinking excellence. CBD is a consulting firm specialized in creating, developing and implementing strategic design plans and processes for industry and government agencies, with the aim to improve Brazilian competitiveness and economic and social development. It works nationwide and relies on a team of highly efficient experts with broad perspectives. Who makes up the team and how is the work done? CBD consists of a board of directors, audit committee, board members and technical staff. We also rely on support, communications staff and partnering consultants. As one of the institutions most respected by people who define design policies in Brazil, the way CBD works involves intelligence, strategy and action in a process of continuous development. Concerning intelligence we do context diagnostics, research, reflection and planning. Under strategy there is identification of opportunities and results-based systemization of mechanisms and procedures. Through action we proceed with

implementation, execution and management of resources and skills. When did it all start and what have your main achievements been over the years? 16 years ago, we identified the opportunity and need for active positioning on design focused on industry and entrepreneurs, who need to know about and recognize the importance of [design] professionals in their businesses. Our work is not limited to design: By encouraging knowledge through hundreds of activities related to education, training and professional development, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re responsible for conceiving, elaborating and executing innumerous strategic projects, both nationally and internationally. Centro Brasil Design enjoys a high level of credibility and is recognized as an institution of excellence in planning and executing public policy initiatives. How was the institution built in order to produce work and to keep its independence and focus on its own strategies? All the projects CBD is involved in are based on the premise of commitment. This reputation has been built based on well executed jobs, with technical and operational responsibility that led us to earn many forms of public recognition. The certainty of a job well done with the necessary guarantees of success, these are the best deliverables we can provide.

“It found that of 100 participating companies, 62% of them had hired design services for the first time.”

Why do you feel that this institutional role is so important to your society? We believe that a more conscientious society depends on more discerning and critical consumers, and for this reason perceived value and products, packaging and services becomes indispensable. The role of institutions like CBD is to encourage design culture in Brazil and make it a value that is perceived both internally and abroad. This cycle favors industry, designers and as a result, the national economy. Which kind of services is provided and how are they implemented? CBD plans, develops and executes design promotion projects focused on industry, according to the needs of the entity requesting them. This work takes place in a structured way, based on CBD’s own methodology, with guaranteed results. In which stage is the process of official professional recognition of designers in Brazil? The process of recognizing the profession of designer in Brazil is still in the legislative approval process. Last year, there was great progress and it relied on the involvement of civil society and professional institutions, but we are still waiting for official decisions from the government. Do Brazilian industries invest in design? Do they hire qualified professional designers? Industry is increasingly incorporating design into its structure. Many national and multinational manufacturers have dedicated design centers in Brazil with in-company development teams who, in addition to planning new products for the national market, export projects to other countries.

How do qualified professional designers get paid for their work? Is there any legislation regarding this matter? There is no nationwide reference table for p a y m e n t ; t ra d e e n t i t i e s a n d p r o f e s s i o n a l associations help professionals establish their prices by hosting gatherings and discussions on the subject. Is there any reliable data on how much design contributes to the Brazilian economy? I n s o fa r a s t h e p ra c t i c e o f i n n o va t i o n c a n b e c o n s i d e r e d k n o w l e d g e o f a t a c i t va r i e t y, t h e D e s i g n E x p o r t p r o g ra m , f o r e x a m p l e , h a s d e m o n s t ra t e d a n d r e v e a l e d t h e i m p o rtance of using design in the development p r o c e s s f o r n e w p r o d u c t s , p a c k a g i n g b ra n d s and services. Through direct experience, it c o n t r i b u t e s t o c r e a t i n g a c u l t u r e o f i n n o va t i o n a m o n g B ra z i l i a n c o m p a n i e s , r e s u l t i n g i n i n c r e a s e d e x c e l l e n c e o f B ra z i l i a n i n d u s trial production aimed at exportation, enc o u ra g i n g t h e p r o f e s s i o n a l m a r k e t f o r d e sign and related areas. It found that of 100 participating companies, 62% of them had hired design services for the first time. How does Centro Brasil Design evaluate the teaching of design across the country? In a rec ent s t udy we d e velo p e d – B ra z ilia n Des ign Diagnos t ic – w e fo und tha t 79% o f ins t i t ut ions t hat offer hig her ed uca tio n p ro grams for des ign in B ra z il a re p riva te . There is a s t rong privat e s ec to r p re s e nce w o rk ing on des ign educ at ion. In 2012, there w e re 538 undergraduat e c ours es o ffere d in B ra z il. We believe i t s t eac hing is w el l d is trib uted .

In your opinion, which sort of challenges and opportunities do Brazilian designers and production industries face? I b e l ie ve t h e g reatest ch al leng e is t o expres s B ra z i l’s h u ge d iver si ty, wh ether relat ed t o th e va s t e x pan se o f B razi l ian te rri t ory or t he cu l t u ra l w eal th we h ave here. T he “B raz il ia n s p ir i t ” p eo p le talk ab o ut so muc h is plu ra l, s in c e reg io n s are ver y d istinc t from eac h ot h e r a n d h ave their o w n features . Environmental issues, are they a crucial matter or do they just represent another example of wishful thinking? I n 2 0 1 0 , w h e n t h e B ra z i l i a n D e s i g n B i e n n i a l t h e m e w a s “ D e s i g n , I n n o va t i o n a n d S u s t a i n a b i l i t y,” i t w a s c l e a r t h a t B ra z i l i a n i n d u s t r y is moving in that direction and producing objects with less impact, optimizing materials, with cleaner production and more lat e n t e n v i r o n m e n t a l a w a r e n e s s . We b e l i e v e y o u h a v e a l o n g w a y t o g o, b u t p l e n t y o f work is already being done so recognition can also happen in this field. How would you describe “Made in Brazil” design? We b e l i e v e i n t h e c r e a t i v e a n d t e c h n i c a l p o t e n t i a l o f B ra z i l i a n d e s i g n e r s a n d i n t h e strength industry is placing on projects inv o l v i n g d e s i g n i n t h e i r c o n c e p t i o n . O n e e xa m p l e p r o v i n g w e a r e o n t h e r i g h t t ra c k i s i n t h e r e c o r d n u m b e r s o f B ra z i l i a n a w a r d s at the international iF Design Awards, which h a s p l a c e d B ra z i l a m o n g t h e s e v e n m o s t winning countries.

Projects headed up by the CBD, here are a few highlights: Paraná Inovador pelo Design (Paraná, Innovative by Design) - Innovation and competitiveness for your business Bringing design culture to companies in the state of Paraná, stimulating innovation and allowing industry to be more competitive. The program helps companies identify opportunities for innovation and as they look for a design firm, facilitating and stimulating the creation of more competitive and successful products, packaging, identities and services. Semana D (D Week) – Design Festival Curitiba is becoming a reference point when the topic is design. Already in its fifth edition, the event attracts internationally renowned professionals for a week of lectures, round tables, workshops and parallel activities. Semana D is conceived, formulated and based on the great design week events that take place abroad, and is carried out by CBD and Prodesign>pr. DesignBrasil Web Portal One of the projects currently coordinated by CBD, the web portal www.designbrasil.org. br encourages the sharing of information and interaction between professionals, students, business owners and everybody else who lives design in Brazil. The web portal is an initiative by the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade (MDIC), with support from the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil). 2010 Brazilian Design Biennial - Curitiba CBD coordinated the 2010 Brazilian Design Biennial in Curitiba, an extremely significant cul-

tural, entrepreneurial and educational event for Brazil. With its theme of “Design, Innovation and Sustainability,” the Biennial achieved significant statistics: nine exhibits, six galleries, knowledge building initiatives, over 20 cultural initiatives in parallel, educational initiatives and interactive initiatives, resulting in the participation of 361,000 people. Anuário do Design Brasileiro (Brazilian Design Yearbook) Carried out by CBD in collaboration with ARC Design, the Yearbook was a brand-new initiative and 2013, which gave an overview of product design in Brazil. On its pages, one can find news stories, interviews with area professionals, useful addresses for design products and a brand new index featuring the best professionals in activity in Brazil. International Exhibits - Jewels From Brazil From September 10, 2011 to February 26, 2012, three cities in England hosted the exhibit “Tools from Brazil,” which gathered the work of 17 Brazilian artists. The exhibit was a pocket version of the 2010 Brazilian Design Biennial of Curitiba, and CBD shared curatorship with Adélia Borges. International Exhibits - BRAZIL: Design, Innovation and Sustainability In April of 2011, the city of Milan hosted the exhibit “BRAZIL: Design, Innovation and Sustainability - A Look at the 2010 Brazilian Design Biennial.” The exhibit took place in parallel with Milan Design Week and the Milan International Furniture Fair, and featured curating by CBD.

Design Export The Design Export program brought innovation to 60 cities and seven different Brazilian states, assisting in the creation of 100 innovative projects aimed towards exports. Carried out by the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) and CBD, Design Export supported Brazilian companies in developing innovative products with unique designs aimed at the international market.

iF Representative Office of Brazil CBD is the representative office for iF in Brazil, the main contact for designers and entrepreneurs who would like to learn more about the iF and especially about competing for its prestigious awards. The office assists companies in registering, sending products, translations and communications overall, and through this work has put Brazil among the seven most recognized countries in the iF awards.

Diagn贸stico do Design Brasileiro (Brazilian Design Diagnostics) CBD was hired by the Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade (MDIC) through Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) to develop the Diagnostic, which had the goal of creating a reference in design for the development of industry and provide subsidies for elaborating Brazilian government policy on design. The study was based on research done over a period of eight months with over 300 Brazilian companies. The diagnostic allowed for an evaluation of design understanding in industrial and service sectors, in addition to an analysis of data on design in Brazil and the variables that impact the sector in the business environment. Scenarios for the future of design in Brazil from now until 2020 were also developed. In addition to directed programs and initiatives, the CBD develops thematic seminars, workshops, lectures and gatherings with the aim to promote Brazilian design.

DSIGNIO

Alberto Bejerano López and Patxi Cotalero

Alberto Bejerano López and Patxi Cotalero are both technical engineers of industrial design with a master in interior design. They found Dsignio in 2002, defining it as a integral design studio providing services worldwide. Based in Madrid the studio has now more than 13 years of consecutive work and the two designers saw their work being recognized in Spain but beyond that they have managed to export their design to over 60 countries. A wide range of products with Dsignio’s signature have been shown on different fairs and Alberto and Patxi design spirit caught the eye and interest of the public. Their knowledge and experience lead also them to be invited for presenting lectures and courses at universities in their country, Japan and Mexico. The designers approach us in order to present KIN, a ceramic wall covering that Alberto and Patxi designed for the Peronda Group. The product was inspired by mathematic patterns existing in nature. The designers say that “no form is accidental”, meaning that each small detail was taken in consideration. A molecular

structure normally has a fascinating body of natural engineering providing information and knowledge of amazing architectonic that has been travelling and evolving through times. On the describing text that they provide us with it’s said that KIN was born from that inspiring molecular universe and “from a seemingly improbable approach - converting a pentagon into a hexagon? -, which, however, leads to a perfect game of Geometry.” Aesthetically speaking KIN shows a very interesting geometric harmony working “as a chain of cells, the pentagon’s weave together to form an interesting grid of hexagons that intertwines horizontally and vertically.” More is underlined by focusing that “the different pieces energize the reflection of ceramics, creating sinuous shapes that change due to the motion and incidence of light.” www.dsignio.com Photographs: Courtesy of Dsignio

KIN

WELL DONE SALONE

We express our humble opinion about the design event of the year through the experience of our editor who is covering the fair for almost two decades. We also leave a selected impression about the 54th edition of the Salone del Mobile that took place in Milan, Italy, between the 14th and the 19th of past April. Opinion and report by Tiago Krusse

The Salone del Mobile in Milan, Italy, it’s an event I’ve been visiting as a professional journalist for a almost 20 years now. Since the early days as a journalist focused on design up to nowadays my fascination for the fair has always been the same edition after edition. The organizers of the fair have been able to present a well organized fair for everyone, from exhibitors to general public. Looking through these almost two decades a whole lot of facts happened, from better economical cycles to most difficult ones, from more design to less but better and other aspects related to social, cultural and political changes that had also played an important role on how we made our perceptions of the whole event year after year. An the event is a celebration of design as a whole, from industrial, interior, communication, multimedia, fashion, project or concept. The organizers they direct how the fair is presented and they make sure that everyone would get the best experience during the exhibition days. And this is made with such professionalism by a team that shows capability of setting the structure and infra-structures so that everyone could experience something good either is doing business or either just getting information about novelties. It’s my opinion that the fact that keeps it so successful is due to the organizers commitment in presenting a good fair and on top of that celebrating the passion that Italians have for design. This year some critics said that Salone had become more of a marketing event than a design fair. I totally disagree on this perspective because Salone it’s a fair that knows out to capture the attention of the whole design industry to be in Milan and be able to show the World what’s new. Of course Salone communicates intensively through media not only to keep exhibitors happy or capturing the eye of the media but because the fair has to compete with other design fair organizers and side events that are kind of related to design. Of course other fairs are also well orga-

nized so that plays as an extra stimulating challenge for Italians to be on the top of all these events. The organizers, the city of Milan, the Italian industry and the government they all work together to produce something it is important to their society, industry and economy. They just set the set and afterwards it’s up to exhibitors and the whole industry to show what they are doing. In my perspective the exhibitors and the design industry place Salone as the key event of their business strategies. So Salone turns Milan into a World stage for the design industry, markets, professionals, buyers and general public. And I’m talking about Salone and not other side events that take place at the same time of the fair. 54TH edition This year was the 54th edition of Salone and once again everything was well prepared to host everyone during all those busy and crowded days. From the 14th to the 19th of April, at Fiera-Rho, the Salone del Mobile took place alongside Euroluce, SaloneUfficio and SaloneSatellite. As journalist I must underline the way media was once again taken in such consideration by providing all series of services to make the whole coverage more efficient and comfortable to do. Salone has a scale higher than human I mean there is whole lot to see so you have to be well organized to search and to find the facts you are interested in. And Salone always provide us journalist with information and ways to get close to what we find relevant to proceed with our work. The reason way I stay only at Salone it’s because I know that I wouldn’t be able to keep with all the prepared agenda for the show. You have to have time to talk with designers and exhibitors, to search for information or to learn about new features, technologies, concepts or purposes. It is digging for information but also having the chance to learn with those who know about what

“Honken”, 2015, by Thomas Bernstrand + Lindau & Borselius for Blå Station

“Time is becoming harder for those who can’t keep the investment in innovation or be able to find innovative ways of a more sustainable activity besides the one of presenting just another new product.”

they are doing. It’s not that easy but that is part of the interesting side of the making news process. Our views about the furniture industry is that time is becoming harder for those who can’t keep the investment in innovation or be able to find innovative ways of a more sustainable activity besides the one of presenting just another new product. Consumers are becoming more and more conscious about the questions of provenience and consequence and not so much attracted to aesthetical performance or trompe l’oiel abilities. At SaloneEuroluce we sense that the whole energetic issue is still not clear for producers as well to consumers. There is not a World agreement about the way we are using resources to produce energy and the lobby of the companies selling energy is in fact compromising not only the industry and the economy but more than that is letting consumers be almost unlawfully explored by these companies. The highlight of SaloneOfficiu was the most interesting installation created by the Italian architect Michelle De Lucchi. Concerning the office market we understood that it’s in a in between productive dilemma: the companies are getting held by the economic crisis, upon that creativity by itself would not guarantee sales increasing and copying is still an important issue to be discussed in order to keep business fair. We wonder if they would manage to keep quality as a differential and fairly affordable in the other hand. Finally SaloneSatellite that is improving year after year, not only by the way the exhibition ground is becoming bigger but also by the way the whole is so carefully hosted by Salone and also by all those young designers exhibitors. The “competition” showed once again how designers are capable of presenting innovations and news concepts with such professionalism and beyond that with so much integrity in what ethical and moral issues are concerned. We believe that SaloneSatellite has the power to bring together even more designers and design

institutions from all over the World and even maybe establish a complementary mission among the most important design competitions. It was with great satisfaction that we saw once again ADI being involved by Salone in much more directly kind of cooperation which we believe has more to deliver in the upcoming editions of the fair.

“Mélange collection”, 2015, by Sybilla for nanimarquina

“Hold On”, 2015, by Nicola Gallizia for Gebrüder Thonet Vienna

“Blade”, 2015, by Lorenzo Damiani for Caimi Brevetti

“Estrela”, 2015, by Campanas for A Lot Of Brasil

“Volée”, 2015, by Odo Fioravanti ofr FontanaArte

“Flamingo”, 2015, by Antoni Arola for Vibia

“Opera”, 2015, by Busk + Hertzog for Soft Line

“Mucuri Chaise Longue”, 2015, by Zanini de Zanine for Butzke

“Plektra”, 2015, by Ineke Hans for Ittala

“Spli”, 2015, by Arik Levy for Ton

SHOE STORE IN MELBOURNE Interior Design: Atlier Marko Brajovic Interview: Tiago Krusse Photographs: Oliver Cole Images: Courtesy of Atelier Marko Brajovic

The Camper store in Melbourne, in Australia, had is interior design produced by the Atelier Marko Brajovic. The work from 2014 is part of the project Camper Together in which the Catalan brand invites “leading designers to create exclusive products and outstanding stores.” These communication project aims to create new spaces and atmospheres able to show different cultures through unique creative processes that will show fascinating ideas alongside the brand’s attributes. We’ve asked Marko Brajovic about the project and how it was conceived. The work has won the Gold iF Design Award 2015.

How would you describe this project concerning its structural qualities and conceptual expression? The Camper store ceiling was designed inspired by natural phenomena. We used parametric design software to design the final model and extract the section control points that support the main structure hanging from the ceiling. On that structure we’ve installed the shoelaces hanging on modular base mesh greed diluted o 5x5 cm. The space was pre-existent or it was built from scratch? The store was installed in the existing commercial area of a mall. They got the blank space with the basic infrastructure facility and we implement in those limits our interior design project. How it was developed? We’ve worked in a close professional relation with Camper that have a great team and gave us all technical support during the design process. Which purposes were intended to be primordial? We are experience designers. Immersion of the public in the narrative space is fundamental. The visitors have to be seduced and absorbed by the interior design and through that we hope they create a strong and genuine empathy with the brand and respective products. Were there any obligatory requirements? The hosting mall has regulations and protocols to follow and full-fill in other to create a safe and compatible project.

The functionality and the whole program gave an answer to which sort of needs? It’s a store, an immersive experience a place to feel happy. How the light system was designed, not to interfere with the scenography or does it have also a role within the concept? Scenography phenomena. Light augment the ceiling project vision, shapes and nuances. The aesthetic quality was fully assumed by the architect or had to comply with the brand’s identity? We are inspired by Camper and we like it as brand and attitude. It’s a team work. In any case, there is not a good project without a good client. Is this an ephemeral project or is it a program meant to be implemented in the whole chain of stores? Camper Together is a special project with a limited edition of stores done by invited designers. How are people reacting? They love it, and that makes us very happy! www.markobrajovic.com

MAREDOLCE-LA FAVARA The Maredolce-La Favara in Palermo, Italy, was the winner of the 26th edition of the International Carlo Scarpa Prize for Gardens in a unanimous decision by the Scientific Committee of the Fondazione Benetton Studi Ricerche.

Photo by Margherita Bianca-Fondazione Benetton Studi Ricerche, 2015

The place, Maredolce-La Favara, is located at the Brancaccio district of Palermo which is also known as “Conca d’Oro”. The specific area keeps a few important elements that preserve the memory of a landscape colonized by Arab and Norman civilizations in Sicily. These strong reasons were taken in consideration by the scientific committee deciding then “to entrust the Carlo Scarpa seal to the working group set up by the Superintendency of the Cultural and Environmental Heritage of Palermo, under the guidance of Maria Elena Volpes.” It was also decided to “entrust the group’s coordinator, Lina Bellanca, with the Carlo Scarpa Seal as a token of affinity and support for all those who, in their different fields, are working in a far from easy urban and social context to underline the importance of a public good in ongoing need of care, attention and preservation of the exceptional values and diversity it continues to embody.” The site is characterized by a depression in the ground that used to be a large reservoir. The whole ancient area is easily recognized by the “irregularly shaped island at its centre and a magnificent palace standing on the edge of this concavity with ranks of recently-built houses close by on two sides.” The inside space has about twenty five hectares with an existing system of structures like hydraulic devices as well as a wide citrus orchard and the Norman palace. In old days the place stood guard over Palermo and those arriving from sea or crossing the land were intercepted. The origin of the name Favara is from the X Century, it’s an Arab word that means Spring Water. In the XIV Century a new name was given, Maredolce – sweet sea – to celebrate that large lake that some compared it with the sea. The site was settled by Romans, Arabs and Normans. The soil was kept fertile by implementing engineer work like irrigation techniques with hydraulic expertise. So it was a place of gardens with a good variety of trees and also of plants. A well planned agriculture was implemented and so there was an extensive plantation of sugar cane, vineyards and olive groves. The site was seen as kind of magical for its beauty “and on the island, a royal residence, which Roger II referred to as his “sollazzo”, by which he meant not only the pleasure he de-

rived from its gardens, but also the experience the place offered as a meeting point of different cultures – Byzantine, Arab and Norman – in its architecture, life styles and landscape, and in the exchange of ideas with the scholars and thinkers of the age.” This prize comes in a most appropriate time because time itself was becoming responsible for the loss of memory and also for making difficult to find a number of evidences of the topographical descriptions that locals were unable to percept. But for the team in charge of this field work, “Maredolce seems nevertheless to be holding out despite its now discontinuous perimeter, like the head of a wedge retaining the space it occupies in the tangle of old and new roads in the outskirts of a city that has sprawled right up to its verges.” All these experience elements of the team can stil “recognize the outposts of a close-knit spray of surviving landscapes beyond the River Oreto between the slopes of Mount Grifone, the roads of Ciaculli and the coast, a striking patchwork of cultivated land which is all that remains of the Conca d’Oro, and which here take the name of ‘garden’.” The History and the historical heritage brought, as they say, a “positive change in a social milieu that was formerly ‘condemned’ to unsparing censure: Ciaculli and Brancaccio are districts connected with unspeakable crimes such as those associated with the “mafia dei giardini” and the heroin refineries, but they were also home to anti-mafia heroes such as Father Pino Puglisi.” With this awarded prize it seems to arise a solution that will try to create a good balance between the life of the neighbourhood along with a developed vision “in which the city recognizes the signals here of a reconciliation between the contradictions of recent urban development and the living presence of its historic landscapes.” So good hard work has begun and Maredolce-La Favara enters a mission towards its recognition, set with an ambitious objective that could totally underline “its full significance and rediscovery of the link between what has been saved, what is still to emerge, and the life, no longer indifferent, of the community around this place.”

Photo by Fondazione Benetton Studi Ricerche, 2015

Photo by Margherita Bianca-Fondazione Benetton Studi Ricerche, 2015

Photo by Patrizia Boschiero-Fondazione Benetton Studi Ricerche, 2014

Photo by Margherita Bianca-Fondazione Benetton Studi Ricerche, 2015

BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS

We believe that it is more than just a book and it goes beyond the editors will “to document an exceptional architectonic treasure and promote a reflection about cultural, social and affective heritage.” We believe that this book expresses the aspirations not only of known and unknown architects that “built in the decades before the end of Portuguese colonial rule in 1975”, but also Angola societies, spread through the country, with aspirations of culture and enjoying access to free forms of expression. The photographs, all taken by Walter Fernandes in 2013, give us that same feeling that film does to us all, the freedom to imagine. And we can imagine all those atmospheres, all those social meetings and what all those spaces represented to different people, from grownups to children. The texts, the motivation for this book by Chris-

tiane Schulte, Gabriele Stiller-Kern and Miguel Hurst, Cinemas of Angola by Maria Alice Correia and F. joão Guimarães and Heritage, wealth by Paula Nascimento are very informative and well written. We sense a good team work not only among the most active elements but also between the publisher and the Goethe-Institute as well as different institutions involved in the process. We find it a wonderful piece of work!

Angola Cinemas / Walter Fernandes / Miguel Hurst Publisher: Steidl ISBN: 978-3-86930-794-7 Hardcover Portuguese, English 237 Pages 2015

Clearly that it is than more than meets the eye. We feel it’s political because we aren’t only seeing photographs of Dubai, we are looking into it through the mind of Tor Seidel. And we a pretty sure that we are seeing, feeling and experiencing way more than just architecture, urbanism, nature, Man or just business. The impact is real and it is not created it is capture from that reality. What strikes us is a shiny and dust reality which gets us thinking about environment, waste, resources, visuals, society, emptiness and loss of purity. But this is us being political about Tor Seidel’s photos, this is us being critical about a show of released by plutocrats eager to make huge profits and politicians only thinking about propaganda. And again we drown ourselves in questions about development, efficiency, harmony and balance among all parts. We dare to think if Man has really devel-

oped behavior, if some groups of individuals do ever think more deeply about consequences. It is indeed political and the whole could be based on the lack of spirituality despite all those forced technological and architectural exuberance. Nadine Barth and Dominic Wanders put in writing a very in depth perception of Dubai with contextualized information about all this artificiality.

Tor Seidel The Dubai Publisher: Hatje Cantz ISBN: 978-3-7757-3856-9 Hardcover German, English, Arabic 160 Pages 75 Color Illustrations 2014

MUSIC RECOMMENDATIONS

The Portuguese musician Afonso Pais presents his Terra Concreta an album as he expresses that was born from the idea of taking music to its origin – Nature. The album works in duos and the author invited Albert Sanz, Luísa Sobral, Beatriz Nunes, Joana Espadinha, Rita Martins and João Firmino. Recorded and getting influenced of the natural environment, we clearly hear the sounds of nature recorded in natural resorts. These incursions to nature were made for one year long, capturing the texture of natural sounds as moto for all the singing and instrumental improvisations made on those remote places. The beautiful digi-pack is a reflection of the care and the passion in which this album was made. The singing and the instrumental, mainly guitar and piano, have that power of calling us to the heart of each track. So full of delicate notes allowing us to get a sense of belonging, of sharing emotions or making us feeling immersed in the whole sound atmosphere. And all voices performances strike us with so much intention and at the same time expressed so naturally like the singing of the bird or sound of the wind blowing the trees. Moments of beauty and of truly passionate emotions. Album: Terra Concreta Artist: Afonso Pais Release date: April 2015 Number of tracks: 11 Editor: Afonso Pais

Felix Laband is from Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu-Natal, a province of South Africa. He experienced music for the first time when he was a teenager, starting with playing a guitar and then forming punk bands. When he moved to Durban he was brought to electronic music so he started experimenting something new. Thin Shoes in June, from 2001, was his debut album, followed by 4/4 Down The Stairs, from 2002, and Dark Days Exit, form 2005, released through Compost Records. Over the last fifteen year Felix Laband has been performing in live music festivals as well as some club scene worldwide. Deaf Safari, under Compost Records label, is Felix Laband fourth full-length album, gathering 9 tracks filled with a balanced organic vibe. The musician says that his “influences on this album lie mostly with local Kwaito house.” So the 90’s music genre from Johannesburg played a most influential role composing this album alongside American Roots. But as he said “Deaf Safari is an experimental within certain boundaries of the 4/4 genre, to create my own South African ‘house’ album”. We simply loved the whole and track Ding Dong Thing it is just of one those good things. Album: Deaf Safari Artist: Felix Laband Release date: May 2015 Number of Tracks: 9 Editor: Compost Records