For "Homage to Venice" Andromeda has created a "meditation in light"
First edition of the initiative to conserve the artistic heritage of Venice with the support of important luxury brands who have dedicated special editions of their products to the city.
To mark the Homage to Venice initiative to raise funds for the restoration of the Venetian’s artistic and architectural heritage, Andromeda has created a Meditation in Light, a vibrant example of the artistic abilities and top class workmanship of the Murano company. Known as Pulse, it is both a work of art and an interior design accessory. Made entirely by hand in a limited edition of 31 pieces, Pulse is a flow of tension, an explosion of light, a meditation of extraordinary aesthetic compactness. The design is by Massimo Bernardi. Each piece is numbered and marked with the Venice logo silk screened on the glass.
Homage to Venice is a Venice City Council initiative with the objective of raising funds to safeguard the city's artistic heritage and serve as a shop window for the products with the most exclusive and representative quality and appearance. The first edition saw the participation, as well as Andromeda, of some of Italy's best known and most appreciated companies: Alessi, Bliss, Damiani, Loro Piana, Missoni, Nonino, Tod’s and Trussardi. Each company has created a limited edition product, a percentage of whose sales will be donated to Venice City Council to fund the restoration of an important Venetian work of art. "For Andromeda, it was a great honour to be chosen to take part in this initiative" commented Gianluca Vecchi, Chairman of Andromeda, "partly because as Venetians, we can contribute to conserving our city, and also because it represents recognition of the value of our work in the world of luxury, seeking out innovative aesthetic concepts. It is also a great responsibility to represent the entire sector of Murano glass and be identified as part of the vision for its future.” [ read more ] »
Andromeda International - Web site »

Designed for success: Spatial Design course is tops for graduate employability
96% of Spatial Design students graduating from UCF’s BA(Hons) Spatial Design in 2005/06 secured employment in the design world. In the highly competitive world of design this is an enviable employability rate both for the College and for potential future employers. 22 of the 23 Spatial Design graduates secured jobs as Architectural Assistants, Interior Designers, Exhibition Designers, Landscape Designers, Film Set Designers, Teachers, Animators, Visualizers and other design-related posts. The design projects worked on include: major planning and regeneration projects across the country (including the regeneration of Blackpool promenade), working as part of a team for promotional videos for the London Olympics, working on the design of retail outlets for Heathrow Terminal 5, exhibition design for multi-national companies and designing promotional material for UCF. One of the most important attributes required by .. [ read more ] »
University College Falmouth - Web site »

Radi Design, Inc. wins honors in American Corporate Identity 23 competition
Beverly Hills, CA — Radi Design, Inc., an integrated product design studio headquartered in Beverly Hills, CA, announced today that it is a winner in the American Corporate Identity 23 competition for the corporate identity created for Polar Delight, LLC, a private venture in Los Angeles. The logo will be published in American Corporate Identity 2008, due in bookstores November 2007. “Our company helps clients at crucial stages in their product and brand development. We put a lot of energy into creating product designs and identity that reflect our clients' business objectives, as well as their corporate personality, with the ultimate goal of achieving commercial success,” said Robert Radi, principal of Radi Design, Inc. “This award is an honor."
The American Corporate Identity competition recognizes the best corporate identity work in the country. This year, hundreds of design professionals submitted work in fourteen categories to the juried competition. It is the only annual national competition devoted specifically to corporate identity as a foundation to brand development. In its 23rd year, the American Corporate Identity publication has become one of the top design annuals in the world and is distributed internationally by HarperCollins.
[ read more ] »
Radi Design - Web site »

Maòli, brand for a collection of exclusive furnishings and accessories devised in Italy but arising from the influence of far-off countries as regards culture and traditions, has inaugurated a new season of collaborations with outside designers. It will present the first result from this in Milan on the occasion of the next Salone del Mobile fair. It will in fact show WALKING FAMILY - a series composed of three heartwood elements designed by Alessandro Loschiavo, which seem to bear the fascination of the African continent. Here we have two consoles and a small low table conceived as if they were members of a zoomorphic family with the imperturbable attitude of certain creatures that inhabit the Savannah. The individual elements all follow the same compositional idea: four identical S-shaped legs are fixed to the four corners of the surface in pairs but in opposite directions so as to recall a movement similar to that of a walking quadruped. However the achieved configuration is not of the naturalistic kind. The effect is rather one of a family of surrealistic objects, having a sinuous and elegant advancement, appearing to be setting off within the space despite the forces of gravity.
Moreover, the Walking Family project reveals a study on cutting waste to the absolute Minimum while working the heartwood. A material now very rarely used in the mass production of furnishing items, in this case it results in being even more precious thanks to the choice of particularly attractive and valuable native essences like Mahogany, Rosewood and Ebony (the last one version will be available to order only). The four legs are in fact so designed as to be able to be carved out, flanking each other, from a single slab, without generating shavings or chips.
The Walking Family will be presented in the form of a fascinating installation carried out at the Transito di Urano gallery of Milan (opening on Monday the 16th of April at 6,00 pm).
Alessandro Loschiavo - Web site »
Maòli - Web site »
Cosmit - Salone Internazionale del Mobile - Web site »

New design firm with revolutionary lighting product that brings the sun into your arms
Boulder, Colorado (March 2007) – The first product launched by Diana Lin Design LLC is REi Huggable™ – a huggable lighting pillow. It won the bronze prize for the 18th Koizumi International Lighting design competition in 2005. REi Huggable™ has also been published in numerous international magazines and design blogs. The inspiration of the REi Huggable™ design is of sunlight. The comforting rays of the sun are shared by people around the world. It is the essence of people’s everyday lives. Sunlight not only represents warmth and light, it also creates happiness, joyfulness, playfulness, intimacy and life. However, people often take this for granted, missing the sunlight only when it is unavailable. The concept is to create a light that captures the essences of sunlight as a reminder, condensing it into something that people can create a close relationship with. The word REi, of REi Huggable™, comes from the sound of the word ray as the ray of sunlight. The word also promotes RE-inspiration from the sun. REi Huggable™ is constructed of a furry pillow cover wrapped around a series of LED lights embedded within silicone bubbles. The idea is to use the properties of the silicone material to act as a diffuser for the LED lights. The silicone’s natural material color is translucent white and when lit with warm white LED lamp, it creates a very warm and comforting glow that represents the sunlight. The tactic material of silicone mimics that of a living creature that almost hugs back at you as you hold it; as well as its ability to absorb body heat, allowing it to be warm to the touch. The shape and material for the lighting pillow cover encourages people to touch, hold and bond with REi Huggable™. [ read more ] »
Diana Lin Design - Web site »

DWR is hosting MODERN + DESIGN + FUNCTION: Chicago Furniture Now to support new, innovative furniture designs by emerging Chicago designers. In its third year, the contest has attracted the attention of the regional design community. Chicago Furniture Now was created to foster new ideas in modern furniture design in the Chicago area. A panel of judges made up of respected professionals in architecture, art, design and fashion will select 20-25 top entries to be exhibited, making this a great opportunity for up-and-coming designers and design firms to have their original work juried. Please review the application [pdf] and the complete rules. Application deadline: Friday, January 12, 2007, 7pm. 20-25 top entries will be exhibited Thursday, February 15, 2007, 6:30-9:30pm.