Brit Insurance Product Award 2011: Plumen 001, Hulger & Samuel Wilkinson
Opening this week at the Design Museum in London is The Brit Insurance Designs of the Year. All design categories are represented from graphics, architecture, product, interactive, fashion, furniture and transport. The exhibition is divided into loose themes: Home, Share, Play, City and Learn. Included in this post are a few category winners and on March 15, one product/project will be selected as Design of the Year. The exhibition will be on view until August 7, 2011.
Brit Insurance Product Award 2011: Plumen 001, Hulger & Samuel Wilkinson
Plumen 001 is the world’s first designer lightbulb. Designed by Samuel Wilkinson and Hulger, the lightbulb is formed of two interwoven glass tubes that curve organically thus creating a new silhouette from every angle. Using 80% less energy and lasting approximately 8 times longer than a typical incandescent bulb, Plumen aims to be sold as a economical design object, challenging the established archetype of an economical bulb.
Brit Insurance Furniture Award 2011: Branca, Industrial Facility, Italy.
The Branca chair, designed by Industrial Facility and manufactured by Italian brothers Mattiazzi was intended to look familiar to the eye. Mimicking the natural growth patterns of twigs and branches, the Branca backrest and armrests seem to grow seamlessly from just one piece of wood. Carved robotically with work overseen by expert craftsmen at the Mattiazzi factory in Italy, the Branca chair complies to all modern expectations, light enough to carry, easy enough to stack and transport.
Architecture Award Winner 2011: Open Air Library, KARO Architekten Germany
The development of the Open Air Library began five years ago when the community of Magdeburg staged an intervention in an abandoned district that formally housed a public library. A 1:1 scale model was developed using beer crates and overwhelming pubic support was shown with book donations that totalled more than 20,000. Occupying a central outdoor space, the Open Air Library operates a trusting open shelves policy where residents are free to borrow books 24 hours a day.
Architecture Award Winner 2011: Open Air Library, KARO Architekten Germany
Excerpts in this post from Design Museum.
