Design
March 7, 2011
By Randall Braaksma
Bill Stumpf, who would have turned 75 on March 1, wouldn’t have cared. He’d have loved it that a design student at his alma mater, UW-Madison, used reclaimed barn wood to recreate the Aeron chair he and Don Chadwick designed.
The student’s inspiration came in part from the traveling exhibit Good Design: Stories from Herman Miller. It’s now at the Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, Wisconsin, and will be there until April 3.
A whole group of UW grad and undergraduate students are looking to the exhibit for inspiration. They’re focusing on the design process and how finished works suit the human body. Something Herman Miller knows a thing or two about.
One student looked at Alexander Girard fabrics and designed a coffee table from wood pieces formed to reflect one of his patterns. One design includes collapsed fabric and raises to become the Eames molded plywood chair.
Take inspiration from everything is the creative person’s mantra. And we love it when creatives take it from us.
Photo 1: Chris Reinstad, Aeron Chair Organic Oak, 2010
Photo 2: Emily Rich, Perception, 2010
Photo 3: Heather McCalla, LCF (Lounge Chair Fabric), 2010
Design
March 2, 2011
By Kate Convissor
Daniel Korb has a penchant for simplicity, which is evident in the design of products like Herman Miller’s Sense Desking System. He began his studies in interior design, and he began his professional career with the architectural firm, Zinsmeister and Scheffler, and later migrated to furniture design, all of which provides what he considers a necessary “holistic view of the world.”
His firm, Korb + Korb, which he runs with his architect wife, Susan, reflects that holistic view. Based in Baden, Switzerland, the firm operates at the intersection of architecture, design, and communication, finding creativity and inspiration in the mix. That holistic blend must be fertile ground if Korb + Korb’s impressive list of projects and awards, which include several international awards for the Sense system, are any indication.
Here are seven questions for Daniel Korb:
1. What are you working on right now?
Actually, I’m working on different projects, but my main goal is to understand what I’m really after. Since I’ve worked for more than 25 years as an architect and designer I’m asking myself, What do you really want to achieve? Therefore, I started my own project to determine what does really matter [in the design of a building].
Just as a doctor is responsible for his patient, an architect and designer is responsible for his product and what it means for his customer. To add value is key for me. This could be very basic like choosing the right color for a wall or selecting the right material for a product. I do not only want to facilitate the way people meet, but also I would like to add a certain quality to the space in which they meet and a quality to the furniture involved. We know that a good space can inspire us, and I want to refocus myself on how this quality might be achieved.
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