The last thing designer Marcel Wanders wants to be is boring. “There’s enough of that in life,” he says. “I’m interested in designing things that excite people and make them feel alive.” With a chair made out of knots and a chandelier called Happy Hour in his portfolio, Wanders is certainly on the right track.

For the Troy Chair, designed for Magis, Wanders created an intricate pattern inspired by the lush motifs of damask fabrics. The pattern, molded into the back of the chair’s plywood seat, imparts the modern profile with a romantic sensibility. The result is elegant, and, explains Wanders, a “lovely balance between new and old.”

Wanders’ prolific body of work, ranging from fashion accessories to lavish hotels, is represented in museums around the world, including the Museums of Modern Art in both New York and San Francisco and the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam.

A photo from "Bivouac," a traveling exhibtion of the Bouroullecs' design work.

A photo from "Bivouac," a traveling exhibtion of the Bouroullecs' design work.

A photo from "Bivouac," a traveling exhibtion of the Bouroullecs' design work.

For nearly 20 years, the Bouroullec bothers, Ronan and Erwan, have been partners in design. Working side by side, the two siblings have developed a close relationship that influences their approach to design. “We discuss everything openly and honestly with each other,” explains Erwan, “that’s important because often creativity does not come from a rational point of view but an emotional one.” Designs that balance problem solving with innovation and production process—the Steelwood Chair being a good example—are typical of the brothers’ work and proof that their approach works well.

An exhibition of Bouroullec designs is currently at The Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. The show is entitled Bivouac—a word meaning a lightweight shelter that can be adapted to its environment—an apt metaphor for a traveling exhibition which immerses people in all aspects of the brothers’ designs, including sketches, prototypes, and objects large and small.

Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec: Bivouac will be showing at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago until January 20, 2013. Learn more here.

Thomas Heatherwick’s approach to design is reminiscent of Charles and Ray Eames and their focus on “serious fun.”

His design for Spun—a chair shaped like a spinning top that tilts and turns with the sitter’s movement—is emblematic of the fanciful yet functional designs in London-based architect and designer Thomas Heatherwick’s portfolio: the Olympic Cauldron at the 2012 London games, a double decker bus, also for London, and Hong Kong’s Sheung Wan Hotel.

When asked to design a structure for the UK Pavilion at the 2010 Shanghai Expo, Heatherwick created the Seed Cathedral—sixty thousand fiber-optic “hairs” protruding from a circular steel and timber composite structure. While some consider the structure—which looks like a giant, glowing hedgehog—simply another example of Heatherwick’s whimsical approach to design, the artist is quick to point out that the piece is actually quite serious.

“Is my studio’s work playful or is everyone else’s work too serious?” says Heatherwick in an interview with Architectural Digest. “And actually, Seed Cathedral was serious. With 60,000 varieties of seeds, it was the most biodiverse thing in Shanghai, or the whole region.”

Considering Heatherwick’s belief that good design strikes a balance between gravity and levity, it’s little wonder that Spun challenges the traditional notion of a chair and turns sitting into an experience.

In the 1950’s George Nelson characterized the ultimate office environment as “a daytime living room where work can be done under less tension with fewer distractions.” Today we work whenever and wherever we are most comfortable—Nelson’s goal is closer to reality than ever before.

Recognizing this, Herman Miller introduces the Herman Miller Collection. The Collection offers you the ability to select, furnish, and create complete environments in myriad settings—from the boardroom to the backyard. We believe that design goes much deeper than styling. Each piece in the Collection represents a solution that is as purposeful as it is beautiful.

The idea of the Collection is not entirely new. In his introduction to our 1948 catalog George Nelson wrote of “the continuing creation of a permanent collection designed to meet fully the requirements for modern living.” Nelson established a program and a philosophy for the Collection that allows us to continue it today.

The Collection began with classic pieces from Herman Miller’s archives that have stood the test of time. We then added complementary furnishings from our partners, such as Magis and Mattiazzi. And most importantly, we are developing new furniture and accessories with today’s most talented designers. These pieces will stand as a living demonstration of our design philosophy, bridging Herman Miller’s past, present, and future.

Interior Design: Why did you become a designer?
Because I love building things. When I was 19 years old, I did an apprenticeship for a cabinetmaker and I became intrigued. I discovered that I could create or rethink the things I built. I enrolled at the RCA (Royal Academy of Arts) in London.

What does design mean to you?
That’s an impossible question. You could write a book or say something really stupid.

What do you most like to design?
The physical scale of furniture attracts me. It’s what I’m good at. And it’s what I really like.

Where do you get inspiration?
KG: It comes from everywhere—from daily life.

Visit Interior Design for the rest of Grcic’s answers.

The meaning of Magis—”more than”—captures the Italian company’s approach to design and manufacturing. “We add to Herman Miller because we are complementare, complementary,” explains Alberto Perazza, Co-Managing Director of Magis. “Even a world apart, we do the business of design in similar ways. Both companies have many and continuing collaborations with the greatest world designers.”

Much like Herman Miller, Magis employs innovative processes that maximize performance, while minimizing volume of material, energy use, and environmental impact.

The names of Grcic, Morrison, and Fukasawa join the ranks of Eames, Nelson, and Stumpf, as Herman Miller is now the exclusive distributor of Magis products in the U.S. and Canada.

Learn more about Magis designers.

Check out the HermanMiller Store for more details.

The idea of the Herman Miller Collection is not entirely new. In his introduction to our 1952 catalog, George Nelson wrote of “the continuing creation of a permanent collection designed to meet fully the requirements for modern living.” Nelson established a program and a philosophy for the Collection that allows us to continue it today.

The Collection began with classic pieces from the Herman Miller’s archives that have stood the test of the time. We then added complementary furnishings from our partners, such as Magis and Mattiazzi. Most importantly, we are developing new designs with today’s most talented designers. Each piece will present a solution that is as purposeful as it is beautiful.

The Herman Miller Collection will preview at Art Basel Miami Beach, where we are the exclusive furniture sponsor. More to come in Spring 2012.

In search of an affordable alternative to plastic, designers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec landed upon two common materials—steel and wood—for their aptly named Steelwood chair produced by Magis.

Utilizing the metal stamping and bending processes used to shape classic European cars, the brothers were able to create the gentle refinement they desired. The steel and wood components slowly develop a patina of use, giving the chair a character that changes with time.

Checkout the slideshow to see how a flat sheet of steel is transformed into the frame of the Steelwood chair.

For designers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, “creativity does not come from a rational point of view but an emotional one. Design is about finding a certain balance or character when you are looking for solutions to problems that are difficult to solve.”

The Bouroullec’s intention when designing the Steelwood furniture group for Magis, was to find an affordable alternative to plastic, “We needed to reduce the complexity of wood assembling, so we kept our design simple,” says Ronan. Something that said, “’I am a well-constructed, beautiful object, one that will last a long time, and will grow old quite nicely with you.’ Not just something people use, but are happy to have around them.”

Their approach to the Osso chair for Mattiazzi, “…was to let the sensuality of the wood express itself,” says Erwan. “The chair invites people to touch or even caress it, as it is extremely sculpted and polished.”

Brothers, the Paris-based Bouroullecs have been partners in design since the 1990s. Together they have collaborated with companies around the world. Their designs are also part of many international museum collections including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Design Museum in London, and the Musée National d’Art Moderne in Paris.

Design is so busy solving problems that we sometimes forget that it’s OK to have fun with it. That certainly isn’t the case with Spun, a design whose sole purpose seems to be bringing smiles to the faces of everyone that sits in it.

Designed by Heatherwick Studio, Spun it looks more like a children’s top than a chair when upright. But lay it on it’s side and Spun becomes a comfortable chair that lets the sitter rock side to side—and best of all—spin around, and around, and around.

Check out the video we made the day Spun arrived at Herman Miller. Enjoy the smiles as people experience it for the first time.

Want to try it yourself? Follow this link to find a Herman Miller retailer near you.

Designer Naoto Fukasawa believes that designers, “don’t think to design the ‘ordinary.’” Normal is too boring. His approach to design is to not overthink an idea, because when we do, “our actions become awkward.”

The Déjà-vu family designed for Magis proves Fukasawa’s contention that “normal” should be anything but boring. Composed of a chair, stool, and table, Déjà-vu feels familiar. A trait that helped earn the Déjá-vu chair an Interior Innovation Award in 2007, and a 2008 nomination for the Designpreis der Bundesrepublik in Germany.

Based in Japan, Fukasawa and his studio design for companies around the global, including Artemide, Boffi, MUJI, and his own electronics brand ±0. He also teaches or lectures at several prestigious Japanese universities.

Nitzan Cohen loves furniture, especially chairs. “They relate most to the body; there is a constant relationship to people, and there really are no boundaries when designing it,” he says. After years of designing with Konstantin Grcic Industrial Design, Cohen established his own multi-disciplinary studio, with clients including BMW-Group, Diesel, Mattiazzi, and Bree.

When Mattiazzi first approached him about designing a new chair, he began with lots of questions: “What will the character of this chair be, will it be ‘loud’ or more timid? You have to find its DNA.”

Perhaps the result surprised even him: two versions of the same chair: He Said/She Said. “I thought about the classic café scenario: girl meets boy, boy meets girl, sitting on two chairs at a small round table; he says something, she says something…and I named it with that in mind.”

According to architect and designer Stefano Giovannoni, the most important influence of his life was attending the University of Florence during the late 1970s. “That was where the concept of ‘radical architecture’ was born, which created a whole new language and way of expression in Italian design,” he says. It was a movement that threw out all the rules, resulting in a new vision.

This vision, combined with ingenuity, has helped Giovannoni design some of the most commercially successful products in the world, including the successful Girotondo and Mami lines of household products for Alessi.

Giovannoni’s work for Magis, such as the Bombo Stool, Paso Doble Family, and Chair First exemplify his innovative use of materials and original thinking. Chair First, for example, was the first three-dimensional plastic chair created through gas injected air molding. While the Bombo Stool was so futuristic it appeared in the TV series “Star Trek: Enterprise” and “Star Trek: Voyager.”

Giovannoni’s Bombo Stool was so futuristic set designers chose it for the TV series “Star Trek: Enterprise” and “Star Trek: Voyager.” Down on earth, his work can also be seen in major museums throughout the world.

One of today’s most influential industrial designers, Jasper Morrison is known for his minimalist approach. Throughout his prolific career, he has strived to create simple but functional beauty in everyday objects, from door handles to trays to wristwatches to chairs. He was a pioneer in using gas-injection technology for furniture; the Air Chair he designed for Magis was one of the very first times it had ever been used for that purpose.

“It represented a big shift in the quality of the one-piece plastic chair,” he says. “Previously, plastic chairs were only possible with single wall thicknesses and reinforcing ribs. The gas-injection technology allowed for continuously smooth surfaces.”

Morrison has been featured in many magazines, and he has published several books on the subject of design. His work has been shown in many international museums, and his retail shop in London carries hundreds of well-designed household items from around the world.

The work of Konstantin Grcic is known for its logical thought process, honesty of materials, and respect for production methods. His partnership with Magis led to one of the most interesting and inventive chairs ever created: Chair_One. “This was a wonderful project to work on,” says Grcic, admitting that his relative youth (and naïveté) led him down unexplored pathways with eyes wide open.

“This was possibly the first time ever that such a large die-cast was used for making a chair,” he explains. “It involved a lot of heavy tooling. I decided to break up surfaces into thin sections like branches and let the material flow through the mold to create the shape, which is kind of like a basket or a grid, and very three-dimensional.”

Chair_One now resides in the permanent collections of many prestigious museums including MoMA in New York and Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris. It joins other Grcic pieces in museum permanent collection, including his Mayday Lamp, produced for Flos in 1999.

Featuring tables and chairs by Magis, our new Italian alliance partner, alongside powered Geiger Peer tables and Herman Miller Classics by Eames and Nelson, the lounge will take care of you—no matter what you need to get done.

Two companies, almost a world apart–Herman Miller based in North America and Magis in Italy–share a similar approach to design.

“Both companies have many and continuing collaborations with the greatest world designers,” explains Alberto Perazza, Co-Managing Director of Magis. Like Herman Miller, Magis believes in authored design, working with outside creative partners who provoke them toward something truly new.

It makes sense that the two companies should partner, placing such design icons as the Bombo Stool by Stefano Giovannoni and Konstantin Grcic’s Chair_One alongside Yves Behar’s SAYL chair and Setu by Studio 7.5. As of September 1, 2011, Herman Miller will be the exclusive distributor of Magis products in the U.S. and Canada.

Here are seven questions for Brian Kane:

1. What are you working on right now?

My current projects include the completion of the Swoop lounge area concept. Other elements are needed, such as café stools and tables, lighting, privacy screens, technology cabinets—all the things required to supply the needs of this ‘working lounge’ collaborative environment.

2. Which of your projects are you most proud of?

For sure, the Swoop collection for Herman Miller. Watching the way people act in public spaces and providing a whole-room solution for that environment was a great design problem—and I’m very happy with the final design.

I’m also proud to have my Landscape Forms’ bench solutions all over the streets of New York City and San Francisco.

3. What inspires you? Where do you go for inspiration?

Traveling. Going to cities. Their architecture, their public spaces, their energy, their museums all inspire me.

Building things—I guess I like immediate gratification!

4. What work do you most admire by another designer or artist?

The Italian design explosion of the late 1970s and 80s. That passion and creativity led to the development of so many great products. The works of Mario Bellini and Vico Magistretti really had an impact on me. LeBambole and Sinbad to be specific.

My other heroes are all minimalists: Le Corbusier, Charles and Ray Eames, Deiter Rams, Antonio Citterio, Jasper Morrison.

5. What would be your dream project?

I’ve always done my best to use innovative green materials in my designs. I’d like to continue this effort—finding new materials and manufacturers that are willing to innovate.

Another dream project would be to offer my design services (no fee) to some non-profit organization that needs my design talents. Possibly this blog will put someone in touch with me.

6. What place in the world would you most like to visit?

My fascination with travel keeps taking me to different parts of Italy. We lived in Milan in the 70s, and I have never been able to get enough of it.

7. What one thing do you want to accomplish before you die?

I’m working on this one!