Karim Rashid - Nutopia

 

Yesterday I had a day off but today I'm back to business. To start the day in a stylish way, I'm going to post a few picutres of Nutopia - the shampoo unit designed by Karim Rashid for Ayala, from the recent arena design fair. Imagine you're at the hairdresser, you are sat in the chair and somone washes your hair - the arch of light above your head, the music coming from the speakers... I'd definitely choose that salon over any other. Check out rest of the pics after the break!

Clocks by AT Design

Do you like the classic clocks by George Nelson? You might like these as well. They were made by AT Design (their website is yet to come) and the whole trick is that the colourful pieces can be moved on the clock as they have a magnetic tape underneath.

Wyborowa Packaging by Frank Gehry

During the press conference organised by arena design hosts, Karim Rashid and the fair organisers discussed the possibilities od developing the design industry in Poland. One of the aspects they discussed was the fact, that there is virtually no Polish brand recognized widely in the world. How can that be in a country of almost 40 milion people? The only brand that pops in mind when you think of Poland is the Wyborowa vodka, even though it does not belong to a Polish company anymore (now owned by French company Pernod Ricard).

Wyborowa is part of the super premium vodka market, which is a strategy the producers took to introduce new alcohol into the american market, already filled with a wide selection of vodkas from Russia. That actually seems strange and surprising to the Poles, as Wyborowa is not the most expensive vodka in Poland, nor it is the best one. Anyways, it is also one of few Polish brands that decided to invest in design. Their latest realese - Wyborowa Exquisite - comes in a bottle designed by Frank Gehry himself. As much as I admire the design, I am a little sad that Poland is only recognized for that one brand.

The Wyborowa Single Estate bottle was conceived by Frank Gehry, one of our greatest living architects and famous for outstanding structures such as the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao and the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. Frank Gehry is of Polish descent and for this reason was the only designer considered for this project.The bottle design conveys a fusion of the Polish heritage & contemporary sophistication and mirrors the beauty and exquisite quality of Wyborowa Single Estate. (polandforall)

Babees Honey

Hello and welcome back to our daily design updates! I am back from Poznań and arena design and both my head and camera are full of incredible pictures of the best Polish design. I need to unpack and get organised first though, so for now I'm going to leave you with another example of great package design by Ah&Oh Studio - their babees honey. I think it's pretty delicious.

Patka Smirnow - Eco Bags

My visit at arena design in Poznan is a fruitful one and I'm truly delighted to be here. The fair was opened by Karim Rashid, as I mentioned earlier on this week, and I have to tell you a few words about his lecture, but I need to come back home first and get hold of my own computer (rather than my brother's). Polish designers featured at arena design will pop up at the site for sure in the upcoming weeks so do come back to see it!

For now I'm going to leave you with another Polish designer, Patrycja Smirnow, also known as Patka Smirnow, who creates amazing hand bags out of used plastic bags. I was going to buy one of them at the recent Etnodizajn festival in Krakow, but unfortunately run out of money minutes before I reached Patka's stall. I'll make it up to myself next time I get to see her work!

Ouzo Package Design by Mousegraphics

Today I'm in Poznań at arena design 2010. I am looking forward to seeing all the best that Polish design has to offer. Obviously I will keep you up to date and publish some photos next week, once I return. So as not to leave you without any inspiration today, here's the latest package design in the portfolio of one of my favourite graphic studios in Europe - Mousegraphics from Greece. This time for the Greek speciality - ouzo. Raise your glasses and bottoms up!

Jakub Sobiepanek - Souvenir From Poland

Since I live in Krakow, which is definitely the Polish capital of tourism, I am constantly exposed to kitschy souvenirs sold all over the town. It always strikes me how ugly everything is and how rarely do you see anything classy in that department. At the recent Ethnodesign fair hosted in Krakow I have spotted something completely different. Souvenir concept by Jakub Sobiepanek - miniature chair, to be self assembled, representing traditional polish folk design (I think from Podhale, but I can't be sure. I'll get back to you with that). I wanted to buy it at the spot, but the idea isn't being produced yet. Looking forward to seeing it in the tourist souvenirs stalls!

Gravika Jewellery

Today I came to work with a big suitcase and as soon as I finish my hours, I'm off to Poznań for one of the biggest desing fairs in Poland - arena design 2010. It is opened tomorrow at noon by Karim Rashid himself and is followed by four days of shows and lectures by the best Polish designers. For now - some beautiful jewellery I saw at the last design fair in Krakow by Gravika.

Ah&Oh Studio for E.Wedel

I am always thrilled to see Polish graphic studios create something classy and worth showing in the world, especially when it comes to package design. It seems to me that the Polish market isn't quite ready to showcase minimalistic and stylish packaging on a large scale, but there's few producers who can push the graphic studios to come up with beautiful designs. One of them is E.Wedel, most renowned chocolate manufacturer, working with Warsaw based Ah&Oh Studio. Continue reading after the break to see the rest of their projects for Wedel published at Behance.

Packaging design for chocolate lounges co-owned by the biggest chocolate manufacturer in Poland E. Wedel, which is also one of the oldest and most recognizable polish brands. Our aim was to design series of packaging for several gourmet products, which were to be sold exclusively in E. Wedel Pijalnie Czekolady (chocolate lounges). Among them were hand-made chocolates, pralines, cookies, florentines and traditonal hot chocolate for self-preparation. Our first ideas dealed with the great company tradition but remixed in modern way. None the less further designs went in more conventional but still tasty direction.

Karim Rashid in Poland

This week I am going to be a little bit busy. Mostly beacause I'm setting off to Poznań for the design expo ARENA DESIGN, featuring best designers in Poland. This year the show has an extra treat for those attending - opening speach by Karim Rashid himself. I don't think I need to introduce Karim to anyone, who's interested in design, however I will show his latest work sometime soon, to build up the expectations.
I, myself, can't wait!

This year's show will be opened by one of the most creative and appreciated designers of this generation. Karim Rashid, the author of over 3,000 designs in mass production and the winner of over 300 awards has prepared a special presentation for arena DESIGN. It is entitled: "Design changes the world". The design legend will answer the participants' questions directly after the lecture and at a press conference.