CMAG #4

CORPORATE CULTURE MAGAZINE #4 ALIAS CAPPELLINI CASSINA MATER POLTRONA FRAU ADAM GOODRUM CECILIE MANZ

contents 04

Corporate Culture’s Managing Director, Richard Munao, tells Guy Allenby the story behind the birth of the company’s new sister brand, Cult.

CORPORATE CULTURE Executive Editor: Richard Munao Coordinating Editor: Lauren Ellis-Black corporateculture.com.au info@corporateculture.com.au

2

06

Cult’s emergence has been driven by both structural shifts in the design world and an alliance with the premier furniture group Poltrona Frau.

10

What does it take to produce world-beating Italian design? Guy Allenby discovers that Cassina’s secret is an approach that synthesises traditional craft and industrial know-how.

INDESIGN PUBLISHING Managing Editor: Paul McGillick Editor: Guy Allenby Contributing Writers: Penny Craswell, Mandi Keighran Operations Manager: Adele Troeger Production Coordinator: Sarah Djemal Designer: Lauren Mickan Published by Indesign Publishing Publisher: Raj Nandan Level 1, 50 Marshall Street

12

It wasn’t until Guilio Cappellini took control of the family furniture business that it blossomed into the courageous, creative and cutting-edge brand that it is today.

Surry Hills NSW 2010 Printed in Singapore. © Corporate Culture CORPORATE CULTURE showrooms: Sydney 21–23 Levey Street Chippendale NSW 2008 T. +61 2 9690 0077 F. +61 2 9690 0099 info@corporateculture.com.au

14

Italian design company Alias bases its success on an open-minded approach to new materials and technology and an intimate involvement with the design process every step of the way.

Melbourne 31–35 Flinders Lane Melbourne VIC 3000 T. +61 3 9654 8522 F. +61 3 9654 5722 melb@corporateculture.com.au Brisbane 925 Ann Street Fortitude Valley QLD 4006 T. +61 7 3852 4220 F. +61 7 3852 3592 bris@corporateculture.com.au

15

Born of potter parents, one of Danish design’s most accomplished daughters has a primary interest in beauty, form and elegance, finds Penny Craswell.

18

In a world awash with ‘green’ products and services, writes Mandi Keighran, there’s one Danish company determined to stick to its clear vision of what ethical design should be.

20

When Adam Goodrum designed the ‘Stitch’ chair as a student project at university, little did he know that it would be picked up by leading manufacturer Cappellini.

Paul McGillick reports.

New Zealand 73 The Strand Parnell Auckland NZ 1010 T. +64 9 379 4466 info@corporateculturenz.co.nz

Designcraft Cnr Monaro Highway and Sheppard Street, Hume ACT 2620 T. +61 2 6290 4900 info@designcraft.net.au

DISTRIBUTORS: Aptos Cruz Galleries 147 Mt Barker Road Stirling SA 5152 T. +61 8 8370 9011 info@aptoscruz.com

Design Farm 1000 Hay Street Perth WA 6000 T. +61 8 9322 2200 info@designfarm.com.au

22

Eight design professionals, including architect Glenn Murcutt, reveal their favourite chairs – from the innovative to the iconic – in Cult and Corporate Culture’s huge collection.

Corporate Culture and Indesign Publishing hereby disclaim, to the full extent permitted by law, all liability, damages, costs and expenses whatsoever arising from or in connection with copy information or other material appearing in this publication, or any negligence of the publisher, or any person’s actions in reliance thereon. Inclusion of any copy information or other material must not be taken as an endorsement by Corporate Culture. Views expressed by contributors are personal views and are not necessarily endorsed by Corporate Culture or the publisher.

3

Cult Status

Is it really possible to capture the quintessence of a new direction in a brand? Richard Munao tells Guy Allenby how a fresh and exciting entity has blossomed organically to enrich his existing business.

It’s funny how some of the very best ideas seem so obvious in retrospect.

Although it had become blatently clear in recent times that Corporate Culture’s direction had shifted to such a degree that it needed a sister brand to handle the company’s burgeoning residential operations, it wasn’t immediately obvious how it best be done.

The central challenge was capturing a distinct but parallel philosophy without diluting the ethos of the whole enterprise. Little did they know the answer was already lurking unnoticed, quite literally, in the “culture” element of its existing handle.

“First we went to a number of different branding people,” says Managing Director Richard Munao. “The name Corporate Culture had come naturally but our main concern was how to create something that doesn’t conflict with it.”

4

The most creative brains in the branding business came back with some excellent ideas but none

gested ‘Cult’ as a name. Another staff member then went home – completely out of his initiative – and mocked up a “stamp” using a blade and a piece of lino.

He took the “Cult” out of “Culture” and repeated it, hand cut, in the same font. Perfect.

Cult captured the essence of what they hoped to convey – something popular yet edgy and with a host of potential new devotees.

“I’d had the graphic designers in and I’d had the brand experts in,” says Munao, “but I’ve always been a believer in growing people from within – so what’s wrong with growing a brand from within?

that “really appealed”, remembers Munao. Nothing, it seems – despite a complex and exhaustive briefing process – quite captured the requisite directness and simplicity, balanced with the depth and meaning, they were looking for.

“And really, how can you explain 12 years of feeling in a discussion with a branding company and expect them to go away and design something and then tell you what the brand should be?”

The end result has been carefully honed and nuanced since, but it’s significant that the core idea sprang from the shop floor.

“We’ve always tried to communicate the things that we’ve learned”

“In the last two years, what we’ve been trying to do is get a following for our brand and our design philosophy,” says Munao. “We’ve always tried to communicate the things that we’ve learned and not just keep them to ourselves. We’ve been taken on a journey and we want to take people on that same journey.”

Corporate Culture has always been an organisation that has “always had a creative team,” says Munao.

It also has a very strong sense of its own personality and is a place that has bred passion and loyalty in its staff. “No-one has come to me from a sales background,” he adds. “Most of my people are design driven.”

And now with Cult, the plan is to offer a parallel journey – one with the consistency, reliability, depth and breadth of service that has always been offered to trade and contract clients up until now – only this time to clients looking for designer furniture and accessories for their homes.

Perhaps it’s hardly surprising then that, out of the blue, one of the Corporate Culture sales team sug-

“We want to create a following,” says Munao.

A cult following.

ThE central challengE was capturing a distinct but parallel philosophy without diluTing the ethos of the enterprise

Left: Corporate Culture’s Managing Director Richard Munao

5

Pillars of Strength Cult is the new second pillar in a thriving enterprise, finds Guy Allenby, and one that is inspired by both fundamental shifts in design and an alliance with the world’s leading high-end furniture group, Poltrona Frau.

Turn back the clock 12 years or more, to a time before Corporate Culture existed, and you discover that the concept of corporate furniture was one that was really only expressed just inside the front door and in the board room. Beyond the corporate façade and the designer armchairs in the reception space were offices that typically consisted of floor-upon-floor of uniformly grey and monotonous workstations.

“We started to realise that we had products that went into both markets”

6

And then things started to shift at corporate design’s cutting edge with the arrival of the “new office” – a place designed to improve communication and efficiency; to better manage change and the fast interchange of ideas in the ever-dynamic information and digital eras; a place to attract and keep the best staff in a given industry. The new office became a more open environment with more easily reconfigured communal spaces and more attractive, more residential-style pieces furnishing these areas.

Increasingly in the last 10 years the office has become a place that has a more informal atmosphere, where longer (but more flexible) hours are worked. It is a place that has contemporary, well-designed virtues, with furniture to match.

And perhaps not surprisingly this has had a huge impact on the tastes of people who work in the new office, much as it has had on Corporate Culture – particularly in recent years.

“I guess about two years into our life, companies like Fritz Hansen approached us and we took on those collections,” remembers Richard Munao, “and we started to realise more and more that we had products that went into both markets.”

Before then corporate and residential markets were two separate entities, but now the aesthetics of the two are becoming increasingly

blurred (although the quantities and logistics of supply remain distinct).

a range of timeless pieces Corporate Culture’s vision has always been to bring the best of local and international designers to the market and – at first – this was a trade market often via design professionals. More recently, however, this has grown to offer more and more to an expanding residential client base.

“We have a fairly strong presence in the architect and design community – people know the Corporate Culture brand – but with the addition of Cappellini, Cassina, Alias and Poltrona Frau; with the furniture and accessories we have added over the last two or three years,” says Munao, “more and more we want people to understand the brand and understand we are more than corporate furniture.”

In other words, the time has arrived to complement the Corporate Culture brand with the launch of Cult – and it’s the sheer quality, diversity and strength of Alias, Cassina, Cappellini and Poltrona Frau that have given Cult’s arrival an irresistible momentum.

Clockwise from far left: ‘Vanity Fair’, Poltrona Frau Historic Collection; ‘Massimosistema’ sofa by Poltrona Frau R+D; ‘Flavia’ bed by Patrick Norguet; ‘Archibald’ armchair

by Jean Marie Massaud

7

pOLtrona frau – the world’s leading highEnd furniture company

All four come under the umbrella of the Poltrona Frau Group, the world’s leading high-end furniture company. The group boasts an extraordinary five per cent worldwide market share.

chairs, storage units, beds, bookshelves, outdoor furniture, wardrobes, objects and accessories. It’s a profound and diverse range of products and our region’s conduit to all this treasure are the twin pillars of Cult and Corporate Culture.

cult’s arrival has an irresistible momentum

It might not be possible to have everything on the shop floor – “if we were to have all the objects we would need a 20-storey building”, explains Richard Munao – but through Cult, Australia and New Zealand have direct and expert access to the world’s best top drawer furniture range via a team of design professionals passionate and intimately acquainted with this extraordinary range of products.

Established in 1912 in Italy, the name Poltrona Frau represents unrivalled excellence, both for residential and contract products in its own name, but also as the parent company for famous gilt-edged brands (including Alias, Cassina and Cappellini – but more of them later).

Poltrona Frau has over 100 designers represented in the group’s catalogues and is distributed in over 65 countries.

The full catalogue stretches from sofas and armchairs, tables and

The Poltrona Frau Group manufactures and markets both classical and contemporary products and incorporates a high degree of handcrafting skills in its products – not to mention an attention to detail that’s second to none, unrivalled quality and the use of only the finest of materials.

The group’s activities are divided into two categories.

The first is the creation, production and distribution of high-end furniture products – for both the home and corporate markets.

This category includes the Poltrona Frau Collection, a range of timeless pieces designed between 1912 and 1934, complemented by an imposing range of contemporary products widely considered as “new classics”.

8

The company conducts its own extensive research and development but also has some long established links with some of the most important names in the design and architecture profession, including Achille Castiglioni, Pierluigi Cerri, Michele De Lucchi, Jean-Marie Massaud, Jean Nouvel, Gio Ponti and Luca Scacchetti.

Clockwise from left: Prada Store, Tokyo, Japan; Prada Store; ‘Interior Quattroporte’ by Masserati; ‘Regina II’ by Paolo Rizzatto; ‘Chester One’, Poltrona Frau Historic Collection

It is important to mention that Poltrona Frau, through its second main division – contract – has developed and created over 2000 furnishing projects alongside architects that have included Norman Foster, Richard Meier and Jean Nouvel.

Poltrona Frau is the world leader in the international contract sector and, in addition to supplying the furnishings, often oversees every one of a project’s interior elements and details: from flooring to window coverings and panelling. Projects have included theatres, airports, cruise liners, restaurants, boutiques (such as Prada Tokyo) and hotels.

Past projects include the European Parliament in Strasbourg and the Italian Stock Exchange in Milan.

Poltrona Frau worked with Frank Gehry on the Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles; with Renzo Piano on the Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome; and on the Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia in Valencia with the Santiago Calatrava Studio.

Corporate Culture’s vision has been to bring the best of local and international designers to the market The other area Poltrona Frau has developed considerable experience over the years is in installing leather interiors (often the seat units and the upholstery). In cars, Poltrona Frau work with Ferrari, Maserati and BMW; in yachts with Cantieri Riva, Azimut and Ferretti; and in aircraft interiors and airport lounges with Qantas, Singapore Airlines, Japan Airlines and Alitalia.

Poltrona Frau is one of the best in the business.

9

Craft and Industry Leading Italian design company, Cassina, has built its name on a potent approach that fuses time-honoured craft with industrial know-how. Guy Allenby reports.

Founded in 1927 by Cesare and Umberto Cassina, the name Cassina is synonymous with Italian design excellence, quality control and an industrial culture that has worked hand-in-hand with the biggest names in the design and architecture business over the years.

Despite the fact that its cutting-edge production facilities are organised on an industrial scale, Cassina also prides itself on the fact that its products are still in touch with the traditional craftsmanship of its early beginnings.

Cassina is a company equally at ease with timber, leather and fabrics as it is with materials developed through its own research. It was Cassina, for instance, that discovered the capabilities of plastics and injected materials in the 1960s. ‘Ciprea’ by Afra and Tobia Scarpa (1968) was made from a single

designed and built to last a lifetime 10

piece of expanded polyurethane and changed the design world’s concept of what constituted a padded armchair. In 1970, Mario Bellini’s ‘Teneride’ changed forever the ergonomic adaptability of the office chair.

In timber the unique characteristics of the material are worked in the factory to an unmatched consistency and quality and the leathers and fabrics brought into play are only of the finest quality. Each piece is designed and built to last a lifetime.

still in touch with the traditional craftsmanship of its early beginnings Beneath the Cassina umbrella are two collections: I Maestri and I Contemporanei. I Maestri includes modern classics by Le Corbusier, Gerrit T. Rietveld, Charles R. Mackintosh, E. Gunnar Asplund, Frank Lloyd Wright, Charlotte Perriand and Franco Albini. Cassina has world exclusive rights to produce re-editions of an imposing array of iconic furniture.

The I Contemporanei collection includes the works of a range of contemporary Italian and international master designers – Vico Magistretti, Jorge Pensi, Piero Lissoni, Gaetano Pesce, Philippe Starck – to name just a few.

Cassina joined the Poltrona Frau Group in 2005 and it too – like the Poltrona Frau brand – boasts a contract division that has furnished countless ships, hotels, bars, restaurants and homes. The Poltrona Frau and Cassina contract groups work in synergy to deliver specific and targeted services.

From far left: ‘LC1’ armchair and ‘LC4’ chaise by Le Corbusier from Cassina Masters Collection. ‘Prive’ lounge by Philippe Starck.

‘Plurima’ by Charlotte Perriand from Cassina Masters Collection

11

From Little Things Big Things Grow Cappellini hasn’t always been the design label with the innovative and avant-garde reputation, writes Guy Allenby. It began life in 1946 as a traditional Italian furniture business.

It wasn’t until the 1980s when Giulio Cappellini took the reins of the family business that it was radically transformed from a classic craftbased concern into an enterprise that produces dynamic pieces that are “never boring, neither absurd” – to quote a Cappellini catchphrase – and became the launch pad for some of the design industry’s brightest stars.

12

Jasper Morrison, Tom Dixon, Marc Newson, Marcel Wanders and the Bouroullec Brothers are among the names that Cappellini has helped bring into the light and the permanent furniture collections of the

world’s most important museums – MOMA in New York, Paris’ Centre Pompidou and Musée des Arts Decoratives, the Museum für Angewandte Kunst in Cologne, London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, and the Galleria d’Arte Moderna in Rome – all boast Cappellini triumphs.

“Great understanding and the want to innovate, both technically and in form, is what interests me most in a young designer,” explains Giulio Cappellini of his special gift for nurturing enduring talent. “Curiosity is also a fundamental element.”

Of all Cappellini’s designers, perhaps it’s Jasper Morrison who has

the most sympathetic design sense to Cappellini himself. “Morrison and I both love simple – but not banal – things,” says Cappellini. “Things that are beautiful to look at, useful and timeless.”

Guilio Cappellini discovered Morrison in the 1980s and he has often professed a special fondness for UK-based designers – Morrison, Tom Dixon, Ron Arad – since. And that’s because he feels that to work in the British Isles is to work in relative freedom – outside the pull of the powerful names of the rich design establishment that a place like Italy boasts.

Things that are beautiful to look at, useful and timeless

Not that there aren’t also Italian heavyweights in the Cappellini corner capable of the untrammelled design statement. Exhibit A: the idiosyncratic ‘Proust Geometrica’ – a wooden-framed armchair created

by Italian architect and designer Alessandro Mendini in 1978. Considered a classic of the 20th Century, in 2009 Mendini breathed fresh life into his design by upholstering it in a new multi-coloured fabric.

“Inspiration comes from an attentive observation of everything that surrounds us’’ The work of Morrison, Mendini and a host of others falls under the Collezione umbrella – furnishings predominantly for the home in collaboration with contemporary designers.

“I am currently working on the Cappellini 2010 collection,” Cappellini reveals. “It is a collection with lots of novelties, but does not betray the history and DNA of Cappellini. It dedicates lots of attention to shapes and colours.”

Cappellini’s other collections include: Sistemi – modular furniture and for homes and offices, and Progetto Oggetto – home furnishing accessories by designers from a variety of cultural backgrounds.

There’s also a contract division for the hospitality sector.

The central thread running through all the collections meanwhile, is Giulio Cappellini’s own passionate and expert stewardship. It is one that is always looking for new ways to inspire and be inspired.

“Inspiration comes from an attentive observation of everything that surrounds us,’’ he says, “and from the nature of how people behave.’’

Far left and below: Assorted furniture and accessories from the Cappellini collection, for details go to corporateculture.com.au Left: ‘Hip’ tables by Leonardo Talarico

A developing passion Words: Guy Allenby

Renato Stauffacher, director of Italian design company Alias, is very much a hands-on style of leader – an architect by profession he takes a passionate personal interest in every facet of the design process.

During the prototyping of a new design, for instance, which can typically take two years, Renato always makes sure there’s an intimate

photographic record at every step of the way. Design development is typically an ongoing exchange of ideas and the company takes a very open-minded approach to the use of new materials and technological experimentation.

“Involvement gets everyone excited and the project becomes a group effort,” he explains to Domus magazine. “The designer is no longer considered someone from outside.

It makes it more stimulating for the designer too.”

Alias is closely associated with some of the world’s best designers including: Giandomenico Belotti, Riccardo Blumer, Mario Botta, Michele De Lucchi, Alfredo Häberli, Alberto Meda, Jasper Morrison and James Irvine and has built its reputation on the core values of technological lightness, simplicity, coherence and innovation.

Clockwise from above: ‘Spaghetti’ chair by Giandomenico Belotti; ‘Dehors’ outdoor sofa by Michele De Lucchi; teak outdoor collection by Alberto Meda

14

Alias is headquartered in Grumello del Monte, near Bergamo and in 2005 it became part of the Poltrona Frau Group. Alias’s first flagship store and research centre, a striking two-storey building in Milan, opened in 2008.

The range of Alias products – covering the residential, contract and outdoor markets – has an expressive minimalist style.

Refined Essence How do you give a solid timber table lightness of form? Fritz Hansen found out when they commissioned Cecilie Manz to create the award-winning ‘Essay’ table. Strength of form and function is imbued with warmth and elegance in the work of this daughter of Danish modernism.

Penny Craswell reports.

Above: Cecilie Manz Right: ‘Essay’ table by Cecilie Manz, with ‘Series 7’ chairs by Arne Jacobsen from Fritz Hansen

15

Clockwise from left: ‘Caravaggio’ pendant lights by Lightyears; ‘Pluralis’ chair by Mooment; ‘Minima’ glass collection by Holmegaard; ‘Micado’ side table by Fredericia Furniture; ‘Essay’ table by Fritz Hansen

A solid timber table reduced to its simplest elements, with floating tabletop and slightly curved edges.

A set of mouth-blown glass bottles and cups, with clear-cut functionality and the nostalgic shape of a milk bottle. A light made of industrial materials but softened by mimicking the shape of the female form.

Cecilie Manz’s work perfectly combines simplicity and functionality with warmth.

16

The daughter of two potters, Cecilie Manz was born in the Odsherred region of Denmark and spent her childhood surrounded by art and design – an experience that has profoundly affected her work as a designer. “It gave me a founda-

tion, or set of base-references,” she says. “I learned to see the importance of functionality, shape, right material in the right place, lines, proportions etcetera.”

simplicity and functionality With these tenets as a base, her career as a designer started soon after graduating from the Danish School of Design, which included some time as an exchange student at the Finnish University of Art and Design. Since then, she has won several design awards and created furniture and products for Frederica Furniture, PP Mobler, Light Years,

Holmegaard, Mooment and, most recently for iconic Danish furniture brand Fritz Hansen.

“A very important thing in my process is that I have a structure or a grid to work within,” says Manz.

“This can be an idea, or a more defined goal (such as Fritz Hansen’s ‘solid wood table’).”

With this brief from Fritz Hansen in mind, Manz set about creating the essential table – and ‘Essay’ is the result. Made of three simple elements – a top and two leg frames – the table is simple and clean but with a few key details. Firstly, the tabletop is floating – the separation between the elements is crucial and provides a lightness to the solid

timber. Secondly, the leg frames are slightly curved. Says Manz: “It would be unrefined and brutal without it.”

In other cases, Manz relies on one single idea to begin the design process, such as with limited edition piece ‘Pluralis’ – a series of linked chairs made of slender pieces of blonde timber. Each seat is stepped down to provide seating for three different people, or to provide an inbuilt side table.

Her ‘Minima’ glass series for Holmegaard takes the basic shape of a milk bottle in mouth-blown glass with some added features. Manz explains: “My version is improved a bit; an acrylic lid holds the taste when cooled in the fridge. So that way you can make your own cool drinking water instead of buying one in the store.”

the final shape was inspired by female curves

Also drawing a simple yet elegant shape is the ‘Caravaggio’ light for Light Years – after working on many different versions, the final shape was inspired by female curves, providing a counterpoint to the mas-

“A very important thing in my process is that I have a structure or a grid to work with,” says cecilie Manz culine suspension technology and construction of the light.

Cecilie Manz is a designer whose primary interest is in beauty, form and elegance, but she never loses sight of the function of a piece.

“I’m not the kind of designer to do sketches of interesting shapes and then find out if it’s a chair or a paper clip afterwards.” It is this balance of functionality and warmth that gives her work its quality and longevity.

17

A Mother’s Love 16

Henrik Marstrand, the chief of Danish design company, Mater, heads an ethical business that likens responsible design to a mother’s love. Mandi Keighran reports.

Ethical design can mean almost anything today and many of us struggle to keep afloat in the sea of ‘greenwash’ flooding the market. Amidst this, Henrik Marstrand, founder and CEO of Danish design company, mater, has a clear vision of what ethical design should be.

“Our designs should reflect a responsible modern mother who wants a contemporary home without compromising on design or quality, but who also wants to act responsibly and pay attention to the world she raises her children in,” he says. It is from this idea of design as maternal that mater, meaning ‘mother’ in Latin, takes its name.

Marstrand’s background lies not in design, but rather in the business of fast-moving consumer goods.

He became interested in design through exposure to high-end bars and concept hotels while working with alcohol brands. He launched mater as a global design brand with unique ethical business model in late 2007.

“My strength lies in executing business concepts towards new global consumer trends,” he says. And with the current trend toward socially and environmentally responsible design, this is exactly what he has done with mater.

“I wanted to add a deeper meaning... I wanted to create something lasting that would help others” There is more to the company, however, than tapping into current market trends and turning profit – and this is

where the real success of mater lies.

“I wanted to add a deeper meaning to go to work,” says Marstrand. “I wanted to create something lasting that would help others, primarily in developing countries.”

The ethical criteria of mater is woven into the products themselves, from conception through to design, manufacture and sales. The new ‘Gymnasium’ range of sideboards and storage systems by Soeren Rose Kjaer is a perfect example of this.

Each piece is made from recycled gymnasium floors and sustainably sourced timbers from Denmark, and part of each sale is donated back into sports in local communities in India. It is a concept referred to within the company as ‘fundraising’, and one that is central to Marstrand’s ethical business plan.

“The [fundraising] programs that we have succeeded in running with help from others [such as the Danish Foreign Ministry for Developing Countries], have delivered great results – in terms of improved environmental conditions, workers’ rights and safety procedures,” says Marstrand.

As a company, mater aims to support local, traditional crafts – from sand casting and marble workshops in Jaipur, India to a bamboo factory in Hanoi, Vietnam. In an economic climate that is challenging consumer spending, it is this kind of grass roots support that Marstrand believes makes a difference to consumers. He predicts that “objects without a deeper meaning have a difficult future ahead”.

It has taken time, however, for mater to establish these partnerships with manufacturers in developing countries, and to ensure that the relationships are beneficial for all involved.

“I think the main dilemma [in running

Clockwise from left: ‘fruit bowl’ from marblewood collection

by Todd Bracher, ‘dome’ light, mater CEO Henrik Marstrand holds ‘inout’ pitcher; ‘fruit bowl’; local artisan working on a ‘high stool’ by Signe Bindslev Henriksen and Peter Bundgaard Rützou; Todd Bracher (below); ‘pebble’ bowls by Jesper K Thomsen

an ethical business] is accepting that you can’t change everything in the supply chain and design process overnight. It takes time to implement changes and you need to foster a partnership based on trust and not control,” says Marstrand.

Ethical design is the obvious way forward, but consumers need to become increasingly like the mother that Marstrand likens mater’s designs to – responsible and in tune with the world around her. As Marstrand says, “design has the potential to change our future for generations to come. But we, as consumers, must ask more of the design we bring home”.

19

A Designer’s Tale

Being picked up by iconic Italian furniture manufacturer, Cappellini, with the first piece of furniture he had ever designed could have gone to Adam Goodrum’s head. Instead Paul McGillick discovers a designer with his feet very much on the ground.

He’s handsome, tall and completely lacking in attitude (what a relief!). And despite his success, he is still basically designing on the kitchen table.

That’s where the ‘Stitch’ chair was developed. But not born – because the first version resulted from a project while Goodrum was an industrial design student at the University of Technology, Sydney. It was, he says, nothing like the ‘Stitch’ chair, but it was a folding chair. “I just absolutely fell in love,” he says.

“First of all with designing furniture, but also because of the articulation and the movement.”

Later, back at the kitchen table, he began playing with cardboard, wanting to design a folding chair that folded really flat. “Because, you know, folding chairs are almost like second-class citizens. I wanted a folding chair that almost didn’t have to be folded, a nice chair that didn’t look like a folding chair.”

Right: Adam Goodrum; working drawings for his ‘Stitch’ chair by Cappellini; the ‘Stitch’ chair itself

20

The design stayed under his bed for some time until he had the idea to “splash it with some really exciting colours and accentuate the hinge and the stitch.”

Then, several years ago at Saturday in Design in Sydney he had the chance to show Giulio Cappellini a prototype of ‘Stitch’. Before

‘STITCH’ was in the London Design Museum as one of the best designs of 2008 he could warn him, Cappellini had sat on the chair and it collapsed.

Cappellini was highly apologetic, showed interest in a couple of other Goodrum products, but nothing eventuated. Then, the following year at the Milan Furniture Fair, Goodrum showed Cappellini a 1:5 scale model and Cappellini responded: “I love it.

We are going to do it.”

Goodrum’s understandable scepticism proved to be unfounded when he received an email confirming the deal. The chair was made within a year and shown at the 2008 Milan Fair.

The reception for ‘Stitch’ has been “absolutely fantastic,” says Goodrum. “It’s been on the covers of magazines. It was voted one of the best designs at the Fair. It was in the London Design Museum last year as one of the best designs of 2008. It was on the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s wish list for their permanent collection. And the Ducati race team had it as their press chair in the red and white colours and Casey Stoner whacked an Aussie flag on it because he heard that an Aussie had designed it.”

One of the key features of ‘Stitch’ is its space-saving flexibility and, says Goodrum, it is significant that it has

just been launched at Lane Crawford, the leading designer shop in Hong Kong – a place where space is at a premium. But asked if he designs for a market, Goodrum says he prefers self-initiated projects. “I just get excited by a project which I want to execute. But I am trying to appreciate the bigger picture where the product has a commercial application rather than just being a showpiece.”

“I wanted a folding chair that almost didn’t have to be folded” Nonetheless, he is currently developing a range of outdoor furnishing for the classy Belgium-based company, Extremis – a project which he sees as fitting nicely into his strategy of creating a brand around his name “so that people come to me for my interpretation of a design problem. I am like a design consultant, but I like things when they happen to be on my own terms so that I am not doing things that I am unhappy doing.”

21

It must be love How do you choose a favourite from a selection of the very best and most beautiful chairs ever created? It’s as easy as falling in love, reveal a handful of prominent design professionals.

Glenn Murcutt, Glenn Murcutt Architect ‘SERIES 7’ CHAIR by Arne Jacobsen for Fritz Hansen, 1955

Daniel Stellini, Director Interior Design, Carr ‘Pylon’ Chair by Tom Dixon for Cappellini, 1992

“I just think it’s a remarkable piece of design. Not only can it be used in a formal or informal way, but also as a commercial or a residential item.

I use it in my studio – where I sit in it sometimes for 12 hours a day. If you can sit in it for 12 hours a day then there’s something right with the chair. This chair is absolutely of the day, of tomorrow and of the future.”

“The simplicity of iron wire lacquered in natural aluminium forms a chair for one to sit along with sculpture for our spaces.”

22

Kirsti Simpson, Director, Hassell ‘Egg’ Chair by Arne Jacobsen for Fritz Hansen, 1958 “I have great admiration for designers who can successfully move from grand gesture projects to the human scale of objects and furniture. Arne Jacobsen was an architect with this wonderful ability. The ‘Egg’ chair is truly an icon... I have one in my home. It is the chair that I have spent the most time in cuddling my beautiful daughters. Magical symmetry.

The ‘Egg’ chair elicits pure joy!”

David Clark, Editor, Vogue Living magazine ‘CH24 WISHBONE’ CHAIR

by Hans J Wegner, 1950 “I’ve always loved the ‘Wishbone’ chair. Beautiful materials and textures expressed so perfectly in the structure. It has always looked handsome around a dining table, but I especially like it in the darker timber with the black cord seat.

Very elegant.”

Neale Whitaker, Editor-in-Chief, Belle magazine ‘REGINA II’ ARM CHAIR

by Paolo Rizzatto for Poltrona Frau, 2009 “This chair appeals on so many levels. I love the indulgence of the soft white leather and the sensuous shape, which curiously echoes both mid-century design and the classic French Bergere style. It feels glamorous, luxurious and modern.”

Nicole Johnson, Sales Manager VIC, Corporate Culture ‘PK9’ by Poul Kjaerholm for Fritz Hansen, 1960 “The ‘PK9’ Chair is my favourite not only because of its beautiful feminine shape but also for the story behind it. Kjærholm was inspired by the imprint left in the sand at the beach where his wife, Hannah, had been sitting. He used this shape to design and develop what I believe to be a truly elegant chair supported on a unique three-piece base. Design and romance!”

GaRry Suisted, Sales Manager NSW, Corporate Culture ‘CH29 SAWBACK’ CHAIR

by Hans J Wegner for Carl Hansen & Sons, 1952 “My favourite furniture product in the Corporate Culture portfolio is from Carl Hansen, a company that reflects my admiration for the history and timeless design of Hans J Wegner. The ‘CH29 Sawbuck’ chair is as relevant today as it was almost 60 years ago... love it!”

Nana Lesiuk, Lesiuk Architects ‘CH07 shell’ chair by Hans J Wegner For carl hansen & sons, 1963 “The ‘CH07 Shell’ chair designed

by Hans Wegner and produced by Carl Hansen & Sons since 1963 has always been a standout favourite. Crafted from ply and veneer, the spareness and simplicity of the materials belie the ingenuity of its design.”

23

Serge Mouille

All these brands and more available at Cult, Corporate Culture Sydney Melbourne Brisbane corporateculture.com.au

Auckland corporateculture.co.nz