Think magazine 006

2 | ON THE COVER

Editor-in-Chief/ Creative Director

Jacqueline Carlisle

Design Production

Samm Jordan

Contributing Fashion Editor Contributing Technology Editor Contributing Architecture Editor

Jacqueline Carlisle

Erich Zainzinger

Alexander Horne

Contributing Design Editor

Scott Jarvie

Contributing Design Editor

Karyn Linnell

Logo Design

Sunny Fong

Site Services

Samm Jordan

ON THE COVER Photographer: Shin Inaba www.shininaba.com Designer: Kenji Kawasumi Creative Director: Jacqueline Carlisle Design Production: Samm Jordan

ISSUE 006

It’s hard to believe this issue marks the one year anniversary of Think magazine.

| 3

IN THIS

When

I decided to start this journey, I knew it was

ISSUE

going to be challenging but I had no idea it was going to be received so well. It doesn’t feel like much has been accomplished and yet if I had to list the successes, there would be far more than expected. Looking towards the future of design is all we care about at this magazine the possibilities for a sustainable stylish home is no longer an impossible task. Think magazine is dedicated to showing you the viewer the many choices you now have and it’s still growing. I remember once reading a submissions criteria for the now defunct Atomica magazine and at the end it stated “if you want reality just look outside.”

This phrase stuck with me as if to

say challenge the idea of the norm and build for the future. Think magazine was conceived with that very thought in mind. Looking back, repeating, and copying lacks innovation where this publication is concerned. We want to see progression. Join us in our year-long celebration by following us on Twitter and Facebook as we continue to report on fashion, industrial design, architecture and wearable technology.

Design

Fashion

Why Design?

Nylon

An Interview with Kenji Kawasumi

9 23

Architecture

31

Technology

39

A Step in the Right Direction

Emotionally charged wearable technology

W h y D e s i g n ?

With

aware

society of

the

becoming finite

increasingly

nature

of

our

resources, what role should design play i n ou r f u t u re?

TEXT: SCOTT JARVIE contributing design editor

| 9

Thus far, ecologically spirited designers have successfully catered for society’s niches that recognise the need to manage our natural resources and environment. However those aware of the enormity of this issue are very much in the minority. Often the appearance of the products designed for this group are intrinsically linked with their ethical and environmental stance.

This can result in products that are confrontationally environmental and often narrow in scope, where environmental credentials are at the expense of functional and aesthetic requirements.

create lasting products that will appeal to those individuals that place importance on more traditional criteria, such as functional performance, build quality and appearance.

However, big business has recognised the monetary value of the associated terminology.

Taking up this challenge is the responsibility of designers. It is important that delivering invisible sustainability is not at the expense of what industry and consumers expect in a free market. Individuals respond to incentive and realistically cannot be expected to make concessions based on environmental ethics alone. It is the designers remit to respond to the demands of both the end users and the manufacturers and to consolidate often contradictory

Of course product sustainability is diff icult to def ine and assess. This leads to marketing departments and advertising agencies cynically embedding ‘green’ benef its in how products are presented and marketed.

The new frontier for design is to

The challenge for the future will be to achieve invisible sustainability, where tomorrow’s products are designed with deep environmental respect at their heart but also surpass people’s traditional perceptions.

Successful products should be environmentally sound as a prerequisite rather than as a marketing strategy.

desires, understanding that environmental respect and economic eff iciency should go hand in hand.

We can assess a design against a competitor or predecessor in terms of material and energy eff iciency, tooling/moulding complexity, number of components or dissimilar materials, ease of disassembly, and product weight and volume for transportation.

Improvements in these areas have benef icial cost and environmental implications, which of course are measurable and relevant to industry.

These benef its are increasingly being recognised.

The complexity of delivering this does not need to be visible in the end product or apparent to the consumer. The key to success is whether this complexity can result in an uncompromised artefact that its owner can cherish.

It requires pragmatic resolve to create functional, viable, intelligent and desirable products that are also sustainable. This task is made more diff icult by the fact that, to many, design is perceived merely as ‘style’

and the notion of ‘Good Design’ is often championed without any def inition of this term. It is diff icult and possibly subjective territory but there are rigid criteria against which we can measure our out-put.

So the importance of the designer endeavouring to meet these diverse challenges and communicate how they have measurably developed or improved each project they undertake has never been so important.

The Darwinist strand to survival within a capitalist market place encourages products that are suitably adapted to their conditions to thrive, and those that are not, to fail. In the future an essential condition for survival will be the intelligence with which companies address materials and the environment. As a perpetual necessity design must play a key role in our future.

Nylon Technological advances in nylon recycling allow old material to get a fresh start.

During World War Two, American women forwent their stockings due to a nylon shortage when the military needed the synthetic fabric for parachutes and tires. Today, we have the opposite problem. We have too much nylon, specifically in landfills, due to the more than thirty years it takes to biodegrade. Durable and versatile, nylon is found in clothing, carpet, seatbelts, tires, rope, music strings, and many other commonplace items that eventually need replacing. Until recently, the landfill seemed one of the only appropriate places to put discarded nylon. New scientific breakthroughs, however, are allowing us to repurpose this material in ways that have never been done before.

Nylon was developed in the 1920’s and was one of the first synthetic fibers. It has also proven itself extremely difficult to recycle, much more so than polyester. At first only carpet fibers were successfully created from recycled nylon, but due to new discoveries in the recycling process, several companies are now able to offer new recycled nylon products including soft and durable sportswear, warm coats, backpacks and luggage.

Whether one is seeking the latest trends in swimwear or jackets or high-performance athletic clothing, recycled nylon options are now available from several designers and

For those in the market for military parachute nylon, and Thoni

retailers.

fashion swimwear, clothing company Mara, a division of Nautilus.

Eco-Panda’s

contemporary

GoLite

bathing TraveLite is replacing its use of virgin

suits are made from Mipan Regan, a nylon with recycled nylon in their brand of recycled nylon manufactured bags and satchels, and Klattermusen; a

by Hyosung, a company based in South European outdoor company’s recycled Korea.

Designer Donna Karan also nylon products include backpacks, totes

has incorporated recycled nylon into and trousers.

A new line, Sequoia by

her collection, and consumers can find Carvicio Italy, uses recycled nylon to affordable fashion at H&M and top of the make exceptional sportswear for fashion line athletic clothing and backpacks from and for competitive skiing, swimming Patagonia.

cycling and running.

Other labels offering recycled nylon While

the

recycling

process

is

include Christopher Raeburn, a British unfortunately complex, there is not designer whose ‘Pop-Out Parka’ uses much to dislike about recycled nylon. It uses less oil and water to recycle nylon and creates less CO2 pollution than it does to create virgin nylon. Having less nylon in our landfills due to recycling is highly beneficial to the earth and to our quality of life. Recycled nylon is equally appealing to earth-conscious shoppers as well as less concerned patrons.

High performance athletic clothing made with recycled nylon

Klattermusen uses recycled nylon

TEXT: Karyn Linnell contributing design editor

| 19

The quality of the fabric competes and recycle old nylon, we will be able to equally with virgin fabrics and does not lessen our impact to the environment create any hassle to those who value without great sacrifice to our modern Furthermore, recycling lifestyles or to our enjoyment of beauty

convenience.

facilities are producing new jobs, creating and convenience. a boost to the economy internationally. In addition to Hyosung in South Korea, several

companies

around

the globe offer their unique brand of the new material including Nilit EcoCare in Israel, Repreve by Unifi in the United States, Recyclon

by Toray Industries in Japan, and Reco by Nurel in Spain.

Nylon

is

invention.

an It

incredible can

be

strong and soft and take many forms, whether high performance athletic gear, modern fashion, or industrial products.

Perhaps that is why it has become such a commonplace material, one that we easily take for granted. We buy it, use it, and throw it away with little thought, not realizing that people all over the world are doing the same thing, creating a huge amount of refuse. Thankfully, with the new technology being used to repurpose

*Research for this article was compiled by Materials Editor, Sophie-Lucie Dewulf for stylesight.com

Photographer : Shin Inaba (www.shininaba.com) Stylist : Kenji Kawasumi Hair Stylist : Kota Suizu (www.kotasuizu.com) Make up artist : Tomokazu Akutsu Model : Sam W (Profile model management www.profile-models.com) Photographer assistant : Tomoyuki Tatematsu

An Interview with Kenji Kawasumi When did you first realise you Did you always want to study at wanted to become a designer ?

Central Saint Martins?

When I was a 16 years old, I made and Yes. But before I lived in London, ‘Saint sent customized jeans to my friend as a Martins‌ is famous, okay, sounds nice birthday present. I used to make bags and after I came to London, it was actually and hats for myself and my friends. Since great. I have learnt a lot of things. then, I thought this is what I can do for someone and how I can express myself.

What

are

influences?

some

of

What inspires you to choose your materials?

your Wood, leaf, flower, vase, lamp, table, coffee cup, spoon, chair, floor, wall, and

Everyday life, my hometown in Japan, etc, anything I can touch.

Finland, and Stockholm.

TEXT: JACQUELINE CARLISLE editor

Do you think sustainable design

| 27

is a growing?

Now that you are a recent

idea and luxurious.

look like?

I think so, and it is going to be a general graduate what does the future

Knitting, sewing, and carving my own

Do you want to make designing collection in a log house.

sustainably your focus?

Yes. I want to focus on wood, bamboo, Is

your

line

available

paper, leaves, etc with high technology, to purchase, if so where?

for

produce textiles and fashion products. I Around the world, next to an organic used actual wood as fabric for my graduate food shop on a narrow street. collection, and want to develop this idea further.

A Step in the Right Direction

Progression

and

sustainability

may products through their environmental

not be particularly new terminologies credentials over quality) - some self for those involved in industries at the policing eco forces are hitting the forefront of innovation such as design and sustainable branded streets in order architecture but, in the wider consensus to give us all a better idea as to what is of society it has been something of a full green, sustainable or progressive and on reference rush to use such words in what isn’t. From government funded recent times. From politicians hailing the research institutions to private initiatives need for progressive values to celebrity that offer companies worried about their chefs and their sustainable food offerings green credentials a quick progress check (and accompanying sustainable branded up and prescription - help appears to be supermarket products) - its enough to on hand and with a multitude of options. make you feel like a regressive potato if you don’t have something sustainable Developed by the U.S Green Building to brag about. Thankfully after over a Council (USGBC), LEED is a good decade of what is commonly referred to example of a certification and rating in marketing as ‘greenwashing’ (selling system that is recognized internationally.

With architecture its main focus, LEED initiatives, and none more so than in provides verification that a building Hollywood where the newly transformed was designed to take into consideration Cherokee Studios sit awaiting a platinum environmental impact of issues such as LEED

certification.

Previously

a

energy use, waste and water efficiency. renowned recording studio that housed With statistics from the U.S. Department artists such as David Bowie and Michael of Energy suggesting that buildings use Jackson, the AIA award winning designers 39% of the energy and 74% of the electricity Pugh & Scarpa have transformed the produced each year in the United States - original space to include lofts spaces and the apparent need for certifications such studios while taking into consideration as LEED to be followed when designing the environment. Should the building and constructing new buildings could achieve the desired certification it will be never be so apparent.

the first in California.

California has never been a state to Across the atlantic but, also gaining take lightly in terms of environmental global attention - Cradle to Cradle is one

34 | TEXT: Alexander Horne contributing architecture editor

of the most recognized environmental product cycle - more relevant to fields guidance systems for designers. From the like product design where a product 2025 design studio in Norway, who focus lifespan will rarely outlive a human as on selling Cradle to Cradle focused design many buildings do. competences in projects from business strategy to packaging, to giant brands Whether or not such certification methods like Nike who have created a Cradle to provide just another creative hurdle for Cradle certified shoe line called ‘Nike innovators to hurdle or not, it is certainly Considered’, they all aim for the C2C true that these guides are a step in the stamp of approval. Unlike the tick box right direction for more progressive and criteria of LEED certification though, ultimately C2C is a holistic evaluation of the whole design.

environmentally

attentive

U2’s Bono

Emotionally on Wearable Computers with the aim to charged bring bulky boxy computing power into areas that require small, body worn units wear able with the interface integrated into garments technology or work-wear.

One and a half decades ago a few innovative minds at MIT’s Media Lab started working

Professionals working at logistic centers, soldiers in the field or rescue workers were groups that would, and are benefitting greatly by having a large amount of information needed to do their work or up-to-date information from the command center at their finger tips.

Lady Gaga

42 | TEXT: Erich Zainzinger contributing technology editor

These early prototypes were not designed the technology development started to to make a fashion statement but rather to lag behind the expectations, creating the have a functional element integrated into sense that all the techno fashion dreams might not come to life after all.

clothing.

Triggered by the technological possibilities Fortunately, the evolutionary instinct of shown in these early demonstrators and human beings does not except failure but considering the emotional attachment we is continuously searching and adapting human beings have towards our clothing, and will lead to new, useful and surprising the imagination of Wearable Electronic results. This is of course very much the progressed quickly ahead of the technical case in the biological evolution of how Mother Nature has demonstrated to us for

possibilities.

millions of years, and this evolutionary Designers came up with technology principle is very much applicable to enhanced clothing that changed color technological evolution as it can be with the flip of a button and shape clearly seen the way technology has gone shifting clothing that adjusts in an instant starting from simple cutting tools made to the different occasions to suit our busy from stones to deep space satellites. lifestyles.

Wearable

Electronic

has

made

its

Clothing that alters based on our evolutionary progression in the past 15 emotions or based on environmental years, not as many might have imagined stimuli, fitness apparel that records our at the beginning evolving from a feature workout performance and clothing that driven need to an emotional desire for communicates with our digital social life, clothing. recording our daily events as Tweets and As a representative example, the recent

status updates.

interest of artists and performers into In

fact,

the

emotional

imagination color shifting, light radiating stage-wear

went far ahead of the technological has increased. developments which led to the point where

Light shows, the synchronization of

light

effects

with

the

performance and performer have been a fixed element since the early show-biz days and have of course evolved from simply tracking the performer on stage with spotlights to sophisticated symphonies of light on stage today.

Technology enhanced clothing for artists and performers add a new dimension to light shows, not ‘shooting’ light on a performer but make the performer part of the light choreography in the show. It is adding a magical, surprising and emotionally charged experience for the audience.

Artists like Bono, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, and Katy Perry belong to a growing number of top artists that use shape and color shifting clothing for their shows to enhance the visual and emotional experience.

Once our idols and stars embrace a new technology or a new trend it does not take very long until the public desires to show off in similar looking outfits.

Rihanna

Katy Perry

What started as Wearable Computer investigation has made its evolutionary twists and turns giving us emotionally charged clothing instead of wearable computing power in our jackets.

Light radiating, color changing wearable technology

is

just

one

example

of

many other areas in which technology enhanced clothing will evolve, as wearable technologies become more robust thanks to the hard and innovation dedicated to wearable technologists over the past decade.

In today’s fast paced world we are used to having new fashion collections every few months, new devices and features - better, faster, smaller, and greater. But evolution does take it’s time especially when new revolutionary steps want to be achieved. Wearable technology is such a revolutionary step; it will revolutionize our clothing in ways we only can dream off.