Branding itself 'Asia's leading international design event', Design Shanghai triumphantly returns to the city tonight. The show will once again have thousands of new product launches as well as prestigious design pieces brought here from around the world. Ahead of the four day event, we take a sneak peek at some of the pieces not to miss.
‘Zotem’ by Kim Thomé
Commissioned by Swarovski, ‘Zotem’ is an 18-metre-high interpretation of a totem pole, and probably one you won’t actually have to look out for given that it’s smack bang in the entrance hall of the Shanghai Exhibition Centre. The double-sided monolith is a frame of matte black aluminium embedded with more than 600 bespoke Swarovski crystals, which Thomé has used as prisms to refract light into colours and geometric patterns rising upwards. ‘Zotem’ takes its name from both ‘totem’ and ‘zoetrope’, a 19th century animation device that gave the illusion of motion by displaying a sequence of isolated drawings that appear to move.
‘Supernova' by Petra Krausova
Also playing with light patterns is a kinetic glass sculpture by Petra Krausova for Lasvit. Entitled 'Supernova', the installation riffs off a pretty big theme: the universe, which the artist describes as 'always in motion'. To reflect this, the arrangement of linear glass elements interact with the movements of the viewer, with the sculpture's overall form continually shifting into something new.
'Oriental Aesthetics' by ELLE Decoration
Google Glass may have been a massive dud, but there's no denying that virtual reality is emerging as one of this decade's biggest tech trends. While we imagine they'll politely sidestep any mention of porn, the folk at ELLE Deco are launching an interactive exhibition at Design Shanghai which integrates virtual reality, new media devices, and traditional Oriental elements.
WUU by Furong Chen
Tipped by Design Shanghai's creative director Ross Urwin as one to watch, Furong Chen's WUU won the Emerging Chinese Designer Award at Design Shanghai last year. His work includes 'HEXA', the result of a material that he has developed over the years – a bendable concrete. While Chen returns as a designer this year, make sure to watch out for the ten new nominees, who include BENWU Studio, Cai Liechao and YUUE.
Design Shanghai runs March 9-12 at the Shanghai Exhibition Centre. You can find full event details on our website.