Contemporary crafts and slow living are looking to be something of a theme at the upcoming Milan Furniture Fair, and we're well behind and one of the most anticipated exhibitions Fuori Salone (or off-site) is MINDCRAFT11 - a show featuring a new generation of Danish designers who are also themselves artisanal makers.
With twelve new works developed especially for the show, the emphasis is on quality, practical value and beauty. According to the curator, designer Cecilie Manz, "In the Nordic region we are renowned for outstanding practical value, visual humility, an exquisite sense of materials as well as pure and simple aesthetics. Now that the era of abundance is drawing to a close, perhaps we'll be able to rediscover and cultivate some of the basic values in our work."
Also important, as is apparent when you see the pieces, is experimentation. Anne Tophøj's Dinnerwarevision 5 is a case in point - and we've had the pleasure of getting a sneak preview at the Danish Design Centre in Copenhagen. A dinner set consisting of plates and bowls in various sizes in porcelain and stoneware, Tophøj has experimented with a variety of ceramic production methods that give quite random effects (yet could still potentially be produced in large amounts). For example, she has experimented with the use of forces that cannot be completely controlled: gravity, centrifugal forces, etc, to create warped edges and drips. It's all in a delicious colour palette too.
Other designers taking part include Ben and Sebastian, Mathias Bengtsson, Line Depping, and Gam Fratesi, among others. MINDCRAFT11 takes place 12-17 April in Ventura Lambrate, Galleria Alessandro De March, 6 Via Ventura, 20134 Milan.
