P+ Studio

We designed and installed Field Explorations for the NLA New London Architecture the Centre for London’s Built Environment. The featured student work in the form of original analytical hand drawings from students in the Syracuse London Architecture Program which explore, question, analyze, record and translate London’s urban fabric.

The concept of the exhibition was to literally create a dynamic field of drawings to address the theme of the exhibition “Field Explorations” and to illustrate the serendipitous nature of on-site drawing in such a vibrant city.

From the exhibition: Hand drawings have the capability to transform a place into a vision, a view into the perception, ephemerality, and atmosphere of a space. The exhibition offers a broad overview of architecture, art and urbanism in London, its historic context, development, and character through original analytical hand drawings by students from Syracuse University School of Architecture London Program. The subjects of study range from urban morphology to a sequence of urban spaces, single buildings, and details of materiality and structure.

The project began with the following question:

Can chair design become an autonomous process, hyper-sensitive to one’s body and one’s physical needs? In doing so, can the process of fabrication become the design itself?

The personal chair is based on a 3-D body scan of the individual user, which digitizes one’s form and body contours. Through the utilization of 3-D computer modeling software, the  digital coordinates are used to design a unique surface around the body, leading to a  customized chair design that allows for precise fit and support. The production of the personal chair transcends modern furniture manufacturing by combining long-established molding techniques with advanced digital tooling; the fabrication process utilizes CNC-routed formwork as the mold for the fiberglass seating shell.

Materials: Foam, Fiberglass
Exhibited at Syracuse University School of Architecture Gallery

The Furnished exhibition was curated and designed for the Syracuse University School of Architecture. Each piece of furniture is displayed in a series of atomic-era domestic vignettes meticulously finished in white to complement the material and construction of the exhibited work. Finishes include: vinyl wall paper, ceramic tile, perforated masonite, wood laminate, and faux fur.

From the exhibition brochure:

Everyday objects have the capacity to affect our behavior, interactions and the fundamental ways in which we inhabit a place. Through form, material, and detail connections, the small-scale design territories of furniture and product design give us the opportunity to furnish our needs and the spaces we live in, while transforming the atmosphere of a space. The exhibition features a collection of furniture and objects which illustrates these design potentials and material environments.

Designers:

Ramona Albert
Larry Bowne
Sekou Cooke
Lior Galili and Sarosh Anklesaria
Jon Lott
Ryan Ludwig
Michael Pelken
Brett Snyder
Timothy Stenson
Robert Svetz
Vasilena Vassilev

Carnegie of New York, USA: “Xorel Vision” 2001  New product applications were sought by Xorel to extend the use of their heat resistant fabric range.

The Lightpad is a soft object that allows for a multiple use in various living areas. The fabric is paired with insulation material and strip lighting. Rolled up, it offers the use as a lighting object in many configurations, it warms as a blanket or works for ambient room illumination.

The design for water-jet cut furniture received an award in the Wood of Finland Wood International Innovation Competition in 1996. The International Design Competition was part of a promotion of new products made of Finnish wood.

The furniture was completed in collaboration with Volke Lavid and Martin Klein-Wiele. The award winning furniture was designed with three goals: to produce the assembly with just one manufacturing step, to assemble the pieces without any tools or secondary component but with new wooden connections only and to maximize manufacturing efficiency. The furniture series is precisely cut with water-jet CNC machinery and the typical waste of about 20% in furniture making is reduced to about just 2%.

The design of the ‘Table-Truss’ is inspired by architectural and engineering solutions typically found on a much larger scale. The table won a  German Innovation Award in Steel Construction 2004.

The cable truss system used to support the framework allows for extremely thin members and a minimal use of material. The construction principle itself determines the design and the function of all components as tension or compression members is clearly expressed.

The design for the door handles won an FSB Design Award.

The design for door and door handles critiques the standardization of building components and is driven by the idea of strong product semantics. The design aims to answer the following questions:

How can a door handle tell its user how to operate? Does a door necessarily have to separate two rooms without visual or acoustical connections? How can a haptic experience be translated into a visually apparent gesture?

The modular system is the response to the challenge to re-design the rocking chair typology.

The rocking chair system is comprised of three components which allow for variation of the classic rocker and foot rest assembly. The modular system leads to the creation of new furniture types such as a rocking sofa. Users have the capability to plug and play various components, allowing for infinite variability of seating size and preferred arrangement.

Candela is a product whose roots lie in the importance of material conservation. Minimal material use and the idea to create a candle holder with hardly any visual impact, allowing for the bare floating light to present itself while reducing the constituent makeup of its vessel. The device is bent from a single metal wire rod and simply suspended from a vertical surface.

3M Post-It Innovation Awards, 3M International Award Winning SMS Pocket Assistant. 

The design for the Pocket Assistant is inspired by the emerging text messaging culture.

As an answer to the increasingly alienating technological plug-ins for our vast array of telecommunication products, the SMS Pocket Assistant revitalizes the idea of note memos. The lightweight carrying case becomes a personalized accessory in which Post-Its are stored and dispensed. The user is free to leave handwritten messages to himself and others, allowing for a more personal method of communication between friends and colleagues.

Mitsubishi Design Competition, Mitsubishi Motors, Tokyo, Japan
All Terrain Fuel Cell Electric Driven Concept Car

The concept car designed in 2001 uses the environmentally friendly fuel cell technology to drive the car by four individually controlled electrical motors. A new steering mechanism allows for the car to operate all wheels and suspension systems individually and decrease the size of turning circles. The chassis is made on modular components that allow the user to equip the car according to the relevant need.

The design for the N_Scape allows for individual vehicular configuration based on user preference. The main module of the vehicle are the chassis and driver’s capsule, whereby allowing the rear of the vehicle to support a system of modular components that form the bodywork of the car. Possible arrangements include an SUV, limousine, scientific laboratory or a sporty coupe. Environmental design considerations include a fuel cell electric engine, and waste minimization through user specificity. This allows for maximum lifetime extension and overall material efficiency.

Show islands is a modular display system commissioned by the Reading School of Architecture for the end-of-the-year exhibition. The bespoke system is designed as a three-dimensional construct with the capability to expand in all directions in order to allow for the flexible display of various models.

Materials: sapele hardwood, birch ply, MDF

The design was conceived as an easy-to-assemble system, without the need for mechanical or glued connections. The verticals elements are notched on 3 sides to allow for the perforated vertical panels which act as structural support and allow for items to be displayed. The horizontal shelves are fitted within the vertical elements and secured with a dowel fixing.

In collaboration with Graham F Thompson.

Images: Graham F. THompson, Vasilena Vassilev, J.H.Smalley

The award-winning Modular Phone introduces a disruptive concept for the extended lifecycle of multi-media communication devices. It addresses planned obsolescences built into ever-decreasing product cycles as it allows the user to reconfigure their device according to changing consumer demands. The modular character can directly involve a range of supply-chain partners and respective functional and technology updates.

The Modular Phone was awarded second place in the prestigious Citrix International Future Award.

The sun shelter was designed for the Massachusetts Melanoma Foundation, and originally conceived as a baseball dugout. The combinatory design allows for various configurations and multiple uses for representing the MMF. The modules can be assembled as a row or by facing each other, allowing for both an open shelter or pavilion. The roof is equipped with photovoltaics and makes the pavilion a self-supporting sustainable object capable of providing electricity to a variety of products.

The 3M - Creative Partner Award challenged the international design community to propose ways in which the established product range can be improved. Our Runner Up awarded entry for the design of the Scotch Tape - Label Printer adds a printing function to the tape dispenser. The tape thus combines two functions, eliminates the use of stickers, combines tape and display functions, and provides a flexible printing mechanism with a range of motives for professional and personal use.

The design for the exhibition seeks to engage the community by showcasing design research and experimentation from competitions during the past year. Fruitful experiments can raise more questions than they answer, and as open-minded researchers we are eager to find opportunities to revisit the alchemies of design production. The time constraints of competitions are usually a relief; post-deadlines represent a return to normalcy, but ideas often reverberate and gestate. An exhibition of recent competition work presents an opportunity to return to those delightful (or debilitating) moments— ideas that continue to influence, inspire or challenge.

This exhibition forum provides an opportunity to unzip closed files. Each team presents the work submitted for the deadline, and also revisits moments from the design process capable of igniting new productions.

The design of the exhibition focuses on film as the main conveyor of projects and intention, and was completed in collaboration with all participants. Each person contributed to various aspects of the installation, which was comprised of a multi-media presentation mounted on temporary scaffolding. Designed in collaboration with Tomá Berlanda / Ted Brown / Julia Czerniak / Trevor Lee / Jon Lott / Sinéad Mac Namara / Anne Munly / Clare Olsen / Michael Pelken / Francisco Sanin / Marissa Tirone / Vasilena Vassilev Venue: Syracuse University School of Architecture Main Gallery Photo Credit: Syracuse University School of Architecture Video of the work for the exhibition: Doron Serban