Future Thinking
Future Thinking will highlight the thinking that goes into the development and selection of materials for architecture and design. It is a new area for Surface Design Show bringing to London designers and architects with new products, materials and prototypes.
This feature will be curated by Annabelle Filer, Founder, SCIN - the UK sourcing and advisory company for materials.
BREAD (the Bureau of Research Engineering Art & Design Limited)
Developed by Sarat Babu and Richard Beckett, Bread will explore materiality through surfaces. Taking inspiration from the natural occurring complexity of biological structures, gradiented surfaces have been produced, which respond to touch in diverse and unexpected ways whilst the structures’ movements create visually stimulating effects through interplay between light and shadow.
Edgy Tiles by Patrycja Domanska in cooperation with Tanja Lightfoot
“edgy” is a three-dimensional tile that plays with concave and convex planes and using them to accentuate one another. It creates the effect of visually pulling the user towards itself. The asymmetry means the tiles can be positioned in a number of different ways to achieve various effects. The tiles are the creation of Patrycja Domanska, Design Studio in cooperation with Tanja Lightfoot.
The ‘Invisible’ project by Alicia Tam
The ‘Invisible’ project by Alicia Tam explores the modern notion of privacy, particularly in urban environments. The ‘invisible’ pattern algorithm can be applied to various surfaces and objects and has many commercial applications. Whether shielding celebrities from paparazzi or blending in with nature, these ‘invisible’ products push the boundaries between what our eyes see and what our minds perceive.
Pavegen
Pavegen’s people-powered flooring system made from recycled materials harvest the kinetic energy of footsteps and turns it into electrical power, making intelligent use of a previously untapped resource. Innovative, sustainable design solutions are now being incorporated into the built environment. Pavegen's technology, can offer architects and interior designers a new source of cutting edge and inspiring renewable energy flooring for any commercial urban projects designed for indoor or outside use.
Coin Curtain by Sue Edwards Design
In the belief that interior surface design can be a canvas for expressing poignant issues, Sue Edwards creates conceptual, and sometimes subversive, interior textile / surface design through experimenting with radical contemporary materials, processes and narrative. The inspiration for ‘Coin Curtain’ is a reaction to our countries dire financial situation. The process involves corrosion of coins using a mixture containing urine (a non urine version can be produced for commission).
OZ Wall of light by Alexandra Devaux
OZ Wall of light consists of a wool felt and a synthetic resin material suitable for indoor use, architecture and furnishing application. The felt is a natural material with great sound absorption performances, fire resistance and interesting suppleness. The translucent resin that is included in the felt thanks to a craft production permits the light to pass through and creates a new sensorial surface aspect.
Foldtex
Foldtex is a composite material based on wood and different textile surfaces. Through a special milling process the planar and solid material can be transformed into foldable and moldable structures. This material combines stability with low weight and variation of its compounds allow for customisation.
Graphic Relief
Graphic Relief produces beautiful textured architectural concrete surfaces and products. With their technology they create a wide range of surface designs, textures and graphic effects.
The surfaces are suitable for both interior and exterior use and is suitable for applications such as facades, cladding, tiles, artwork and bespoke products.
3Form Ditto
Play with structure, form, color shape and light with Ditto, a revolutionary new 3D modular product by 3form. Ditto uses cross-shaped pieces designed to work together to create 3D partitions, wall feature or an art piece, all in a box. Ditto allows for high design customisation with the customary flexibility of 3form Varia Ecoresin with the low impact of 40% pre-consumer recycled content.
Sky Garden
Sky Garden Pocket Green Wall panel is a lightweight modular geo-composite system that provides a unique growing medium designed to provide optimum growing conditions for a vertical vegetation system. Each panel weighs around 20kg when planted making it simple to install on a range of surfaces and structures.
