Clockwise from above: Cole & Son Charlie Wilson Collection, Lee Broom’s Rough Diamond Bistro Chair, Susanne Philippson’s Guardian lamp, Andrew Oliver’s ‘Made with a Twist‘ table.
After paying the £10 to get in, and unchecking the box that would allow the event organisers to sell my information to a third party, I spent just over an hour inside the Truman Brewery, checking out Tent London. It’s little more than a trade show, and I have a bit of a problem with the entrance fee, partly because it’s part of the Design Festival, but particularly because the exhibitors are undoubtedly paying top dollar for their booths to gain class A exposure, while visitors are also paying to have a look. But I digress.
In the Circa area, much of the stalls are dominated by mid-century modern furniture, which is well and good if you’re looking to shop, or worse, looking to kick yourself over all the valuable furniture your parents tossed over the years. A smoking set of Per Lütken Holmegaard Canada glasses, and Russell Callow’s beat-up collection of factory clocks were my coveted items from this section.
The Talent area was good, with Woodloops beautifully finished, sustainable furniture, and Themselves‘ bold, patterned cushions and rugs. My favorite exhibitor by far, was Eva Menz, whose bespoke chandeliers are sexy, sophisticated, and even surprising.
The largest area of the Exhibition, Content, was an eclectic mix of well-established and young brands. Highlights included Corinna Warm’s sleek credenzas, Telegramme’s charming collection of illustrated objects, Caroline Script’s wonderfully delicate tableware, twisted furniture by Andrew Oliver, and the ‘Fishing for my Memories’ collection by Seletti. Though it’s nothing new, I still love Cole & Son’s selection of wallpapers, and Lee Broom’s re-conceived neon furniture is an impractical delight.
After leaving the Brewery, we took a slight detour to the Cardboard Café. Hidden down some dubious alleys, once we found it this temporary construction was impressive, to say the least. Conceived and executed by interior architect consultants B3 Designers, the café was completely constructed using handmade cardboard ‘bricks’. The girls serving coffee tell us that it took seven people working full-time ten days to build it, and that it will be broken down and recycled once the Festival is over. Sadly, we missed the beautiful arches that flanked the entrances, which had been vandalized and destroyed the night before. These images are c/o Core77, who sadly didn’t have the same welcoming experience as we did…
Heading back to Brick Lane, the final stop was my absolute top highlight, Create Berlin’s exhibition at the Dray Walk Gallery. The show was comprised of 20 different projects in a variety of media, presenting a good cross-section of young designers. Schalalala, the fan-scarf knitting project, lets online users cut and paste snippets of fan scarfs together, then download the knitting pattern. Mauermatratzen, or ‘wall matresses’, are inspired by the fall of the Wall, using its quotes and graffiti as a backdrop for dialogue. Susanne Philippson Design teams up with Peter Ibruegger, using illustrations from his ‘neurotic narcissism’ series applied to the simple but beautiful Guardian light. Viewers delicately peel back part of the lampshade to turn on the light, revealing a finely illuminated drawing. llot llov presented my favourite piece, a knitted, entangled mess of lamps. It may look and sound a bit DIY for the contemporary design lover, but it is masterly executed, and very chic. Sadly, the exhibition is now closed, but Create Berlin is considerably active. You can check them out online here.
This was my first London Design Festival. I’ve enjoyed it, even though it runs at the same time as the Architecture open-houses, and Fashion Week (I see the parallels, but it’s a bit gutting to have to choose between 700 things, all happening at the same time). It’s given me just enough energy to want to re-visit some older ideas, and with any luck, to develop new ones. And to be fair, if it’s only cost me a tenner, it’s probably worth it.
