It is the season for graduation shows. The largest school is Konstfack with 175 graduates, but Beckmans College of design is smaller with 13 graduates in design. But equally as good. Here is an overview.
Class of 2021 is a generation asking a lot of questions about the role of the designer. It is more about the profession and responsibility than looking at your own aesthetics. Sustainability is there, but not so much in your face and absolutely no upcycle. You can see it in the choice of materials but they are not trying to educate or foster us.
Design and the role of the designer in a sustainable world. Here Johanna Fosselius. Based on the idea of open source. You can download the blueprint of how to make this bench yourself, but also have it made by a local craftsperson for a more sleek version. Almost the same blueprint, but one is totally free and the other for a cost. Clever discussion on pricing and added value in this world.
Carpenter made
Made by the mother of Fosselius.
Arpie Amirians wants to talk about “gallery design”. A lot of designers make pieces that are nice, but really without a realistic ordinary day context. These vases are nice in a gallery, but what if they would be displayed at an ordinary interior design store? Again talking about what is the role of the designer…
In this class, three out of 13 made rooms and architecture. All with a social perspective. Here a mini library that basically could be moved? Why? Well representation in for instance the design field is limited. Yes, the majority of Swedish designers are very CIS, ethnic kaukasian. So, Alina Piatanova wants to take design books and literature out to areas where we don’t see so many designers. This could encourage a whole new generation of designers.
Nathaliya Khanenko made bus stops with mulitple purposes. Of course keeping you from the rain, but also making people feel safer. And beautiful to look at when driving by. When walking around the exhibition I was also told that the rounded shape might keep the bus stop from being destroyed. Not sure that works, but not everything needs to be straightlined.
The third architectural project is by Alice Lannfelt. She made a post-pandemic restaurant. It is aesthetically interesting and I will not be too critical, but this is more nice looking than functional. These are design students and not architects. What I have learned over my years is that when you are designing a restaurant there are two areas people tend to forget – you need to maximise the number of seats (money in) and you need to look at cleaning and dishwashing stations (time efficiency). Not really seeing this being addressed here. But nice windows toward a street for easy pick up.
Same Alice Lennfelt made a fantastic table almost imitating a table cloth. Super nice.
Alice Hägglund made a collection working with aesthetics and meaning. She wanted to talk about unisex. We see it growing in the fashion industry with clothes that fit both men and women. But since they need to appeal to both sexes, it gets very straight and beige. Instead of including men and women – they exclude everything – making it boring. So this is aesthetics working with stereotypical male (horns, tribals) and female (icing on a cake) symbols.
A beautiful piece, but bad lighting and perhaps a bad photographer… But here is Sweden’s most talked about young designer of 2021. Here is Gustav Winsth. The shelf is actually gradient going from light to dark. The base is made from recycled materials and should make you think of a sneaker. Unique shape and form. Extremely well done and a pure talent.
Matilda Olsson Borg made a conventional design solution. She saw a gap, a need, and made it. This is a small chair for when you have those parties (remember those??) and just need a chair to pull up to the couch.
Look at the ceiling and not at the lamp itself. Elsa Frisen wanted to make a light that had no center and was just working with reflections.
A clear sustainable project is this chair by Emma Falkehed. She made one base and with this you can alter it any way. For outdoor, with upholstery, stripped… Anything goes.
Damn sun light. A beautful collection but the sun really killed my picture. A nice collection by Max Stjerna. Working with different materials and beautiful lines. According to the information I got, this is addressing sensory design. Design is not only about looking at things, but also feel them. Beautiful.
Finally. Also talking about the role of the designer. Teresa Lundmark went to a metal factory. She looked at what they actually did on site and thought about tweaking the machines so they could makefurniture. That is also the role of a designer. Look at what you have, and see how you can evolve that.
Overall a very optimistic generation. I like that.