Unlike other creative industry sectors, there appears a particular lack of constructive dialogue in the wood and furniture sectors. As a result, Lesarski utrip magazine has launched an initiative to organise a series of interactive seminars called 180˚Stage • Wood.
These events are comprised of short presentations (180 seconds) by 10-12 managers, marketers developers, process people and other experts from the fields of wood processing, furniture and design.
Four times yearly, industry insiders and creative industry people meet to exchange views on current trends, chart out new directions and outline prospects and perspectives on future developments.

DATES & THEMES 2010:

05.03. Marketing and foreign markets˚ (video)
12.05. Wooden house: the icon of slovenian economy?˚ (video)
15.09. Innovation ad Design˚
10.12. Industry & Wood Processing˚

Always at 18.0˚
Venue: Exhibition and Convention Centre, Ljubljana
Fee: € 10.00 + VAT. With every paid registration you help support one young student attend 180˚Stage free of charge.
Contact: Jan Glavič, +386 1 4312222

Register here˚
Students: free of charge (Limited)

180˚Stage • Architecture is a series of challenging short presentations by architects and builders from all over the region addressing the basic question – What makes a good house? – And in doing so, elaborate on the architectural position within the process.
180˚Stage is an opportunity for architects and builders to present themselves in front of potential investors. The main goal of the seminar is to develop the relationship between the clients and the creators, support cooperation and present different points of views from different profiles.
180˚Stage is something new, a cycle of short presentations presenting new ideas and challenges. It is supplementary addition to every new issue of “Hiše” magazine.

DATES & THEMES 2010:

03.03. Materials˚ (video lectures)
12.05. Wooden house˚ (video lectures)
10.09. Passive,  Active, Energy˚
17.12. Character˚

Always at 18.0˚
Venue: Exhibition and Convention Centre, Ljubljana
Fee: € 10.00 + VAT. With every paid registration you help support one young student attend 180˚Stage free of charge.
Info by phone: +386 1 4312222

Register here˚
Students: free of charge (Limited)

Croatian Pavilion in the form of a ship, which was to represent Croatia at the Biennale of Architecture in Venice, had collapsed on the way to Venice while sailing from Rijeka port over Adriatic Sea. Pavilion arrived to Venice in such a bad shape that it had to be accompanied back to the shipyard where it will be repaired. Croatia will therefore only be able to present its construction project in Arsenal. But the project when presented still in Croatia in its full shape showed very interesting architectural installation that we would like to present to you here.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Brod / The Ship / La Nave: A Floating Pavilion for Croatia at the Venice Biennale

 
The Floating Pavilion to present arts and architecture of Croatia at the Venice Biennale is constructed on an existing barge with dimensions of 10m x 20m x 3m. It is designed by a group of 14 leading Croatian architects, who have made the recent Croatian architecture visible on the global scene. Instead of working in the usual formats of their practices and presenting speculative projects, they decided to work together on a single proposal and to have it constructed and towed toward its final destination in Venice right away. The pavilion structure is the barge’s cargo, welded from 30 tons of Q385 wire mesh in more than 40 layers of varying contours. The cargo presented here maps the process of intense interaction between architects working on the common project, their collaboration with the Croatian maritime industry, and the extraordinary act of architecture it produced.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Commissioner: Leo Modrcin
Participating architects:
Sasa Begovic, Marko Dabrovic, Igor Franic, Tanja Grozdanic, Petar Miskovic, Silvije Novak, Veljko Oluic, Helena Paver Njiric, Lea Pelivan, Toma Plejic, Goran Rako, Sasa Randic, Idis Turato, Pero Vukovic, Tonci Zarnic
Organizer: Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Rijeka, Croatia

Photos by: Zelimir Grzanic and authors

Posted by: Eva Prelovšek

Produced by the Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana, studiobotas and the Studio AKKA presents Slovenia at the 12th International Architecture Biennial in Venice with the All Shades of Green project. The playground built with elements of landscape design will interact with the urban space in front of the A+A Gallery, Venice.

All Shades of Green addresses the contemporary relationship between man and nature as manifested in the urban public space. It explores the integration of nature into the human living environment and seeks ways to present and realize it. Humans respond to nature with expectations, conceptions and the investment of possibilities. Urban landscape is seen as communication of man to nature, defined as playscape – as space, open in all respects, which allows for development of physical and mental play. It exposes the contrasts that fundamentally define our contemporary practice as well as our view of nature.

Galleria A+A
Centro Pubblico per l’Arte Contemporanea
San Marco, Calle Malipiero 3073, Venezia
Opening time:
29th August to 21st November, 2010 from 10.00 am to 6.00 pm,
closed on Mondays (excluded 30th August and 15th November 2010).

Free entrance.

Authors:
Studio AKKA: Ana Kučan, Luka Javornik , Zaš Brezar
studiobotas: Boštjan Botas Kenda , Primož Fijavž , Peter Rauch
and
Peter Koštrun, Sašo Kalan, Urh Sobočan

The exhibition is organized by the Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana with financial support from the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia.

Commissioner: Blaž Peršin, Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana

Assistant commissioner: Marija Skočir, Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana

With the collaboration of: Obalne galerije Piran/Gallerie Costiere Pirano, The Slovenian Museum of Natural History

Visual identity: studiobotas

Translation: Erica Johnson Debeljak

Exhibition set up: RPS, Danilo Ambrož, Jasmin Talundžič, O.K. vir, Fotoformat, Ib-Procadd

Photo documentation: Peter Koštrun

Posted by: Eva Prelovšek

One week before the opening of the Motovun Film Festival another interesting project had taken place: twenty architecture students from Zagreb and Split came up with a workshop to revitalize a row of arches/niches supporting the famous walkway on city walls, hidden from the views and unavailable for usage so far.

- The idea was to bring new life to this attractive space with one student project in each room/niche. In this workshop students were meant to undergo a whole design process, from concept to realization, and this span is often missing in our architectural education, explained Lana Petrak, MA student and project leader.

Students created an interesting row of different rooms, with projects ranging from utilitarian to purely artistic. Some projects addressed both aspects.

- Project has been realized with small budget and low-cost materials which we gathered solely through the donations. It demanded a lot of creativity and facing the performance limitations of every idea, said Jana Piacun, co-organizer.

Project has been greatly supported by the community and has stirred the attention of general tourists and visitors of Motovun Film Festival, famous regional event.

Faculty of architecture Zagreb assistants Juraj Glasinović, Marko Rukavina, Nino Virag and Luka Korlaet helped a great deal.

The workshop organizers are also proud of the participation of Kristina Lenard and Ivan Fijolić, acclaimed Croatian artists, who were first asked only to give lectures on their work but eventually joined the process.

- Amid sudden inspiration and inspiring materials which we found discarded in Motovun, we decided to join the students on workshop and make our installation called Happy Place – ‘a satellite smiley’ which is directly connected to Motovun and its film festival. Our project reflects the enchantment by the workshop, and is also our first project together, said Kristina.

Works can be seen until the end of September. Motovun Niche Festival will also take place next year.

WORKS

Lea Anić
A tiny beach, trying to introduce a feel of the sea inside of Motovun, a town close to the sea shore, but on the top of a hill.

Jana Čulek
An imitation of a blackboard and suspended crayons from the ceiling, aiming to inspire visitors to draw and write.

Luka Cvitan
Simple cloth to manipulate speed and direction of passers-by and, depending on wind and sun, to create different spatial experiences.

Iva Kolak
Walls wrapped in aluminium foil to reflect the light coming from a tiny opening, intensifying the experience of the space.

Luka Korlaet, Lovro Mioković
Manipulating with light and reflection, the installation named Layered Light seemingly increases the space of the niche.

Kristina Krajačić
Three step dating niche is a flexible furniture set whose pieces can stand separately or be gradually joined.

Kristina Lenard, Ivan Fijolić
Happy place is made of scrap satellite dish, wooden beams and dish washing sponges, absorbing positive energy through a pixelated smiley face.

Marta Lozo
Small exhibition called NIŠ(T)A (niša-’niche’, ništa-’nothing’) with photos hanging from the ceiling for visitors to take, leaving it empty.

Sandra Perić
Go and see – closed volume in the upper part of the niche provokes people to climb up and discover – a beautiful scent of lavender!

Lana Petrak
Place to sit and read made of low-budget materials like old newspapers and cheap wooden boards.

Jana Piacun
Light wooden construction holds sheets modeled to serve as swings for sitting or laying down, depending on the users wishes.

Marin Piršić, Andrej Vuk
Small living room. Comfortable and flexible furniture tailored to maximize the potential of the space to relax and enjoy the view through a small window.

 
Slavica Polić, Ana Sopina
Brush painted sheets representing the air circulating from the window and its reflection in a small mirror on the right.

Ivana Primorac
Room with a view introduces a virtual vista of surrounding landscape.

Paula Prkačin
Installation consisting of perspectively warped niche offsets and a small convex mirror in its focus. Small change / big impact.

Denis Rubinić
Heavy duty swing made of simple materials. Lie down and enjoy!

Igor Sladoljev, Darko Šeparović
Red thing of no form, no general idea and logic; connecting the niche, the walkway and the walls. Enchanting at first, irritating in the end.

Barbara Vanić
The idea is to induce an optical illusion with a simple intervention – shallow niche vs. deep tunnel.

Posted by: Eva Prelovšek

A few weeks ago, the results of the competition “SIT DOWN ZAGREB” for the Zagreb’s new benches were announced. 18 projects have been chosen for realization near the sporting track Jarun in Zagreb. We are showing here the chosen proposals which were designed by architects, artists and sculptors.

Authors: Ivan Sučić
Title: 3D pixel

Authors: Anja Ranković
Title: Nevidljiva klupa (invisible bench)

 
 Authors: Ivan Tudek
Title: Klupa- naočala (bench- spectacles)

Authors: Zvonimir Kuhtić
Title: 0,50 kn (0,50 kuna)

Authors: Filip Pintarić,  Bernarda Cesar
Title: Klupa za “Kadriranje” (Bench for scenography)

 
Authors: Maja Mesić
Title: ObliOblik (OvalForm)

Authors: Ana Krstulović
Title: Dorin

Authors: Ana Dumbović,  Marta Muždalo
Title: Splet (interlaced)

Authors: Grupa
Title: Lotos (lotus)

Authors: Nika Pavlinek, Damir Prizmić
Title: Mobil

Authors: Filip Tadin,  Robert Jozić
Title: Obli7

 
Authors: Ranka Vuković
Title: Oblo5

Authors: Predrag Pavić
Title: Vintage sofa

Authors: Jurica Sinković
Title: Sljeme

  
Authors: Saša Meničanin
Title: Cut diamond

Authors: Daniel Kovač
Title: Balkon (balcony)

Authors: Margita Grubiša, Ivana Cooper
Title: Klupa “Visoka” (“High” bench)

Posted by: Eva Prelovšek

The collection of wooden lamps “rEža” (eng. Gap) was designed by Mojca Perše, the head of the Laboratory for Creative Industries at the Academy of Design, Ljubljana. The lamps were a final product of a project based on sustainable design. The primary material for a wooden lamp “rEža” is in the mould curved plywood. The designer used already existing moulds from  Javor Furniture d.o.o. for the manufacture of the back of a chair. Two pieces of perforated beech plywood form the basic lamp. By compiling various basic forms we can create a different variety of lamps: table, floor, wall, ceiling or hanging lamps. “rEža” lamps represent new potential ways of merging wood and light.

The idea grew around the concept of re-design: a process of reforming and reusing an object with intent of improving or adding value from the aesthetic, functional, economical or technical point of view. Re-design can also be understood as a form of embracing environmental and social responsibility from a designers perspective.
Mojca Perše re-used already existing moulds of curved plywood transforming it from the back of a chair into a lamp. The basic shape of the lamp is composed of two pieces of perforated beech plywood, surface protected with a coating of natural water based varnish. The perforation in the form of a gap is complemented with a special foil on the inside of the lamp thus creating a special illumination and a pleasant diffuse light.
The form of the lamp is simple and bears similarity with a sculpture. “rEža” lamps can be applied in a private or public area.
The collection of wooden lamp “rEža” was manufactured by  Sijaj Hrastnik d.d. and was presented at the  Čar lesa” (eng. The Beauty of Wood) exhibition in Ljubljana.

Photos: Nika Živec

The student workshop KamFest that was held in the first week of August  in Kamnik, Slovenia, was dealing with designing and placing the KamFest festival in the old part of the medieval city center. The main purpose was to design the festival place and city center to correspond with each other. Here we are showing the results of the workshop which was organized by the group Štajn, Municipality of Kamnik, Agency for development of Tourism Kamnik and Faculty of Architecture in Ljubljana.

The aim of the workshop was to bring urban design closer to the local citizens. Through the collaboration of local and international architectural students participants wanted to educate them and show people new ideas and a different comprehension of urban space. Participants used recycled materials and changed the existing traffic scheme while placing different installations into the streets. The new traffic scheme was developed according to the plans of the local architect Tomaž Schlegl and the group Štajn.

The workshop was held in medieval Kamnik in the north of Slovenia, more precisely in the city center, on the castle hill, in urban public areas around it and the railway station Kamnik mesto. Kamnik lies at the southern foot of the Kamnik-Savinja Alps, only 25 km from Ljubljana. Its cultural and historical monument and the old town gives it a pleasant homelike atmosphere. The old ruins, the Mali Grad castle and the old city centre with narrow cobbled streets remind us of the city’s history. It is also an excellent starting point for hiking to the surrounding Alps.
The workshop has taken place one week before the famous festival KamFest where the results of the workshop have been presented.

ŠTAJN GROUP

Štajn Group is a group of students of architecture, design and other artistic majors from Kamnik and its wider surroundings. The main purpose of the group is to bring together young people and all those interested in the creation of space and also establish a public debate on this topic. They want to make the people aware of the meaning of urban space and invite them to actively participate in creating their city. At the same time, their aim is to create a new, creative and innovative spatial ambience in their surroundings.

Their  first big project was designing the part of the scene at the summer Festival KamFest. With the artistic/architectural installation they tried to show that there was once a lake in Kamnik. They designed some boats, which were also used as part of the urban design a bit later, the light installation in the tunnel etc. The effect was perfect: people stopped and started to think about the space.

Their next project was to design the scene for the New Year Festival in Kamnik. They made people from chipboard and they placed groups in different parts of Kamnik. They wanted to focus the attention to the empty spaces in the city, which hide the potential for a variety of activities.

KAMFEST

Kamfest is a two-week international open-air festival in Kamnik, which is held every year in mid-August. It is one of the biggest festivals of this kind in Slovenia. There are different events, such as concerts and different performances. All events are usually free. Main organizer of this festival is KD Priden mozic. Through the festival, which takes place in different locations in Kamnik, the producer tries to brings together some of the main players in the field of culture, youth activities and tourism in the municipality of Kamnik. In the last two years it has become one of the most frequently visited events in the wider area, with daily visits between 1000 and 2000 people. The festival is divided into four program groups, one of them for children and the others for wider audience. Moreover, the festival offers an important cultural and social hub of residents and other visitors and is one of the main points of cooperation and integration of cultural, economic, tourist and educational sectors in the municipality of Kamnik. The main festival events are held in the exceptional ambience of Mali Grad, the others are spread along the old town center.

More about the festival can be found on http://www.kamfest.org/.

Photos by: Larisa Kazić and Nadja Hribar

Posted by: Eva Prelovšek

The city blog is a platform for innovative, bold ideas, and a space to express socially engaged commentary on current affairs in the city.

Send your proposals for intervention on the CITY BLOG on theme Making design work by August 30 to: info@zavodbig.si, “For the City”.

The selected proposal will be designed and presented as a spatial installation on the City Blog in Ljubljana, and will be a full-page feature in September’s issue of Hiše magazine.

City blog 01 can be seen here

Student of Academy of Design, Ljubljana, Žiga Volk with his FlexAholic shelves received the Production Design 2010 award at the Mikser 2010, “Ghost Project”. The great advantage of the patented modular system Fl3xAholic is its flexibility. The console construction is made out of modular elements which are designed to adapt to the profile of the wall and to enable diverse depths and length of the shelf. The product is elegant with clean lines; it can be easily incorporated into diverse interiors of different styles.

Fl3xAholic shelves were designed with strong emphasis on sustainability. The product is made from massive and plywood which indicates the usage of renewable and eco friendly materials. Vertically placed strips of veneer provide adequate capacity, since the material has extremely high transverse strength. At the same time the longitudinal flexibility is assured and hence flexibility of the shelves. Alternative materials that can be used to produce the vertically set strips are acrylic glass and metal (aluminium or stainless steel).
The console is composed of three elements: assembly element, basic extension element and finishing element. The number of the console elements depends on the load that shelf is carrying, its length and the curving shape. The console can be dismantled into small pieces which enables economical transport.
The product is elegant with clean lines; it can be easily incorporated into diverse interiors of different styles.
Žiga Volk is a student at the Academy of Design in Ljubljana, an independent institution of higher education, at the Department of Interior Design. The product is a result the educational process in the second year; Žiga Volks’ mentors are assistant professor Jasna Hrovatin and Mojca Perše.

Photos: assistant professor Jasna Hrovatin