Sam Eichblatt visits MakeSomething – A Collection of Collaboration, a group exhibition with a twist.
December 3rd, 2010
“I’m a bit shell-shocked about how responsive people have been,” says Auckland-based graphic designer Bevan Tonks. He recently curated and participated in Make Something, the first of what’s planned to be an annual exhibition of new creative work by six graphic designers and their six collaborators, who hail from music and effects production, and product, fashion and architectural design.
A first-time curator, Tonks developed the idea after a conversation with an architect friend about the commercial realities of his work. “I was saying, is this all I’ve got to play with?” he says. “Make Something was a way for me to have fun outside work, but it would have been selfish to keep it to myself.”
Putting the word out through his networks and inducing colleagues to crack open their contact books, over six months he brought together a distinctive set of collaborative projects from what is, traditionally, a territorial local design scene.
These include sculptural pieces referencing insect exoskeletons by Brogen Averill and product designer-du-jour Jamie McLellan and a typographic and sound work by Tana Mitchell and Julia Deans, from the band Fur Patrol. Alt Group’s Dean Poole, who turned 40 during the exhibition, took his collaboration into cyberspace, posting a question in the form of a task on Amazon crowd-sourcing service Mechanical Turk. The question: What one thing would you like to do before you turn 40?
“The answers ranged from the hilarious to melancholy to downright weird,” says Tonks.
Plans are in action for next year, with the idea that the designers will nominate their successors, and continue building a platform for future alliances. “This year, it was like herding black cats in a dark room,” laughs Tonks. “I’ve learned a lot, particularly about collaboration. It’s surprisingly easy to work with someone who has the same mindset as you do – like an instant relationship.”
Photographs by Phillip Simpson
phillipsimpson.com
A searchable and comprehensive guide for specifying leading products and their suppliers
Keep up to date with the latest and greatest from our industry BFF's!
Savage Design’s approach to understanding the relationship between design concepts and user experience, particularly with metalwork, transcends traditional boundaries, blending timeless craftsmanship with digital innovation to create enduring elegance in objects, furnishings, and door furniture.
Channelling the enchanting ambience of the Caffè Greco in Rome, Budapest’s historic Gerbeaud, and Grossi Florentino in Melbourne, Ross Didier’s new collection evokes the designer’s affinity for café experience, while delivering refined seating for contemporary hospitality interiors.
Getting a glimpse into the inner workings, and design, of an architecture practice, fulfils a voyeurism for many in the industry. Brooke Lloyd, director – head of interior design at Cox Brisbane, opens up about the process taken when redoing the practice’s own office. And as you can imagine, it’s all about diplomacy and democracy meeting design.
The internet never sleeps! Here's the stuff you might have missed
Third in the series of boutique hotels under the Lloyd’s Inn brand, Lloyd’s Inn Kuala Lumpur bring the immediacy of nature to the new high-rise hospitality experience in the heart of a bustling city.
Suitable for applications ranging from schools and retail outlets to computer rooms and X-ray suites, Palettone comes in two varieties and a choice of more than fifty colours.
From housing affordability to questions of density, multi-residential design and the future of cities, here are eight varied stories from our archives.
For 50 years, Alspec has been a driving force in Australia’s architectural landscape. As a wholly Australian-owned company, their commitment to innovation and exceptional service has positioned them as a leading supplier of aluminium window and door systems for commercial, residential, and industrial applications.