I’d love to show you today Four Interior Design Trends 2016 that have been developed by London based agency Global Color Research for a dear client. Wet met last summer at the European trend panel GCR is hosting every year, and I am very lucky to work with them on a few very inspiring projects now (I’ll show you soon a part).
Finsa is the leader on the Spanish market when it comes to surface design for the interiors industry. They work in more than 50 countries with a range of decorative surfaces including melamine faced chipboards, MDF, wood veneer, plywood, mouldings, kitchen cabinets, furniture components, laminate flooring, etc. Once you start getting involved, it’s a fascinating field.
These are the trends they presented on a conference in Barcelona a few weeks ago I’d love to share with you :
1// EMBRACE
Top left: Lucy Simpson highlights the importance of the tangible in her truly touchable silicone textile collection. I wrote a post recently about her work.
Left: Maiko Takeda’s millinery collection Atmospheric Reentry uses hundreds of colourful bristles to create surreal spikey textures with an unexpected delicacy and softness.
Above right: Constance Guisset creates a sensory escape pod in her installation Trois Conversations for Palais de Tokyo, Paris. Visitors are invited to interact with the pieces shape-shifting structure and soft ombre colours.
2// NURTURE
Top left: Paolo Ulian and Moreno Ratti cut slits into a rectangular block of white Carrera marble so that the thin layers can be broken off with a hammer, forming the uneven and unique surface around the Introverso2 vase.
Above: Plant cells are placed under the microscope to inspire new innovations in materials and manufacturing.
Left: Nature is allowed to leave its mark on Martín Azúa’s collection of porous white ceramic vases. Each vase is left for a year in a natural space to grow mosses, and other organic matter, creating micro landscapes that decorate the surface.
3// PIONEER
Pioneer is driven by the excitement surrounding new expeditions to uncharted territories and new frontiers. Firstly we look to the stars and new discoveries in space to provide visual stimulus and intrigue. Sparking the imagination, we also dive deep into the untold capacity of earth’s oceans where strange, never before seen creatures offer new sources of inspiration and innovation. Blurring the gap between living and non-living materials, this is a trend where new material developments are key. Technology is used to better inform a new man-made nature where surfaces can adapt with unexpected function.
Top left: Shamees Aden imagines the future of footwear in her project investigating new materials derived from Protocells.
Top right: Design studio Convivial Project has developed a procedural algorithm to digitally generate patterns that look like intricate visual landscapes of melting shapes and colors.
Above: Complex lightweight wire forms appear almost digital in the vibrant new collection of jewellery by Vulantri.
4// CONSTRUCT
New Luxe: Bold tones of ‘95U-Coral Fresh’ and cobalt blue update the natural material offering whereas Melamine 60U-Nogal Victoria’ brings a rich and authentic finish to the overall design.
Top: Inspired by traditional construction methods, this trend depends on age-old tools for reliability and strength.
Above: Fabio Biavaschi’s playfully constructed design can be totally disassembled and reassembled without any tools or glue.
I believe it’s the combination of the four topics that make this complex trend research so interesting with high contrasts but all together looking for vivid and tactile surfaces that invite to touch and feel. No matter how far smart technology goes, it’s the human interaction and longing for multi-sensorial experiences that is asked as a common thread throughout all these trend directions. G, x
Thank you, Finsa, for letting me share this great collaboration with Global Colour Research.
2 Responses
How wonderful! Oh… I really love Nurture. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Yvonne, very welcome, me too. The innovation factor is what it makes most interesting, it’s not just about well being, going green, calm, nature and the usual balance talk! G,x