imm cologne news

What are the key trends influencing furniture design this year? We asked designers, manufacturers, retailers and journalists for their assessments and observations.

Arik Lévy, Designer, Paris:

This last one was an interesting period for us all. Many things have changed in people’s eyes, minds and in their way of thinking. For me personally – and confirmed by the fair and some of the products shown – trends are or can become a tool – a tool to use and to understand what we see. Trends change so fast that maybe it is not the trend itself that is important but the way and reasons it changes.

I think the current trend is and will be to get ones identity back, to be honest and to be devoted to ones original ideas. Believe in what you do and concentrate your vision towards the future, towards quality and efficiency, outstanding solutions to real every day problems from the end user to the supply chain, delivery and storage.

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There’s more to a living room than a sofa by Marcel Wanders, a chair by Konstantin Grcic or a shelf by Arik Lévy. It is the nuances, the scenography of the room and the context of the lighting, furniture and fabrics that provide the backdrop for showing the leading actors off at their best – one reason, perhaps, why design items are increasingly providing the face for complete creative concepts.

The new presentation format Pure Village caters to this market development by creating a stage on which stand-alone presentations of exclusive design items are showcased just as effectively as creative interior concepts. From 19 to 24 January 2010, Hall 3.2 will cluster the highlights from the various specialist ranges in the immediate vicinity of the furniture in the Pure segment (Hall 11) and the ideas of the d3 Design Talents forum (Hall 3.1).

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Gerald Böse, CEO of the Koelnmesse Executive Board

Concentrated business at a high level delivered a positive overall outcome at imm cologne 2009. Last week around 100,000 visitors came to find out what 1,057 companies from 49 countries had to offer. The emotionalised settings in the exhibition halls of Koelnmesse aroused plenty of interest in the visitors on the topic of furnishings, providing some lasting economic stimuli in the industry.

The exhibitors accordingly declared themselves to be “satisfied to very satisfied” with the sales that they achieved. “I am convinced that under the prevailing circumstances we have had a good furniture trade fair. For seven days, the realistic optimism of the industry was reflected in the exhibition halls,” said Gerald Böse, CEO of the Koelnmesse Executive Board.

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Warm shades of red, modernised classic forms and colourful ensembles of solid wood, plastic, leather and metal are soon to enter into the living rooms of fashion-conscious interior design fans. This is the prophecy of the Trend Board at imm cologne, which, from 19 to 25 January 2009, will become the Mecca of the international furnishing world.

Five famous creative individuals – Eero Koivisto from Sweden, Markus Fairs from England, Arik Lévy from Israel, Stephen Burks from the USA and Giulio Ridolfo from Italy – have carried out research into how interior trends will look in 2009 on behalf of the furniture trade fair from Cologne. They were able to sift out four general directions in terms of tastes. An employee from the Ludwigsburg-based furnishing store Uhl Schöner Leben, which is always keen to promote innovation, commented on them for imm cologne.

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What interior trends will be dominant in 2009? Answers are provided by the trend forum “informed by cologne”.

In various lectures on color & light, form, function, pattern and material, participants can take a glance at the future of interior design. Moreover, an exhibition on the fair’s Boulevard introduces the four megatrends:

· Extra Much: Ardor and extremes are popular here. Searching for limits with regard to materials, shapes and construction is a dominant feature.

· Near and Far: Nature with its complex and interrelated macro- and microstructure acts as ideal example. Seemingly opposite features are combined.

· Tepee Culture: The nomad roots of mankind and being close to nature are central features. Direct, unmediated experiences, of which cracks and scratches give evidence, are highly valued.

· Re-Run Time: Matters of course are more important than originality. Well-known objects are re-valued. Traditional shapes are refined by reducing them to their essence so that the basic idea shines through again.

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In this time of major change, the Trendboard at the imm cologne compiles stunning examples of designers’ attempts to create a space which helps people reconnect with the world. These latest trends in interior design are featured in the book “Interior Trends 2009″.

According to the trend analysis conducted by the imm cologne Trendboard, the realities of the world around us are effectively reflected in both people and the latest designs. We are increasingly aware of the perceived and real changes in our lives, which directly impact our lifestyles and home furnishings.

Today’s design expresses social transformations, the shifting balance of nature, changes in our day-to-day lives and our sense of personal responsibility. People are looking at old, familiar things in new ways – and combining them to create innovative designs. Values are being challenged and new rules for aesthetics established.

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