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Interior design trends and design highlights at imm cologne 2012: an interview with Dick Spierenburg

„Wir werden auf der imm cologne 2012 einen Einrichtungsstil und Produkte sehen, die ihrer Zeit weit voraus sind.“ (Dick Spierenburg, Creative Director Pure Village)

“We’ll be seeing a furnishing style and products that are way ahead of their time.” (Dick Spierenburg, Creative Director Pure Village)

Dick Spierenburg is Creative Director of the imm cologne’s new design highlight: “Das Haus – Interiors on Stage”. For the first installation, he has invited London design studio Doshi Levien to build a sort of turnkey vision of what living in one’s own four walls can be like in the midst of the Pure Village hall.

Which interior design trends do you think will dominate the next few years?
A lot of developments are apparent right now, but I think trying to infer trends from them is going a bit too far. The complexity of the developments made it difficult to focus on the four trends we depicted in the annual Trend Book. There are always several directions that remain constant as well: quieter ones that aim for simplicity and livelier ones that use lots of colour and materials. That won’t ever change, because there are so many different people out there, so many different clients and interior designers. But it isn’t possible to name totally new and completely different trends every year.

Zones instead of rooms: imm cologne 2012 provides inspiration for new floor plans and the interior trends of the future

Zones instead of rooms: The elimination of room boundaries and walls is giving rise to a host of new possibilities for interior design.

The reason modernist architecture is so topical again today is that – perhaps for the first time ever – it is compatible with many people’s desire for open living spaces, a more flexible organisation of their lives and aesthetics with a bearing on the present. Today we want to live the way Mies van der Rohe and Le Corbusier proposed.

But also the way Nipa Doshi and Jonathan Levien depict in their installation for “Das Haus – Interiors on Stage” at imm cologne 2012 (16.-22.01.2012) in Cologne: in an individual, lively home with cultural echoes. In a house that permits privacy and publicness, that connects the kitchen, eating and working zones, family and friends, areas of retreat and shared wellness experiences in an individual way.

The conventions that shape the way we live are changing along with our lifestyles, and architecture is enabling a growing number of people to try out new ways of living. The elimination of room boundaries and walls, the new desire for cosiness and the longing for more nature in the house are giving rise to a host of new possibilities for interior design. Today, anybody that wants to build a house for contemporary living needs more than a floor plan – he needs a concept.

imm cologne and LivingKitchen: The furnishing year 2011 is kicking off with a double sensation

The furnishing year 2011 is kicking off with a double sensation. Parallel to the international interior design fair imm cologne, the new international kitchen fair LivingKitchen will also be opening its doors in fully booked halls from 18th to 23rd January. And so, in the third week of January 2011, Cologne won’t just be the design capital of Europe, it will be the gourmet capital as well. At the imm cologne 2011 and LivingKitchen, over 1,200 companies from 49 countries will be presenting more than 100,000 pieces of furniture and even more interior design items on a space of approx. 300,000 m². Around one third of those products are totally new.

“Cologne is a talking point in the international interior design sector again,” says CEO of Koelnmesse Gerald Böse. “In view of the huge interest from professional circles and the media, plus the fact that the number of exhibitors who have registered to take part exceeds all our expectations, we can already say that the dual event imm cologne and LivingKitchen, which presents the entire spectrum of interior design in one location, is going to be a total success.”

Pure Village: bilingual web platform for information about interior design

The success of Pure Village has shown that the increasing overlap between the various product segments and the growing importance of co-ordinated interior design concepts is creating the need for a special forum. At the international interior design fair imm cologne, this need is met by Pure Village. And so that the discussions can continue between the fairs held at the start of every year, the webpage www.purevillage.net is intended to provide a bilingual web platform for information about interior design.

purevillage.net provides a multitude of varied content on design issues relating to furniture, home furnishings, architecture and interior design. Pigeonholing is passé: Anything that influences the quality of interior lifestyle and design can be presented.

A design dictionary helps users expand their basic knowledge; regular news about exhibitors, new products and trends as well as reports on aspects such as colours, materials and sustainability ensure the Pure Village community is always up to date. Company profiles provide interesting insights and give a face to the furniture.

All in white – Jab Anstoetz presents its new collection

photo: Jab Anstoetz.

It continues to be a megatrend in the textile sector and a genuine all-rounder that can be combined with anything: the colour white. It stands for purity and weightlessness and adds a sense of freshness and light. But it is also multifaceted. Textile specialist Jab Anstoetz (hall 11.1, stand D021 C020) is even dedicating an entire collection for the spring/summer 2011 season to it: White Passion. 48 items are to be launched in 49 different nuances of white, sometimes presenting the colour as subtle, elegant or pure, sometimes as playful and nonchalant. A mix of different patterns, materials in various shades of white.

Jab Anstoetz describes its Rixa fabric as nothing short of spectacular. Closely spaced, embroidered semicircles on a background of Bobinet tulle are meant to evoke countless slats. The fabric with the lengthways design is only available in snow-white. Elvis, a decorative fabric featuring fine, irregular stripes with different thread counts, seems to fluctuate between transparency and opacity, conjuring up a play of dancing light and shadows in the room.

Home life trends 2011: What stays? What‘s coming?

photo: Warendorfer Küchen.

It‘s been called “homing“ for years: that magical word, that complete residential concept. Nature, genuineness and heartfelt cordiality are the order of the day, something you instinctively know from your own conception of the pastoral idyll. And for this, there are cosy sofas, fireplace-heated rooms, plush carpets, silky pillows, walls of natural stone, mineral bathtubs, solid wood dressers.

Of course, natural materials like wood, glass, stone have become readily available, along with a colour palette in nature‘s spectrum. People are becoming more sensitive to – and sensible with – the resources of this world. Even with furniture, they are paying closer attention to the material and its origins. They are paying heed to the volume of raw materials, and their recyclability. It‘s worth noting here that discussion of the “cradle to cradle“ approach is beginning. “Cradle to cradle“ aims at a virtually one hundred percent recovery of all components, and opposes their disposal on the rubbish heap, or their incineration, or their recycling into far inferior components. Increasingly, raw materials are being re-used. Some European furniture manufacturers are already pursuing this prudent approach today.

At imm cologne 2011 and LivingKitchen, roughly 110,000 furniture pieces and even more furnishings are on display. Nearly 30 percent of these are completely new innovations. Given all the diversity, there will always be furniture and furnishings that enjoy particularly strong demand.

30. December 2010
Categories: Trends
Tags: 2011, Cologne, cradle to cradle, furniture fair, glass, homing, imm cologne 2011, interior design, natural materials, recycling, stone, sustainability, Trends, wood

Designer’s Voice: Harald Gründl about design trends, a fast pace and greenwashing

Harald Gründl (EOOS), member of the imm cologne Trendboard. (Foto: Koelnmesse)

Born in 1967 in Vienna, Austria, Harald Gründl studied industrial design at the University of Applied Arts Vienna and holds a PhD in philosophy. In 1995 he set up the design agency EOOS together with Martin Bergmann and Gernot Bohmann. EOOS has become a leading studio for furniture design, brand spaces and design research with clients including Alessi, Armani, Bulthaup, Dedon, Duravit, Matteo Grassi, Walter Knoll and Zumtobel.

Harald Gründl, member of the imm cologne Trendboard, has chaired the Institute of Design Research Vienna since 2008 and is a partner at EOOS design, where he heads the studio‘s research activities.

What was the most interesting thing about the imm cologne Trendboard Workshop for you?
I found it very interesting to see that there are a lot of similarities in the way the various members of the Trendboard perceive the design sector, and that we’d all noticed similar phenomena. Meeting new people is always the most interesting thing!

The Trend Book shows what’s happening in design right now and what motivates the people who make use of this design offering. In your opinion, where are the strongest influences on product and interior design coming from?
As far as I’m concerned, the sustainability debate is the most important influence on design right now. How can we react to this development intelligently, and how does that affect the trends of the future? We discussed this aspect in relation to all four Interior Trends and were able to identify the different ways it’s manifesting itself.

Pure Textile at imm cologne: Luxuriating in fabrics

A completely new attraction at imm cologne in 2011 will be the textile show Pure Textile in Hall 11, where exclusive textile designers including Création Baumann, Kinnasand, Zimmer + Rohde and Nya Nordiska will be presenting their latest fabric creations and carpets.

Ralph Anstoetz, managing partner of JAB Anstoetz in Bielefeld, Germany, is strengthening his presence in Cologne as a result of this new feature: “Given our positive experience at last year’s furnishing fair in Cologne, and the fact that even more top textile designers have decided to come to imm, this year we will also present our subsidiaries Chivasso and Soleil Bleu par Wellmann.” The other exhibitors in the Pure Textile segment are also preparing intensively for the Cologne show – and planning to penetrate new sales markets.

Designer’s Voice: Patricia Urquiola about innovation, sustainability and interior design trends

Patricia Urquiola, member of the imm cologne Trend Board. (photo: Koelnmesse)

Patricia Urquiola is a member of the imm cologne Trend Board and was born in Oviedo, Spain and now lives and works in Milan. She attended the faculty of architecture at Madrid Polytechnic and Milan Polytechnic, from which she graduated in 1989 having completed her thesis with Achille Castiglioni.

In 2001 she opened her own studio, working on product design, architecture, installations and concept creation. In 2006 Koelnmesse invited Patricia Urquiola to build one of the ideal houses for imm cologne. Urquiola‘s clients include, among others, Agape, Alessi, Artelano, Axor, B&B Italia, Bisazza, BMW, Bosa, De Padova, Driade, Salvatore Ferragamo, Flos, Foscarini, Kartell, Kvadrat, MDF Italia, Molteni, Moroso and Panasonic.

During the imm cologne’s Trendboard workshop, you didn’t just name four of the most influential tendencies in interior design right now, you discussed other trends in the design scene as well. How much of it do you think is really important?
I think there is a new trend regarding the idea of what is innovative. Innovation was always primarily connected with the idea of industrial progress, i.e. with a more traditional idea. More and more, however, the term innovation is coming to be associated with values like sustainability and with what people really see as innovative – for instance if something is surprisingly intelligent or opens up new usage possibilities. People are paying more attention to how something is done and why it is done. More importance is being attached to the concept.

Smart: interiors for young people and clever furnishing solutions in halls 7 and 8

Today’s young people love to furnish and rearrange their living spaces. And in Halls 7 and 8 at the next imm cologne, visitors will discover what is currently en vogue when it comes to interiors for young people. The remarkably broad product range of imm cologne’s “Smart” segment features many clever furnishing solutions that help to also make optimal use of living spaces that are not particularly spacious. Maximized storage room is not the only feature appreciated by the first time home-decorators. Attractive, trendy design and consistent quality have been musts in this segment for a long time now. In the meantime, preferences on the individual markets have become more clearly differentiated, so a tremendous variety of colours, shapes and styles can be experienced here.

Market opportunities for suppliers of flat-pack furniture
“We use imm cologne as a platform to present our latest products to our customers from around the world,” reports Torben Villadsen, Commercial Manager of Denmark’s Actona Company. “No other event gives us the opportunity to reach so many business associates.” Daniel Amhoff, head of marketing at Arte M, a German flat-pack furniture company, also values the impressive scope of imm cologne. “During the trade fair we reach all the important customers in a very short period of time,” says Amhoff. “This is where decisive trends can be laid down for the coming furniture year.”

imm cologne

Create. Furnish. Live.

Interior design trends and design highlights at imm cologne 2012: an interview with Dick Spierenburg

Zones instead of rooms: imm cologne 2012 provides inspiration for new floor plans and the interior trends of the future

imm cologne and LivingKitchen: The furnishing year 2011 is kicking off with a double sensation

Pure Village: bilingual web platform for information about interior design

All in white – Jab Anstoetz presents its new collection

Home life trends 2011: What stays? What‘s coming?

Designer’s Voice: Harald Gründl about design trends, a fast pace and greenwashing

Pure Textile at imm cologne: Luxuriating in fabrics

Designer’s Voice: Patricia Urquiola about innovation, sustainability and interior design trends

Smart: interiors for young people and clever furnishing solutions in halls 7 and 8

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