Tent London is a ‘creative hub’ of new designers presenting fresh product ideas. Housed in the Truman Brewery, illness providing a great location for such an event, this annual exhibition showcases established designers alongside new ones.
Here are Amelia’s Magazine’s top ten finds at the event…
1. Troy Abbott’s Nano Cage
Want a pet budgie, but have concerns over mess or mortality? Then look no further than this – a brass bird cage with a video projection of a feathered friend inside. Look through the glass magnifier and he’s there, tweeting away. Guiltless fun!
2. Zoe Murphy’s Recycled Furniture
Zoe Murphy, a Margate resident with a passion for vintage furniture, works her magic on re-salvaged mid-20th century pieces. Each one features delicate and beautifully painted illustrations, inspired by her home town and the 1950s – the glory days of the seaside. She also dabbles in textiles, too!
3. Voronoi Fluids by Seeper
Seeper is an arts and technology collective who create digitally-enabled art and design installations. Not one for the lounge, but this huge spherical structure with a tactile surface projects light patterns which interact with the user’s hand. When users touch the surface, the light changes accordingly, providing beautiful, organic shapes and patterns.
4. James Plumb’s curious assemblages
James Russell and Hannah Plumb, better known as James Plumb, are two artists who create curious works using vintage antiques which have been discarded. They fuse together forgotten antiquities to make innovative, interesting and unique artworks.
5. Lights and Shadows by WOW
WOW is an international design studio involved in installation works across the globe. At Tent they presented Lights and Shadows, a large-scale video-installation which makes use of the latest technology, presenting one film via three projectors. The result – which makes use of footage of Tokyo nightscapes – is a powerful and consuming piece which allows the viewer to be at the centre of the action.
6. Stuart Forsyth’s KeepCup
KeepCup is an Australian product with reduce, re-use, recycle at the heart of its ethos. Essentially a re-usable coffee cup, this lovable-looking item boasts ergonomic design and bright, customisable colours. Better still, it makes re-use plain and simple.
7. The Wattson by DIY KYOTO
The Wattson is a brand new product which looks a bit like an alarm clock, but is actually a device to record how much electricity your home is using. It claims to reduce your utility bills by 25%, helping you reduce your emissions in the process, obviously. Its sleek design is unlike similar products, it uses very little electricity itself, and it’s 100% recyclable. There’s also an online community who share energy saving hints and tips!
8. Hundreds Tens Unit’s Wall Clock
Picked for it’s elegant and aesthetic design, this piece stood out because it was so simple amongst a hell of a lot of over-designed products. Less is more with these simple, sleek timepieces.
9. Esther Coomb’s Illustrated fancies
Esther coombs rescues delicate and ornate china from charity shops and customizes each piece by hand with ceramic ink. The result are quaint and cute little treasures.
10. London Timepiece
London Timepiece is a one-man-band who lovingly restore vintage industrial and traditional clocks. Sourced in Britain and Eastern Bloc countries, each timepiece is considered unique. The industrial clocks, particularly, are excellent examples of designs past, with each piece telling a story as much as it does the time.
Tent London is a ‘creative hub’ of new designers presenting fresh product ideas. Housed in the Truman Brewery, more about providing a great location for such an event, doctor this annual exhibition showcases established designers alongside new ones.
Here are Amelia’s Magazine’s top ten finds at the event…
1. Troy Abbott’s Nano Cage
Want a pet budgie, viagra but have concerns over mess or mortality? Then look no further than this – a brass bird cage with a video projection of a feathered friend inside. Look through the glass magnifier and he’s there, tweeting away. Guiltless fun!
2. Zoe Murphy’s Recycled Furniture
Zoe Murphy, a Margate resident with a passion for vintage furniture, works her magic on re-salvaged mid-20th century pieces. Each one features delicate and beautifully painted illustrations, inspired by her home town and the 1950s – the glory days of the seaside. She also dabbles in textiles, too!
3. Voronoi Fluids by Seeper
Seeper is an arts and technology collective who create digitally-enabled art and design installations. Not one for the lounge, but this huge spherical structure with a tactile surface projects light patterns which interact with the user’s hand. When users touch the surface, the light changes accordingly, providing beautiful, organic shapes and patterns.
4. James Plumb’s curious assemblages
James Russell and Hannah Plumb, better known as James Plumb, are two artists who create curious works using vintage antiques which have been discarded. They fuse together forgotten antiquities to make innovative, interesting and unique artworks.
5. Lights and Shadows by WOW
WOW is an international design studio involved in installation works across the globe. At Tent they presented Lights and Shadows, a large-scale video-installation which makes use of the latest technology, presenting one film via three projectors. The result – which makes use of footage of Tokyo nightscapes – is a powerful and consuming piece which allows the viewer to be at the centre of the action.
6. Stuart Forsyth’s KeepCup
KeepCup is an Australian product with reduce, re-use, recycle at the heart of its ethos. Essentially a re-usable coffee cup, this lovable-looking item boasts ergonomic design and bright, customisable colours. Better still, it makes re-use plain and simple.
7. The Wattson by DIY KYOTO
The Wattson is a brand new product which looks a bit like an alarm clock, but is actually a device to record how much electricity your home is using. It claims to reduce your utility bills by 25%, helping you reduce your emissions in the process, obviously. Its sleek design is unlike similar products, it uses very little electricity itself, and it’s 100% recyclable. There’s also an online community who share energy saving hints and tips!
8. Hundreds Tens Unit’s Wall Clock
Picked for it’s elegant and aesthetic design, this piece stood out because it was so simple amongst a hell of a lot of over-designed products. Less is more with these simple, sleek timepieces.
9. Esther Coomb’s Illustrated fancies
Esther coombs rescues delicate and ornate china from charity shops and customizes each piece by hand with ceramic ink. The result are quaint and cute little treasures.
10. London Timepiece
London Timepiece is a one-man-band who lovingly restore vintage industrial and traditional clocks. Sourced in Britain and Eastern Bloc countries, each timepiece is considered unique. The industrial clocks, particularly, are excellent examples of designs past, with each piece telling a story as much as it does the time.
Today a group of activists went to London City airport to protest against the the expansion of flights from the airport. A new London to New York flight that only takes 32 people at a time, ambulance took off today, approved costing over £3,000 a ticket.
As the airport makes so much noise for the local community, the protesters only felt it was right for the rich transatlantic commuters to get a taste of their own medicine. With a range of pots, pans, drums and loudspeakers, the group aimed to raise awareness against the airport expansion and the carbon intensive flights.
Donning bowler hats and pinstripe suits the activists held banners emblazoned with “More Noise Pollution,” “Global Warming Is Cool” and “Down With Polar Bears.” The irony certainly wasn’t lost on the powers that be, as I arrived to a huge police presence. They obviously didn’t want anything to disrupt the departure and new campaign behind the BA flights. The MET – or glorified security guards – smugly watched, fingering their cameras and looking through files on their database. It seemed like they wanted a 3D intricate picture and analysis of everyone there, including the media, apparently everyone’s under scrutiny now. That or the MET really don’t have anything better to do with their time.
The commuters looked more disgruntled than wary of the message Fight The Flights were trying to put across, even advocating skype conference calls and internet meetings was met with little interests. However, when the noise died down, passers by could be seen to be looking at some of the facts and figures behind the new flights.
Loud-hailers were used to drive home the message that no matter what the London Mayor and Government promises about a greener London, the facts really don’t add up, as more and more planes are being forced down the runway. The aviation industry is also using biofuels as an excuse for airport expansion and flying in general, but in reality, the production of these fuels cause even more deforestation, hunger and global warming.
One promise after another is broken and the local residents are forced to suffer at the hands of the airways industry. It is worth noting that some of these residents earn less in a year than it costs to have one of the car parking spots at the airport. With the average wage of people flying at London City Airport being in the region of 80 grand, it feels like communities that live under the flight paths need to be considered, not just the corporate elite.
Flight the Flights have decreed that with every 32 seater flight that lands, 32 people have died or are suffering in London from the dangerous airborne particles released by the planes. As the first New York flight took off from the runway, a minute’s silence was held by protestors to reflect on the suffering climate change is causing and the consequences that this new flight will have, not just on the global situation but on Londoners and local residents.
Activists noted today that although the protestors had taken a light hearted and ironic take, they were there for a serious cause and “if [the airport] continues to expand, we will not go away.”
Written by Adam S on Tuesday September 29th, 2009 5:10 pm
Categories ,Activists, ,community, ,Fight the Flights, ,London City Airport, ,MET, ,noise, ,pollution, ,protest
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