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The Work Of Tobias Wong. May He Redesign Heaven.



photo by Nigel Parry

Tobias Wong (1974-2010)

I was shocked to learn that Vancouver born, New York based designer Tobias Wong just passed away last Sunday at the very young age of 35 (late breaking news reports say it was an apparent suicide). I have blogged about much of his work and have been a fan for years. In addition to his own work, he often collaborated with many different artists, companies and designers to create unique, conceptual, witty and absurd pieces.


above: Tobias Wong's business card

He had a way of looking at the ordinary and transforming it into something extraordinary, as expressed by his Bent Pencil, Reverse Diamond ring and Burberry Nova Check Pins shown below:




Some of his most well-know design products include; the Sun Jar, the reverse diamond ring, his smoking mittens, his cement Aalto doorstop, his gold and silver on/off wireless lightswitch, his "Indulgences" collection of gold items and his white rubber coated chandelier.


Sun Jar:

Silver & Gold Wireless Lightswitches:

Cement Doorstop (an homage to Alvar Aalto's Savoy vase);

White Rubber coated chandelier:

LED Mirror:

Money pad:

The THIS IS NOT A LAMP was a project in which he added illumination to Philippe Starck's Bubble chair:

The book, I Want To Change The World, a critique on design, was Tobias' first book:

Box Cutter:

Silver Pills:

His twin towers matchbook and Casper glass candlestick for Cappellini:


His Diamonds project consisted of various items which incorporate or use images of diamonds; rings, a camera with diamond flash, diamond screensaver, diamond-embedded dime and 2 carat diamond superball (all shown below):



COLLABORATIONS


Schonbek

The crystal chandelier Wong chose to work with is a Schonbek design called New Orleans. Wong adapted it by cutting off the top and hiding most of the chandelier inside a giant black shade.



Wong’s shaded crystal chandelier, commissioned by Swarovski®, is a highly original take on a classic form. Wong regrets that most crystal chandeliers are hung high “so you don’t see the beautiful details.” He’s brought his chandelier exploration down to table level.


images courtesy of schonbek

“The shade is black on the inside, too,” Wong pointed out. “So the crystal really looks great in there.”

Ken Courtney
Tobias Wong with fellow designer Ken Courtney, of Ju$t Another Rich Kid fame, also combined well-recognized symbols of mass consumption with qualities associated with wealth, luxury, and excess. Mundane items cast in gold were called "Indulgences":






I wrote a previous post comparing his Indulgences Collection to that of Big Games' New Rich Collection, where you can learn more about these.


Citizen: Citizen

His limited edition matchbooks for Citizen:Citizen:


His $2,000. special reconstructed iPhone comes with with exclusive art, videos and music that is updated yearly for Citizen: Citizen:


Troy Halterman
In 2002, he collaborated with Troy Halterman of TROY (which is no longer in business) and offered up a holiday's curatorial stock of found objects, art, functional pieces and decorative works. The images below of the wood grain chocolate, smoking mittens, puzzle mirror, electric menorah, Andy Warhol gift wrap and glass chairs were originally created for that collection:


Close up look at Smoking Mittens:

Furlighter and Ballistic Rose:


One of his most recent designs was this clever iPad case he designed with Chelsea Briganti:


above images of ipad case courtesy of Core77.

You can find some of these products, which will undoubtedly become collectibles, at the following stores or sites:

MOMA in Berlin
Loveless Tokyo
Citizen Citizen
Unica home
Matter
MoMA Shop
Cooper Hewitt Museum Shop
LACMA
Paul Smith
Moss
Colette
The Future Perfect
Cappellini
Troy
Property
Printed Matter
Twentieth LA
Burberry



the press release:

D. TOBIAS WONG, 1974-2010

D. Tobias Wong, the Canadian-born, New York-based artist and designer, passed away in the early morning of Sunday, May 30, 2010. He was 35. Through his work, Wong helped bring forth much of what is now taken for granted in contemporary culture. Influenced by Dada and, especially, Fluxus, he questioned authorship through appropriation; held a mirror to our desires and absurdities; upended the hierarchy between design and art, and the precious and the banal; and helped redefine collaboration and curation as creative practices. Working within what he termed a "paraconceptual" framework, Wong prompted a reevaluation of everything we thought we knew about design: its production, its psychological resonance, its aesthetic criteria, its means of distribution, its attachment to provenance, its contextualization and its manner of presentation. Wong was a keen observer, an original mind, a brilliant prankster, and an unerring friend.

Wong's work was widely exhibited, including at the Museum of Modern Art and Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum. His many projects included those for Colette, Comme des Garcons, Prada/OMA, Cappellini and Swarovski Crystal Palace. In addition to the objects he created, re-created, repurposed, rarefied and otherwise manipulated, Wong's work included events and happenings that included, among many others, a pop-up tattoo parlor at Art Basel Miami Beach/Design Miami and the Wrong Store, a "store" in New York that was in fact never open. (As with much of Wong's work, both were collaborations.) Wong was named Young Designer of the Year by Wallpaper* magazine (2004) as well as the Brooklyn Museum of Art (2006). In 2008 and 2009, he served as founding co-creative director of 100% Design Shanghai, affiliated with the 100% Design fairs in London and Tokyo.

Born and raised in Vancouver, Wong studied in Toronto before moving to New York in 1997 to attend the Cooper Union, from which he graduated with a major in sculpture. He is survived by his mother, stepfather, brother, partner and BFF (Tim Dubitsky).

Tobi, you will be missed.

images courtesy of Tobias Wong and Citizen:Citizen
Rest In Peace.

78 Artists Turn Kicks Into Creations For Nike. The NIKE78 Project.






NIKE78 is an exciting new project created by Paul Jenkins and inspired by NIKE. They invited creatives, sent them each a brand new pair of NIKE shoes and asked them to use sport as inspiration to challenge their function.

The 78 participants for NIKE78 are located in London, Manchester, Cardiff and other parts of the UK, as well as in Amsterdam, Berlin, New York, Russia, Tokyo and Australia.

An exhibition showcase of all 78 designs is planned for the London Design Festival 2010.

Wieden+Kennedy Tokyo LAB's Air Max Abuko Aquarium


‘ABUKU -泡-’

The shoes we received were AIR MAX 360, which emphasizes the air in the soles more than any other NIKE shoe. So we decided to create something based on the concept of air, the main quality of this model.


What we did was keep the soles filled with air as is, but take off the upper part of the shoe and use it to mold a clear material into that shape. This became an aquarium for goldfish, a representative aquarium fish in Japan.

What you can see from the relationship between a goldfish and air in this microcosm, a shoe, is the human society and the microcosm that contains it. It’s the relationship between the earth/nature and creatures, and the correlation between athletes and NIKE, who contributes to the characteristics of the human body by giving air to shoes. That is the thinking behind the name of this art piece, the ABUKU (Japanese “BUBBLE”).



We hope that the people who see this small aquarium built on NIKE Air will stop to think about the artificial/natural environments that surround us and the connection between humans and other living creatures. Credit: Akio Iida, Daisuke Maki, Michiyo Ooi, Kuki Aakaeda, Genki Ito, Takeshi KogaharaWieden+Kennedy Tokyo LAB

Adrien Newell's Nike Font


Based around the sole of the shoe, I wanted to create a typeface that could be used to represent NIKE.

As NIKE started out creating shoes for running I thought it would be best to go back to its routes. In running it is about the power of the athlete and how far they can push themselves, no technology is involved, and the sole of the shoe is where the athlete transfers this power to the surface. This became the basis for the typeface. I used the soles of the shoe to create prints and based the typeface on the digital timer seen at the end of the 100m track.

I have created three posters, ‘On Your Marks’ based on the start of the race, the second ‘Leave Your Mark’ which is about making an impression and leaving a legacy behind and the third is the time of Usain Bolt’s 100m world record ‘09.58′, an inspiration to fast runners. The word ‘marks’ is effective as I have used the shoes to print them and it is also a term used at the start of a running race -- Adrian Newell

Erica Dorn's Marathon Shoe Cake



The Marathon Cake is the edible negative calorific equivalent of a full-length marathon. It represents both the hard work put in and the ever-sweet reward after all the hard work. Currently available in white and dark chocolate with buttercream and raspberry laces, exclusively for NIKE78. Erica Dorn

Justus Oehler's Winged Nikes

As we human beings can’t fly, we settle for less; we make do with running and jumping. But the dream of flying is still being dreamt, and maybe one day we will literally take off given the right pair of shoes. Well, this is the pair of shoes mankind has been waiting for. The real “NIKE Air”.
- Pentagram

Andy Macgregor's GalvaNIKEs’:

The principal restriction to the more extended use of training shoes has been their tendency to wear or erode quickly, but happily, mechanical ingenuity has overcome this difficulty.

Shoes can now be coated with a combination of lightweight metal impervious to atmospherical influences, known as GalvaNiking. Sports shoes are very effective during training but have a short life span. GalvaNiking your training shoes is a sure fire way to maintain and prolong their condition. -- Andy Macgregor


Bacause Studio's 'Footprints’




I decided to look at the marks left behind as we walk, jog and run rather than the actual shoes themselves. To do this I created a ‘foot stamp’ which would imprint on the ground as you walked in the shoes. -- Because Studio

Jonathan Bartlett's Nike Labyrinth game


For my project I was heavily influenced by the functionality of my pair of trainers. Their sole purpose is to make running more comfortable, a training aid for training the body. However what makes an athlete truly great is their mental conditioning and mind strength. So I decided to use my pair of trainers (the tread) as a means to train the mind, specifically mental perseverance. - Jonathan Bartlett

‘These Shoes Are Made For Kicking’


I looked at the shoes I was sent and the term ’sport’ didn’t seem to fit. There were elements of sport, but there was also a lot of design that was purely aesthetic. I wanted to concentrate on this observation, and make something out of the shoes that spoke more clearly about sport. I created a football using as much of the shoes and box as possible, although due to the materials probably more of a statement than actually something you could play a full 90 minutes with - Stephen Cheetham


See all of the projects at Nike78

New Zealand Launches A Rocket. The $427,000 Hulme CanAm Supercar.




It's no Tramontana R Edition supercar but this is one fast Kiwi.

The Auckland based Supercar developer-manufacturer, Hulme Supercars, has launched an extremely limited production run of the eagerly-awaited 200+mph Hulme CanAm Supercar. Just 20 of sexy supercars are being offered, on a first-come, first-served basis.



The 20 cars are built-to-order and those who purchase the supercar also get two “Air New Zealand Business Premier” (Fully flat bed) tickets to Auckland, New Zealand, one-week luxury accommodations for their final fitting in the car, and experience further road and circuit driving before the car is shipped to their chosen destination.

The cars will be numbered and come with a 1/8 scale exact replica, finished in the same livery and specification, plus a full photographed dossier of the car’s build.



The only production road car to bear the name of a F1 World Champion (Denny Hulme), The Hulme CanAm is an ultra high-performance, mid-engined roadster. Created for both road and track use, the car blends the raw flavour and appeal of a Formula racing car with dramatic design, superb craftsmanship, exceptional performance and a thrilling and achievable driving experience.



An order for the CanAm will be secured by the deposit of £10,000 which, as Jock Freemantle, Hulme Managing Director, explains, is fully-refundable if the option is not converted to an order.

The 20 customer cars will be coach-built and equipped to customer order, with delivery commencing in the UK Autumn of 2011 and into 2012, the 20th anniversary of Denny Hulme’s death.



The concept car, in coupe form, was first revealed at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2006. Such was the interest that Hulme Supercars conducted extensive research to assess demand, culminating in the decision to initially offer an open-top CanAm version, celebrating Hulme’s victories of the “Can Am Championship” in 1968 and 1970.




Some of the concept drawings:






Development of the ultra-sleek F1-inspired CanAm car continued, with a finished prototype extensively tested on both road and track before the decision was made to accept orders.



Designed and hand-built by the Hulme Supercars technology team in New Zealand - including members who were responsible for the nation’s America’s Cup triumphs - the road-legal “Hulme CanAm” features an ultra-lightweight carbon composite tub and bodywork, and race-orientated chassis, suspension and braking.



To honour Denny’s “CanAm Championship” wins in McLaren CanAm cars powered by Chevrolet V8’s, the Hulme CanAm is powered by a 7-litre (427cu.in) Chevrolet LS7 V8 developing 600bhp and 600Nm torque, fed through a close-ratio, six-speed CIMA manual gearbox (Paddles or Sequential shift will be options available). As a consequence of its lightweight construction, the Hulme CanAm weighs in at less than 1,000kg. This combination promises a sub-three an a half second sprint to 100kph (62 mph), and top speed in excess of 200mph.



The purchase price of the Hulme CanAm will be fixed at $427,000. USD or £295,000. (plus local taxes) on receipt of an order, including delivery worldwide.

The following images are courtesy of the April 21010 issue of Classic Driver magazine with photos by Alan Dick:






To purchase one of only 20 options available please e-mail Jock Freemantle or write to Hulme Supercars Limited, P.O.Box 97853, Manukau City 2241, Manukau, New Zealand.


all info and images courtesy of Hulme. and Classic Driver


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