StokkeAustad

Since 2004 Øystein Austad and Jonas Ravlo Stokke have formed the design team StokkeAustad, which is based in Oslo. They only opened their design studio last year, although their successful cooperation began during their studies at the 'Oslo School of Architecture and Design'. After meeting them once more at this year's Stockholm Furniture Fair, where our attention was drawn to their new, refreshing and scandinavian touched products . I would like to take a closer look here at two selected prototypes. The 'Synthesist Calendar' and the armchair 'The Chair' more than reflect the StokkeAustad basic principle: 'We believe in creating value through design, and that this value can be defined as aesthetic, economic, functional or environmental.'

'Synthesist Calendar'
The starting point for this design is idea that the way in which year goes by is characterised by highly personal and subjective events. This playful concept for a calendar has a kind of liberating effect, because the rigid form of the typical calendar with its strict chronological order is broken up. The sequence is shown merely by the changing of the colours, which imitate the typical rhythm of a year in Norway, where the winter is long and the summer short. The calendar is put together from 365 coloured, magnetic metal plates, each of which contains a date. The winter days are coloured a cool blue, but then in spring change to green before shining an intense yellow in the summer, until in autumn they change to a warm orange, then red, and then an intense violet.

"We wanted to design a calendar which would allow people to arrange their days more freely – does a year always move in a straight line? Does your summer feel more dominant than your winter, or the other way round?" This calendar enables people to shape their own year. "We also like the idea of just letting the individual days disappear on the back of the calendar – the date itself will return the next year, but that particular day in your life is not retrievable. This makes people focus on every single day." Anyone like me who has to write everything down to make sure it isn't forgotten will also appreciate the possibility of separating out individual days in order to retain important notes. A really vital, personal calendar, which permits both chaos and order.

'The Chair'
This armchair arose out of the idea of designing a product which would be able to stand out from its surroundings. The arm rests which are extended forwards mark the area which the user requires in order to be able to sit down. The arm rests and legs merge into elements which communicate the sensation of an embrace. The expression of form suggests both delicacy and strength at the same time. The legs are relatively slender in comparison with the surrounding seating area but give the chair a strong character. This impression is reinforced by the full upholstery, which makes the armchair appear to be all of one piece. A beautiful design which will definitely not remain just a prototype.