I had the opportunity to speak with ex-designer Martí Guixé during an signing event at the Alessi store in Milan for the Blank Wall Clock and the 24h Sentence Maker he created for Alessi. It’s quite exciting as always to hear the stories behind the creativity, and Martí Guixé certainly has his personal interpretations that he brings to life with this new creation. Check out the interview below!

Metrosnapshot: So what inspired you to invite consumers to be a part of your design?

Guixé: I’ve thought long ago that you can have interaction with objects just like you can interact with new media. For me it’s a dialog between the object and the person. I’ve always thought that this was very good as people are so afraid to manipulate with objects (they encounter).

Metrosnapshot:How did this project get its start?

Guixé: About five years ago, a magazine asked me to do a drawing about designers and emotions, and what I drew was this clock — 24h Sentence Maker. It’s not a clock, it’s actually a machine to make sentences. In the middle you put the verb “is” and you can make sentences like “design is emotion”, “love is desire” and you can read the time as sentences. So I thought it was a good idea. When Alessi asked me two years ago to propose some objects, I proposed the clock as a real object. Because I also did some books for Corraini without text – childrens’ books – where children will have to work and write [in empty pages], so therefore I did the same with the clock.

Metrosnapshot: So what’s next for you?

Guixé: Well I have project designs such as lamps, as well as other projects for Alessi. I am also doing a shop in Georgetown (DC) for Camper.

Editor’s Note:

My favorite has to be the Blank Wall Clock. Although it’s obvious that we can do anything with it and write whatever we want, Mr Guixé offered some very clever ways to use this clock and see time in a completely different way, such as instead of 12 hours, have 13 hours on the clock – and by the end of the 12 hours, you’d have one more hour left! Of course you could do this the other way and have perhaps 11 hours on the clock and have one less… anything is possible. It can truly change your perception of time.

SaloneSatellite has always been one of my favorite parts of the Fair. This is when young designers have the opportunity to showcase their designs on the world stage during the Salone del Mobile, the largest gathering in the world in furniture design. This year we continue to see the talent displayed. Here are our picks for this year:

Seasons by Nao Tamura.

These are silicon serving plates that are designed in the shape of leaves and can be easily rolled-up for storage, or perhaps even displayed as art. It’s simplicity doesn’t require much more explanation to appreciate. This was the winner this year at SaloneSatellite.

Folding Chair by Plicio.

A simple chair that just needs to be folded with a few easy steps and connected at the base with a rope to keep its shape. The chair when stored flat is only 6mm thick.

Perpetual Illusion Clock by Delphine Frey.

This aluminum clock requires a closer look. There are layers positioned to spin on top of each other, giving an interesting effect while telling time. It definitely caught our eye while we browsed through the many designs at the show. Her designs have been displayed by Christofle as well as Nespresso.

For this first time, the Lambrate industrial area to the east of Milan showcased more than 20 groups of designs, mostly from the Netherlands. The area is definitely not as thriving as Zona Tortona, but at the same time one can comfortably browse through the designs without the crowds. As many have put it, Ventura Lambrate is like “the Zona Tortona from 10 years ago”. It is not exactly an easy place to get to, as even after getting off the metro, you would have to walk through the train station to the other side and into a different residential area, and after many twists and turns do you actually see the exhibits. In any case, here are our favorites from Lambrate:

L’artisan Electronique by Unfold + Tim Knapen.

Simply put, it’s pottery printed on the spot – digital style. A 3D ceramic printer is combined with a virtual pottery wheel and pottery can be made digitally. The printing process is supposed to be an imitation of traditional artisans by stacking up coils of clay. See a video of this in action.

Collection Arnhem Product

This is a collective exhibit of the works of 17 third-year product design students of ArtEZ, Institute of the Arts Arnhem, the Netherlands. The theme of each product displayed is considered a re-framing of the simple objects that are around us. For example, the dishcloth pictured below looks quite simple, but there is detail. The checkered pattern actually lines up when the dishcloth is hung, making the display just even more pleasing to the eye (therefore, I bought one myself).