“This building is a courtyard house for a couple in Itoman-shi, Okinawa, Japan. The house is built on a 3M grid module in all XYZ directions, while it is composed of 4 vertical plates as exterior walls and 1 horizontal plate as a roof slab.  A functional layout is created by inserting a void of 3M x 18M which is the courtyard for the house and wall-like furniture into the concrete structure space which dimensions are 3.0M (3×1) high by 9.0M (3×3) wide and by 18.0M (3×6) long.

The space composition is characterized by the division of the house into two areas by a like-wall furniture. The first area is composed of the living room, dining room, and bedroom as an interior space connecting with the exterior courtyard in a linear arrangement, while the other space is composed of the kitchen, powder room, and study room in a succession. The shower room, toilet, small courtyard, and various storages are laid out in this wall-like unit, which also incorporates the services ; all spaces combined together create a lifestyle that minimize the division of the space as much as possible.

With regards of the natural light of Okinawa’s climate, the internal space connecting with the outside is designed with eaves in order to control the amount of direct sunlight coming inside the house. The exterior wall is designed to facilitate maintenance by applying photocatalyst paint. The functional counter unit incorporating the kitchen, powder room, and study room is made of integrally a solid surface “DuPont Corian”. Consequently, this house is creating a habitation space that invites to a minimal and a flexible and various lifestyle” – Shinichi Ogawa & Associates

All images – Minimalist House, 2009, Shinichi Ogawa & Associates

More information here

AWARD, Australia’s pre-eminent creative industries body, has announced changes to its 2011 awards programme. AWARD, the Australasian Writers and Art Directors Association, counts some of the finest creative minds from Australia, New Zealand and South East Asia amongst its members. It is a non-political, non-profit organisation that aims to set standards of creative excellence, to promote creativity in the business arena, and to educate and inspire the next creative generation.

“As champions of commercial creativity, AWARD aims to raise standards of creative excellence across a range of disciplines – emerging as well as established,” said Craig Davis, AWARD Chairman.
“In the annual AWARD show, we can create more space and opportunity to recognise and celebrate great creative work, reflecting how the marketing and communications industries have evolved and are evolving.”

Accordingly, several new categories have been created for 2011, including music video, applications, social media, environmental design, and branded content. As well, a new award for Creative Innovation will challenge entrants to contribute a solution that defies convention. It is anticipated that the award will draw unexpected ideas from industries both connected to, and beyond, advertising.

“Creativity is a prerequisite of commercial success and of prosperity,” said Craig Davis. “We believe it is the single most valuable asset for business today, and that through inclusiveness and collaboration, that value can only increase.”

The AWARD 2011 Call for Entries will be launched in coming days. The AWARD show will take place on March 11, 2011, as part of the Creative Festival taking place from 9-11 March.

See the AWARD site for more information.

The Australian Centre for the Moving Image, in association with the Goethe-Institut, presents - Berlin on Film
Thursday 4 November – Monday 8 November 2010

To coincide with the Berlin Dayz cultural festival and the twentieth anniversary of the reunification of Germany, the Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) presents a program of films devoted to the country’s capital in Berlin on Film this November.

Berlin has a unique rhythm which infuses its architecture, its culture and its citizens. This filmic celebration of the historical city brings together six documentaries; from the challenges of a country divided, to the process of reunification and the infinite possibilities of a Berlin without borders.

ACMI Film Programmer Kristy Matheson, with the assistance of the Goethe-Institut, has composed a program which reminds us of the challenges Berliners overcame and the sense of euphoria of reunification. “With a remarkable and catastrophic history, Berlin has played many roles throughout the 20th century, emerging in the new millennium as one of the world’s most fascinating and enduring cities,” she said.

The program opens with Rhythm Is It (2004), directed by Thomas Grube and Enrique Sánchez Lansch, which intertwines music and contemporary dance in an ambitious project by Conductor Sir Simon Rattle, the Berlin Philharmonic, choreographer Royston Maldoom and 250 young Berliners from disparate ages and backgrounds. Their performance of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring is a joyous and inspired tale of triumph over adversity. The screening precedes the Berlin Philharmonic’s visit to Australia this November.

Rhythm Is It (2004), ACMI: Berlin on Film 2010

Former East German model turned director Marco Wilms presents an exciting portrait of youth in revolt and subversive creativity in East Berlin in Comrade Couture (2009). Inspired by new wave and punk fashions from the West, East Berliners took to crafting their own fashions – turning their limited materials to an advantage and parading avant-garde creations made from plastic, bed sheets and disused medical supplies. As one of East Germany’s most daring stylists, Frank Schäfer, puts it in the film; “A tiger in a cage is much wilder than a tiger that is free to roam.” Drawing on personal memories, interviews and extensive archival research, Wilms offers a unique view of this heady artistic outpouring under ever watchful Stasi eyes.

Wilms’ earlier Berlin Vortex (2003) taps into the wave of euphoria among youth in the Eastern block prompted by the reunification of Germany in 1989. With the wall down and capitalism still at bay, young Berliners occupied empty residences and began preparing for their futures bringing change through art and social programs. Featuring celebrated choreographer Sasha Waltz, Jochen Sandig, Christian Lorenz of ‘Rammstein’ fame, social workers and still struggling artists, Wilms’ discovery of what became of five citizens and their utopian dreams for the new Berlin is as fascinating and diverse as the city itself.

The director of Comrade Couture and Berlin Vortex, Wilms will be in Melbourne for the season.

Scored by Einstürzende Neubauten and featuring internationally acclaimed architects, Rem Koolhaas, Renzo Piano and I.M. Pei, Berlin Babylon (2001) offers a rare glimpse into an international city, under construction. In a post-wall era, Berlin found itself as a metropolis in great need of physical change to fully realise the promise of reunification and to repair the destruction the 20th century had wreaked upon it. With its astonishing aerial photography and subtle verite style, Hubertus Siegert’s film has a dreamlike quality that allows the viewer to float above and wander through of one of the world’s great cities as it transitions into the future.

A heartfelt declaration of love to a city and its people, In Berlin (2009) traces the changes that have taken place in the twenty years since the demolition of the Berlin Wall. Featuring a vast array of Berliners including, actor Angela Winkler, Alex Hacke of Einstürzende Neubauten, architects, fashion designers, performers and store owners, long term Scorsese cinematographer Michael Ballhaus and co-director Ciro Cappellari have crafted a visually stunning and engaging portrait of one of the world’s most lively and creative hubs.

In Berlin, Rhythm Is It, Berlin Babylon and special guest director Wilms’ films Comrade Couture and Berlin Vortex, will all be introduced by Berlin-based film critic and radio journalist, Carsten Beyer.

The bustling streets of 1920’s Berlin are writ-large in the entrancing Berlin: Symphony of a Great City (Berlin: Die Sinfonie der Grosstadt) (1927). Like other famous ‘city films’ such as Man With the Movie Camera, director Walter Ruttmann’s portrait of Berlin is a dynamic mix of man and machine, social norms and daily life, a captivating vision of Berlin between the wars. This black and white silent treasure will enjoy a free screening on the big screen in Melbourne’s Federation Square.

Berlin: Symphony of a Great City (Berlin: Die Sinfonie der Grosstadt) (1927), ACMI: Berlin on Film 2010

Berlin on Film is programmed as part of Berlin Dayz, the German-Australian Festival coordinated by the Goethe-Insitut in celebration of the 20th Anniversary of Germany’s reunification. Berlin Dayz events will be held across Australia throughout October and November to coincide with the official Day of German Unity (Tag der Deutschen Einheit) on 3 October, this year being hosted by Bremen in the country’s North West. Operating from its Melbourne base, Berlin Dayz events are designed as a dialogue between two cultural capitals: Berlin and Melbourne.

Berlin on Film will screen at ACMI from Thursday 4 to Monday 8 November, 2010
More here

Design Capital
State of Design Festival to explore the future of Victoria’s built environment, mobility systems and digital strategy

The 2010 State of Design Festival’s business program, Design Capital, will focus on how three interrelated areas – the built environment, mobility systems and digital strategies, are helping businesses address the big issues they face in today’s economic climate.
This innovative program comprises seven key events featuring real-life case studies on the importance of design in a sustainable future. With Melbourne’s population growing faster than any other city in Australia, Design Capital will look at new models for urban planning and public and private modes of transportation. Design Capital will also explore the potential for using the vast amount of information on how our cities and businesses operate – currently held by public and private organisations – to improve citizen experiences.

BUILT: RETROFITTING THE GRID
Tuesday 20 July 2010
The biggest issue confronting the creation of sustainable cities is the inefficiency of existing commercial building stock. In this session the panel will discuss the sustainability case for retrofitting existing buildings to improve their environmental performance and the short to medium term gains for property developers, landlords, materials and services suppliers.
Panel members include Rob Murray-Leach, CEO of the Energy Efficiency Council, Ninotschka Titschkosky, Principle Architect of BVN Architecture, and Romilly Madew, CEO of the Green Building Council of Australia.

SUSTAINABLE AND MORE PROFITABLE
Wednesday 21 July 2010
Melbourne is home to a number of innovators who are changing how we design and engineer new buildings. Their research and development affects design and construction processes, the overall sustainability performance of a building and the experience of being in the space. This opportunity to learn about the commercial benefits of sustainable construction and design is not to be missed.
Panel members include: Nonda Katsalidis, Director of Unitised Buildings, Callum Fraser, Director of Elenberg Fraser, Ian Jones, CEO of Vipac, and Dylan Brady, Director of Studio505.
Supported by Master Builders Association of Victoria.

DIGITAL: MAKING THE INVISIBLE VISIBLE
Thursday 22 July 2010
Digital strategies are critical to building brands. This reality is prompting governments, councils and small to large companies to invest in the digital realm. Apple is a pioneer in using the internet to simultaneously educate users about their products while incorporating user feedback to improve their future releases.
Our panel explains how councils through to innovative companies are implementing digital strategies. Panel members include: Dan Hill, Senior Consultant of Arup, Sam Davy, Brand Director of Crumpler and former Global Creative Director of Apple Inc and Dave King, CEO of The Royals.
Sponsored by Diadem.

MOBILITY: THE FUTURE OF PERSONAL EMOTIONAL MOBILITY
Chris Bangle, Chris Bangle and Associates (Italy)
Tuesday 19 July 2010
We want to live in cities admired for their pedestrian-friendly streets and efficient transport corridors. Yet we are constantly challenged getting from A to B and being on the move is plagued with concerns about time, our state of mind and our carbon footprint. How we solve the current issues facing our urban environments is an issue Chris Bangle is passionate about. Bangle’s innovative, highly successful and at times controversial sixteen years at BMW proves he is more than capable of steering change through complex industrial contexts. Bangle will provide his unique insights into current and future trends in mobility, including what will enable and hinder change in new automobiles and his planned role within this emerging world of eco-friendly mobility trends.

Chris Bangle, Chris Bangle and Associates

SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS TO INSPIRE
Els Zijlstra, Materia (The Netherlands)
Friday 16 Jul 2010
Sustainability should be integrated into every design where comfort, functionality, economics and beauty are important. Els’will explore sustainable and inspirational materials in her Design Capital session. Els Zijlstra is founder and creative director of Materia, a platform between the creative professional and the Industry. By gathering innovative materials worldwide and exposing them through a search engine, lectures, books and articles, international travelling, fairs and consultancy Materia aims to become the central worldwide platform on innovation, creativity and sustainability.

THE POWER OF MORE: WHEN COLLABORATION IS BETTER BUSINESS
Axel Enthoven, Enthoven Associates Design Consultants (Belgium)
BREAKFAST SEMINAR
Friday 16 July
Two Belgian organizations, MoOD and Optimo, supporting the textile and furniture industries, initiated a creative think tank dubbed The Flemish Masters. With the support of professional designers, the event assisted participating manufacturers respond to the challenges of globalisation, innovation and competitiveness through user-centered design. Join award-winning designer Axel Enthoven, who directed The Flemish Masters, in a behind-the-scenes look into the process, realisation and results of this unique event with some valuable lessons for Australian industries. Enthoven is Founder and Chairman of Enthoven Associates Design Consultants in Antwerp (Belgium), as well as Professor at the Design Academy in Eindhoven (The Netherlands) since 1989. At the Design Academy he is the Dean of the ‘Man and Mobility’ Department.
Sponsored by the Furnishing Industry Association of Australia (VIC/TAS) INC

DESIGN CAPITAL PANEL SESSIONS WILL BE MODERATED BY JANNE RYAN
Janne Ryan is an ideas curator, producer of the ABC Radio National program, By Design, and was a founding
Executive Producer for ABC Radio National’s Late Night Live, and Arts Today. For the Australian Financial Review
Magazine, Ryan created the Front of Mind interview, where key thinkers worldwide talked about their ideas and
thinking. Her AFR 20 Questions interview pioneered talking to Australian leaders about their key life influences. Most
recently, Ryan co-curated Tedx Sydney 2010.

The State of Design Festival is an initiative of the Victorian Government,
delivered in 2010 by Australian Exhibitions & Conferences Pty. Ltd.

Visit the site for more information, news and links.

Become a subscriber to Lost & Found, an online insider’s guide to Melbourne, and you have the chance to enjoy up to four nights free accommodation at the bespoke Lost & Found hotel room in Melbourne’s CBD.

Located in the top corner of the Little Collins Hotel, the hotel room will bring the Lost & Found guide to life by showcasing Melbourne’s design highlights from Aesop products to linen, furniture, music, books and artwork. Every aspect of the room will tell a story about the types of people and products that exemplify the city, providing guests with the ultimate Melbourne experience.

Part hotel, part gallery, part cultural therapist, the Lost & Found hotel room is a unique and creative gesture designed to offer something special to its subscribers. To ensure guests get the most out of their trip to Melbourne, the Lost & Found room even has its own concierge who can make bookings and provide insider tips on Melbourne’s hidden secrets.

Once inside the room, guests can sit at the Arte Veneta work desk built just a few suburbs away or relax on the Pierre and Charlotte couch and listen to the new Darren Sylvester album on the vintage turntable. After enjoying a bite to eat next door at Bar Lourinha, guests can pamper themselves with Aesop products, read a few pages of Melbourne ex-pat Amanda Maxwell’s novel Nobody Told Me There’d be Days Like These and then fall asleep on linen provided by local artisans Third Drawer Down.

Any subscriber to Lost & Found can apply to stay at the hotel room free of charge. All they need to do is register their interest at www.wearelostandfound.com.au. The room is available for up to three nights on weekends (Friday to Sunday) and up to four nights during the week (Monday to Thursday) from 1 June to 31 August 2010. Terms and conditions apply.

Lost & Found is a free online guide produced for Tourism Victoria by creative studio Right Angle. For the past four years, Lost & Found has been the insider guide for culturally conscious people living outside of Melbourne, revealing its discreet cultural joys and the creative people who make the city hum.

Lost & Found hotel room at Little Collins Hotel
Free for Lost & Found subscribers (conditions apply)
27 Little Collins Street, Melbourne
The room is available for stays during June, July and August 2010
Find out more here

Solar Equation, The Light in Winter, by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer

The Light in Winter program was launched on 4th June with the spectacular unveiling of Rafael Lozano-Hemmer’s world premiere large–scale commission, Solar Equation. A large crowd witnessed the emergence of a new public artwork as five-year-old Tehani Cross from the local Tuvalu and Kiribati community switched on the installation to have the sun rise in an uncanny spectacle.
Rafael Lozano-Hemmer’s work is respected by art cognoscenti from all corners of the globe and his first major work in Australia, which was specially commissioned for The Light in Winter, proved a stunning accomplishment that is set to hover over Fed Square until 4 July.

A faithful three dimensional simulation of the sun roughly the size of the Flinders Street Station dome yet 100 million times smaller than the real thing, Solar Equation highlights the beauty and complexity of solar behaviour as recorded by recent astronomical observations. This project seeks to provide a platform for discussion about environmental issues such as drought, conservation and global warming, while presenting a poetic and mysterious backdrop. Solar Equation features solar animations projected on to the world’s largest custom-built spherical balloon
generated by live mathematical equations that simulate the turbulence, flares and sunspots on the sun’s surface. These animations produce a constantly changing display that never repeats itself and can be manipulated with a free downloadable application that can be used on iphones, ipads and the ipod touch to control movements in real time.

Directed by Robyn Archer, The Light in Winter is a month-long celebration of light, enlightenment and shared cultural experiences, with a free program of concerts, film screenings, light-based artworks, exhibitions, forums and the much-loved Solstice Celebration on 19 June.

The Light in Winter
4 June – 4 July
Federation Square, Melbourne
Free
Visit here for more

The fifth State of Design Festival is set to Change By Design this year, with new look website and a host of events across Victoria. Held 14 – 25 July, the 2010 Festival presents a broad program of exciting, revealing and informative events under the theme Change by Design. This year’s Festival boasts four major programs: Design Capital business program, Design for Everyone public program, a trade fair Design:Made:Trade and the biennial Premier’s Design Awards, which recognises and applauds design excellence in Victoria.

2010 Events:
Design For Everyone will feature a series of exhibitions, talks and workshops around Mobility and the Built Environment, with topics including cycling through public gatherings and forums, the future of motorized travel, urban agriculture, making homes more environmentally sustainable and bushfire resistant design.

Design:Made:Trade will be a key highlight of the Festival. Building on the success of 2009, the Royal Exhibition Building will again be the Festival’s business and trade hub. New events will include Lightsource, sponsored by Philips, a commercial lighting exhibition for lighting designers, manufacturers and distributors and NEXT, a commercial exhibition space for companies seeking to promote innovative and ecodesigned new products to the Australian market.

Design Capital Business Program will offer design vision, leading innovation information and competitive economic insight from leading international industry leaders and key Australian brand leaders. Last year more than 130,000 local and international visitors flocked to the Festival, positioning it as Victoria’s premier platform to showcase significant design achievements and celebrate innovation across industry.

Who Did That, lighting sculpture, State of Design 2010

Yellow Diva, ottoman, State of Design 2010

An initiative of the Victorian Government, the State of Design Festival aims to increase the possibility of businesses using design as well as demonstrate how design can quite literally change the lives of all Victorians.
Visit the site for more information, news and links.

Semi-Permanent and Dosh Wallets launch search to find the next generation Dosh designer. 12th March 2010: Semi-Permanent, Australia’s leading design festival, has partnered with forward thinking wallet brand, Dosh, to find the next generation Dosh designer. The competition is calling for artists to submit a piece of work which will be printed on a wallet and sold from dosh.com.au and in stores globally.
Dosh has championed collaboration’s with some of the best contemporary artists from around the world including Jonathon Zawada, Stephan Marx and French, who have all used Dosh as their canvas.

Budding creatives need to log onto www.semipermanent.com or www.dosh.com.au to download the design template and submit their work to ken@dosh.com.au for judging before the 27 March. The winner will join the ranks alongside some of the leading designers in the world and will also receive 5% from every wallet of their design sold.

For more information on the competition and event, please visit www.semipermanent.com. The winner will be announced on the 30th April.

Semi-Permanent, Australia’s award winning design festival*, is pleased to announce additional speakers to its already awe-inspiring line up. Award winning filmmaker David Michôd, San Francisco based design community Fecal Face and Australia’s own frankie magazine, join this year’s event on the 19 and 20 March. Other speakers this year include the likes of award winning photographers Jill Greenberg and Ashley Gilbertson, graphic artists Jasper Goodall and Jessica Hische and the ABC’s celebrated broadcaster Craig Schuftan.

David Michôd – an Australian director who is currently building a solid reputation on the international film scene. His debut feature film, Animal Kingdom, was recently awarded the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. He was also the co-director of the critically acclaimed documentary, Solo, which documented the ill-fated journey of kayaker Andrew McAuley’s attempt to kayak between Australia and New Zealand. The powerful documentary won the 2009 AFI Award for Best Documentary Under One Hour. David is also well known to the Australian film community as past editor of Inside Film magazine.

Fecal Face – Making a welcome return in the web community space is San Francisco based Fecal Face – a leading online art based community site. Initially created to highlight and promote the art scene in San Francisco, Fecal Face has expanded to encompass work from artists and exhibitions world-wide. It’s an extensive directory of photos and interviews with artists, and the sites positive, down to earth and fun outlook on art makes it stand out from the crowd.

frankie magazine – one of Australia’s most popular magazines which combines interesting articles, beautiful photography and great artwork to make a cross between a fashion and art magazine that speaks to a wide audience. Founded by Louise Bannister and creative director Lara Burke, frankie is a creative voice amongst the multitude of magazines created for women that are basically catalogues for advertiser and to top it off, it’s a magazine that even your average male hipster is not ashamed to read!

Alongside the two day conference, Semi-Permanent also plays host to side shows which have seen the likes of Banksy, Shepard Fairey and 123Klan exhibit work for the Australian public. This year is no different kicking off with Mixed Business presented by We Are The Image Makers, the Opening Hours, Stupid Krap and Semi-Permanent. Taking place on the 18th March at the Ambush Gallery in Waterloo, the group show features work from leading artists including Numskull, Phibs, Beastman and James Jarat Patradoon alongside international talent, Mel Kadel and Travis Millard. The show will be open until 28th March 2010.

More information on the event, here.

March 2010 sees Australia’s design community come together for the 8th year for Semi-Permanent in Sydney. With a week-long celebration of all things aesthetic, Semi-Permanent goes above and beyond, bringing together the design community across a number of conferences, workshops, exhibitions and after parties.
Not to be outdone by last year’s roll call, the boys at Semi-Permanent have secured a raft of talented speakers spanning the Art, Film, Illustration, Photography, Visual Effects and Motion Graphics worlds with everything from Sesame Street to Gucci and Victoria’s Secret. Set to inspire and educate, world renowned artists and specialists in their field will come together to share their knowledge, excitement and passion for their work and impart wisdom and insight on Sydney’s creative population.

Held on the 19 and 20 March at the Sydney Exhibition Centre, speakers for the 2010 Sydney event include:
Travis Millard and Mel Kadel – LA based couple whose work is admired and sought after by collectors and brands across the globe.
Jessica Hische – designer, illustrator and photographer who has worked with the likes of Victoria’s Secret, American Express, Wired Magazine and Penguin Books.
Jill Greenberg – photographer whose work has appeared in the likes of Harper’s, Wired, Time Weekly and The New Yorker and whose 2006 End Times series provoked much interest and criticism across the world.
Ashley Gilbertson – Australian born, New York based photo-journalist whose most recent book, ‘Whisky, Tango, Foxtrot’, details his experiences with the Iraq war.
Jasper Goodall – highly influential graphic artist who has worked with the likes of Gucci, Nike, Adidas and Dazed and Confused.
T World – the guys from T World, the Australian magazine focused on T-shirt culture, who have recently collaborated with Sesame Street on the program’s 40th anniversary.
Tin&Ed – Melbourne based design team whose work spans a host of disciplines including graphic design, illustration, collage, photography and motion graphics. They have worked with the likes of Nike, BMW, MTV-UK and The Australian Ballet.
Craig Schuftan – Author and broadcaster based in Sydney whose books include The Culture Club (2007) and Hey! Nietzsche! Leave Them Kids Alone (2009). Craig recently assisted with curating the popular ‘The 80’s Are Back’ exhibition at The Powerhouse Museum and has been presenting The Culture Club on triple j, a radio segment about the history of art and ideas in rock and roll, since 2002. Craig’s involvement marks a new style of Semi-Permanent speakers, coming from a historical and philosophical angle rather than a personal journey through an individual’s work.

More information on the event, here.