Innovative concept, specialized target group, high-impact graphic layout. The .Wonder Book by IFDM offers an in-depth look at selected international projects, discovering the most renowned names in architecture and interior design through the most recent and spectacular achievements. In June, the Summer publication, the second of four annual editions. With special attention to the product and a summary of the trends seen at the Salone.
The sum of its parts
by Ruben Modigliani – Editor-in-Chief
In the 1958 play Auntie Mame, the main character, played by a dazzling Rosalind Russell, every so often dramatically changes the look of her New York apartment in a whirlwind of exuberant styles. The architecture is a mere container and the furnishings mere props for the star.
In contrast, in this new publication, which brings the .Wonder Books to four yearly editions, we can feel when the spark is lit between the container (the architecture) and the content (furnishings), because they interpret the same idea of space, functionality, and, in a sense, life’s ritual quality.
The relationship between a space and the furnishing we choose to place within it is not random nor only utilitarian – every piece helps define its essence. For each photo shoot, we emphasized this concept by putting a selection of furnishings in the mood of that particular project. We chose to tell the story of Milano Design Week – the design sector’s most important event – with a first-hand report, rich in details and atmospheres, to bring together the season’s most significant trends in a series of moodboards.
In the film, Powers of Ten, Charles and Ray Eames suggest that the infinitely small and the infinitely large have much in common. This applies, of course, to architecture and design too. When the design is cohesive, the whole has a much greater value than its individual parts. And, as Ernesto Nathan Rogers put it, the designer’s range goes “from the spoon to the city.” Enjoy!
A love triangle
by Alessandra Bergamini – Deputy Editor of .Wonder Book
This new .Wonder Book Summer is a journey of words and many images, taking us through a design directory of 60 pages (and 110 products), 3 interviews, and 15 recent interior design projects in hospitality, residences, and workplaces. We move through different scales and aesthetics, exploring everything from the detail of shapes and materials to the full project.
On the way, the spotlight is cast on the excellent work of the makers of individual products. We also spotlight the equally complex work of designers on the spaces and their interpretation, the choice of furnishings and their composition in different environments and functional areas, the behavior of people and the use of places, and, significantly, the work that designers pursue together with their clients. As Pallavi Dean puts it in her interview, “As designers, we watch human behavior, and create spaces that support that behavior. We are great listeners, we feel that we can only create a successful design if we are empathetic and hone our listening skills.”
The triangle between client, designer, and user is a multifaceted, “loving” relationship that takes clarity, understanding, creativity, and material and emotional satisfaction, as well as a sense of surprise. These elements must be in a virtuous circle to achieve a full, complex project that represents a contextualized, shared idea of beauty.
This beauty often manifests itself starting first from the details as so well demonstrated by the visual stories in these .Wonder Books.
