Forecasting fashion, home goods and product trends may seem at times like it requires a crystal ball. Yet somehow through the many globally held shows around the world, a consensus is reached and then pitched, designed, sourced and branded. This year it seems that a crystal ball literally cast a spell over the designers as everything on their design boards ‘crystallized’ or better yet transpired into all things ‘transparent.’ One thing is clear…’ CLEAR ’ is in and clearly reflected in spring 2013 from fashion accessories to the chair barely visible beside you. It’s all clear…all tech chic and transparently so.
Before we go on…lets be perfectly clear about all things clear. Before there was Apple and their design approach paying homage to transparency, there was Eero Aarino’s hanging bubble chair designed in the 60’s. An icon in itself and every interior design student’s ‘go-to’ spec. furniture item. Why? Because the bubble chair is simple, functional and fun. Moreover it’s simply cool in a mod way that adds mass without the illusion of mass which = timeless. The ultimate experience of being part of an environment while at the same time being shielded within one's own environment. Image below: http://www.moderndesign360.com/shop/hanging-bubble-chair/
After all, if one really thought about an architecturally designed retail box to be built in prestigious/coveted upper Manhattan that was purposefully placed and partially sunk below pedestrian level to be solid in mass/appearance it would have most likely been met with criticism if it were not for the fact that the structure was to be constructed out of gleaming transparent glass. The new store design instantly became ethereal and not mass-like nor blocking prime views. Add the transparent circular stair and loyal customers and tourists began to flock to experience the ‘zen-like’ newly built design. Apple product, below street level, are displayed like fine baked goods on raised tongue & groove wooden tables whose fresh baked vapors rise upward to the exposed sky with no lowered ceiling to entrap them nor block office occupants that surround the retail space above. The strategic location and its transparency further entices would-be buyers as they gaze downward from their desks into the glass bakery drooling over the daily fresh offerings that emerge in neatly wrapped goodie bags up the spiral stairs. The transparent Apple store design became so unique it was quickly followed up by one of many Apple trademarks of which Apple as of recent was awarded a design patent for their store layout/approach. Apple strudel anyone? Image below: http://axisimages.com/vrviewer/AppleFifthAve/index.html http://axisimages.com/vrviewer/AppleFifthAve/index.html http://www.posterlounge.co.uk/transparent-floor-at-an-apple-store-in-new-york-pr227241.html
Perhaps in some way the Apple architectural trend transpired into a transparency of gadgets sans the building…here hand held phone/devices have joined the trend by offering a clear departure from the barrage of competitor opaque colorful designs and cases to completely transparent. Not without a fine price tag, the Aston Martin/Mobiado concept 'CTP002' phone will retail for thousands...The device has a sapphire crystal capacitive touchscreen that sits between two platinum bars. Images Below: http://www.designbuzz.com/10-transparent-gadgets-fun/ http://www.trendhunter.com/slideshow/examples-of-transparent-design#2
Never far from the curvilinear narrow roads of Monte Carlo’s formula races is glamour in way of haute couture fashion that adorns the roadways by day and starlet figures that fill the black Jack tables at night. Fashion and its influence, like technology, extends far into every facet and hand held gem encrusted clutch. In this 1950’s “Translucent Hat,” style makers too were enamored with the allure of transparency. Fast forward to 2013 and the runways exude Lucite in accessories galore from head to open toe. Images below: http://www.theglassmagazine.com/forum/blog_post.asp?fID=26&date=2013-01&PN=2Lillian http://rdujour.com/2013/02/21/all-clear-from-w-magazine/
"That's slime (below image) from the hagfish. Take a good look, because you may be wearing it one day. Anna Rothschild of PRI's The World files this report over at the BBC about how hagfish slime may just be the fabric of the future: The slime is composed of thread-like fibers. “When you stretch the fibers in water and then dry them out they take on properties that are very silk-like,” says Douglas Fudge, who heads this research project at the University of Guelph. Hagfish fibers are incredibly thin and extremely strong, and that gave Fudge and his colleagues an idea. For years, scientists have been looking for natural alternatives to synthetic fiber like nylon and spandex that are made from oil, which is a nonrenewable resource. [...] No one has made a spool of hagfish thread yet, but Fudge and his team see a future where hagfish slime or similar proteins could be turned into high-performance, eco-friendly clothing. The fibers might be used for stockings or breathable athletic wear or even bullet-proof vests." Source: http://www.neatorama.com/2013/04/03/Hagfish-Slime-Clothes-of-the-Future/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Neatorama+%28Neatorama%29
Commonly used props and classic Lucite retail display tables aside…transparency of furniture in the home and office has taken off. What was once conversation piece is becoming a standard piece of furniture to be sat upon vs. gawked at or placed on an industry platform at a contemporary furniture faire. The fun is in the physical use & experience not only in the creative use of material from Lucite to heavy ply plastics and innovative clear materials. Images below: http://www.makmis.com/transparent-acrylic-chair/
Not without consideration is comfort...here given to an infant in the most innovative of buoyant and snug transparent bassinet concepts. Image below: http://www.ecologicbuilt.com/bubble-baby-bed/
Perhaps trasparency is at its best when it mimics real life and does it in a way that is simply mesmerizing while also timeless in design. The liquid-glacial-table-by-zaha-hadid is all that and more...simply breathtaking in design & detail. Images below: http://likegoodarchitecture.com/2013/03/liquid-glacial-table-by-zaha-hadid/
...and then there is the practical use of transparency that when applied to traditional materials & lighting yields innovation beyond ever thought possible : Exhibit A Transparent concrete. Image below: http://retaildesignblog.net/tag/transparent/
But perhaps it is everyday items that when elevated or enclosed in a unique see through way are the more alluring For example, a simple table and chairs that act as terrariums or the basic bubble concept explored as temporary shelter and housing that would support the most interactive viewing of a summer's night solstice sky or on a basic but needed level, finally a "clear" highlighter. Now that's clearly cool. Images below: http://inhabitat.com/grow-a-lush-green-garden-inside-your-furniture-with-furnibloom/bjarnadottir-transparent-furniture-furnibloom-2/