The Bloom bookcase was commissioned by the British Council to hold works of fiction by literary magazine Granta's pick of young British novelists.

Raw Edges came up with a wooden frame resembling a loom – hence its name – that allows books to be slotted over the red threads and held at varying heights by sliding black stoppers.

The bookcase holds one novel by each of the writers chosen by Granta in its once-a-decade list, which was first published in 1983.

It was shown at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile during Milan's design week earlier this month – see our round-up of the best furniture and lighting from the Salone or see all products and exhibitions from Milan 2013.

Raw Edges, a duo comprising Tel Aviv-born designers Yael Mer and Shay Alkalay, previously created a display of hundreds of fabric ribbons for Danish textile manufacturer Kvadrat and a shelf that slides apart to form a desk – see all design by Raw Edges.

Other bookcases we've featured lately include a zig-zagging wooden design by Japanese studio Nendo and an extendable bookcase with interlocking shelves – see all bookcases.

Here's some more information from the British Council:

The Best of Young British Novelists bookcase

British-based design studio Raw-Edges has been commissioned by the British Council to design a bespoke travelling bookcase to house one carefully selected work of fiction from each of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists. The bookcase will also hold editions of Granta magazine.

The highly inventive design means the books themselves take centre stage in the installation. The interactive nature of the bookcase also allows visitors to change the display by repositioning the books. It invites visitors to delve into the stories and also consider the books’ physical qualities and design. The bookcase will be on show during the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan, where a series of talks will consider the book as a physical object. This commission represents an opportunity for audiences overseas to engage with British design and British contemporary literature.

Before they were household names, they were Granta Best of Young British Novelists. At a celebration to be held at the British Council, on the evening of 15 April 2013, Granta will announce its once-in-a-decade selection of the twenty best British novelists aged under forty. Granta's first generation-defining list of writers was published in 1983 and set the bar for the following decades.

The April announcement marks the publication of Granta 123: The Best of Young British Novelists 4, which includes a new story from each writer on the 2013 list. Granta 123 will be available to purchase from all good booksellers from 16 April in the UK and 23 April in the US.

Throughout 2013, the British Council and Granta are collaborating on an international showcase of contemporary British novelists, which features the twenty writers selected by Granta’s panel of judges. The first international events – including readings and conversation – will be announced on 15 April and will be taking place in more than ten countries including Russia, Qatar and India.

Books from each Granta Best Young Novelist on the 1983, 1993, 2003 and 2013 lists will be presented around the world in a bookcase designed by Raw-Edges Design Studio.

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Raw Edges appeared first on Dezeen.

Called Fold, the piece for Japanese producer Conde House is made of interlocking wooden boards and has a zig-zag footprint so books can be slotted into recesses facing diagonally outwards in two directions.

Apertures in the back of shelves in one orientation mean they can be accessed from the back as well.

"Thanks to the superior craftsmanship of Conde House, a wood furniture manufacturer in Asahikawa in northern Japan, the joints appear seamless, as though single boards have been bent and interwoven like paper chains or a woven textile," says Nendo. "It's virtually impossible to know, looking at the shelves, how the parts are connected."

The studio's earlier Splinter collection, which looks like the components have been gently peeled away will be on show at Spazio Pontaccio, Via Pontaccio 18, Milan next week. See all our Milan 2013 previews.

Yesterday we reported on Nendo's completed refit for the womenswear floor of Milan's famous La Rinascente department store. See all our stories about design by Nendo.

Photos are by Yoneo Kawabe.

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Conde House appeared first on Dezeen.

Originally designed for a private client, the REK bookcase by Reinier de Jong has interlocking shelves that allow it to slide out to make space for more books as required.

The different shelf dimensions hold various sizes, while the narrowest slots are ideal for magazines. At its largest, the bookcase is 228 centimetres wide.

The original REK bookcase was finished with white laminate, but de Jong has now introduced a recycled laminate finish in grey and dark grey.

He has also made the bookcase lighter, reducing its weight to 80 kilograms, and added a stop to make sure the shelves don't slide out too far.

Last year de Jong presented an extendable coffee table to complement the REK bookcase, while in Cologne this year he launched a folding wooden chair made from old wooden broom handles – see all design by Reinier de Jong.

Other adjustable bookcases we've featured include a set of hinged boxes that spin round to create different patterns and a set of modular units with chairs hidden inside them – see all bookcases.

Photographs are by Peter van Dijk.

A new and improved REK bookcase

More than four years after we designed and created the very first REK bookcase for a private client, we have taken a few significant steps forward. REK has a new finish, is much lighter and we have made some great photos of it.

What are books worth when there is internet, smart phones, tablets and e-readers? Not much at first sight. However, it is exactly these digital developments that enhance the appreciation of books. No longer functional carriers of information but rather artefacts representing one’s identity. It is not so much about the quantity of books anymore but what counts is a well-considered selection of quality books. Book shelves are therefore changing as well, from purely functional pieces of furniture to unique design pieces, equally important as the books they hold.

REK was designed back in 2008 by Reinier de Jong as a bookcase that grows with your book collection. The fewer the books, the smaller the bookcase. The zigzag-shaped parts slide in and out to accommodate books in the resulting spaces. The books can also be arranged according to their size. The narrow spaces are excellent for magazines.

The maximum dimensions of REK are: 202 x 228 x 36 cm. The original REK bookcase is finished with white HPL which gives it a cool and abstract look.

We recently introduced a new finish at the International Furniture Fair in Cologne: recycled HPL by Abet Laminati. The solid grey material creates a warm and intriguing result, especially on the edges where it looks as if it is seamlessly folded around the shelves. It is light grey with a texture that people associate with fine concrete or grey cardboard. REK is also available in a dark grey version of this material.

Furthermore, the new REK has lost weight. It has the same dimensions as the first one but weighs only 80 kg. A lot easier to transport but above all, easier to slide. We have also improved the guidance and added a stop, making sure the parts do not slide out too far.

REK can be ordered directly from us. Price is on request

The REK bookcase by Reinier de Jong is featured in our book, Dezeen Book of Ideas. Buy it now for just £12.

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Reinier de Jong appeared first on Dezeen.

"A key part of the brief was to house the client's extensive collection of books," Platform 5's Patrick Michell told Dezeen. "We proposed a double-height library wrapped around a stair."

The oak bookcases stagger up around the edge of the stairwell, finishing at a first-floor study space that cantilevers out over the room below. "The dramatic space was perfect for a small desk perched off the landing, with views to the floor below and out through the window," said Michell.

Platform 5 Architects also added an extension to the kitchen, doubling the size of the space to accommodate a new dining area with an exposed brick wall.

"We used exposed brickwork in the extension to link the room with the garden by continuing the garden wall into the interior," said Michell. "London stock brick is an essential part of the character of the city and it forms a beautiful backdrop to a domestic interior."

The zinc-clad extension gives the rear of the house a new elevation with a large glass door and L-shaped window seat.

Wooden ceiling beams run along the length of the extension and create modular shelves along the top of the new brick wall.

A kitchen island counter is made from exposed concrete, which the architects also used for the surface of the floor. "The robust finish sits comfortably with the muted tones and texture of the exposed brickwork and oak," explained Michell.

London-based Platform 5 Architects was founded in 2006 and is headed up by Michell and partner Peter Allen. Previous projects include a modest glass extension to a house in Dalston.

Other residential extensions to complete recently include a dark brick extension near Lille and a rooftop addition in California.

See more residential extensions on Dezeen »

Photography is by Alan Williams.

Here's some more text from Platform 5:

The owners were keen to introduce contemporary interventions to create modern living spaces, while retaining and highlighting the Arts & Crafts influenced decorative aspects of the original house. A key element to the brief was the need to house an extensive book collection.

A simple palette of oak, brick and concrete were used on the interior to link the different spaces and built in furniture was designed to create stage sets for domestic life.

Above: ground floor plan

The main feature is a double height library built around a staircase at the heart of the house where oak panels and shelves lined with books create an intimate atmosphere. The stepped arrangement of the shelves mimics the stairs to give a sense of upward movement through the space, while at the top a small study has been incorporated into the landing; a peaceful area to work, overlooking the ground floor.

Above: first floor plan

To the rear, a new kitchen side extension was built by resting a zinc-clad oak structure onto the party wall. Timber spars diffuse light from above, and create a series of niches against the wall. The existing rear elevation has been remodelled, with a large pivot door and a sitting area with slide-away corner glazing overlooking the garden.

Above: long section - click above for larger image

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by Platform 5 Architects appeared first on Dezeen.

Crasset recently became the artistic director of French concrete specialist Concrete by LCDA, and the Concrete collection is a result of this collaboration.

The lamp references concrete acoustic mirrors, also known as "listening ears", which were developed in Britain between the wars to concentrate sound waves and detect airborne invasions.

The bookshelf is designed to be a "backbone of knowledge" with shelves like vertebrae protruding from a central spine.

"This project combines fluidity and the desire to get away from the very common single-piece shapes when concrete furniture is concerned," said the collaborators.

Other projects by Crasset we've featured recently include a set of vessels shaped like horns, speaker components and loudhailers and a woodland hotel room on legs.

We've been publishing some of the best projects from Interieur this year, including furniture that expands like popcorn and an arcade of light beams that appear to bend inwards – see all our stories about Interieur.

See all our stories about concrete »
See all our stories about Matali Crasset »

Photographs are by Simon Buisson.

Here's some more information from the designer:

The international designer Matali Crasset is working with Concrete by LCDA as artistic director. This is a new stage in the development of Concrete by LCDA which, after putting its know-how into use to excel in interior design, from now on becomes a design and manufacturing company.

The international designer Matali Crasset is working with Concrete by LCDA as artistic director. This is a new stage in the development of Concrete by LCDA which, after putting its know-how into use to excel in interior design, from now on becomes a design and manufacturing company.

The aim is to tame concrete to so that it will be better incorporated into the heart of our daily life. The range of concrete products that Matali Crasset has designed for Concrete by LCDA invites concrete to be a fully-fledged player in our interiors, both for primary uses and more immaterial functions. So it is in this setting that the material and symbolic dimension of concrete is highlighted.

This initial collection of furniture and objects designed for concrete takes its strength from the beauty of the concrete material. By moulding the concrete, it becomes furniture and then enters into a dialogue with us in our life scenarios. In this way, Matali has designed a collection of timeless and sculptural objects, both obvious and essential, which combine a technical material and a know-how with a high level of craftsmanship with a sensitive approach.

The collection is comprised of three objects which suggest three functions and values: to meet, to store, to light.

Table

Concrete becomes the centre of the house with a very archetypal table which asserts its desire for continuity. The shape is meant to be simple to so that material's sensitive aspect can be revealed: the texture of the wood's grain will reveal more than the manufacturing mode, it locks the project into a long tradition of moulding. The concrete unobtrusively finds its place and becomes a key element in the apartment. Wooden frame is the most frequently used tool for framing concrete walls that are generally reinforced, a forming tool used since the 17th century made from pieces of wood. The concrete is both a very technical material – lightweight concrete – and a material which requires precise handwork; in this way, the mould leaves the trace of the wood and the handwork. This is an archetypal object, with a clean line which easily fits into any type of interior. A large table seating 6 to 10 persons in a spirit of conviviality and hospitality.

Technical description :
Table in ultra-high-performance fibre-reinforced raw concrete and inner core, with a mat varnish surface.
Dimensions: 250 x 100 x 75 cm, also available in 220*100*75 cm.
Weight: 120 kgs
Top 80 kg, each base 20 kg.

Lamp

The lamp is more unexpected, it shows that concrete knows no borders. It refers to the listening ears in Folkestone in England. These objects deriving from technology exiting between the two wars have become obsolete with the arrival of radar beams. The function of these large objects in reinforced concrete was to listen to the sky. The flag changes scale to become a light diffuser. It is placed in various locations in the apartment, standing or suspended. Here the concrete is moulded with great finesse to so that the design can be seen.

Technical description :
Dimensions: 53 x 50 x 31.5 cm
Ultra high-performance raw concrete, LED 18W lamp.
PCB (printed circuit board) made up of 0.5W 36 leds powered by 24V direct current. The power obtained is 18W or about 1800 lumen for a colour of 4000°.
A diffuser made of a white light spectrum moulded acrylic sheet offers an excellent diffusion strength and an eco-efficient solution.
Weight: 18kg

Bookshelf

This is a bookshelf in the image of the backbone of knowledge. The material is known for its strength, this project combines fluidity and the desire to get away from the very common single-piece shapes when concrete furniture is concerned. The material seems to be set in its lightness, like a freeze-frame shot, it retains the momentum and the dynamism of growth. The table and the storage space are a homage to human building genius, to major structures in raw concrete which symbolise modernity.

Technical description :
Dimensions: 190 x 95 x 35 cm.
Smooth ultra-high-performance concrete, Ductal.
Weight: each element 70 kg

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for Concrete by LCDA appeared first on Dezeen.