Milan 2011: German designers Ett La Benn show these vases made of biodegradable cellulose as part of Poetry Happens at Ventura Lambrate in Milan this week.

Called Kami, the pots are moulded by hand and left to air-dry.

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Here are some more details from Poetry Happens:

kami

The 'kami' collection of pots/vases/home lighting encourage a new way of thinking in eco-friendly lifestyle products.

Made from 100% biodegradable cellulose, an enormously solid and light material, 'kami' transforms this most abundant natural raw material into objects for daily use by simple air drying.

Charles Bukowski: ‘Poetry is what happens when nothing else can.’

Design as a creative discipline always floats between pure culture and an applied profession that fulfills industrial needs.

Our exhibition project emphasizes the experimental ‘making’-oriented cultural path of design. As every year, Milan is the best place to showcase these new concepts and researches. Our exhibition POETRY HAPPENS displays authentic, archetypal projects, prototypes and installations with a narrative design quality. Poetry as a headline gives every invited designer, architect and artist the freedom of his / her personal approach and interpretation of his / her work related to poetry.

Poetry transferred into the world of design can be: The poetry of making by emphasizing the personality of the maker or the unique and individual strategy of the creator behind an object.

The poetry of collages combines readymades or parts, principles and mechanics of existing ‘everyday’-products into hybrid objects with a new life-cycle that, unlike standard industrial production, also shows signs of usage. The poetry of prototyping: process models, mock-ups and regular prototypes generate the story and evolution of creating – a narrative quality with often a bigger impact than the final product.

The poetry of materials and technology experiments is the engine of the continuous evolution of design. The history of design would be blank and just a formal discipline without the quantum leaps in materials and technologies.

The poetry of spaces and installations expands the pure object’s existence into space and environments which finally every object has to deal with.

The poetry of sustainability begins when design objects tend to achieve an archetypal long lasting quality with a maximal visual continuity: classic pieces and long runners in the market won’t absorb new resources.

See also:

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Laurens van Wieringen at Ventura Lambrate	Diederik Schneemann at Ventura Lambrate	JamScape at Ventura Lambrate

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Milan 2010: German design studio Ett la Benn present a collection of lamps made by drying out sponge cloths over moulds in the Zona Tortona district of Milan this week.

Called Malva, the collection includes pendant and floor lamps, and relies on the natural qualities of cellulose and viscose.

The lamps are on show as part of an exhibition called Made in Berlin - Open Process Exhibition.

See all our stories about Milan 2010 in our special category.

Photographs are by diephotodesigner.

The following information is from the designers:

malva / malva is a series of lights inspired by the natural qualities of cellulose and viscose. The objects are generated by the forming of moistened sponge cloth and its subsequent hardening by air drying on a mould.

The translation of this customary material into individual design pieces through basic processes of forming and drying measures up to the highest demands in sustainability and eco friendliness: all objects are compostable.

See also:

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German designers ett la benn presented a new modular storage system at the Create Berlin show in London last month.

Designers Danilo Dürler and Oliver Bischoff have worked together as ett la benn since July 2006.

Create Berlin was part of the Tent London exhibition. The following is from ett la ben:

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SWOC

Description: SWOC is a modular storage system that offers a variety of combinations and a flexible fabric feel of the individual elements.

The fabric skin of SWOC is what sets it apart from other storage systems. Photo: Yves Sucksdorff

SWOC combines variability with sensuality and a flair for material.

Oliver Bischoff & Danilo Dürler
ett la benn

"ett la benn" is a young agency specialized in industrial design.

In search of innovative resolution concepts, "et la benn" develops individual products and manufactures them in cooperation with its partners. The main focus lies on the production of exclusive fine furniture. Since july 2006, Oliver Bischoff and Danilo Dürler are both equally responsible for the agency’s development and management.

Danilo Dürler was raised in Stuttgart, graduated from the "Kunsthochschule Weißensee" (University of Arts), specializing on product design. in addition to this, he studied at the "naba" in Milan, Italy and at the "Ingvar Kamprad design center" in Lund, Sweden and worked as a designer for men's watch manufacturer "Nomos Glashütte".

Oliver Bischoff founded "ett la benn" in 2005 while he was still studying industrial design at the "Universität der Künste" (University of Arts) in berlin. After growing up in hamburg, he was educated in carpentry and worked in this field for several years before moving to Berlin. photo: Yves Sucksdorff

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