Das Haus 2017: On the search for new forms of open living
The project by the New York product designer Todd Bracher is compelling with its clear, architectural design and moments of sensory surprise. Three different, overlapping zones are designed and furnished to meet contemporary needs.
As guest of honour at imm cologne 2017, Todd Bracher, the New York-based product designer, has produced a distinctively spacious and architectural design for the design event “Das Haus – Interiors on Stage”. Under a floating roof stand two interwoven, starkly different frames – one a large space surrounded by bookshelves as walls and a semi-transparent shell, the other a black cube over which a ball seems to hover as it emits a moonlight glow. In one corner is a showering and washing area. Bracher turns the traditional notion of 3-rooms plus kitchen,hallway and bathroom, indeed the very concept of a traditional sequence of rooms, on its head and into a vision of intertwining zones: one for dining, one for rest and one for hygiene. Contemporary forms for modern life.
Building bridges between American and European styles of home living
“Das Haus” is the superlative design event at the international interiors show imm cologne. Each year a young, influential designer is given the opportunity to make a personal statement on contemporary living in a simulation of a residential house combining architecture, interior design and furnishings. US designer Todd Bracher has been nominated as the guest of honour for the sixth edition of “Das Haus” at imm cologne 2017.
Why do we live in a particular way and not differently? Why do our homes have corners? How many walls do we need to feel comfortable, and why do we prefer particular furniture? How do we prioritise functionality, aesthetics and tradition? Which colours and materials create positive feelings, and which ones are sustainable? What role does the home play today? And what role will it have tomorrow?
These questions are often put to architects, designers and sociologists. But it is very rare to find projects where designers are able to try out something genuinely new in practice — something far removed from the typical conceptual installations, which are often works of art rather than ideas for living. Whilst trade fair organisers and exhibition curators may expect the unexpected from them, in day-to-day business, clients, aesthetic conventions and very real requirements in terms of standards, profitability and weather conditions set narrow parameters. “Das Haus” is a platform for experiments in living located right in the very centre of this divide: between installation and “real” life.
Deconstructing home living into its component parts and assembling it anew
For Todd Bracher, “Das Haus” represents an opportunity to question the traditional perception of contemporary living. Because these are precisely the questions that occupy him when he is working on his enormously multifaceted range of projects, from product design, through brand refresh to strategic design. The design event at imm cologne now offers him the ideal platform for experimentation without commercial constraints. “Das Haus 2017” will offer visitors to the international interiors show exciting insights into a close convergence of living and life.
“The home is an elementary synthesis of needs and functions that is very precisely directed toward supporting the people who live inside it in their daily lives and their growth,” is how Bracher understands the concept of “Das Haus”. The holistic project combines architecture, interiors and product design. For his “Haus”, he will follow his classical approach to design rigorously: reducing complexity to its simplest elements and functions. “Why do we choose a particular lifestyle?” asks the 41-year-old and sets out his intentions: “We want to question our conception of what makes contemporary living by rethinking the principles that define the home and asking ourselves if they meet the requirements of the world today.”
Todd Bracher – analyst, minimalist, translator
Todd Bracher is considered one of the leading names in the American design scene. Born in New York in 1974 and the son of a carpenter, he graduated in Industrial Design from the city’s prestigious Pratt Institute. Between graduating and founding his own studio, he took what is perhaps a unique journey through the different cultures and design traditions of the “Old World”: he completed a Masters in design at the Danish School of Design in Copenhagen; working in Milan, Paris and at Tom Dixon in London; serving as Professor of Design at l’ESAD in Reims, France, and Creative Director of the Danish luxury brand Georg Jensen before returning home to New York in 2007 and setting up his own studio. From his Brooklyn base, he collaborates with leading design brands from around the world, including Cappellini, Fritz Hansen, Herman Miller, Humanscale, Issey Miyake, Swarovski, Zanotta and 3M.
His work speaks a clear, unambiguous language that is guided first and foremost by function. This places Bracher firmly in the classic design tradition, and it is this tradition which constantly leads him to unexpectedly elegant solutions, whether he is designing a table, an office chair, a perfume bottle or an innovative reflective element for striking, energy-saving LED building illumination. At the same time, his work offers solutions to contemporary problems and dresses the sometimes disturbing proximity of life and work in new and pleasing forms. The recipient of many design awards, Bracher takes inspiration from both nature and technology. Everything that he creates should be self-explanatory — this is the standard he sets himself, and it is the ideal point of departure for “Das Haus” to stand as a design event that can be experienced intuitively.
Article and images courtesy imm cologne.
For more information visit imm-cologne.com
