The Tio lounge chair by Conscious Design featuring removable cover by World.

 

They don’t make them like they used to:

17 February - 18 March 2007 in the Hirschfeld Gallery

Artist and Curator Talk, Friday 16 March, 12.30pm

They don’t make them like they used to profiles a selection of recent Wellington interior design, ranging from furniture to architecture and product design. Picking up on one of the big contemporary trends in design, this exhibition focuses on individuals and companies whose interests extend past aesthetics into a philosophy of production which is also sustainable. The exhibition title is an ironic allusion to the type of wistful comments those of older generations may use, bemoaning change and talking about ‘the good old days’. This exhibition posits that change can be a necessary and positive step, and that it is possible for our decisions regarding consumption to be critical rather than made out of habit. Several of the designers in this exhibition use creative alternative approaches to face issues of increasing environmental concern, not only through using recycled materials but by also making durable, multifunctional products, challenging the accepted methods which have gone before.

One of the concerns designers in this exhibition have spoken of is their desire to not have to compromise on the ‘look’ of their work for the sake of being environmentally friendly. They don’t make them like they used to does not offer up a single solution to environmental problems, rather it starts a conversation on what sustainability is and throws up a number of possible tacks of how it can be approached in a design context. This exhibition encourages us to consider the many aspects of the products we buy; the waste created by its production, how long it is likely to last, the efficiency of its use of materials and the social impact of its manufacture. It offers examples of how these issues can be met, whilst retaining design integrity.

Co-ordinated with assistance from the Sustainable Business Network www.sustainable.org.nz

David Cassells was born in 1983. He recently completed a Bachelor Design degree with Honours majoring in Industrial Design from Massey University, Wellington. He is currently working on a design project in Hong Kong.

Conscious Design (Stu Barr, Nathan Goldsworthy and James Whitta)

Stu Barr, Creator of the Tio concept, was born in 1979. Stu studied Industrial Design at Victoria University School of Design, Wellington and graduated with an Honours Degree in 2003. Stu has exhibited his furniture at the War Memorial Museum, Auckland and the Dowse Art Museum, Lower Hutt. Stu currently resides in Ponsonby, Auckland.

Nathan Goldsworthy, co-founder and Director of Conscious Design, was born in 1981. Nathan has a degree in Industrial Design from Victoria University of Wellington. He has exhibited pieces at 100% design, London; the War Memorial Museum, Auckland; the innovations Room at Fashion Week 04 and the Dowse Art Museum in Lower Hutt. He currently lives in Roseneath, Wellington.

James Whitta, Co-founder and Director of Conscious Design, was born in Wellington in 1979. He studied Industrial Design at Victoria University School of Design where he gained a Bachelor of Design Degree with Honours in 2003. James won the Metaform03 furniture design competition, which included a ticket to the Milan furniture Fair in 2004. James has exhibited his furniture at the War Memorial Museum, Auckland; the innovations Room at Fashion Week 04 and the Dowse Art Museum, Lower Hutt. He currently lives in Roseneath, Wellington.

Frazer Ellis was born in Palmerston North in 1985. He is currently studying Industrial design at Massey University Wellington. In 2005 he received a scholarship from Ludowici plastics. This is his first exhibited piece. He lives in Newtown.

Duncan Sargent graduated from University of Canterbury, School of Fine Arts in 1981. He has worked on several film and theatre projects. Sargent has exhibited his furniture at Dowse Art Museum, Lower Hutt in 2001 and 2005 and at 100% Design, London in 1999. He was a finalist in the Wallace Art Awards in 1991 and 1992. In 2006 Sargent opened 91, a studio/gallery in Newtown.

SubART (Peter Ash, Kate Linzey and Emma Febvre-Richards) is a collaborative project that began in 2005. The collective was initiated to critique the conventional division between fine art and design disciplines, particularly conflicting value judgments.

Tennent + Brown Architects Ltd is a Wellington-based architectural firm with a current staff of ten. The practice was initially established in 1990 as Hugh Tennent Architects and changed name to Tennent + Brown Architects in 2006 to reflect the co-directorship of Ewan Brown. The firm won the NZIA New Zealand Award for Architecture for the Spy Valley winery, Marlborough with Bevin Slessor Architects in 2006 and was the 2006 Winner of the Home and Entertaining House of the Year for Canna House.

Jamin Vollebregt graduated from Massey University, Wellington in 2004 with a Bachelor of Design. His work has been exhibited at the War Memorial Museum, Auckland and Muse Gallery, Sydney. Vollebregt is director and designer of Room Two Limited, a furniture and design company dedicated to sustainability and the principles of green design.