Kaj Kalin: Mr. Goodtaste

Kaj Kalin is one of the most brilliant people in the Finnish design world, but he prefers to stay out of the limelight.

Text Petra Vuolanen
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To Declare / Exhibition
14-18 September 2011
Old Customs Warehouse, Helsinki

Kaj Franck: Finns’ favorites

Every Finn has eaten out of dishes designed by Kaj Franck. This year marks the centenary of the great designer’s birth.

Text Ida Kukkapuro

Kaj Franck 100 years / Several exhibitions
Design Museum, 15 June–25 Sept 2011 / Habitare Fair, 14–18 Sept 2011 / Design Forum Finland, 16 June–18 Sept 2011

Trash Design: One man’s trash = another man’s treasure

Trash will be used to create new products that may be designed for an entirely different purpose than the original product.

Text Heini Lehtinen
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Trash Design / Exhibition
14–18 September 2011
Habitare Fair, Helsinki Exhibition & Convention Centre, Helsinki

Hit-Happens 2011: Future design hits

What does young designers’ work look like right now? You’ll find out when the Hit-Happens 2011 design event returns after taking over Design Forum last fall.

Text Emma Vuorinen
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Hit-Happens 2011 / Exhibition
14–18 September 2011
Rauhanasema, Pasila, Helsinki

Protoshop: A product looking for a manufacturer

The prototypes selected for the exhibition range from small items such as textiles and larger spatial elements.

Text Petra Vuolanen
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Protoshop / Exhibition
14–18 September 2011
Habitare Fair, Helsinki Exhibition & Convention Centre, Helsinki

More (city) space for design

Recently a group of Guggenheim Museum staff from New York visited Helsinki. They were wondering why the internationally renowned design city doesn’t have up-to-date and appropriate spaces for displaying design. Exactly. Maybe it’s a “shoemaker’s children have no shoes” phenomenon.

Text Aila Svenskberg
Photo Juuso Noronkoski

EcoDesign: Eco Multifunction

First there was an ecological chair, then a light and now multifunctional furniture.

Text Ida Kukkapuro
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EcoDesign / Exhibition
14–18 September, 2011
Habitare Fair, Helsinki Exhibition & Convention Centre, Helsinki

Portfolio: Woodism

Consisting of designers and fine carpenters, the Woodism group produces wooden products made from trees felled in parks and private yards that would’ve otherwise ended up chopped or dumped.

Text Heini Lehtinen

Designpartners100: Best of the year

The Designpartners100 exhibition will display the most interesting design products of the year.

Designpartners100 exhibition at Helsinki Fair Centre on 1–5 September 2010.

The man of sustainable forms

The items designed by Hannu Kähönen − for example, modern Abloy keys, the low-floor tram and the new garbage containers seen in public places around Helsinki are a part of people’s lives.

Hannu Kähönen’s Kaj Franck exhibition can be seen in the Ahead! Area of the Habitare Fair, 1–5 September 2010.

Häberli selects the best seat

This year the winner of the Habitare Design Competition will be selected by Alfredo Häberli. This year the theme of the Habitare Design Competition is recycled seating.

Habitare Fair, 1–5 September 2010, Helsinki Fair Center.

A fair illustrator

Illustrator and graphic designer Lotta Nieminen received an inspiring illustration assignment. Her illustrations will be a part of Habitare’s visual look for the next three years.

Habitare fair runs from September 1–5, 2010 at the Helsinki Fair Centre.

Meet a prototype

Protoshop brings designers and companies together. The exhibition will display furniture prototypes and other items by designers working in Finland.

Protoshop at the Ahead! area of the Habitare Fair, 1–5 September 2010.

Sources for design

It is a major challenge for designers to keep up with the trends. This challenge is met by the global material library, Material ConneXion, a source of inspiration and innovative materials for designers.

Material ConneXion at the Ahead! area of the Habitare Fair, 1–5 September 2010.

Drawing the new line

The Newly Drawn exhibition in Helsinki Design Week and the book of the same name take a closer look at the new wave of Finnish architectural firms founded by 1970s-born designers. They are the ones planning the surroundings of our future.

Text Heini Lehtinen

Photos Kai Kuusisto