Green
Design: Michel Dallaire
Client: Ville de Montréal
Date: 2009
In its transportation plan Réinventer Montréal , the Ville de Montréal wanted to provide different means of getting around Montréal. Given its immense popularity in Europe, the Ville de Montréal decided to make a public bike system one of the measures included in the plan. BIXI is viewed as a complement to the public transportation system and as an alternative to the car for residents and tourists throughout the city. The mandate to create, develop and exploit this new service was entrusted to Stationnement de Montréal.
September 1st, 2010
Design: Frank O. Gehry
Client:
Date: 1987
Photo: SFMoma
August 31st, 2010
Design:
Client: Umbra
Date: 2009
Following the remix trend, Umbra produces a number of market tests of the repurposed variety (taking found objects and upcycling them into a new use). I am not convinced on the success of this tactic here given that the results are so homely and unappealing, both qualities that consumer goods die from. The connection between the found objects and the function/purpose of the clock seems to have been lost in translation, with the glued on objects adding little to the objects narrative. What story/experience does a cassette tape and stuffed animal join to create? Why, in the world of mass time availability (phones, micowaves, DVD players, etc) do we need another clock? I applaud Umbra for the risk taking and ground breaking though, as good ideas like repurposing are always worth exploring.
August 27th, 2010
Design: Kathryn Walter
Client: Felt Studio
Date: 2008
August 22nd, 2010
Design:
Client: Arconas
Date: 2009
August 14th, 2010
Design:
Client: Synthesis Studio
Date: 2008
Designed with the planet in mind, this series of furniture uses an aluminum sheet for the shell, a recycled rubber seat pad, and the objects can be completely recycled after use.
August 9th, 2010
Design:
Client:
Date:
August 4th, 2010
Design: Cody Faubert
Client: Evolve Bamboo Bicycles
Date: 2010
Appearing crude, like an object created on an episode of Lost, the real value of this radical mountain bike desIgn is more than skin deep. Built using bamboo tubing and hemp rope, these natural materials combine to produce a bicycle frame with degrees of strength and safety that traditional bicycle making materials cannot match.
I would question some of the environmental benefits (adhesives, source of bamboo, etc.) but the general idea is very strong and worth developing. I predict this “light touch” approach to material and production processes will spread into all parts of product design (and I would be thrilled to see Canadian designers owning this territory!).
-Todd Falkowsky
August 1st, 2010
Design: Marco Facciola
Client: One – Off
Date: 2008
July 26th, 2010
Design: John Vickers Design
Client: Dogwood Initiative
Date: 2010
Dogwood Initiative is a not for profit organization dedicated to sustainable land (and sea) use in British Columbia. Organizing strategic campaigns and providing easy-to-use use tools (online petitions, email campaigns, etc.), Dogwood provides a unified voice for the concerns of individual citizens.
While this kind of grassroots activism is nothing new, Dogwood stands out by bringing design into the mix and into the hands of activists. Most notably, Dogwood worked with Rethink Communications to develop the Tankers Are Loonie Project, which brought national attention for their No Tankers campaign. Perhaps inspired by the success of this project, the organization continues to work with all kinds of creative to enhance their efforts.
Earlier this year, Dogwood called on the public to pledge their unique talents in support of the No Tankers campaign. Hundreds responded with commitments to organize demonstrations, exhibitions, marches, and other events (including a fund raising bike ride along the Great Continental Divide and a 1400km swim in the Athabasca River). Recognizing the need for more promotional materials, Calgary based designer John Vickers offered his services, creating a series of nine campaign posters – each featuring a different animal that could be threatened by an oil spill on BC’s coast (Bear, Sea Otter and Wolf are shown here).
The entire series is available for free download on Dogwood’s website.
-Michael Erdmann
July 14th, 2010
Design:
Client: Universite Laval Engineering
Date: 2010
Congratulations to the Universite Laval, which has won SAE Supermilage competition the for the past three years with this beautiful example of engineering excellence.
Click to visit the SAE site.
July 2nd, 2010
Design:
Client: University of Ottawa Engineering
Date: 2010
A surprise (given the budget tightness) second-place finish at the SAE Supermileage Competition earlier this month. The University of Ottawa’s slippery car has truly earned the term fuel efficient, being able to travel from Ottawa to Winnipeg (2,500 kilometres) on a single gallon of regular unleaded gasoline. A considerable accomplishment, and one that the design team is looking to top. The team is claiming that they are already applying their experience to push the car farther to a record shattering 4,800 kilometres on a single gallon of gas.
-Todd Falkowsky
July 2nd, 2010
Design:
Client:
Date:
June 25th, 2010
Designer/Maker: Carey Nicholson
Date: 2008
June 13th, 2010
Design: Todd Falkowsky
Client: Concept
Date: 1999
An early conceptual hit of the green movement, this small device was designed to help people understand how they use the objects around them. Easily stuck to a product, this small pill shaped monitor records and displays (similar to a pedometer) how many times a product has been used. The hope is to increase the bond between the user and the object, while providing a comment on the product life span and durability of the things we use. Consumers will question whether they need to replace one item with a newer version, or whether they really need that item at all.
-Todd Falkowsky
June 6th, 2010
Previous Posts