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For the fourth time, Ukrainian Design Brands project will present five of Ukraine’s creative design brands at a leading European exhibition. This time the collective exposition presents a number of novelties at the Maison & Objet salon: two new brands and new collections of already known Ukrainian companies. The best examples of contemporary Ukrainian design, selected by a professional international jury, will be presented to the public for the first time precisely within the framework of the Ukrainian Design Brands vol. 4 in Paris. 

Companies demonstrate the different trends and styles in which Ukrainian subject artwork develops. The new collections combine different shapes, materials, images, meanings and colors in a femininely casual style. Each item can take its place both in the public space and in the gallery or in the design gourmet’s apartment. 

The project is being implemented with the support of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and funded as part of the European Union’s EU4Business initiative. 

Participants of the Ukrainian Design Brands vol. 4: 

– NOOM, a brand that is expected in Paris, a favorite of French glosses, will introduce limited edition models of Suprematic lamps and vases in new colors, a modular set of seven metal candle holders Orb, as well as the completely brand new range of products. The Parisian audience will have the opportunity to see the debut collection of furniture from NOOM that included coffee tables, armchair and sideboard. 

– Art & Design by Kristina Gaidamaka takes origins from the artistic background of Kristina Gaidamaka, its founder, the famous Ukrainian artist. Brand presents a new Islands collection of handmade carpets, made of natural wool in the tufting technique of urban ethno-romanticism based on the artist’s original sketches. 

– Atelier Lilu is a furniture factory of a modern classic design. The brand presents Joke twin-ottomans, a novelty, a bright stylistic experiment, created in collaboration with designer Olga Fradina. 

– Inna Zimina designer and innazimina, the new Ukrainian brand, debuts at the salon with Sofi boudoir table, which is both beautiful and smart at the same time as it has a built-in speaker system. 

– The new brand Conférma, will showcase a collection of furniture and lamps made of natural materials in the style of discreet topical classics made of noble wood and natural stone.

Оrganizer – MAЇNO Design Ukraine

Sana Shevchenko +38067 770 07 57

Anastasiia Biletska +39066 848 9233

[email protected] 

Ukrainian design is honest, natural, alive… and even mystical. Ukrainian design is symbolical, minimalistic and … ironical. But how to identify it as a phenomenon? And is everything possible with design could be touchable?

The first attempt to segment or understand the order of atoms composing matter called “Ukrainian design”, almost undiscovered in Europe yet, started with formulation of research results in mid-2017. By that time under initial observation, system participants were divided into three abstract categories: GREEN TRIANGLES, BLACK SQUARES and WHITE CIRCLES.

In the process of development over the past two years, designers have more and more acquired specific features, recognition and self-awareness, that prompted me to revise the system structure a bit. The more designers “work” the bigger and deeper their knowledge of themselves become, that logically gave more content to the definition itself, and “volume” expression to the designers. Here we are talking primarily about the object design, as a rather new self-expression for Ukrainians, a new relevant area of professional activity.

So, in fact, this research arose from the need to systematize Ukrainian object design, highlight the general features that can characterize it, present it in a more understandable way to the European society. The direction of segmentation (or identification) is aimed at accelerated and harmonious integration of knowledge about the “different” way of thinking of Ukrainians to the “knowledge base” of the European design community, to make to fall in love with contemporary and traditional mental Ukrainian features. Ironically, as soon as foreigners begin to determine the uniqueness and attractiveness of Ukrainian otherness, we begin to value and change ourselves our attitude towards our own “treasures”. The treasures of Ukraine are people, so it would be inappropriate to define the objects separately from people who create them. This research is the result of a combination of observing people in the design and analysis of the meanings, forms and materials they use, and subjects and objects they design.

What is the design like in Ukraine today?  Or in other words – what are people like in Ukrainian design nowadays?

“GREEN PYRAMIDS” – “CAN-DOERS” — THOSE WHO CAN DO

We codename the first category, which stands out in a clear direction, and which is quite understandable and mastered by Ukrainian designers, as “voices of nature”, or “green pyramids”. For modern designers of this category, the territory itself determines the choice of material, technology and philosophy of the subject itself. They are like pyramids, stable and confident. Naturalness is their priority accent. They use materials and techniques inherent to people living in a particular area. One of the features is the use of manual labor elements, for example, in the traditional processing of materials. For Ukrainians, wood, clay, leather, stone, wool, natural fabrics (linen, hemp) are as natural as their own self-consciousness. We can also talk about mysticism of Ukrainians, their traditional tribal connection with the original forces of nature, the mystical daemons of the elements, and so on.

EXTRACT – Attention is given to material, skill, and tradition preservation. “Live in Memory” and on Earth.

This category includes designers who claim their “green choice”. They are characterized by ethical design, environmental design, design that combines traditional materials and national heritage. Ukrainianity may be expressed in the symbolism of objects decorating, and maybe not be, but in any case, you will hear the “voice” of Ukrainian land.

The design protecting the vibrations of natural elements, tries to discover the natural properties of the material. These objects have tradition-based history, “ethnic memory,” the energy that comes from nature and human hands, these objects are body amulets in a metaphysical sense, and even in the truest sense of the word, with regard to designers of clothing from hemp or linen.

The prominent representatives of this category are Victoria Yakusha, Yuri Ryntovt, Inna Pedan, Olena Shabaltas, Khrystyna Haydamaka, Mykhailo Samoriz, VelikaBogaiha ceramics and the likes.

________________________________________

BLACK CUBES – “KNOWERS” – THOSE WHO KNOW.

This category includes designers with a clear, precise position. They determined, above all, within themselves. They have found a clear form of consciousness, sufficient even for self-irony and a little isolated philosophical position.

Their language of expression is the symbolism of the content prevailing over the choice of materials for the object manufacturing.

They create code-items. The main argument is “object-message”, information contained in a concentrated form, which “speaks” by form, color, or symbols.

Several word-markers for recognizing “black cubes” are meaning, symbol, consciousness, irony, uncompromising.

Much of their attention is directed to the sense, they “live in Eternity over the Noosphere”

They are like in the black square, the symbol of suprematism, which contains everything. Looking at the depths of the black square, it is possible to extract any meaning and any form from it.

The designers of this category are Serhiy Gotvyansky, Slava Balbek, Dmytro Kozynenko, Artem Kolyuka, Levantin design, Kofta, Yuriy Zymenko, Natasha Yegorova, Andriy Sukhin, Den and Katerina Vakhrameev, Nazar Maleets, Yulia Yalanzhi, Fedir Vozyanov, Anna Manakova, Volodymyr Karalyus and others.

________________________________________

WHITE SPHERES – “WANTERS” — EMOTIONAL.

The white field in reality is diverse and multicolored, giving birth to a whole “rainbow” spectrum. Here are all the designers who are “on the road”, in development, in the search. They are easy to transform, they seek, flexibly respond to internal and external requests.

They freely choose any tools, themes, forms, materials, not giving preference to something certain. The designers of the white field are extremely productive.

The white field produces objects of various categories, which can be attributed to different individual directions that are shaped in the world design.

Their attention is distracted around, for developments, for research and searches, they “live in the future”,” fly among the clouds”.

All object innovations are born in this sector, because interest, curiosity is the first characteristic for “white” designers.

Residents of the white field are Vitalik and Yura Kyryliv (Hochu rayu), Valery Kuznetsov, Iryna Gumenchuk, Vahan Avakyan, Maria Krasyuk, Iryna Holub, Rostik Sorokovy, Ulyana Zachkevych and many others.

Here are several word-markers for recognizing “white spheres”: emotionality, curiosity, unexpectedness, courage, innovation, and meaning.

Between each category there are “transitional” territories. At the same time, a designer, studio or manufacturer can exist between only two categories: between green and white, green and black, black and white. But it can never hold the characteristics of the three sectors at once. In this case, it should be classified as a white category – those who are in search.

For example: the “black and green” are Sergiy Makhno, Svoya Studio, Artem Zakharchenko. The “black and white” are Pavel Vetrov, Kateryna Sokolova, Yevhen Lytvynenko, and Igor Gavrylenko.

Designers from the main categories appeal to their audience — “green” to “green”, black to “black” and these are usually consumers with high and “middle +” income. These are those consumers who already know the price of quality and understand the meaning of paying for sense.

“HEXAGONAL PRISMS” – “DEVELOPERS”, THOSE WHO FORM SENSES.

In mid-2018, changes in the composition, but rather in the very structure of the design environment system, became noticeable. Until now, individual activists, as clearly to say “people around the design” began to turn chaotic point movements into attempts to create a systematic approach to the very process of developing an ecosystem of design.

“Designers of design development”, which are commonly referred differently, starting from pr-managers to architects and industrial/graphic designers, are classified as “hexagonal prisms” if they, in parallel to main activity or continuously and systematically, project, implement processes and events where designers participate. Accordingly, these “prisms” provide the very habitat; create conditions for the development of the environment, giving additional links in the chain of design value to designers. In other words, they are “service” designers of field design development (eco-system).

To this category Yaroslav Belinsky, Olga Bogdanova, Sana Shevchenko, Ornela Ostapenko, Tetyana Telegina, Iryna Pryma, Olga Teerefeeva, Olga Protasova, Tetyana Stakhovska may be included. And I will not forget about myself – Anastasiya Biletska and others, who, in parallel with or by the main activity, devote time to the development of the design environment.

Several word-markers for recognizing “hexagonal prisms” are social orientation, meaning, development, systemacity, generator, starter.

Thus for today, the eco-system of Ukrainian design is almost fully evolving, but requires systematization of processes and orderly structure. Designers and “system designers” should together build a harmonious system of interaction between the design community and the state, with the community and with international professional partners.  In plain language, the task for the community is to integrate the principles of design thinking into everyday life of people in order to improve its conditions and enhance the level of culture with design tools. Created at the end of March, the Design for Ukraine Association aims to develop and implement comprehensive measures designed to streamline the system and establish all necessary network links, both local and international. Among the top-priority projects of the Association are such as Design Navigator, the first in-depth study of the ecosystem; Ukrainian Design Week, a week of design, the foundation of the Museum of Design, etc. The main ambitious goal of Design for Ukraine is to build the Design Center institution. The Center will consolidate the knowledge base of the industry, work out development programs for other sectors of the creative industries, taking into account design-thinking approaches, and supervise programs for implementing design in various spheres of public life. Also, the Center must constantly monitor the functioning of the design sector in order to identify timely new and useful innovations and methods of practical application.

* the research takes into account the state of the Ukrainian design eco-system by June 2019

To be continued…

Written by Anastasiia Biletska

original version of the article was printed in PRIMA INTERIOR magazine

#2`2019

Ukrainian design brands vol.3 at Maison & Objet international furniture, design and décor exhibition (September 2019, Paris)

For the third time already, another five Ukrainian brands will meet at Maison & Objet, one of Europe’s largest and most authoritative interior design and decoration items exhibitions. DONNA furniture studio with their BORBOLETA designer decorative panel and KONYKY soft modular puffs; Vahan Avakian with a new collection of vases and fixtures from their CORAL edition; ZEGEN, presenting two different interpretations of a contemporary desk; NEXT LEVEL LIGHTING studio, presenting a new series of wooden LED chandeliers; “newborn” SleepOnnn brand with a collection of furniture and textile for the children’s bedroom. 

Maison & Objet and МОМ online platform are among the best possible places to introduce the global professional community with the most striking examples and potential of Ukrainian object design, that the world is only starting to discover.

Participation of Ukrainian creative brands in such commercial exhibitions as Maison & Objet makes the adaptation process of Ukrainian participants to the global market more sustainable. It is obvious that without exports, the ecosystem of Ukrainian design and creative entrepreneurship in this field cannot work efficiently.

The participants were competitively selected by an international jury. Selection was made by: Mr Didier Margueritte, interior designer and President of the European Association of Designers and Decorators; Vincent Roméo, founder of BLOG ESPRIT DESIGN, the beloved cult design blog; Jo Yana, founder of joyana.fr, Europe’s most stylish design blog; Aleksej Iskos, designer and founder of the Iskos-Berlin studio; Kostiantyn Kovshevatsky, editor-in-chief of PRAGMATIKA edition and a fine connoisseur of the artistic expression of a pragmatic approach to design; Anastasiia Biletska, creative director of Maïno Design Ukraine; Faina Ehrenburg, founder of Ukrainian brand DAVIS CASA and a tasteful trend-setter in design.

The project is being implemented with support of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and funded under The European Union’s EU4Business initiative.

Project-space “White Sphere” 

Ukrainian designers at Paris Design Week 2019 

The “White Sphere” space is a place for generation of novelty, nurtured by the association of future, present and tradition. New objects acquire a new expression, transforming themselves and starting from scratch, “reading” dreams about an unknown future and resuming the narration of forgotten antique tales. In the same way white contains all the colors of the rainbow, participants of the “White Sphere”, young Ukrainian designers, have created brilliant and various samples from a new original material – the “Ukrainian thinking”.

With “White Sphere” they fill a new page of the Atlas of knowledges about a territory, rich of tradition, savoir-faire and dream. It is a space and a territory, a geography and a definition, but above all it is a consciousness. That of the creativity and culture of today’s young Ukrainian designers, who experiment with forms and balance them with sense, mixing literal and ambiguous representations.

Here you will meet new forms of art and design, displaying a pragmatically measured and balanced approach, playful versatility, and mobility across time and space, from Ukrainian baroque to futurist minimalism. They catch at a breathtaking speed the signals issued by nature, fashion, people, that mix together.

The “White Sphere” space presents furniture, ceramics, sculptures, lamps, décor items, fashion accessories and collections of conceptual apparel. Participants of the Ukrainian stand at this year’s edition of Paris Design Week are Inna Zimina, David Berezhniak, Michael Samoriz, Oksana et Maryan Shumelda, Artem Kunytsia, Ivanka Borodina, Diana Kulyk, Valeria Vari, Yurii Cegla, Olga Selischeva et Polina Veller.

Five projects among those participating benefitted for their participation to this event of a grant from the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) – Inna Zimina with her concept of make-up stand Sofi, David Berezhniak with is concept of furniture garniture Miracle de la vie, Michael Samoriz with a lamp made using an antique Ukrainian technique of carving Hutsul Carving Chandelier, Oksana and Maryan Shumelda with their concept of modular bench Vereteno, and Artem Kunytsia with his collection of marble lamps.

Winning projects were selected on the basis of a contest judged by an international jury. The selection for this year’s edition was made by : Faïna Erenburg, founder of Ukrainian brand Davis Casa and advocate of good taste in design; Didier Margueritte, interior designer, president of the European Association of Designers and Decor Architects ; Vincent Roméo, founder of cult design blog Blog Esprit Design ; Jo Yana, founder of the most stylish among European design blogs joyana.fr ; Oleksiy Iskos, designer and founder of studio Iskos-Berlin ; Konstantin Kovshevatskiy, chief editor of Pragmatika magazine et enlightened connoisseur of creative expression with a pragmatical view on design ; Anastasiia Biletska, creative director at Maïno Design Ukraine.

The project is supported by the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and funded within the frame of the European Union’s EU4Business initiative.

Following the successful September 2018 debut of the collective stand of five Ukrainian designer brands at the French Maison & Objet salon, leading Ukrainain designers will return in 2019 with a series of new presentations at European exhibitions. At the winter Maison&Objet 2019, to be held in Paris January18-22, the Ukrainian Design Brands Vol.2 collective stand will be presented.

Five remarkable Ukrainian manufacturers and bureaus, selected on a competitive basis, will showcase their new collections of furniture, interior decoration and lighting.

• Sergey Makhno Architects Studio will present in Paris a new exotic “UKRSAVANA” collection of furniture and accessories, which ironically combines minimalism, art, Ukrainian traditions and Japanese wabi-sabi philosophy.
• “MZPA” design furniture brand will offer their “homelike” office furniture and hanging lamps with natural ash and soft leather.
• “Goloob Design Buro”, focused on emotional interior decoration and light accessories, will exhibit ceramic lamps and interior accessories which are complex in production though perceptively laconic in style.
• “Next Level Lighting” light studio will show a collecton of hanging lamp transformers of natural wood with built-in LED lighting, the design of which is inspired by the graph of natural structures and “trajectory” of the laws of physics.
• “QUALITA” Company offers items from their new furniture collection in an “eco” pop-art style, produced using birch plywood. Effects of optical illusions masterfully implemented through perforation are the main features of the collection.

The project is supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and funded under the European Union EU4Business initiative.

SERGEY MAKHNO ARCHITECTS Studio

“WE ART THE WORLD!” — this is the slogan of the famous modern Ukrainian design and architecture workshop SERGEY MAKHNO ARCHITECTS, who successfully work in three areas: interior design, architecture and object design. In 15 years, the studio has implemented almost 600 projects in 16 countries. SERGEY MAKHNO ARCHITECTS has a distinct and recognizable style, which its founder, Sergey Makhno, the architect, calls Ukrainian Contemporary, masterfully combining minimalism, art, Ukrainian traditions and Japanese wabi-sabi philosophy. Last year the studio opened its own ceramic production and is now exploring possibilities for this material in unexpected and new surprising directions for design thinking. Sergey Makhno also has founded Sergey Makhno Gallery, the first Ukrainian object design gallery.

The works of SERGEY MAKHNO ARCHITECTS have been honored with prestigious international awards: Red Dot Design Award, The International Property Awards, SBID.

“UKRSAVANA” collection of furniture and accessories

“Ukrainian traditions and nature are our main co-authors. We create things that are out of time and shape their own worlds”, — Sergey Makhno says.

Grass tile

Grass, renewed by the rain, dried by the sun and colored by the full moon. Close your eyes and enjoy the secret place, far from the city and worries, where the meaning of “fuss” is unknown. Due to the different placement options, either vertical or horizontal, and a wide palette of colours available, the tile organically complements any interior.

Uma lamps

Birds are the first settlers of Ukrsavsana. They warmed the frozen ground with their magic light and a new world began. Uma is an ideal additional light, which emphasizes somethings, and leaves others in the shade. Made of copper, it fills with life exquisite interiors. Uma of ceramics shows good taste emphasized by simplicity.

The Elephant armchair

One day, when darkness has already descended, armchairs and sofas from The Elephant Collection have grown tremendous ears. The inhabitants of Ukrsavana wanted coziness and solitude and the elephants have done everything possible to help them to protect their personal space. Wood and textiles, smoothed corners, flexible shapes … Coziness is always watched over.

Bijou lamp-table

This is the most elegant inhabitant of Ukrsavana. It represents functionality covered by simple aesthetics. The lamp has a flexible steel rack with a built-in LED head that can be rotated 180 degrees. The lamp can be used as a light for reading or for creating a special atmosphere in the evening.

Perekotypole Ceramics

It does not stay long in one house. It is constantly given, descended from grandmother to granddaughter. According to the beliefs of Ukrsavana there will be always plenty of time for travel and adventure in the house where there is a Perekotypole cup or vase. The studio creates all the ceramics in its own workshop. Each item is hand-made, in a single copy.
makhno.com.ua
makhno.shop

MZPA

The Ukrainian furniture brand, which began with individual pieces, now develops complete collections in cooperation with designers and architects. Most items from the new collection will be presented for the first time at the Maison&Objet exhibition in Paris in January 2019.

“Among all the variety of materials available we chose ashwood and soft leather for this collection. After all, they are best able to add a “sence of touch” and emotionality, it would seem, to purely functional “business” things. With our furniture we try to add a real pleasure to the user’s work process and experience. It is important that great attention is given in particular to the surfaces so they are pleasant to touch. We achieved this remarkable result with “home office” thanks to the talent of Kateryna Sokolova, Sergey Gotvyanskiy, Yulia Kononenko. Each item combines a function, aesthetics and sence of touch. That is why the brand does not create objects but atmosphere, and customers do not buy furniture but real design items”, — Galyna Proskurina, MZPA Project Manager, says.

The collection for the “home office” is made according to all the rules of modern functionality, rationality and elegant minimalism. The main colour of the collection is the warm shade of “maple syrup”. The main materials are high quality ash wood and soft leather, which are used in all products of the “set”. They perfectly reflect the company’s love for natural tactile surfaces. Every item is designed in such a way that it can be easily put togeter and taken apart. Collectibles are easily combined with each other, both in the home work space and the office. This collection is able to create a concentrated and warm working atmosphere not only at home but also in noisy coworking environment.

VM desk (designed by Sergey Gotvyanskiy)

VM desk is an office desk in a smart casual style designed by Sergey Gotvyanskiy, renowned Ukrainian designer and co-founder of Nott Design Studio. The desk, made of tough, durable ash wood, has an elegant and exquisite “top manager” look. Warm tones and leather details make even the most stressful workflow a comfortable and cosy one. An important feature of the desk is a bag-organizer of durable and soft Italian leather. Wooden handles with which the bag is decorated are not just a design discovery but a functional element: the main idea of ​​the bag-organizer is that at any moment you can simply take a bag with all the necessary things and go, without fear of forgetting anything important in the office. The wooden body of the desk creates a light and figurable silhouette that fits perfectly with any interior. In addition, the VM desk folds easily and neatly to help you save and economize space and, as well as shipping costs. You’d agree, this is the perfect “business partner”.

Mild chair (designed by Kateryna Sokolova)

Mild chair, made of ash wood and durable Italian leather, has a particularly simple design and combines functionality and ergonomics, meeting all requirements for the most comfortable workplace. Mild chair combines Scandinavian character with a French charm. The easy-flow lines of the wooden frame of the chair are stabilized with a wide soft seat and ergonomic back which ensures optimal comfort. Upholstery of the chair is made of fabric. Mildchair ideally combines with a VM desk in the office or home interiors.

Rack (designed by Oleksiy Kharo)

This flexible product for storing personal items has an expressive feature that immediately distinguishes it from others: all shelves are made of different materials — textiles, metal and wood. The second emphasis of the piece is modularity: for each function, according to your needs (place for flowers, documents, books), individual modules are provided. And this is not all: the main surprise of the rack is the ability to modify it to your taste. You can add several shelves in height or width, modify modules or rearrange them from one shelf to another, thus creating your perfect rack — more decorational or more practical and functional.

Nut C lamp collection (designed by Yulia Kononenko)

The Nut C lamp Collection immediately attracts attention with its flexible silhouettes and an unusual combination of materials for lighting: wood with leather; and also by scaling an interesting idea in different sizes and shapes. The largest lamp in the Nut B collection can light the whole living room. Nut W sconces are designed specifically for bedrooms, whose owners appreciate the beauty of elegant simplicity. The mid-size Nut S and Nut S lamps are perfectly combined, and will become appropriate unobtrusive accents in the interior for any purpose. All the lamps in the collection balance between Scandinavian minimalism and the European love for imperceptibly luxurious details. High-quality ash wood, leather, aluminum makes these lamps the embodiment of modern polite luxury.
mzpa.co

Goloob Design Buro

This Ukrainian company is distinguished by its modern and refined design, opening new expressive possibilities for traditional materials — faience, porcelain and wood. The brand follows the Slow Design concept and emphasizes the beauty and importance of everyday things. Goloob Design Buro not only creates objects but fills every thing with an emotional sense. This can be felt by touching the rough surface of a round lamp, taking a mirror into your hands or by clicking a few times a ceramic switch. Goloob items embody a sensory experience of interacting with the world.

Three works are presented at the exhibition. Maria Krasyuk, the designer, has created for Goloob a large table lamp with a round bowl shade and a pedestal for a mirror in the form of a coffee bean. Both works are made of faience and have complex bionic forms. The third object is a porcelain socket developed by the Dorogaya Studio. Due to its distinct shape and accent design, the electrical oii socket acquires a new meaning in the interior.

Ceramic lamp №1 (designed by Maria Krasyuk)

The big lamp consists of two elements, a stay and a spherical bowl shade. Creating this form of faience is a complicated task from a technological point of view. Especially for the lamp a round faience switch has been developed, interaction with which is a separate tactile experience.

Ceramic pedestal №1 (designed by Maria Krasyuk)

This is a manifesto of femininity and self-love. Instead of hurrying to look at the reflection on the smartphone screen, the modern woman turns the contemplation of her own beauty into a kind of ritual. The faience stand of bionic shape resembles a coffee bean. This is a unification of bourgeoisness and minimalism.

Electrical oii socket (Dorogaya studio’s design)

This is an emancipated electrical socket that seeks to be on display. Previously, electrical sockets were only a functional element of the room. Sometimes they were picked up in the tone of the wallpaper, but they were mostly shamelessly buried behind the sofa or in the shade of the cupboard. It’s time for a change of accents! The oii socket comes to the fore, combining function and aesthetics. Instead of decorative plates and posters your home will now be decorated by sockets.
goloob.com

Next Level Lighting (NLL) (designed by Artem Koliuka)

Next Level Lighting (NLL) light company is located in the west of Ukraine and continues the tradition of high-quality wood processing for the production of unique light fixtures. For four years, the studio, which was founded by Artem Koliuka and Mykola Savin, has specialized in chandeliers and premium wooden decoration.

Since 2014 NLL products have been popular not only among designers and architectural studios, but with admirers of interesting and qualitative things from North America, Europe and the Middle East.

DNA chandelier

DNA chandelier is one of the newest models in the Interstellar series. Inspired by nature, its processes and structures, the chandelier interprets molecular compounds, and the version of the two interlaced models has much in common with the DNA molecule.

The chandelier has a spiral-shaped design constructed of wooden slats with built-in professional LED lighting. Depending on the number of elements, the length of the construction can be varied, taking into account the needs and parameters of the room. This chandelier looks extraordinary and futuristic, as a true object d’art. Therefore, due to the unusual design and clarity of lines, it deserves the place of a main accent object in the interior. The ease and mobility of the subject provides the possibility of both vertical and horizontal placement, even in a complex space.

Torus chandelier

Torus chandelier is a model from the Interstellar series and has already proven itself well on the European and American markets. The idea of a chandelier, the elements of which are joined together without a single joint, was borrowed from the energy motion trajectory of our universe. All light elements of the chandelier create a visual transition of the lines and light streams in the pattern of light projections, similar to the fluxes of an electromagnetic field.

“INTERSTELLAR XL” chandelier

Another chandelier that has been inspired by cosmic forms and interstellar spaces. Due to its unusual nature, this object of illumination “whirls” with light any interior and creates an atmosphere of almost magical illumination giving off a soft, omnidirectional light.
Although the function of the chandelier is decorative lighting, “INTERSTELLAR XL” vividly completes modern minimalist interiors. The chandelier is made up of individual parts with built-in professional LED-lighting. It is assembled safely in a single wooden structure from small modules.

Vortex chandelier

Vortex chandelier, which reconsiders the vortex form and the tornado funnel, is a novelty of the model range of the Interstellar series. With its visual lines, the chandelier is in motion from all angles of observation. Delicate and compact, assembled into a single unit of many wooden light modules, the formation gives a soft light that is directed down and up. The chandelier has built-in professional LED lighting.
nl-ds.com

Artem Koliuka is designer and co-founder of Next Level Lighting (NLL). Constantly looking for new solutions and fresh ideas in various areas — fashion, graphic design, interior design, he eventually found himself interested in the design of lighting fixtures. The company started the creation of chandeliers in 2014. Looking for inspiration in the way things are, space and world of molecules, Artem Koliuka presents his collection of Interstellar series lamps.

QUALITA

The main areas of activity of QUALITA company are the manufacture of furniture, doors, windows, stairs, and other interior and exterior elements. The variability and flexibility of the solutions allows customers to implement complex, non-standard projects within a single company. It also greatly facilitates the process of approval and integration of all products in the living space.

In-house production by the company allows them to embody the most challenging ideas, filling the house with unique interior details. In the manufacture of products, only certified materials and components are used that guarantee the safety and environmental friendliness of the final product. This is especially important for families with small children and in general all people who value a high standard of living.

Op-art furniture collection (designed by Yuriy Zymenko)

The design of Op-art collection is the result of the endless expansion of the sphere of functional art. At the same time, the collection items are not only meaningful and structurally logical, but emotionally expressive. Due to the gradual change in the shape of the milling, the planes become mobile and “alive”. This creates the effect of kinetically deep surfaces. In a subject not only the form but also the colour works. Under the natural birch plywood, the black matte base is hidden – a vivid contrast that creates a deep visual impression. But bold design does not interfere with the furniture from organically fiting into any space, and without disurbing the harmony of the atmosphere.

Obviously, it is such furniture that acquires aesthetic value. In this case, the product corresponds to its direct functional purpose.

Through the use of natural birch plywood, the furniture has a noble naturalness, and massive metal elements add character. The product configuration involves a complex element — a combination of parts at an angle of 45˚, as well as sharp edges of the shelf at an angle of 45˚. In the production of items only certified materials and components are used; Blum, Hafele accessories.

qualita.com.ua

Yuriy Zymenko is a renowned Ukrainian designer, the leader of Design Studio Yuriy Zimenko, and is engaged in the design of private and public spaces, and subject design. For the creation of the Op-art collection, Yuriy was inspired by contemporary art, namely the direction of pop art, the artistic flow of the second half of the 20th century, which used various optical illusions. The author was inspired by a variety of geometric abstractions based on the peculiarities of the perception of flat and spatial figures whose texture becomes the main means of expressiveness.

Objects of the «Diffusion» project illustrates how every single thing may be a source of inspiration and ideas — nature, modern art, habitual household items, innovative technologies, traditional crafts and geographic area.

Currently, Ukrainian design seems to make up for some lost time. And in as short a time as possible, to overcome the way which European design has made during its evolution from the beginning of 20th century.

If we will describe in more details the current condition of Ukrainian design-community in a certain point of development, then the situation looks something like this.

Like most of creative Ukrainian industries, the subject design develops rather notwithstanding to then due to circumstances. Ecosystem, wherein the European designers are accustomed to work and when the sequence of steps from idea to realized product is clear and defined, is in the early stages of development in Ukraine. Designers educate themselves, stay up to date with trends, invest their own money in development of prototypes, they find manufacturers and ways to implement the products by their own.

The main problem preventing rapid growth of the field — is inconsistency (disconnection) of all branches of ecosystem. The second and equally important issue — lack of mass culture of consumerism design products in Ukraine. Unfortunately, in Ukraine, most industrial designers do not have marketing department and they have to connect all points of the cycle independently. However, despite such global difficulties, some start-ups showing positive result have entered the market and are starting to be popular. Such tendency is also confirmed by publications about design in nation-wide secondary media.

Over the last five years, number of design-studios that not just create, but also merchandise and sale their products, has increased more than threefold. This is also evidenced by rapid replenishment of the national coffer with the Red Dot awards. In 2016, Ukrainian designers won six awards: 4 on concepts and 2 for implemented products. There are already known designers among the winners 2016 — Ekaterina Sokolova, Pavel Vetrov, NOTT design, Svoya studio. Rapid development is also can be discernible in graphics design. In 2017, Ukrainian creators Banda and Republique won Grand Prix of the competition Red Dot Design Awards for branding the Eurovision. Subjects developed by Ukrainian designers (Katerina Sokolova, Pavel Vetrov, Dmitriy Kozinenko and others) appear in collections of European brand more often.

It should also be noted that native producers implementing original ideas of designers, such as D-ART-S, MoDi, PTAHA, FILD, ODSD2, MZPA, borisov, NOOM, ZEGEN, WOOLKRAFTS, LEVANTIN, CUBE44, def, FAINA and others, become appear in Ukraine. It must be pointed out that beside furniture, the area of home décor, especially ceramics, began to develop rapidly. Such companies like Maisterenko Ceramics and Velika Bogaiha, using conventional technics and modern ideas, creates unique dishes and décor.

Along with appearance of new names, it becomes clear that design is an instrument of economic advantages and effective tool of the development of separate industry, in particular, the country as a whole. This testifies not only that the overall level of national subject design is constantly growing, but also that design and creative industries in Ukraine become an integral part of the country’s cultural brand.

This project serves as confirmation, which realizes by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and is funded within the frameworks of EU4Business initiative of the European Union.

Text by: Tatiana Telegina

Maison&Objet is an extraordinary opportunity for Ukrainian design brands not only to access the global industrial design community, but also to stay there firmly through the commercial viability of a large-scale Paris salon.

The participants of the first collective booth at Maison&Objet, which is called «Ukrainian Design Brands», were selected on a competitive basis. These will be promising companies from five cities of Ukraine. This is Kharkiv studio Ryntovt Design, Lviv brand grid-idea.com in collaboration with Hochu rayu. design bureau, Kyiv brand NOOM, led by designer Kateryna Sokolova, the manufacturer of lighting fixtures from Odessa Yalanzhi Objects, and furniture company ZEGEN (Cherkassy).

The project is supported by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and financed under the initiative of the EU4Business European Union.

Meet the best Ukrainian brands on Maison&Objet
Sector: UNIQUE & ECLECTIC
Hall: 6, Stand: C44 — D43

Designers in this category pay the greatest attention to preserving the traditions, craft and materials specifically attached to their land. The call of nature and the territory they live on dictate their choice of materials, technology and philosophy. For Ukrainians, such materials as wood, clay, leather, stone, wool, natural fabrics (linen, hemp) are natural choices, embedded in their own consciousness.
This category comprises designers, who claim their “green choice” and strong dedication to naturalness. Their design is ecological, and also ethical, as it strives to combine traditional materials and national heritage. They wish to emphasize ukrainianness by using the decorative symbolism of objects (or not), but in any case then want us to hear the “voice” of Ukrainian land.
One of its features is the use of elements of handmade craft, for example, in the traditional processing of materials used.

«Black square»

This category comprises designers, who stand on a firm position. They are determined, straight forward, rather self-assertive persons. They have acquired such a form of self-consciousness, that they can indulge their penchant for self-irony and adopt a philosophical position of their own.
Their language is symbolism, and they prioritize the meaning of objects over their material specifications.
They build code-items. Their main argument is that their objects carry messages, information contained in a concentrated form. Their objects can “speak” with their own forms, colors or symbols.

«White circle»

The white field is really diverse and colorful, giving birth to a full “rainbow” spectrum of products. All designers in this category are on a development path, in search of their own way. They can easily transform themselves and flexibly accommodate internal and external requests.
They are pragmatic, may have a philosophy (but not necessarily), and feel free to choose whichever tools, themes, forms, materials they fancy. Designers of the white field are particularly productive.
The white field produces objects that belong to various categories and have no firm direction in the established world of design.

All substantive innovations emerge in this sector thanks to curiosity being the main quality of “white” designers.

Between our three categories are “transit” territories. In the same time, the designer/studio can find itself between only two categories: green and white, green and black, black and white. It is impossible to share all three characteristics at once, otherwise, it shall be classified as a white category.
Example:
•«Black-Green»: Sergey Makhno, Svoya Studio

•«Back-White»: Pavel Vetrov, Katerina Sokolova, Eugene Litvinenko

This year the design team from Ukraine will present the project “Transformation” at two locations: Les Docks, Cité de la Mode et du Design and Ukrainian Cultural Centre in Paris.
Now! Le Off – Les Docks: 9-13 September http://www.maison-objet.com/fr/paris-design-week/quartiers/now-le-off-les-docks
Ukrainian Cultural Centre: 8-13 September (22, Avenue de Messine) http://culture-ukraine.com/fr/

Each year the design changes the surface of objects and strives for its outstanding appearance. Or, on the contrary, tends to simplify and tries to find the perfect form that is free of redundancy.
The purpose of the exposition is to demonstrate the ability of objects to transform space and consciousness. There are objects that have a transformation function. Exhibits may be for the specific domestic use or be just accessories that create and transform the atmosphere in which people not only exist and operate but “live” and feel all the colours of material and spiritual life.

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The architect Sergey Makhno and his studio Sergey Makhno Architects presents a collection of items “Transformation of silence» (lamps, furniture, decorations). The central elements of the exposition by the studio Sergey Makhno Architects will be two winners of the Red Dot Design Award – concrete tile Tetrapod and multifunctional tile Flapjack, in which the designers embodied the concept of “recycling”. The company MZPA (Mazeppa) will present items of several designers: lamps from the collection Family of “NUT” by Yulia Kononenko, a decorative interior object “Flight Shadows” by Artem Zakharchenko, a hanger by Ulyana Zachkevych and Stanislav Boichuk and the MZPA’s own invention – an armchair “The Planet”. The graphic artist Natalia Kolpakova presents a niche collection of silk scarves with author’s prints, Sky Art Foundation will present a new collection of art ceramics by sculptor Yuriy Musatov – “My Planet”, Valerii and Kateryna Kuznetsov (decorkuznetsov) together with the designer of light Nikolay Kabluka (Expolight) have created a light installation “The Pulse of Life”, using as the basis for its installation their own invention – the recycling creature “Entity”, the Expolight ArtGlass laboratory of Nikolay Kabluka will present a light installation “Depth”. Designers from the SVOYA Studio from Dnipro will present a chair “BUFFALO” manufactured at D-borisov, a furniture brand of new thinking MoDi presents the winner of the Red Dot Design Award in 2016 – the Tao Sofa that was designed by Pavel Vetrov, Slava Balbek demonstrates the transformation of design thinking with the chair BB0 from personal collection of designer BB.

The project is supported by the Embassy of Ukraine in France and Mrs. Irena Karpa, First Secretary for Cultural Affairs of the Embassy of Ukraine in France

Project organizers: Anastasiia Biletska, Sana Shevchenko (CREAHEART promotion), Olga Bogdanova (Prostir86) Media support: «Prima interior», «Home ideas supply», «Domus Design», «Dom I Interier»

Sponsors and Partners: МАЇNO, Arctica Dnipro, Music Нall, Сabasse, VAVILON