Mr Loewy's Office Express

Google's ubiquitous home page 'doodles' have many incarnations; but one that stopped me in my tracks (literally) was this month's homage to the a father of industrial design, Raymond Loewy. The search giant's moniker has been morphed in to an achingly attractive streamline-moderne locomotive reminiscent of Mr Loewy's Pennsylvania Railroad S1.

From transport [the iconic blue and white livery of Air Force One] to tableware [Le Creuset's Coquelle casserole dishes], Loewy's influence was impressive and still making it's mark. This handsome office tidy from Troika spotted in Moscow's Tsvetnow Central Market being case in point.

Bull Market Reflections

While cost-conscious consumers have been spurred on by the 'innocent smoothie' approach to quiet design and paired-down home crafts, the ultra wealthy have been charting new territories with taller, bigger and more innovative interiors than ever before. True of Moscow, like many global capitals, this Minotaur Mirror sits in the city's excellent DesignBoom store.

With the head of a bull, and body of... whoever happens to be gazing in to it, the functional/sculptural work is similar to the superb mirrored sculptures by Chelsea based artist Arran Gregory.

Upgrade 2 : Kettle 3 - Matti Does it Again

Unlike toasters which, over time, gentrify from unbranded beige boxes to shiny steel Dualit's, there is no single culinary icon of design for the kitchen kettle. A surprising design peculiarity for an object that's found in every home.

Not to be confused with Ketel One [but none the less European] the brilliantly designed Kettle Three from Stadler Form is a bold attempt at future design classic. Stadler Form's third and most expensive tea maker, Kettle Three is also Matti walker's third contribution to contempoary Mancave living after the Lilly fan and Henry air purifier.

Blown Away by Designboom

In a little known corner of Moscow, just of Stretenka Street [which shares a name with Stretenka Design Week; the little brother to Moscow Design Week], is a shop/cafe/lounge called Designboom. Trawling out the best of Russian design inevitably led me to this place, and on first visit I was a little underwhelmed.
A credible smattering of European designer classics and smaller Russian pieces on the ground floor was only a front to the veritable Aladdin's Cave on the lower floor [and very easy to miss; as I did until a second visit was propmpted].

If there was ever any doubt about it, Russia gets design. The volume, quality and breadth of the collection at Designboom trumps anything I've seen in London, New York, Seoul or Tokyo. A bold statement and utterly deserved.

Back to Basics @ Moscow Design Week

I recently spotted this innovative straw bench as part of the Organic Dwelling exhibition at the Moscow Museum of Architecture. Curated by Lidewij Edelkoort for Moscow Design Week, the exhibition explored how designers are influenced by primal instincts; "like animals, constructing architecture based on lifestyles, affected by geographic influences, and inspired by local materials and perfected skills."

Nice to see the concept of Mancaves acknowledged by the pillars of the design world then. As for the bench, it was surprisingly comfortable and easily convertible to a commercially viable domestic design.