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| Dr Cingoli spoke at the National Design Centre. |
Dr Andrea Cingoli, founder,
ConceptIcon, has been building up a name for his team with
Zo_loft architecture & design and more recently for himself with ConceptIcon
through awards, which he believes is a good yardstick of the quality of
a design. "If we stay everything in our box we won't go anywhere," he
said. "We have to make design social, show others and give inspiration
to others."
"Inspiration is something that is strongly
linked with context, in my life, and my experiences," he continued. "I try
to think in a lateral way, to add significance to things, to make things
that will stimulate our minds.
"It
is what you feel in your heart or your mind, most of these objects are
for my needs, to fulfil my happiness. Design is strictly
linked with your life and each life is extraordinary, so design has to
give you extraordinary things."
The perfect design, Dr
Cingoli said, has the "best usability with the best simplicity". "If a
design can be popular, (across) cultures, liked by people of
(different) ages, it will be a very good design," he said.
A good design can combine structural concerns and marketing concerns, he noted. His
Twist
embodies this concept - the spiral lampshade can be packaged in
flattened form, and then pulled apart into the the spiral form when it
is to be used.
Designs also have to enable people to make it their own, he added. His
Plan
shelf, for instance, has a hole at one end which can be used in
different ways - to hold a ball, or be fitted with a basketball net, he
said.
Last but not least, multiple functions can be combined in a good design. The
C-Glass
is a drinking glass with a removable ashtray below it. When integrated
together, a cigar placed in the ashtray can warm a beverage in the
glass, Dr Cingoli said.
The
Red Dot design
award in particular is one of the best tools for design professionals
to understand the essence of design, he said. He has three
Red Dot awards in 2016 to his name, for the Qwerty Sofa, CrickIT and BALAMP. All three use technology in innovative ways.
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| QWERTYsofa won a Red Dot design award in 2016 in the Furniture category. |
Inspired
by the act of falling asleep on a sofa, the QWERTYsofa is a sofa bed
that uses the 'QWERTY' computer keyboard as imagery. The exact sitting
or lying position required can be micro-customised as each key is
attached to a micro-motor that can be remotely controlled. Measuring
310cm in length, 110cm in width and 100cm in height, QWERTYsofa is made
from stainless steel, multi density polymer, and waterproof and
flame-resistant faux leather. It operates on both electrical and
software equipment, and the latest generation of gel batteries. The
remote control stores 10 position combinations.
Cingoli
is looking for partners with which to commercialise the sofa bed, and
said that the letters 'Q' and 'W' were not included as part of the sofa
as they did not contribute to the overall aesthetic.
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In trolley mode, the user places an object on the platform and
stands outside of the vehicle to drive. A maximum of 250kg
can be transported. |
CrickIT won a
Red Dot design award 2016 in the
Mobility category. It is an electrical vehicle that can be packed flat
and envisioned as an alternative mode of long-distance transportation,
especially where roads are narrow or pedestrianised.
According
to ConceptIcon, this is the first portable scooter that allows the user
to lean back in a semi-sitting position with the ischial tuberosity (
Editor's note: the part of the skeleton which takes most of the pressure when sitting down)
supported. The handle and the seat are both ergonomically designed and
adjustable to allow people of different heights and sizes to drive in
the most comfortable position possible.
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In the vehicular configuration, the user leans against the seat
and drives by holding on the handlebars, leaning left and right
to steer, much like a skier does. In this mode, CrickIT can
achieve a maximum speed of 15kmh, but the driving speed
usually averages from 8kmh and 10kmh.
|
The shell is made of polycarbonate and carbon
materials to provide strength and lightness. It runs on modern gel
battery that can last about two hours per charge. Other functions
include signal lights; battery charge and vehicle status indicators; and
location-based software that guards against theft or tracks the
location of goods.
"It (gives) you another way to move," Dr Cingoli commented. "It can be folded, it is portable, it can be placed in the back of a car."
BALAMP, which won a
Red Dot design
award 2016 in the Illumination category, combines the functions of a
nightstand light, an alarm clock and a wireless battery charger. A
mobile app provides customisation controls for colour of the light, the
alarm tones and to set the clock.
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| Balamp is customised with a mobile app. |
BALAMP
is weight activated. The light is switched off when an object is placed
onto it, providing a dim light when the object is removed.
"It works like a scale but it has an (inverted) way of working," he said.
In designing BALAMP Dr Cingoli's challenge was finding a lamp manufacturer which could create what he had in mind. "Many enterprises are specialised in covers of lamps, and not in putting together electronic software and the shape," he said.
A designer's home must be a treasure trove
of unique pieces, but Dr Cingoli shared that he actually buys furniture
off-the-shelf. What he does do is customise what he buys, to make it
completely his own. While each of his designs is like a child to him and
he says he has no favourites, he revealed that he does have some of
his own designs at home, namely the
Flamp lamp and the
Glass Pop-Corn lamps.
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