peter mac cann

Good ideas never die ....

2012-01-03T12:44:00.008Z

The Tip Ton Chair by Barber Osgerby for Vitra was awarded product
of the year at the FX Design Awards last month.

We won the Promosedia Design Challenge in 2003 with a very similar product.

The Barber Osgerby chair admittedly is a much more refined and beautiful realisation of the principle but it just goes to show that a good well considered idea never ages.

Coincidence?

2011-12-16T11:54:00.009Z

I did this birthday card for my other half yesterday and then got an email this morning about this new film about Charles and Ray Eames.
Was it just a coincidence or is it A SIGN.........?
Ill go see the film just to be sure.

Hands on

2011-12-07T22:27:00.002Z

This is a design for a cast aluminium door handle I submitted for a DesignBoom competition

earlier this year. It didn't get shortlisted but I was happy with it and think it probably deserves another look at some point.... a 3d model next i think.

SUPER 8

2011-11-07T17:33:00.007Z

We had a fantastic day at the Helsinki WDC Design Challenge in the Woodquay venue on Sat.

Many thanks to the IDI and DCC for the opportunity to take part.

We had loads of fun with the brief we were given and as team No.(Super)8 of 12

we found our groove quickly and put everything we had into our

presentation on Sunday morning. Pathos, Inuendo, Song and dance.

Sadly we did'nt get to go to Helsinki.

But a heartfelt congratulations to the winning team led by Steve Mc Namara of Roji Design.

They came up with a really beautifully simple, concise and instantly accessible response to the brief.Worthy winners indeed, they will do us proud.

The pivot team have put together a really nice document of the event here.

Thanks to all involved.

Helsinki WDC Design Challenge

2011-11-02T21:17:00.005Z

Looking forward to some good clean creative fun next Saturday with some good chums from DIT.

We've been selected as one of 10 teams to compete to represent Dublin in Helsinki which is World Design Capital for 2012. The team consists of myself, Philip Murray , Caroline O Connor, Rachel Murphy and Gillian Ni Casaide. Between us we've got a wealth of design experience to draw on, interior product exhibition landscape theatre TV and film design so no shortage of creativity. Saturday will be spent brainstorming ideas and putting together a concept to be presented on Sunday. Heres hoping.

Somethin' stoopid

2011-10-11T14:44:00.008+01:00

In the absence of anything else interesting to write about, here's an illustration for a place mat (get it?) I submitted for the Dublin Design Capital feast. (see earlier post)I don't know if they actually used it in the end, its stupid but I like it a lot for that very reason.

So here it is for all to enjoy.

My latest find,,,

2011-08-29T22:56:00.005+01:00

I found this awesome industrial light fixture on a junk pile at the back of a factory a few weeks ago. Of course I just couldn't leave it there, 20 bulb holders already wired in series, took it home and hung it in my hallway. When its on it looks the aliens have come to take us away... watch this space for news of my electricity bill going thru the roof...

A Capital Feast

2011-07-22T11:52:00.007+01:00

Dublin is one of just 3 cities (from around 50) which have been shortlisted for Design Capital 2014, awarded by the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID), the winning city (Dublin/ Capetown /Bilbao) will be announced this autumn.

As part of Dublin's pitch to the visiting panel of judges, a banquet was held at the Hugh Lane gallery on Thursday night, with the table featuring some of the best of Irish craft and design, curated by Jonathan Legge. I supplied 8 of my Vic and Bob grinders to the table setting.

The set up looked really great and by all accounts the event went swimmingly.

Fingers crossed for Dublin now.

Beautiful Junk

2011-06-23T21:42:00.007+01:00

I bought this beautiful thing for 20 dollars at vintage fair
in Massachusetts last month. Its a 6QT butter churn from circa 1920.

I had to buy it, its such a beautiful contraption, it reminds me of a Duchamp ready-made or construction, the parts seem entirely incongruous yet they make a beautful whole . I just love everything about it, how it looks the combination of materials and most of all the way it works.

I think there's something quite magical about the way the paddles turn inside the jar, the way they seem somehow disconnected from the motion of the handle.

I could tell that the folks at bag-check in Boston airport loved it too.

PS. Sorry i cant figure how to turn video around!

Ive got a crush on you.

2011-05-24T17:00:00.005+01:00

As promised more images of my salt and pepper grinders Vic and Bob.

They are a total joy to use, the beautiful turned oak handles (with thanks to Niall Redmond) nestle in the palm of the hand without the usual obstruction of a screw on cap in centre. This has long been a bug-bear of mine and was one of the starting points for this new product. The handle simlpy pops off the powder coated tube to allow for easing filling and the crush grind ceramic mech can be adjusted to a give fine or coarse grind.

Lubbly jubbly.

More RHA

2011-05-24T15:13:00.003+01:00

This is the window display ive put together featuring a selection of my own products, TIE lights, HALO clock, I BEAM candlesticks, and GLACIER Cabinet.And a blue LEAF rug resplendent in the window.

New! New! New!

2011-05-23T18:34:00.002+01:00

Phew.

Im tired now.

Lots of filing of large lumps of steel.

I-beam candlestick prototypes complete.

In situ at the RHA

2011-05-20T23:47:00.006+01:00

Our pop-up shop is all set up and ready to go, so come and see us.

Alongside the nofixedabode.ie product range Im showing a selection of my own products large and small all available to order.

Very happy with my new salt and pepper grinders. They've been a long time coming but definitley worth the wait. Better images to come soon.

Like buses, you wait for ages for one....

2011-04-20T23:11:00.003+01:00

I thought I might have been dead there for a while...... but it seems I was just hiberanting. So after a nice rest heres some new stuff ill be showing at the RHA next month. Ive been thinking for a while about trying to use standard sections of metal for a range of products that I could manufacture myself in small batches and these are the first fruits of that idea.
Vic and Bob are salt and pepper grinders in mild steel tube with turned wood handles. I-beam candle sticks are.... well .... bits of I-beam with candles on. Prices to be confirmed.

Popping up at the RHA

2011-03-28T20:38:00.006+01:00

From 20th May to the 8th of June I'll be running a pop-up shop
at the RHA Gallery on Ely place.

I'm hoping to have a number of new pieces of work to show,
including some pieces from my new Glacier cabinet range,
aswell as a selection of products from the nofixedabode.ie range.

The window display might look a little bit like this...hopefully

More detail to follow soon..........

My mate Marmite

2011-01-06T11:14:00.003Z

The first online magazine created specifically for the Ipad - designed by my old mate Brian O Connor creative director at Die Welt newspaper in Berlin. Boy done good. http://www.theiconist.de/en/

'Glacier' range for Gillmorespace

2010-09-05T21:39:00.017+01:00

A sneak preview of Glacier, my new range for Gillmorespace which will be launched at Decorex in London this month. Gillmorespace is my longest standing client, I've been working with Charles Gillmore for 10 years now, ever since he started the buisness in fact. Over the 10 years I've designed 4 or 5 ranges, some sucessful others not so, but I've always had a really good working relationship with Charles and gained a wealth of experience throughout the process.

The idea for Glacier was to try to almost do as little as possible with the available surfaces but still create a very identifiable character and aesthetic. The range began as a series of paper models, playing with cuts and folds to create a series of simple modulated surfaces creating varying tones of light and shadow as the surfaces move forward and back.

By creating a handle detail where these modulating surfaces meet, this then became both the functional and decorative signature for the range.

There will be a basic range of about 8 pieces initially for living and bedroom, in coloured lacquer finishes and a range of base options available.
Photos of the actual products to follow soon.............

(and yeah I know it does look a little bit like that Ligne Roset range but only very vaguely at a distance)

Leaf rugs

2010-07-04T00:32:00.009+01:00

Ive just done these new rugs for nofixedabode.ie, they are the first result of a little pet project I've been working on for a while based around Irish modernist architectural heritage. They are based on mosaic panels on the roof level of the Busaras building in Dublin designed by Patrick Scott in the early 1950's while he was working a junior architect in the offices of Michael Scott.

After photographing the panels I went to visit the 89 year old artist to discuss the possibility of using the design and I have to say he was genuinely one of nicest individuals I've had the pleasure of meeting and he very generously agreed for me to use them as the basis for these new products. So far we have produced 2 samlpes in red and blue produced for us in collaboration with Rugart.ie. We're also workin on a range of printed and knitted cushions to compliment the rugs hopefully to follow soon..

Stuff love

2010-06-22T00:42:00.008+01:00

Im always pulling random bits and pieces that take my fancy out of skips. Not all of it useful, but here's my favourite example of one man's junk becoming another man's treasure.

I also love a good bodged together solution to any given problem, so when i needed a small hand cart to move boxes in and out of our stand at Interiors and Art Fair at the RDS this was the solution. The harmonious union of a childs tricycle (minus front wheel and with handlebars re -located) and a bunk bed ladder...et voila handcart.

I think this may in fact be my favourite thing that Ive ever made, bar none.
It's just a lovely thing, it does the job admirably and has a 'ready-made' charm which I just love.

Proper Job, as Peter Kent would say .

The story so far.....

2010-06-21T16:31:00.010+01:00

I was doing some publicity shots of my new Leaf rugs for nofixedabode.ie
what with moving stuff around all over my house, it ended up looking like a little retrospective of my design career so far.

In foreground - orange Causeway bench for Made.ie, Red Leaf rug for nofixedabode.ie, Albrecht stool, for Thorsten Van Elten (now sans producer), Companion table for Marcs International / Habitat, Causeway table for Made.ie,
Background left, TIE lamp and right Halo clock for Innermost, hiding in back room is a prototype side chair from about 1995.

Also here a couple of pieces by lesser know designers, Eames, Van der Rohe, Castiglioni, those old fellas...

Serendipity - A happy co-incidence.

2010-04-06T14:56:00.018+01:00

Urban Outfitters have assured me that any similarity between the 2 products is pure coincidence. Traditional Irish Welcome still the original and the best though. Get it here :

TIE now available on nofixedabode.ie

2010-03-05T17:53:00.002Z

The award winning TIE pendant is now available on www.nofixedabode.ie.

Barcelona on nofixedabode.ie

2010-02-09T18:22:00.004Z

We're now selling my Barcelona cabinet range in Ireland
via our webshop @ www.nofixedabode.ie.
Another golden oldie, Barcelona was designed in
about 2001. There have been various iterations of the design
since then but still looks good.

IF awards

2010-01-20T13:41:00.009Z

Photographs of excellent work being done on IF Design Awards Jury
in Hanover in November, http://www.ifdesign.de/awards_product_index_e
It was a really enjoyable few days and working with Herr Meurer
( Siedle and Sohne)and Herr Nussler ( Siemens) on the
Computers Judging panel was both an education and a joy.

New images of TIE

2009-11-27T21:47:00.006Z

I just grabbed these new images of finalised production version of TIE off the Archtonic website - http://www.architonic.com/pmpro/peter-mac-cann/8103373/2/2/1

Very pleased with them.

Constant companion

2009-11-11T00:41:00.011Z

I just realised while looking through some old images, that Companion is 10 years old this month. Thats gotta be worth celebrating surely? Here are some shots of early protoypes.
They looked a little bit like scary little dogs at first . (sorry Fred)

But with a little bit of help from Heath Robinson and a half memory of the frame of a childhood toy they eventually found their final form.

Happy Birthday. Here's to 10 more years.

Locked up

2009-11-10T18:26:00.004Z

I just spent 3 fairly intense weeks beavering away on designs for some upholstered furniture for a competiton run by Ercol www.ercol.com I think I left the house about 3 times in that period ..but pretty happy with what I ended up with and sent it off (on my birthday) ......so now we wait.

Even though it tested my sanity somewhat it was nice to spend a few weeks immersed in a project, even if it comes to nought, good to get back to basics every now and again with a 4b pencil in hand, lots of tracing paper and some good friends in support (Albrecht and Causeway).

Fingers crossed.

Big in Japan

2009-08-20T15:30:00.010+01:00

I recieved an email from my friend Marina Bautier yesterday , www.lamaisondemarina.com,
and she mentioned that my Companion tables, which were re-editioned in Japan last year by Duende www.duende.jp, after being out of production for a few years, are now also being sold in Japan by Idee for whom she has designed a couple of pieces. www.lamaisondemarina.com/Idee2.jpg.

I think it both strange and marvelous that the Companion tables have found a new and appreciative home in Japan. It was oft suggested that they had a certain 'Japanese-y' quality when they were created in the workshops at BCUC in late 1999 so I really like the circularity of it all.

I'd also really like a trip to Japan.

TIE not Tie (think StarWars)

2009-08-19T08:22:00.013+01:00

TIE is now available to buy.

After the brief if agreeable distraction of picking up an award for the Design in March, http://www.homesandgardens.com/events/awards/classic/2009/278596/2009_lighting_award.htm l, the long process of getting the product to market is at an end.

Innermost have TIE in stock in the UK this month. www.innermost.co.uk

In the intervening period, the nerve injury to my feet, acquired while creating the original prototypes has thankfully healed.
Rolling aluminium blanks barefoot with a cardboard tube is not to be recommended.

IF design Awards 2009 Jury Duty

2009-08-19T08:15:00.009+01:00

I'm honoured to have been asked to join the judging panel for the 2009 IF design Awards in Hanover.
Ill be flying out to Germany in November for 3 days of work with 25 other Jury members and hopefully some good quality design banter.

http://www.ifdesign.de

A home for the homeless.

2009-06-08T15:47:00.010+01:00

www.nofixedabode.ie

Our webshop is up and running, have a look you might like it .

hello

2009-06-08T15:20:00.000+01:00

Welcome to my blog.