design festival 14

On Saturday when I was working in the studio my studio mate popped in and reminded me that Design Festival had started. Oh no! I had almost none information what's happening where apart from the major shows. As this is the most exciting time of the year I get to see a lot of nice things in the city, I don't want to miss them just because I'm preparing for my show. 

So V&A. I loved the Wish List. It's a collection of objects that 10 design specialists commissioned 10 craftsmen/designers to make the one-off pieces that they dreamt of having. It's so sweet because it shows their personalities and the stories in their making. It's just simply a VERY lovely project. 

And the Open Studio of their resident ceramicist Nao Matsuyama. It's always nice to see the artists' working studios, to see the tiny bits of experiments and their drawings, pieces of their inspiration. 

Also another exhibition in the museum: Disobedient Object. The objects that were used in protests and that were made/chosen to protest something. It's interesting when a shape or a foam becomes to symbolise something, even more when the message is strong. The show was compact but it made me think A LOT.

I also headed down to Ealing to see Crafting Narrative. The show has a group of objects that their designers/makers try to tell their story through. It took me a while to understand some of the stories, but it was interesting to see different approaches they took. I also loved their playful display.

And a pop-up shop Hay Mini Market. I adore their beautiful glazes on the pots and cones. Seeing nice glazes always makes me want to explore more in my work too. I also loved their stationery: wooden rulers, towers of memo pads and notebooks. The only concern is that they are just too good to have in my muddy studio!

ロンドンはデザインフェスティバルが始まった。私も展示会の準備があるけれども、昨日はスタジオを出て、見て回ることにした。いろいろ見て、考えさせられて、久々の充実した一日。