Perspectives

THINK AHEAD, BUT ACT NOW

Some dream about the future. Others create it. Visionary thinkers logically determine tomorrow’s needs by being highly sensitized to the trends, interests and capabilities of today.

At his Brooklyn studio Readymade Projects, industrial designer Stephen Burks creates sustainable housewares and furniture. However, through his larger exhibits and installations he questions the ecological and political impact of global mass production.

The key is addressing life-cycle production and the true cost of a product. How beneficial are cheap goods if they create a future filled with everlasting waste? For an alternative, Burks looks to craftsmen around the world and lets their methods and materials inspire his own work. Fabrics and folds created by UK kilt-makers underlie his hyper-tactile Pleats sofa. Glass mosaic skills of South Africa’s women led to his Capellini Love vases.

What color is the future? Ask Li Edelkoort, the fashion industry oracle whose influence is seen from haute couture runways to racks of clothing in mega-malls. When shop windows all suddenly show lavender tones, chances are, this Dutch woman saw it coming two years ago.

Sought by top firms for valuable market insight, Edelkoort is a conduit for coming consumer tastes. She is so precise in her predictions, that many in the world of textiles and design wonder how she does it. How does she perceive signs in the here and now that allow her to interpret what we will desire in the future? Edelkoort maintains she has no secret powers – just the ability to pay close attention to her surroundings and say what she thinks.

Futurist architect Xavier Claramunt works so far in advance, he designs buildings for clients he has yet to meet. From space-saving apartments to hotels in space, the designs proposed by his Barcelona firm, EQUIP Xavier Claramunt, anticipate needs.

The one-time aeronautics engineer divides his business between an agency to serve clients and the LAB to generate ideas – with no pressure to bring in a profit. The creative think-tank has a set process and method: listen, analyze data and look for what society needs. The results are hotels in “impossible” places and concepts that address future challenges in living, working and mobility. In time, these well-conceived fantastic ideas generate real business.

Published by PROJECT M in November 2009

(Photos: Noah Kalina, Holland Hoogte/laif, Galactic Suite)