Camper x Hella Jongerius

by CH Contributor

by Paolo Ferrarini of Future Concept Lab

One of the many projects capturing our attention as the Milanese Design Week kicks off is Camper's melding of footwear and industrial design. Directed by Hella Jongerius, one of today's most talented Dutch designers known for her products, furniture and textile design with a keen eye for beauty, colors, surfaces and detailing, she chose to work on the Camper shoes that have become so well known and familiar they might even be called archetypal shoes.

"When Camper asked me whether I would like to design a new shop for them, or a new shoe, I didn't have to think much about it," says Jongerius. "I'm not a shoe designer, many designers before me have done an excellent job in defining all the intricate parts and detailing of a shoe, but being somebody with an eye for beautiful shoes I was intrigued by the challenge. So I decided to continue where the former shoe designers of Camper stopped. To be able to lean on their expertise, stand on their shoulders, so to speak, and work with the existing icons from the Camper archives, was a great opportunity for me."

She chose four existing shoes from Camper's archive, Pelotas, Imar, Peu and Brothers. While the styles needed no changes, improvements or reinterpretations, Jongerius highlighted their most defining features. The result of this process consists of two shoe collections, winter 2010 and summer 2010, which are a true homage to the icons of the Spanish company.

Camper x Hella Jongerius
23-25 April 2009
Camper Store
6, Via Monte Napoleone
20121 Milan, Italy map
tel. +39 02799015

Ace Hotel Palm Springs x Levi's at Coachella

by CH Contributor

by Matt Spangler

This past weekend, the 10th annual Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival brought thousands of music enthusiasts to the deserts just outside Palm Springs, California, providing an excellent excuse to check out the newly opened Ace Hotel and the festivities they hosted for the occasion.

In keeping with the Ace mantra of "functionality and simplicity" the hotel, its rooms and overall vibe concentrate on understated design choices that felt comfortable and approachable while still maintaining a modern and uniquely Ace-like atmosphere. Chalk board signs, pool lounge chairs constructed with flexible rope and the furniture's beige hue (that perfectly blended with the surrounding mountains) laid the groundwork for a relaxing experience and the prices proved a reachable alternative for many of the younger travelers from around the world looking to enjoy the West Coast's most notable indie music festival.

The Ace is a great addition to the Palm Springs hotel scene that already includes some classic brands like The Parker, The Viceroy and The Riviera. As usual, during the festival weekend Palm Springs became ground zero for the attendees and on Saturday afternoon, the Ace pool deck filled up with Coachella-goers, band members, managers, press and guests from the publishing and fashion industry there to enjoy the pool scene and listen to the local acts.

Poolside, Levi's created a pop-up shop dedicated to this season's collection. In keeping with the overall Ace concept of being a good community citizen, Levi's invited proprietor Chantale Doyle of Joshua Tree's Mt. Fuji General Store to partner with them on the shop as well as curate some works by talented Palm Springs artists to help expose them to the international audience in town for Coachella. Among the artists were Diane Best and David Butterfield, whose pieces were featured for sale on the walls but who additionally worked with Levi's and Ace to design a t-shirt specifically for the event.

Midday Saturday the Thrift Store All-Stars, the house band for a party called Church at local Joshua Tree honky-tonk Pappy & Harriets, performed on the pool deck of Ace. Despite the economy, the crowds were out in force, marking the 10-year anniversary of Coachella. The festivities kicked off a long term partnership between Levi's and the Ace which will continue with room collaborations in New York, future properties and a series of events and pop-ups throughout the year.

Veuve Clicquot DesignBox Giveaway

by Bailee Wolfson

For Milan this year Veuve Clicquot is launching their new eco-friendly gift box called DesignBox. To celebrate, an exhibit featuring interpretations of the box—a lamp by Tom Dixon (pictured at right), Front Design's sofa and a cellar by 5.5 Designers—opens tomorrow in Milan. In keeping with Dixon's customary generosity at design fairs, his lamp (limited to an edition of 500) will be given away at tomorrow's opening. (For those who won't make it, we've scored one to giveaway to a lucky reader, see details of how to enter below.)

Due to hit markets in June, the DesignBox is no slouch itself, making for a chic way to present a bottle that belies the sustainable principles behind it. Using paper exclusively from trees approved by the Forest Stewardship Council, a non-profit that helps maintain responsible management of forests and skipping plastic lamination, the all-paper packaging is easily recyclable. What's more, micro-grooving helps reduce the amount of packaging and potential waste.

To enter to win one of Dixon's lamps, follow the contact link at the bottom of the page, select "DesignBox Giveaway" from the pull-down menu and tell us which designer you'd like to see Veuve Clicquot collaborate with next by Thursday, 23 April 2009.

View more images after the jump.

Out of the Box
21-22 April 2009
Superstudio+
Via Tortona, 27
20144 Milan, Italy map

Illustrator Zoe Keogh

by Lost At E Minor

Ynki and her magical and intricate world of imagination is the creation of Berlin-based artist, Zoe Keogh, whose pastels and brightly colored love injected into her artworks is such a joy. She draws, scratches, prints, inks and presses, making delicate delights, which were on display as part of her first solo show at Keith and Lotti in Perth, Australia, earlier this year. Keogh has also exhibited in London, New York and Paris and is working on an intriguing seven sins concept.