Mark those calendars: Product Placement 2.1 will happen Feb. 10 from 6 - 8 p.m. at Nemo Tile Company, Inc., located at 48 East 21st Street in New York City. This installment—which we’re organizing in conjunction with Ceramic Tiles of Italy and Nemo—will focus on those fab porcelain and ceramic slabs, the designers who make them, and the processes and trends in the field. And if you’ve never thought about the artistic value of tile, prepare to be schooled.
The event will be free, with the presentation starting at 7 p.m.; networking and drinks will happen before and after. Beat the rush and RSVP, as this one is going to be especially crowded: thisisproductplacement@gmail.com.
Full details about the featured products soon!
Hey, architecture aficionados: Ever want to wear a small building on your wrist? Well, Alessi is giving you a chance this fall with the Daytimer OLED watch, whose faceted surface resembles the latest trends in architectural skins. And little surprise: The timepiece is co-designed by Will Alsop, known for his colorful avant-garde buildings (including the amazing Peckham library in South London, for those keeping score) and Italian architect/product developer Federico Grazzini. Function-wise the watch is also far from shabby, with a display six times brighter than ordinary digital models. To optimize battery life—and not annoy the hell out of you—the display stays off until you push a button on the side of the watch face. When that happens, one of nine different graphics appears for six second on the screen, immediately followed by the hour and minute, date, and day of the week. Oh, and that faceted surface? It’s made via double-injection molding, with the watch’s hard plastic core covered by a soft plastic outer case and band. The watch face is acrylic glass, and the caseback laminated in stainless steel to prevent static build-up. And in true Alsop and Alessi form, it’s available in a mini rainbow of hues: green, purple, red, and black.

Konstantin Grcic's Steel Pipe desk in dark gray, with optional hanging drawers, and Steel Pipe chair for Muji Manufactured by Thonet.
Hello, global spirit of collaboration! Not every day do you get an upstart Japanese brand pairing with a revered German company to issue a range of products by a British minimalist and German formalist. But design is a boundary-crossing thing. Witness James Irvine and Konstantin Grcic’s new lines of affordable wood and tubular steel furniture for Muji, a collection created in collaboration with Thonet.
Thonet’s creative director, Irvine exploits the curved lines of the company’s original bentwood chair for his pieces in the line, dubbed Muji Manufactured by Thonet. His super-light Muji No. 14, made of beech and with a seat constructed of either wood or mesh, features a simple horizontal panel across the back. When placed next to its corresponding dining table, available in a four- and six-person size, the back panel merges with the tabletop, leaving only the elegant arc of the chair’s frame visible.
Harry Allen's Uruku refillable lipstick case for Aveda, which is molded from recycled aluminum and a new material composed of recycled plastic resin and natural flax fiber.
Jay-Z sure has the life. He rolls with Beyonce, runs a chain of clubs, co-owns a basketball team, and retires from music—then returns from retirement—every six months. But despite the bling, our man Hova, as he is also known, is a man of the people, his 99 problems notwithstanding. So he’s commissioned architect David Ashen of D-ash Design to create an upscale mobile lounge designed to let his fans taste the nectar of success—oh, and also showcase the new premium line for Rocawear, his clothing collection. Called RocPopShop, the temporary store looks like a film-set trailer. But inside it spares no luxury, featuring mohair sofas, suede walls, custom zebra-wood cabinetry, a 46-inch flat screen TV, and a custom gaming zone. It debuts April 14 at the intersection of Pacific and Fifth Avenues, in Jay-Z’s native Brooklyn; it stays until May 3, when it heads off across the country. 




Mårten Claesson, Eero Koivisto, and Ola Rune are superstars in Stockholm. Not only are the three in-demand architects and interior designers, but they also teach at Konstfack (the Eindhoven of Sweden) and create products for Offecct, Wastberg, and Sultana in their spare time. Their latest innovation, Olive, straddles the line between bespoke and mass-produced furniture. Featuring five different backrests and seats randomly paired together during production, the chair, produced for Swedese, was inspired by a bowl of the delectable drupes that the three designers were sharing. They noticed each fruit had a distinct shape but was related to the others, which got them thinking about ways to convey difference and similarity. Available in metal or wood, and with or without armrests.
