Yanko Design

Mother of a Weekend

Anthony James — Fri, 09 May 2008 07:03:41 +0000

For many of us in the creative fields, whether it be design, music, art, accounting, film or even dressing up like Pokémon for some brat’s birthday party, we have a person to thank for the inspiration and never-say-die attitude we sometimes take for granted. For those lucky enough to have or had a good relationship with our mothers, we here at Yanko Design wish you and yours a Happy Mother’s Day. If it wasn’t for our mother’s love and support, we would probably be living in a much duller world and might not have ever dreamed that big dream or be reaching for a better life and shaping a better world.

As a public service to our loyal readers, we give you fair warning:

Mother’s Day is this Sunday! So to help remind you of this totally-NOT-cool day to forget, we present this inspiring mixed media video by Parisian artist Yves Geleyn and New York indie duo The Bird and The Bee. They teamed up with Zune Arts film to bring you “Mother Like No Other.” A tale of just how far a beaver will go to share the perfect gift with mom. Watch it, get all sentimental and weepy and then immediately call your mother!!!

Zune Arts

Crane With a View

Anthony James — Fri, 09 May 2008 07:02:37 +0000

As cranes go, they either get the job done or don’t. Not much progress has been made in the past 50 years with crane development. Most of the evolutionary focus has been on lift capabilities and reach. “LYNX” - mobile crane by Jiri Kubec is a revolutionary concept in the way it treats the driver/operator. This concept integrates a control cabin with not only unobstructed views, but the ability to raise up to 8.5 metres high for better project surveillance and maneuverability. With an 80 tons lifting capacity, steering and crane functions controlled via joystick and pedals utilizing drive-by-wire technology, this crane is sure to reduce accidents, make jobs a little easier and capture the imaginations of children everywhere…

Designer: Jiri Kubec

click on the picture for zoom in

Jiri Kubec

Virtual Insanity

Anthony James — Fri, 09 May 2008 07:01:02 +0000

Thousands of designers around the globe render objects daily on computers hoping to one day see them materialize into actual, tangible objects. We store digital photos as memories and only really print a select or special few to hold and share with others. We are constantly looking for new ways and things to bring our digital world to life. Designer Ingo Schmid takes this passion for digital one giant, unnecessary step further with his “Web is Nut Enough” performance art piece. Billed as “the first analog website in the world”, the stage features four menu items relating to the shows content. Ingo himself plays the cursor and when prompted, his friends join him on stage and perform live music mimicking the MySpace experience. Now if he added the other, more famous MySpace element, millions or barely dressed teenage girls, he might have a real hit on his hands.

Designer: Ingo Schmid

Ingo Schmid

Growing Homes

Anthony James — Fri, 09 May 2008 07:00:36 +0000

When is a home addition not a home addition? When it is done as elegantly as the Lilyfield House in Sydney, Australia. Nobbs Radford Architects created this subtle modern extension, drawing inspiration from the humble original cottage, with its flanks clad in narrow wooden weatherboards, while still managing to convey a functional, standalone character. Starting from the original 19th-century weatherboard house, this modern addition evokes the ad-hoc add-on spirit embodied by decades of extensions. This addition nearly doubles the living space and maintains the spirit of the original pitched roof design without mimicking it.

Architect: Nobbs Radford [ Via: Wallpaper ]

Nobbs Radford

Born to be Wild Design

Anthony James — Thu, 08 May 2008 21:05:47 +0000

In the competitive world of sleek and wind splitting motorcycle design, aero-dynamic drag efficiency takes a back seat only to face stretching speed and performance. This latest concept by NON-OBJECT called “nUCLEUS” throws out the current rule book and presents this “Square Against Air” electric motorcycle design. nUCLEUS boasts a thin comfortable saddle and horse-like behavior that lowers itself when idle and raises when in motion. The air defying side-view hides the fact that these pieces of metal are simply blades from the front. I would be curious to see how this machine proves itself in a wind tunnel and stability at high speeds.

Side note: You NEED to check out the movie page here. It’s mind blowing.

Designer: Non-Object

Park mode

Run mode

Front view

Back view

No Tags

Fly vs. Fly

Anthony James — Thu, 08 May 2008 19:21:00 +0000

Living in Los Angeles for years now, I have learned to truly appreciate the ingenuity of Mexican culture. Though I realize not all Mexicans fit into a common mold (other than being a Mexican) a great deal seem to posses McGyver like abilities to fix almost any mechanical object or invent a low cost way to solve a problem. Which brings me to this truly genius and humanitarian way to rid your lawn or outdoor space of pesky flies. The “Anti-Fly Sphere Device” by designer José de la O is based on an old Mexican solution of ridding flies by hanging clear plastic bags filled with water just above taco stands. The refraction of the water, amplifies the colors and movements that catch the complex eyes of a fly reflected on the sphere, scaring the offending flies away. Yes, it is fly on fly crime, but isn’t that their problem?

Designer: José de la O

José de la O

See Color With Sound

Long Tran — Thu, 08 May 2008 16:03:48 +0000

Have you ever wondered how people with vision impairment get dressed? How do they know what goes with what, what matches? Texture and touch can only tell so much but color has to be seen, not felt. In fact if a person is born blind, how do they know what a color is at all? It’s a labeling system almost entirely based on visual feedback. The Bright-F aims to translate that information into sounds.

It detects the brightness, saturation, and hue of color. You can sort thru like colors by organizing them in groups with similar tones. This is incredibly useful for washing basic garments because we all know a white undie doesn’t do so well with a red t-shirt.

Designer: Lifeng Yu

Lifeng Yu

Dermatological High Design

Anthony James — Thu, 08 May 2008 16:02:41 +0000

High-end Philippino handbag exporter - Aranaz commissioned London based designer Juan Carlo Calma to reinterpret their flagship boutique in Manila, Philippines. The result is an interior space that possesses a reflective surface similar to the luxury evening bags on display. Calma adds, “I was really interested in exotic and luxurious skins such as crocodile skin, which is used for the construction of a bag. If you look at animal skins, they have a tessellated type of geometry and I wanted to explore that. Most of my projects are always looking at nature or are inspired by algorithms found in nature.”

Designer: Juan Carlo Calma [ Via: Frame ]

Juan Carlo Calma

Serial Pop Drinks Rejoice

Long Tran — Thu, 08 May 2008 16:02:38 +0000

Hey kids, are you a serial pop drinker? Sure recycling is good but lets say for some oddball reason you collect bottles. As long as the neck is a standard size, and you collect 16 of them, you can make yourself a little stool or table. Chairs & Toys is really for children but I know a few adults that would try and pass this off next to their Herman Miller furniture.

Designer: Jinhong Lin

Jinhong Lin

The Octocube of mystery

Shane Crozier — Thu, 08 May 2008 12:32:20 +0000

On first sight, the Octocube is all smoke and mirrors. You could spend quite a while trying to figure out what it is or does. Go on. See if you can figure it out. If you can’t work it out from the pictures alone then how about the name. Octocube. Any help? The sharper eye will observe the 2 cables/pipes at the rear so surely it does something right? Designer Vivien Muller has created this little mystery for your Thursday morning enjoyment. Give up? Entirely created from a single 90 degree elbow, the Octocube builds up into a radiant heater with a large surface area, and the inherent flexibility and modularity of the elbow. It is designed to be a sculptural heater that fits in with any interior.

Designer: Vivien Muller

Vivien Muller