journalspring‘09
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With this first issue of a non-periodical information-bulletin, the “TON-journal”, the company TON would like not only to inform their old and their new clients, but as well the upcoming ones and generally interested persons, about the news, the intentions, the hidden facts and the historical background. First of all, let’s go back in history around 150 years ago, when Michael Thonet came to Moravia (at this time part of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy) to saddle down in this hilly area full of trees with little opportunity to find work.
,000 0 1,0 The well known unwillingness of the communist countries to respect design, right of using it etc. pp. created for the others 00 00 another1, 1,00 obstacle. For many years, this company (like others) became simply a supplier of mainly American 0 000 Hunger of low-priced-products, sold mainly branded differently. The new brand 1,00 1 any TON never achieved ,000attention, often even requested to hide the origin. 0 1,00 1,000 All of this changed dramatically with several cuts of the history: the collapse of the communism, the foundation of new al0 liances (European Union), the “run-out” of the0 1,00 1, protection for those Thonet-chairs, the explosion of costs for material and 0 00 labour, the globalisation of everyday problems like enviromental thoughts, the slipping closer of the small European coun1,00 1,00 0 tries, the disappearance of similar structured companies, the 0 changes of fashion, design, taste, expectation etc. 1,00 0 0,36 And here we are! 0 1,00 those years suddenly in “new shoes” Facing all the above mentioned winds in the face. Strong somehow, but after all 0 1 ,500 which are changing our passes and speed to walk. Still keeping the traditonal product-lines, still producing basically manually bentwood-furniture in the old way with lots of sweat but in the same time finding new streets in technology (CNC), sales (new catalogues, carefully designed stands and presences in international fairs, cooperation with designers from different countries, opening of TON-brand-shops , etc.
All the up’s and down’s of the Thonet-Company are more or less known history, less known for several reasons is the fact that with the foundation of the communist-Cechoslovakia the things became even more confusing: We found suddenly all over the world producers of Thonet-products and just a very few had the right to use the name 0,00 Thonet. But how change what’s in the mind of common people which call till today all bentwood-chairs Thonet, even if 0 they’re not Thonet’s?
“some words to the history, some lines to our history”
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PROJECTS:
TON, not only chairs..
beyond all the known, unknown, forgotten.,rediscovered , used facts of the chairs from Bystrice, there is another facett to illuminate: The city is and was basically the company. Nowadays fewer persons are working in the company, less for the company and the services connected with it. But, not only the historical Villa of Michael-Thonet , now again the headquarters of the company (after being used as practices for local doctors for several decades, forced by the socialistic rulers of that time), even the size of the company is simply not to ignore in relation to the size of the little town.Therefore there is no possibility to deny the position, the responsibility of the company and the surroundings. To give the interested persons a chance to see what happened with this Villa, it is opened to the visitors . In the showrooms in groundlevel are not only the chairs to be seen, but as well the impact of the restauration of the whole building and the intention of C arch.Tom Kelley to transport the villa in W todays-time and function by respecting the historical structures respective to get back to them without creating some kind “fake old” Disneylandappeal which certainly some of the elder habitants of the city expected to see… Another step will be the construction of a museum near to the villa, giving finally all those till now invisible stored treasors a stage to come back to the light of the public. Planned is a building which refers somehow to the forms and sizes of neigbouring houses as it plays with transparence and open spaces as it will incorporate as well the very famous wooden stairway made from Micheal Thonet (which till now stood in the workers-mensa without a function) as the big park behind it. Through all those activities and maybe the restauration of the near castle (which housed 20 years Russian and than 20 years Czech soldiers with all imaginable “tracks”of that !) the hope, that one day people will find it worth to visit this tiny town in Moravia ?! Might TON’s actions , T.Kelley’s ideas and the brave members of the involved construction-firm RAPOS be a helping hand on the long road there…
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TomKelleyDesignBuero
Accademia 880 30123 Venezia Italy TEL/FAX +39 0415211381 CEL +39 3471550438 mail@tomkelley.it www.tomkelley.it Project
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Re-opened windows
Karlak Shop
Karlovo námestí, 3 Praha Czech Republic 120 00
Basement Preliminary
Drawings seba3D Approved Tom Kelley
Scale
1:50
Wooden-terrace, with plants, outdoor show-room.
TomKelleyDesignBuero
Accademia 880 30123 Venezia Italy TEL/FAX +39 0415211381 CEL +39 3471550438 mail@tomkelley.it www.tomkelley.it Project
Karlak Shop
Karlovo námestí, 3 Praha Czech Republic 120 00
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Groundfloor Preliminary
Drawings seba3D Approved Tom Kelley
Scale
1:50
ID Layout
A.02.1
Bosston
811, is there any chair more beautyful than this one ? Surely the N° 14 steels him any attention , not only because born 150 years ago, but this one , just half–of-age , was not burned by cheap copies even in metal for very low priceproductions, probably in places much cheaper than Moravia was when M.Thonet moved there, finding lots of wood and lots of people without work! 811, a attraction to almost all the architects/designers , to some even a inviation te re-view it …let’s think about Vico Magistretti’s SILVER for DePadova or Antonio Citterio’s MINNI for Halifax. So why should it be different for me? Already in the childhood playing in the Bauhaus of Dessau (surely not knowing what it was or is), later during a operation of the appendix, recalling nothing from it but a kind of plywood Breuer-Cantilever-Chair laquered white, so I got early in contact with the Thonet-Story …. In the mid-ninethees finally I got to see the place (the company) of all that for the first time, rightaway provoking “games” of playing with the standards still produced there, than as now , mostly by the traditonally technology invented from M.Thonet , requiring lots of steam and sweat . Was it possible not to get “Steamy windows” of my fantasy ? But, the time was too early for finding there persons which “smelled” new tendencies, which had new needs, the cheapprice-waggon was still rolling! About 15 years later I pulled out some old sketches from way back when, re-working them , even dropping some naïve detail from that time, putting a new 811 adjusted to our
811
Net
911
time together… Than, again , years passed! But now, finally here it is : the 911 , recalling with this number not only the 811, not only the typical typology of those always numbered chairs, it even pays respect to another product( rather on 4 wheels than 4 legs) which became a symbol of permanent renewl without ever loosing his typical shape, his not-toignore impact which even kids realize, playing with little models… Right after the beginning of the cooperation of TON and me, I had a first try (NET) , refreshing the 811 but basically leaving the outlines. Than , years later Bosston came along, a modern chair made with modern technology but baring this typical hand-bent-arm which embraces the chair like the arm of a lover, which stands out from it like a deers antler… Now the 911 tries not to recall all those by using those “secure” pieces but continuing with the tradition without any “Retro” idea or aproach. Tom Kelley, Venezia 3/09
Bosston
911
TONjournal ask’s Tom Kelley:
TJ: Now that your collaborating with Ton since more than 3 years, what’s you overall-impression of this cooperation? TK: it’s certainly not easy to keep continually the same mood in the relationship.. Just like a couple living together it finds this very difficult step of the transition from being in love and having a real partnership. And, who’s doing what? And, who knows what to do all the time? With a few words: it was and is tough but quite challenging. TJ: what were the most delightful moments and which the worst? TK: Sincerely, i do not recall the single moments, especially since the whole work is too complex to separate one moment from the other, not to mention, that when two sides are involved, there are two view of the same thing. The nicest moments are always the ones when the story tells you, you did something right and the worst is to feel sometimes the incapability to transmit exactly what you want. TJ: what was more important for you, the design of chairs and others, the creation of new catalogues etc. the concept for the stands in fairs or the work on restoration of the Michael-ThonetVilla, the reconstruction of the Karlak-Shop? TK: since all my thinking is never disconnecting one thing from the other, all those things are working with each other like gears in a gearbox. The majorproblem is to combine a Ferrari-gearbox with the slow engine of the reality. It needs a lot of passion and even more a lot of patience (by the way: my weakest point!) When I think of a chair, I think of the chair in use... on a table, in a space, having a function, full-filling exactly this one; allowing for example the pleasure of enjoying a dinner, a nice chat, a meeting with interesting people, a exchange of options TJ: have you ever been in a similar situation like this with Ton before? TK: No never, even just all my 20 years of experience allowed me to deal with it! First of all, none of my other clients has a 150 years-history, none of them has to carry the burdon of the weight of all those years. It is much easier to start from scratch than respecting expectations, structures, traditions (and all are good!). Making something new in this context is like the change of Volkswagen from the very successful Beetle with the engine in the back to front driven/front-engine cars! Not all were convinced of this step and even here are a lot of persons who want to continue with the past (often not knowing which past! The one in the books and in the stories of their grand parents, the one of being a socialistic low -price-supplier for very un-socialistic moneymaker which they know from their parents??? TJ: coming to the news you’re bringing to the Milano Fair: what’s the intention of the chairfamily 911? TK: to combine and express all said above: history, acknowledgement of it, no retro, making all the why’s transparent. Laying a track easy to follow.. This is why we’re showing the historical 811, our first dealing with it called Net, the follower Bosston and now the 911. There is much more in common than the characteristic armrest in bentwood. I know I’m not the first one “playing” with this topic, let’s recall Vico Magistretti’s aluminum version of the 811 for De Padova or Antonio Citterio’s MINNI for Halifax. Obviously a still very attracting item after around 85 years of existence, strangwise, nobody can tell who did design it. There are wishful-thinkers which would like to write Josef Hofman, but it’s more likely another Josef (Frank). TJ: we can see it is not only a never-ending story with the 811 even with you it seems to become a long stroll trough the history. Therefore we recommand a walk trough the this years Ton-Stand, illustrating past, presence and future on the same place. Thank you. TK: I know since I know myself since quite a while! Milan Dostalik (commercial director of Ton and my major connecting point there) asked once: what the difference of New York and Tom Kelley? Both don’t seem to sleep!
...as time goes by...
“our presenta
ation”
FAIRS: Koeln Milano Paris Prague Nitra Dubai Chicago New York Belgrad Collaborations: KVADRAT/DK WIBITEX/IT ABET LAMINATI/IT RESOPAL/DE NEW SHOPS: TON-Shop Berlin TON-Shop Wien TON-Shop Brno TON-Shop Sofia TON-Shop Prague TON-Shop Budapest
Fabrizio Gallinaro
Nato nel 1966 si laurea in architettura a Venezia nel 1994. Inizia la carriera di designer collaborando con Werther Toffoloni ad alcuni progetti di sedute per le aziende Cabas e Blifase. Nel corso degli anni prosegue l’attività di industrial designer nel proprio studio di Udine collaborando principalmente con aziende del settore del mobile tra le quali Natison, Potocco, Prototipo, Rover Plus, Varaschin. Il lavoro di questi anni è stato riconosciuto da premi e segnalazioni internazionali: “Il mobile classico contemporaneo. Omaggio a Gio Ponti” MORELATO1996 progetto selezionato, “Design è Progresso” Salone Internazionale della Sedia Udine 1997, “Idee per la progettazione di una sedia europea” Salone internazionale della sedia Udine 2000 progetto vincitore, “progetto CRE.O.LA.” concorso virtuale ALESSI 2000 progetto finalista menzione speciale, premio “Young & Design” RIMA 2001 Milano poltroncina “Gallo Nero” PROTOTIPO srl prodotto selezionato menzione speciale, premio “Young & Design” RIMA 2002 Milano poltrona “Mosquito” NATISON Spa prodotto selezionato menzione speciale, premio “Top Ten” Salone internazionale della sedia Udine 2004 sedia “Est” Rover Plus. Il suo campo di attività non si limita al design industriale, ma spazia anche all’architettura e all’interior design: dal 2001 collabora con un importante società di progettazione di livello internazionale sviluppando progetti nel settore residenziale e di interior design in Russia, Spagna e Francia.
Est
Mads K. Johansen
Growing up in a small town close to nature in Denmark made me appreciate wood as a material at an early age. The forest became a playground where I created and carved all kinds off things out of wood. One of my best birthday gifts was tools and timber which enabled me to redesign my playhouse. I have always had a desire to explore and create shapes out of wooden materials. Design wise my passion lays in clean lines and expressions that enables a focus on the details. I have a background as a cabinetmaker and I have also worked as a furniture salesman and carpenter. Currently I am a student at Denmark’s Design school, working on my master project. During my studies I have spent one year at The University of Art and Design, in Helsinki. Previously I have also been working and studying in Dallas, Munich and Oslo.
photo: Kristine Funch
cortina
design tomkelley ‘99 -’03
cantù
design tomkelley ‘99 -’03
bergamo
design tomkelley ‘99 -’03
treviso
design tomkelley ‘99 -’03
VIA
design Michal Polák, studio Francisdrake
Re-discovered !
Already proposed in 1958 during the World-Exhibition in Brussels, Awarded even with a medal for the design of the 947 (poorely rduced to a number) found the attention of Tom Kelley’s favoured “walk’s” through the history……. re-designing it in way to leave the original bentwood-idea untouched the BRUXELLES was born. Soon it willbe a entire family….
n°14
happy birthday! (150 years)
TON a.s. Michaela Thoneta 148 CZECH REPUBLIC tel.: +420 573 325 111 +420 573 325 480 +420 573 325 240 (English) +420 573 325 446 (English) +420 573 325 494 (Deutsch) +420 573 325 246 (français) +420 573 325 446 (italiano) +420 573 325 457 (slovensky),
fax: +420 573 378 261 e-mail: info@ton.eu www.ton.eu