Meet the young designers from KADK at TENT 2016

Young KADK designers strive to create social and ecological awareness by renewing the Danish design tradition.

Home chemotherapy for leukemia patients. Flexible furniture for indoor and outdoor use in the rapidly growing number of small city homes. And handmade glass to bring back the sense of materials and the very design process. These are just a few of the projects to be presented at TENT 2016. The showcase is a unique opportunity to see how young designers from KADK are renewing the proud Danish design tradition by creating highly sophisticated designs with a new strong focus on present societal issues.

Mathilde Aggebo, Head of the School of Design, states:
“The standard is incredibly high and we are spoilt for choice with regard to new design projects this year. The graduate exhibition shows that engagement in human behaviour and society is at the centre of the students’ works today. This is reflected in the new design methods in use, such as co-design and experimental research into reuse of materials. The students are boldly renewing the strong Danish design tradition in a very talented way”.

In recent years, the Danish Design School has sought to sharpen the students' eyes to the surrounding society. The students have been urged to do projects dealing with welfare, the environment, population growth and natural resources. Thereby the Design school brings forward the next generation of designers in close relation to the issues of today.

Chemo to go, please!
Among the projects is “Chemo to go, please!”, made by graduate designers Rie Maktabi and Isabel Aagaard. Together with medical staff at Rigshospitalet’s leukemia department, Aagaard and Maktabi have co-designed a coherent chemo-to-go experience for patients, relatives and staff,  allowing patients to take their chemo “to go”, instead of staying at the hospital. When patients stay home, they are more active, they see friends and family more, catch fewer infections, eat more and sleep better – all of which leads to a faster recovery. This award-winning and already highly successful solution is soon to be implemented throughout Denmark.

From fiber to form - Experiments with recycling materials
In this project, the primary focus of Astrid Tolnov has been to develop a textile material, which utilizes textile in a new way within the realm of furniture design. The material consists of 50 per cent white and blue cotton fibres (100 per cent recycled) and 50 per cent polyester bico-fibres (50 per cent recycled). The fibres are mixed with water, dried and made into airy mats, which under heat and pressure transform into a highly durable textile material that has great strength properties when moulded into furniture.

Negotiable Objects for indoor and outdoor use

More and more people live in urban settings in small city homes. Emil Krøyer and Mads Sætter-Lassen have created a series of objects with a mutual relationship to the small city home with a balcony or patio. The objects are intended to function both indoors and outdoors depending on the season and their delicate design combine sustainable high quality with affordability.

Hand Tool Glass – getting back the sense of materials

What is the origin of our design objects, how are they made, and how do we experience their uniqueness? Rick Gerner's selection of functional glassware spurs from his interest in revealing and amplifying the craftsman’s mark. As the glass moves from liquid to solid, the interference of Gerner's tooling reveals impressions within the material creating forms unique to the craftsman's hand.

Visit the mini-reception at the Danish exhibition at TENT on 22nd of September, 5PM

With participation of the Embassy of Denmark, Head of the Design School Mathilde Aggebo and graduate students.