4th year Product Design Engineers have unveiled the outcomes of a special project - Retail Therapy - exploring luxury, which was run in partnership with the award-winning GSA shop. This is the first ever collaboration between the GSA shop and the ground-breaking academic programme which has produced designers working for internationally-renowned companies ranging from Jaguar Landrover to Dyson International. A special range of luxury products including walnut and steel chopsticks, concrete plant holders and turned ash tea cups, have been made in limited editions and are on sale at the GSA shop.
Retail Therapy was initiated by lecturers on the Product Design Engineering programme to challenge the students to respond to a live brief.
“When I approached the GSA shop with the idea of a live project I was keen to get them involved from the very start,” says programme tutor Hugh Pizey. “By securing a real-world platform for sales of the final outcomes the students were given a particularly strong imperative to think about who would buy their product and how it would appeal, as well as meeting high quality levels for the fully finished limited edition pieces.”
“The students have benefitted significantly from the project, particularly through experimentation with materials, trying out new processes in the workshops and finessing their skills, and above all ensuring consistency and attention to detail throughout their product development.”
“Through our collection of contemporary design products by students, staff and alumni we aim to showcase the creative talent for which the GSA is celebrated,” adds Annie Lavety, GSA Enterprises Retail buyer.“Although we work closely with individual makers this is the first time we have collaborated with a department of the School on a project. It has been fascinating to see the students’ ideas turned into fully formed products."
“Throughout the process we have been able to offer the benefit of our experience of the retail sector helping to demystify what retailers are looking for in terms of product sourcing, packaging, pricing and more.”
The products
Christian Pomeroy’s walnut/ash wood and molten steel Chopsticks
"For this design, I aimed to experiment with welding as an aesthetic process, and I wanted to employ it in new ways but always with respect to hand-made objects,” says Christian Pomeroy. “The result is a very tactile and visually interesting material. Similar to how icicles are formed, steel is built up from itself to create a free-form twig-like, natural structure. The wood, by contrast, is smooth and regular, giving the chopstick a traditional tip to eat with.”
Katherine Moriarty Concrete Gradients - moulded and coloured concrete plant holders
Each limited edition planter has been designed to work either individually or as part of a set.
“The inspiration for the design came from experimentation with the material and process,” explains Katherine, “and looking at the use of concrete in architecture, in particular the Brutalism movement. I chose to work with concrete as it was a material I had never used before and as an engineer, I am interested in the involvement it has had with modern structures.”
Silicone moulds were made from handmade forms. Both white and coloured concrete were mixed separately, allowing both parts to bleed together within the moulds. The colour gradients in the planters soften the structures and give the pieces an added interest.
Sophie Jones: Cu Desk accessories in copper and beech wood
The Cu Desk range is inspired by engineering which is often overlooked in our built environment. Made from re-purposed industrial copper piping, complemented by locally sourced maple wood, each piece is handmade and so may vary slightly in size. The set, which includes two pencil pots and a smaller container for storing any miscellaneous items, makes a contemporary addition to any desk space.
Kelsey Kordakis: Tangram– a water jet cut ceramic puzzle and bamboo box.
an elegant new take on a classic Chinese transformation puzzle
“I designed Tangram to appeal as beautiful gift, for a deep thinker, and to be treasured long term,” explains Kelsey. “All the puzzle pieces are made using re-purposed china dinnerware, to give new life to an old, but cherished, item.” Each delicate piece in Tangram was meticulously shaped using water jet technology and the puzzle is housed in a handcrafted bamboo box.
Andreas Eliassen 100 cubes
Various materials, machined into cubes and hand finished
“I am inspired by the interaction between different materials and the tactile nature of objects,” says Andreas. “This is the beginning of a series of works that will comprise 100 materials, all shaped into cubes, which will at once encourage the appreciation of the materials themselves and the interplay between them. I've worked to investigate the best ways to shape and finish each material, from cutting stone to polishing steel. Five sides show how the material was shaped, while one is finished to reveal what the finished material can become."
Andrew Barclay: T-Cup - Turned ash wood
“Tea drinking has a history stretching across the globe and back a number of centuries," says Andrew. "With the recent revival in interest, T-Cup aims to bring a contemporary feel to this luxurious pastime" Inspired by wooden cups originating in Japan, these white ash drinking vessels have been handcrafted using traditional methods, to create a unique product perfect for enjoying the latest tea tasting experiments. "I chose White Ash because of the ease of lathe working and aesthetics,"adds Andrew."The grain is very well defined and thus gives an attractive finish. This project has allowed me to develop woodturning and finishing skills, including the uncommon usage of a faceplate to enable hollowing out of the cups.”
Calum Doig: Folium Beaten sheet copper leaves on Carrara marble
Each leaf has been produced by hand, ensuring no two are the same
“The inspiration for this product was the uniqueness and beauty of autumn leaves as they fall from the tree,” explains Calum. “These particular leaves are modelled on specimens from an indigenous copper beech tree found nearby to where I live in Glasgow. The copper has been beaten using a hammer and anvil then hand cut into shape. The marble is hand cut and polished with two edges rough broken to show its natural centre.”
Other products in the range include: Tilly Swanson's Clean Machine (cast statement soap, handmade to an ecological recipe);
The Retail Therapy limited-edition design products are on sale at the GSA Shop (in store only).
The Glasgow School of Art Shop is located in the Reid Building at 164 Renfrew Street, Glasgow, G3 6RF. Open 10am – 4.30pm, 7 days | www.gsashop.co.uk .
Every purchase supports the School.
Every purchase supports the School.
Ends
Further information
press@gsa.ac.uk
Note for Editors
The Product Design Engineering programme has been run jointly by The Glasgow School of Art and the University of Glasgow for almost a quarter of a century