Informalism slide notes
1. Even very industrial objects can have a very strong sense of aesthetic pleasure.
Although they are often designed only to do a job (utilitarian), they can often possess certain aesthetic qualities without even trying. Informalism seeks to exploit the aesthetic possibilities of industrial objects for more domestic applications.
2. A bit of radical thought is required when thinking of applying an industrial aesthetic in the home. Sometimes the result is very surprising.
3. Concrete blocks could find a variety of uses in a domestic environment, although with varying degrees of success.
4. Perhaps they could be used better as a room divider. Are there any other possibilities you can think of?
5. In 1985 a group of German designers got together and formed a group called
'Pentagon'. Their main idea was to create one-off (only one made) items which brought an industrial aesthetic into objects found around the home.
6. The result was a range of products which created a great deal of interest. Exhibitions were held and they became very successful. They gave birth to the design style called 'Informalism'.
7. Informalism was popular for a range of reasons. The designs were unexpected and aroused a deal of interest. People may have become tired of boring furniture and were excited by new possibilities. Design is all about exploring possibilities.
8. They explored the power of the unexpected. Bicycle wheels are used in a set of bookshelves to make them dynamic. The aluminium shelves and the steel frame are very simple and unadorned with any ornament.
9. None of their objects were very well finished with paint or varnish because they wanted the materials to speak for themselves more. This could be considered a much more 'honest' approach. The steel used in this coat stand makes the object look very solid and industrial, but it makes us wonder why we always expect things to be made of wood or plastic.
10. Informalism loves to surprise us with unexpected materials. It makes us ask the question: do objects have to be made from traditionally beautiful materials in order to be considered beautiful?
11. The Pentagon group often used objects which they just found. Do we have the tendency to over process materials, or is there value in the 'found object'?
12. Ron Arad was a big player in the informalist design style. His work is often an exploration of metals such as steel and stainless steel. His 'book worm' not only uses unexpected materials, but employs an unexpected shape which is in keeping with the material he has chosen. It is often in this kind of parity that we find great innnovation.
13. Other designers such as Mimi London in 1986 were also inspired by the beauty of rough hewn materials to invigorate their designs.

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The 'Kangaroo Chair' by Pentagon makes no excuse for welding and in fact makes the welds a design feature. It is often easy to see how an informalist piece has been made. In this way we seem to be able to get to know the designer. They are not hiding behind some mass manufacturing technique.
This chair is entirely demountable and can be assembled without glue or screws. It is in fact more comfortable than it appears. The cross members are made of tight springs covered in rubber.
Cardboard, believe it or not, is quite structural. It is cheap and easy to work with.
These characteristics make it ideal for and informalist apporach to chair design. It has the added benefit of being disposable and biodegradable. Would this chair be suited to your bedroom? Why/ why not?
Another good example of using unexpected materials. Rope has been wound around a mesh frame to produce this lounge chair. The designer used no preliminary drawings, but just designed it as they went.
Ron Arad produced what is perhaps the icon of informalist design. His 'Well
Tempered Chair' is memorable because it challenges our understanding of what our built environment 'should' be like. It says that the 'rules' should be challenged. The only reason we like chairs that look 'normal' is because of our expectations. As designers, we need to think bigger than just assuming that the built environment is the way it is because someone has though it through. Often what we assume to be good design is not only boring but also poor functionally.
Informalism serves to challenge our ideas of what design is about. Are there any other materials we can use? Are there unexpected ways in which we can use them?
Can designers change the way people live their lives in a positive way? Are there opportunities to 'humanise' the built environment by thinking of alternatives to mass production?
Is there beauty in found objects? To what extent is design art? Informalism makes us look at design at a fundamental level. Design is about the creative process.
Informalist objects have a creative transparency.

Aluminium slide notes
1. No wheels required! The classic Airstream caravan was manufactured from sheet aluminium in 1965. Aluminium is so light that for now these two guys can handle this no problems. Why would be important for a towed vehicle such as this caravan to be lightweight? Answer - To make it easier for the car to pull it along.
2. Aluminium is not a free metal. It does not exist in an ore rock in the same way that iron does. Its raw material is bauxite that has to be processed using specialised and expensive techniques. This is a sample of an early attempt of making aluminium from the science labs of Freidrich Wohler in 1845.
3. Aluminium, like plastic struggled to find an identity with form or with specific objects. It was used as an imitator and a substitute for other materials. There was an advantages for the wearer of this helmet which was normally made of heavier more dense metals. What do you think it was? Answer - it wasn't as tiresome to wear in those long ceremonial parades. Aluminum was also incredibly expensive to make so it was considered to be highly desirable due to its rarity.
4. Aluminium finally discovered its first authentic form during the 1890's. The tea kettle seen here was designed and manufactured by Wagner Ware Manufacturing Co during this period. The acceptance of the material took a number of decades to be achieved in the households of North America and Europe but during this time improvements were made to the materials which improved its physical mechanical properties as well a reducing what had been a relatively high cost.
5. The architects of the early 1900's embraced the new material, by using a process called 'extruding' to manufacture lightweight, structurally strong door and window frames. This possibility enabled designers and architects to develop interesting innovations such as double-glazing.
6. Gerrit Rietveld attempted to produce this armchair from a single sheet of aluminium.
Although it didn't quite work as you can see by the cone shaped legs at the back, designers were beginning to investigate new ways of using this new material.
7. The Toledo chair designed by Jorge Pensi in 1986 has used two forms of aluminium here, sheets and tube. By creating shape and form, folds and bends, the material is capable of supporting heavy loads. The material has a coating sprayed on to provide a soft non-metallic feel.
8. Surface coatings are helpful in encouraging an aesthetic quality to the material.
These aluminium cups have been anodised, and electrolytic process which enables a special dye to be absorbed into the surface of the aluminium.
9. Aluminium is well understood by designers of the late 20 th Century and in the 21 st
Century. Its properties are well tested and the manipulation possibilities of it are numerous. Here we see a walker for the aged or people recovering form hip operation. It combines structural integrity with lightweight.
10. A defining moment for the use of aluminium was created by the Bialetti coffee maker in 1933 using new casting technologies. Its design has been unchanged since that time suggesting a good choice and use of this material.

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Sporting goods have benefited from the qualities of aluminium. There are some notable exceptions such as cricket bats and tennis racquets. Why is aluminium unsuitable to use in these sports?
Structural strength and lightness are common reasons why designers choose aluminium. Aluminium is 'alloyed' with other materials to improve it physical qualities, titanium is often used to improve tensile forces.
Aluminium is easily shaped. It is highly malleable. These cases use sheet aluminium which have pressed into shape.
Aluminium has had a cultural impact during the 20 th Century. It has enabled designers to transport hundreds of people throughout the world by employing it to manufacture aircraft parts. 80% of this Boeing 747 is made from aluminium.
Aluminium has developed a range of possibilities through its transformation from one form to another, sheet to tube, extrusion to bar. This example of a ball gown designed by Jean Desses explores possibilities and demonstrates innovation.
An interesting departure for jewellery away from precious was the use of aluminium the latter part of the 20 th century. Although the use of aluminium in this industry was nothing new the significant reduction in production costs from the latter part of the 19 th
Century.
Unexpected making processes can be used with aluminium. Ron Arad's vacuum formed aluminium chair, Un-Cut 1997, is a good example of this.
Marc Newson's Lockheed lounge made both himself and aluminium a world super star of design. This unique approach in using aluminium emulated the fuselage of an aircraft to create a 'fluid metallic form'.
During the 1930's BMW adopted the use of aluminium to manufacture streamlined racing cars. The reduced weight of the design enabled the 'silver arrows' as they were known achieved increased top speeds by 35km/h.
Even at the most advanced level of design and innovation aluminium is still used today for the very same reasons as it was used at the end of the 19 th century. Sony's robot's Aibo uses many aluminium components in its construction.