Where the idea for the book came from

During the last decades, CAD programs have revolutionised the way we work. Complex shapes and volumes that previously represented weeks of sketching, drawing and model building can now be done in a much shorter time. Most young professionals and students master a series of programs that will help them from the start of the concept to the final rendered images.

Learning new things is great, but our fascination with everything virtual has created a situation where the material for the formalisation of the product becomes a necessary evil that has to be applied at the end of the design process.

A large part of the identity of a well designed item lies in the materials and in the production method used: It is what makes it strong, waterproof, environmentally friendly (damaging), durable, light etc.. When the designer ends up relying entirely on the knowledge and advice of technicians and manufacturers for this formalisation, the result is the loss of control of the design process and, ultimately, the outcome of the product.
The intention of this book and the workshops is not to go back to the craftsmanship of earlier times, but simply to close the “missing link” to production, which materials have now become to many designers.

So we invite you to take back what belongs to you as a designer; the right to decide the properties of your product. Turn a corner of your studio in to a small workshop, test and explore the materials, find the ones that you believe have good properties and use them. If you do not find what you are looking for, then create it.

- and please make something sexy with recycled material now!