Display furniture pieces for the Bang & Olufsen pop-up store are composed only of details. More precisely, transparent acrylic components are joined together using only metal bolts and nuts, and the joint details connecting the components are completely visible. While we designed only furniture here, we can expand the idea further: if details are completely visible in spaces and architecture, it means that they are easily dismantlable. "Easily dismantlable" spaces and architecture are convenient in case they need to relocate elsewhere. Moreover, if HVAC piping/equipment and structural components are completely visible, it means that they can be easily repaired and replaced in the future. Design should not be considered complete at the time of completion. Instead, we need to think about design in a longer time frame. Can we consider a "not-yet -complete" state as the basis for design? And can it provide grounds for design decisions?
Details clearly articulate design in the same way that conjunctions and punctuation marks articulate sentences. "Column, steel, glass, sheet," "steel column and glass sheet," and "column of steel, sheet of glass" ––all of these phrases mean different things. Moreover, take the phrase "Godisnowhere" as an example, the meaning completely changes by how words are articulated. We need to expand on the idea and think about how to influence the overall design through careful and minimal manipulation of joints and other details."
Take "kintsugi" (golden joinery) as an example, let us take a look at the situation where joints and repair methods themselves dominate the overall design. Kintsugi is a traditional Japanese art of repairing broken, chipped, or cracked pottery using urushi (lacquer) and dusting the joints with gold powder. The method can be applied to any piece of pottery. The idea is to accept any defects and noises, contrary to the idea of making something based on someone's subjective viewpoints or a strong design concept. The concept of "completion" no longer applies, because things can be repeatedly repaired each time they break. We continue to explore ways to make things based on a methodology like this.
