IKEA HACKS are part of the exhibition FENOMEN IKEA at Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg/Germany (Museum of Arts and Crafts), 6th Nov. 2009 - 28th Feb. 2010. ›Eine Ausstellung mit 250 IKEA-Produkten aus sechs Jahrzehnten, über 30 Designklassikern von Thonet, Panton u.a., rund 25 Arbeiten von Künstlern und Designern zu IKEA, der originalen Frankfurter Küche von 1926 und dem häufigsten deutschen Wohnzimmer.‹

World Trade Bench & Deadstock on display at DMY International Design Festival Berlin, 03-07 June 2009  (DMY Youngsters Exhibition, Arena, Eichenstraße 4, 12435 Berlin)

The piece World Trade Bench is about turning architectural shapes into furniture. The data for this bench come from a 3D-model of one of Beijing`s World Trade Center towers, found in Google’s 3D-Warehouse online archive.

So this bench is a kind of ready-made, based on a global analog/digital data handling process: First, some architects designed the building, then construction workers in Beijing built it, then a computer nerd from Asia reproduced it as a 3D-model (simplifying it by using rounded measures, flattening the surface)… finally Studio Proxy adapts this data and turns it into a piece furniture, letting function follow form.

type: upholstered bench
material: digital print fabric, stainless steel, foam, wooden core
dimensions: 113 (w) x 46 (h) x 32 (d) cm

Related project: Sankos House

3D-model of Beijing's World Trade Center II in Google Earth

The towers of the real World Trade Center in Beijing

The shelf/lighting unit Deadstock adapts the style of public fashion shop shelves for the private living room.
Books, clothes etc. can be presented as valuable, highly aesthetic objects. Formally the shelf also relates to Minimal Art. It serves as a background lighting for the living space too.

type: shelf/lighting
material: lightweight building board (honeycomb cardboard core), chipboard, lacquer, LED lighting
dimensions:  90 (w) x 110 (h) x 31 (d) cm