Articles By: Blaine Brownell

Fly Ash Panels

Fly ash is the waste product of burning coal that is comprised mainly of silica, alumina, iron, and calcium. Fly ash is often combined with cement as an additive, but only up to a certain percentage of concrete may be fly ash. Carolyn Dry has developed a method of fabricating building panels and insulation...

July 1st, 2011 | feature, mineral | Read More

Lumisty

Lumisty first drew widespread attention when it was used on the windows of Pleats Please, Issey Miyake’s clothing boutique in SOHO. Upon first encountering the product, people are often struck by what seems like an optical illusion. Walking past a window with Lumisty applied, a perfectly clear,...

June 30th, 2011 | feature, plastic | Read More

Imagine Tile

Imagine Tile, Inc. can take any two-dimensional image and incorporate it into the glaze of an incredibly vivid, commercially-rated ceramic tile. Imagine Tile uses a patented process which treats ceramic glazes like printing inks. Pure minerals and ores are ground micro-fine and suspended in a liquid...

June 29th, 2011 | feature, mineral | Read More

Sphere Glass

Sphere Glass provides a novel form for three-dimensional glass. Hemispherical glass spheres are fused to clear or cast background glass panels. Spheres can be added to one side or both sides of the panel, and they can be cast (textured) or clear, with or without color. The spheres may be made up to two...

June 28th, 2011 | glass | Read More

Fuzzy Light Switch

International Fashion Machines provides private research and consulting in electronic textiles to a variety of clients, industries, and the military. They work with the latest electronic yarns and a variety of textile processes including embroidery, sewing, weaving and braiding. IFM also creates electronic...

June 27th, 2011 | textile | Read More

Livinglass Curves

Livinglass Curves is the first decorative laminated glass made in curved profiles. Available in an array of interlayer patterns and textures, Curves allows designers to specify the panel length, width, thickness, and radius. It can be specified with 100% recycled resin and 100% recycled glass, and is...

June 24th, 2011 | feature, glass | Read More

Foam

OMA developed Foam as part of their work for Prada. In addition to the design of new spatial typologies, the development of new materials expands the interior palette of the new Prada epicenter stores. Ranging from translucent cast resin for shelves to bubble-textured silicone floor mats, the creation...

June 23rd, 2011 | plastic | Read More

GKD Metal Fabrics

Woven metal fabrics have been developed for use as decorative and functional design elements in architecture. The French National Library in Paris was the first architectural project where GKD, in cooperation with French architect Dominique Perrault, succeeded in systematically implementing metal meshes...

June 22nd, 2011 | metals | Read More

Eco-Cement

Developed by John Harrison of TecEco, Eco-Cement is made by blending reactive magnesium oxide with conventional hydraulic cements. Mimicking nature, Eco-Cement concretes absorb large amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in order to harden into materials used for the built environment. As Eco-Cements...

June 21st, 2011 | concrete, feature | Read More

Ply

Ply is a sculptural wall-element made of birch wood harvested in Finland. At 0.45 mm thick, the textile-thin birch plywood layer is nearly translucent. This layer is adhered to a solid birch frame, which may be mounted to straight surfaces using a variety of methods. Ply is available in two versions,...

June 20th, 2011 | wood | Read More