Form

"I have tried to put myself into how people were thinking when they designed during different periods."

IN DECEMBER '97, ALEXANDER LERVIK BEGAN working more concretely on his project. He then faxed a description of his ideas to a number of manufacturers, and asked them to help out with prototype production. Half of them answered yes before seeing what they were going to make. The others said yes after getting to see drawings for "their" stool.

He sketched both by hand and directly on the computer but made all final drawings with pen on paper, wanting to "go through everything carefully" before he sent the material to each respective manufacturer.

– The stools turned out exactly as I had imagined. I received some advice and help from the factories. Everyone seemed to think it was fun to produce my models. Some of the companies had never had contact with the school before. Ary Gruppen for example, who made the 50s stool, manufactured an entirely new mold for it!

Perhaps it was on the materials side Alexander Lervik learned the most. He gained firsthand experience of how different materials suit different shapes, about their properties and possibilities.

— Here at the school, the teachers say: Do not subscribe to design magazines! Buy Saab's aviation magazine or the plastics industry newsletter instead. You will learn much more from that! Matz Borgström has been incredibly inspiring and wanted to show us new things. With him, we have had some materials-focused exercises. We have had lecturers from KTH (Royal Institute of Technology). Designers need informa- tion about technical innovations. What is needed for

28 FORM 4/1998

Alexander Lervik was present almost the entire time in his room at Beckmans during the exhibi- tion. With interest, he ob- served the spectators' reactions. Some mistook the stools for copies. But it was not that simple...

To the right: Four identical parts are joined together into a stable whole. His own favorite, the stool for our time. "It is probably most like me," believes Alex- ander Lervik.

During the exhibition Alexander Lervik was almost always to be found in his room at Beckman's School of Design. He observed the visitors’ reactions with interest. Some thought the stools were copies. But it was not that simple...

Right: Four equal parts were joined to form one stable unit. Alexander Lervik's own favorite was the pallet for our time. ”It's the one that is most like me,” he says.

the future is better communication between designers and engineers.

— I found a plastics factory that could test a new technique, gas-assisted molding, for the 90s stool. Wanted it completely rigid and in clear colors. You should be able to snap it together so that it holds together and can be lifted. Haven't found a manufacturer for it yet. Just a phone in Germany that I need to check out.

THE GOLDEN INSPIRATION THEN, WHERE

does it come from? A bit from everywhere, Alexander Lervik notes. Sometimes it can be a line in a garment. Sometimes, as mentioned, a film. For example, "Men in Black" was made just the other year but was a wonderful 60s piece. While the idea for the 90s stool came during an exercise with Åke Axelsson. The assignment was to make a piece of furniture out of a single plank. That condition was combined with the well-known arm grip that allows two people to lift a third — and presto!

You have to be open to everything. The orange upholstered stool would certainly not have gotten its special character if it had not been sketched on the computer. I simply made a radius and multiplied it 64 times. Sometimes computers lock us in, then you have to go back to the drawing board. Next time it's the other way around. My greatest weakness is drawing and painting. I have everything in my head, but find it hard to get it down on paper.

Says Alexander Lervik, freshly graduated designer, who once planned to study furniture making and restoration in Florence, but discovered that the design process itself actually appealed more. And who definitely does not intend to only work with furniture in the future.

— We have gained great breadth through the educa-

tion here at the school, and slightly more advanced industrial design appeals to me. Perhaps because it carries more responsibility. A chair only needs to work to sit in. Imagine making a heart valve or something sim- ilar... Impressive. It feels like I would like to work on a lot of things.

”Jag har försökt leva mig in hur folk tänkte när de formgav under olika perioder.”

I DECEMBER -97 BORJADE ALEXANDER LERVIK jobba mer konkret med sitt projekt. Då faxade han en beskrivning av sina idéer till ett antal producenter, och bad dem ställa upp med prototyptillverkningen. Hälften av dem svarade ja innan de sett vad de skulle göra. De andra sade ja efter att ha fått se ritningar till ”sin” pall.

Han skissade både för hand och direkt på datorn men gjorde alla slutliga ritningar med penna på papper, ville ”gå igenom allt noggrant” innan han skickade materialet till respektive producent.

- Pallarna blev precis så som jag tänkt mig. Jag fick en del råd och hjälp från fabrikerna. Alla verkade tycka det var roligt att ta fram mina modeller. Några av företagen hade aldrig haft kontakt med skolan innan. Ary Gruppen t ex, som gjorde 50-tals-pallen, tillverkade en helt ny form för den!

Kanske var det på materialsidan Alexander Lervik lärde sig mest. Han fick en alldeles egen erfarenhet av hur olika material lämpar sig till olika former, om deras egenskaper och möjligheter.

— Här på skolan säger lärarna: Prenumerera inte på designtidningar! Köp Saabs flygtidning eller plastindustrins informationsblad i stället. Där lär ni er mycket mer! Matz Borgström har varit otroligt inspirerande och velat visa oss på nya saker. Med honom har vi haft en del materialinrik- tade övningar. Vi har haft föreläsare från KTH (Tekniska Högskolan). Designer behöver informa- tion om tekniska nyheter. Vad som behövs för

28 FORM 4/1998

+ Alexander Lervik fanns nästan hela tiden i sitt rum på Beckmans under utställ- ningen. Intresserat obser- verade han åskådarnas reaktioner. Somliga tog pallarna för kopior. Men så enkelt var det inte...

T h: Fyra lika delar fogas samman till en stabil hel- het. Den egna fav n, pallen för vår tid. ”Den är nog mest jag”, menar Alex- ander Lervik.

During the exhibition Alexander Lervik was almost always to be found in his room at Beckman's School of Design. He observed the visitors’ reactions with interest. Some thought the stools were copies. But it was not that simple...

Right: Four equal parts were joined to form one stable unit. Alexander Lervik's own favorite was the pallet for our time. ”It's the one that is most like me,” he says.

framtiden är bittre kommunikation mellan desig- ner och tekniker.

— Jag hittade en plastfabrik som kunde préva en ny teknik, gasgjutning, för go-talspallen. Ville ha den helt styv och i klara firger. Man ska kunna snippa till den så att den haller ihop och gar att lyfta. Har inte fatt tag pa nagon producent till den än. Bara ett telefc er i Tyskland som jag maste kolla upp.

DEN GYLLENE INSPIRATION DA, VAR

kommer den ifran? Lite var stans, konstaterar Alexander Lervik, Ibland kan det vara en linje i ett klidesplagg. Ibland som sagt en film. T ex "Men in Black” gjordes ju hiromaret men var en hirlig 60- talare. Medan idén till go-talspallen kom under en övning med Ake Axelsson. Den gick ut pa att géra en mébel av en enda planka. Férutsittningen kombi- nerades med det vilkinda armgreppet som gör att två personer kan lyfta en tredje — och vips!

pen for allt. Den oranga stoppade pallen skulle sikert inte fatt sin speciella karaktir om den inte vore skissad pa datorn. Jag gjorde en radie och muliplicerade den 64 ganger helt enkelt. Ibland laser datorerna oss, da far man ga tillbaka till ritbordet. Nästa gang är det tvirtom. Min stérsta svaghet är det där med rita och mala. Jag har allt i huvudet men svart att fa ner det pa papperet.

Sager Alexander Lervik, nyutexaminerad designer, som en gang tinkte studera mébelsnickeri och restaurering i Florens, men upptinkte att sjilva designprocessen egentligen lockade mer. Och absolut inte bara tänker syssla med möbler framéver.

— Vi har ju fått en stor bredd genom undervis-

Man maste vara

ningen här pa skolan och lite mer avancerad industridesign lockar mig. Kanske därför att det är mer ansvarsfullt. En stol behöver bara funka att sitta i. Tänk att göra en hjirtklaff eller nagot lik- nande... Imponerande. Det kiinns som om jag skulle vilja jobba med mycket.