Habitare, the largest furniture, design and interior decoration event in Finland, has revealed the four young emerging to be featured in Talentshop. Talentshop is curated and produced by Finland's National Design Team, Imu Design which represents emerging Finnish design talent, in collaboration with Habitare. Laura Itkonen, Kristoffer Heikkinen, Hemmo Honkonen and Rasmus Palmgren will have their own stand at Habitare Talentshop in September 2019.
"Now being held for the fifth time, Habitare's Talentshop annually presents the most exciting, up-and-coming Finnish designers whom audiences in Finland and around the world should be following," explained Elina Aalto from Imu Design. "Talentshop highlights designers who are in the early stages of their career, but who have already established their own designer identity and shown proof of their skills. What all the selected designers have in common is originality in their ideas, combined with uncompromising quality and refined implementation."
Laura Itkonen
Laura Itkonen is a Helsinki-based visual designer specializing in ceramics, her work explores materials, techniques and their combinations. 'Art with function' is her source of inspiration and the common thread that runs through her design process, her creations focus on detailed architectural ceramics and sculptural everyday objects that combine art and design. While making things by hand is her most important design tool, she is currently exploring the combination of 3D printing and traditional craft techniques in studio work.
Kristoffer Heikkinen
Kristoffer Heikkinen graduated as a furniture designer from the Lahti University of Applied Sciences Institute of Design in 2017 and is currently a Master of Arts student at Aalto University. The designer has always been a creative thinker who enjoys working with his hands and has a fascination with how objects have been created and how they can be improved. He strives to design products that answer solve problems in a simple and functional manner. His design philosophy is about simplicity, ease of use, longevity, and recyclability. Kristoffer's designs have been presented at exhibitions in Milan, Stockholm, and Finland.
Hemmo Honkonen
Hemmo Honkonen explores the properties of materials and the interaction between the user and the product in his designs. He creates both visually and functionally insightful products that put material properties and user experience at the center. Hemmo Honkonen graduated from Malmstens Linköping University in 2017 with a Bachelor's degree in furniture design and is currently completing his Master's degree on the Aalto University Product and Spatial Design programme. Prior to his design studies, Hemmo graduated as a luthier-artisan from the Ikaalinen College of Crafts and Design.
Rasmus Palmgren
Rasmus Palmgren is a designer who seeks a new perspective for everyday objects, his work is a balance between materials, dimensions, and production. Clever, innovative and simple ideas motivate him. Through carefully considered solutions, he creates honest, timeless and meaningful designs. Rasmus has a Bachelor's degree in cabinetmaking from Malmstens Linköping University in Stockholm, and he is currently working towards a Master's degree in design at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen. Rasmus has collaborated with brands such as Nikari and Claesson Koivisto Rune.
Photos: Courtesy of Habitare