The Jerwood Applied Arts Prize 2004: Furniture exhibition is reviewed on behalf of craftscotland by Hamid van Koten. 

If you like contemporary furniture then you must go and see this, but do not expect to find any comfortable sofas… This competition is all about innovation, so what you will see here is in few living rooms as yet!

The Jerwood Prize, now in its tenth year, is awarded every year within one of six disciplines: jewellery, textiles, ceramics, glass, metal and furniture.  In 2004 the furniture prize went to Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby for “most significant contribution to contemporary furniture in the UK over the last seven years. “

The judging panel, chaired by eminent design critic and editor David Redhead, included some of the leading figures in the design world: Olle Anderson,artistic leader and managing director of White Design AB, Gottenberg; Tamsin Blanchard, style editor The Observer Magazine; Robert Kilvington, furniture designer- maker and Charles Rutherford, architectural designer- maker.

Traditional labels like craft, art or design provide no uncomfortable restrictions for the people exhibiting here. Co-existing are objects for mass production (traditionally the realm of the industrial designer), batch production (more the realm of the craft) and one-off (generally the territory of the artist). It is a sign of the times to see an exhibition evidencing such a wide range of working practices and which showcases people who can straddle these disciplines comfortably.

Tom Dixon’s objects are distinct, radical and experimental, yet never loose touch with the practical. His ‘Fat’ chair demonstrates a novel and crafts-like approach to industrial technology, opening up new ways for contemplating the use of extruded plastics.  As a hands-on designer maker, and as head of design for Habitat, Dixon is well aware of the difficult journey one has to travel in order to bring new ideas to the market.

Out on a limb, El Ultimo Grito stretches the boundaries of what we might define as furniture. Their quirky objects radiate imagination and dislodge fixed ideas about what things are for, what they should look like and how they should be made. Roberto Feo and Rosario Hurtado demonstrate they can put their minds to any matter, and so they playfully re-invent our lives.

Humour and interactivity is also present in Azumi’s proposals, which are executed with great rigor and precision. A table magically transforms into a cupboard, another one into a chair. Seductive use of shopping trolley welding technology allows for a lightweight reversible chaise lounge. Equally intriguing is Azumi’s 3-dimensional plywood lamination, and the refined use of oak -cut with a high-pressure water jet- on the ‘comb chair’.

Jim Partridge stands alone in that he does not directly seek to engage with multiple production processes. His strong conceptual approach to, and understanding of natural materials is firmly rooted in his designer / maker background. His pieces (many monumental in scale) are inspiring when seen in the right surroundings.

Not having been at the judging it can be hard to work out why someone wins a competition. Perhaps the winning duo combines and perfects all of these qualities in their work: a minimalist style and a confidence in form, function and use of material. They make their final products look beautiful, natural and easily done, yet one is aware of a process of considered and thoughtful evolution.

The judges said about Barber Osgerby: "A design team whose work combines clarity, coherence and beauty. Their work is a real marriage of craft and design, that is both fresh and classic and shows a true grasp of material and form."

Exhibitions such as these can be frustrating. Objects designed for use are put into a gallery environment and here they assume a certain aura and inevitably they can no longer be touched freely. This exhibition has gone some way to providing an interactive experience. So make sure to try out Azumi’s movable satellite school desk and do visit El Ultimo Grito’s ‘Ego club’: an experience not to be missed (but make sure you dress well).

The exhibition, The Jerwood Applied Arts Prize 2004: Furniture, is on from 22 July until 18 September 2005 at the Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh EH1 1JF tel: 0131 247 4422.  Opening hours Monday to Saturday 10am to 5pm, Tuesday 10am to 8pm and Sunday 12 noon to 5pm.  Admission free.

Hamid van Koten is a specialist Advisor for the Scottish Arts Council, studied product Design at Glasgow School of Art, runs a design consultancy and is Director for the Design History, Theory and Practice programme at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design, Dundee.