I previously mentioned that I have noticed quite a few bikes in design magazines lately. Yesterday, I decided to thumb through a few of the recent magazines in the growing stack on my desk, and I was not surprised to see something bicycle related in each one.
The April issue of Metropolis featured David Larsson’s foldable Streetbike in its coverage of the Salone Satellite, a showcase for the work of young designers at the Salone Internazionale del Mobile in Milan. Elsewhere in the Metropolis issue was a section called “Things that Matter.” Thirty designers were asked the simple question, “what is your favorite everyday object?” Kasper Salto picked a Freitag messenger bag made from recycled truck trap and seat belt straps. Harry Richardson of Committee chose the Alan Superleggera bicycle, which he referred to as “useful and absolutely beautiful.” I have actually never ridden an old Alan, but I hear that they were a bit stiffer than the old bonded aluminum Vitus frames, which were known to be pretty flexible. But I am digressing a bit; I don’t really want to pick on a thirty-year-old frame for not being stiff enough. The bike is a classic and I was glad to see a picture of the gold anodized frame in the pages of Metropolis.
The May issue of Azure featured the e-Solex designed by Pininfarina. Before anyone corrects me, I know that this is a moped and not a bicycle. Still, it looks good and it does have pedals, so I’m going to go ahead and mention it. For more information check out this old Treehugger post or take a look at the e-Solex website.
The May issue of ID showed a picture of Ross Lovegrove’s studio in London. Behind the new liquid aluminum “single surface deformation” table in the foreground is one on Lovegrove’s bicycle designs for Biomega. I am glad to see that he keeps one around in his studio. I know that Mr Lovegrove is a busy guy, but I hope he gets a chance to get out and ride that bike every once and a while.
Photo of David Larsson’s Streetbike from the Metropolis website
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