Editorial

Foto: Markus Majerus, Koelnmesse

Overlapping Worlds

Patricia Urquiola, one of the most successful and sought-after designers in the world right now and a member of the imm cologne’s Trendboard this year, believes in society’s ability to adapt and is convinced that every change in people’s behaviour and values has an impact on the “evolution of tools” – on the way we dress, furnish our homes, cook and live.

Besides explaining the emergence of interior design trends and underscoring the socio-cultural role of design, that would also give us reason to hope – for a material world where respect for natural resources and the environment we live in is reflected in the things we furnish our homes with.

There is at least one change in our lifestyle that has had an undeniable impact on the face and structure of the imm cologne: we have taken to living in our kitchens again. LivingKitchen, which will take place for the first time this year parallel to the interior design fair, demonstrates this development with impressive vividness – not just because of its sheer size, but above all because of its lively scenographies and self-confident solutions for today’s living space.

And it won’t be the only place where visitors can experience the overlap phenomenon. Both the exhibitors’ presentations and the cross-sector juxtapositions and impressions of the new Pure Village format that was launched last year will be showing that it is no longer the individual, outstanding design object that, thanks to publicity at trade fairs and in the media, provides the role model for our interior culture. Instead it is the context that counts: furniture that tells a story, that sets new benchmarks in terms of sustainability or constitutes a statement in favour of a certain way of life, is very much in demand. But you already know that, of course. More than anything else, it is interior design that is setting the tone nowadays. The interaction between furniture and architecture, between colour palettes and aesthetic languages, defines the framework within which the individual object has to find its place in order to be convincing. And so the imm cologne too has evolved from a furniture fair into a presentation platform for interior worlds, where a constant stream of new product areas and design disciplines provides orientation – like the new “Pure Textile” forum, where leading fabric brands will be staging their latest creations.

More than anything else, the current content folder on the theme of Trends and Design has turned out to be a folder about the people who make the trends. Designers, exhibition makers and entrepreneurs have contributed their statements about what is happening in the design scene and interior design market right now. An update featuring various new ideas from the kitchen sector provides an up-to-the-minute supplement to our “LivingKitchen” folder, and the new products from the furniture industry are complemented by an overview of developments in the world of design and interior design.

The imm cologne’s Trend Book is also intended as a source of orientation for interior designers, retailers, journalists and consumers. This folder includes a brief summary of the Interior Trends 2011: “Emotional Austerity”, “Surprising Empathy”, “Re-Balancing” and “Transforming Perspectives”. The imm cologne’s Trendboard also came to the conclusion that the financial and economic crisis that was so much on everybody’s mind last year has served as a catalyst for a dynamic development towards sustainable product policies. Perhaps the first interior design show of the year will prove them right.

I would be delighted if you decide to come and see for yourself and look forward to meeting you in Cologne.

Yours sincerely,

Markus Majerus





P.S.: As always, all the articles and photos in this folder can be used for editorial purposes free of charge. We kindly request that you notify us of any publications and provide specimen copies where applicable. All the copy and photos – including the material from previous content folders – are available from our free online content system at www.imm-content-service.de.

P.P.S.: By the way: whatever happens in the furniture sector, the imm cologne’s iPhone App will keep you bang up to date.