imm has new innovations in store for attendees at the upcoming January 2011 show, including LivingKitchen, a trade fair focusing on all aspects of the kitchen, and an interactive iPhone app. For those looking to see what will be hot in the coming year, the Trend Book and installations will be unveiled (See above image). The show will run January 18-23, 2011 in Cologne, Germany.
The show’s new iPhone app, which is also designed for the iPad and iPod Touch, will give imm Cologne fans a convenient way to keep up-to-date on activities in the design community. During the show, users will have access to background information and photos covering all aspects of the fair and its exhibitors from both a business and an interior design angle. The links to individual news items and products can be forwarded directly to colleagues. In addition, users can also order show tickets from the app or play games to pass the time.
The LivingKitchen trade fair, a new international kitchen event, will be held January 18-23 in tandem with imm Cologne. Hosted by Koelnmesse, the participating exhibitors represent a cross-section of the market, including both kitchen furniture and appliance producers and manufacturers of supplementary products such as sinks, fittings, work surfaces, accessories, lighting and services for kitchens. For details about the new trade fair and the current exhibitor list, click here.
“Almost all well-known German kitchen furniture producers are on board—and we are in close contact with many more. Interest is huge—also from the household appliance sector. Furthermore, we are registering increasing commitments from foreign manufacturers,” said Frank Haubold, LivingKitchen product manager.
For a look at what to expect in the coming year, the panel of trend experts at imm Cologne has predicted what will be in vogue for 2011. The Trend Board, comprised of designers Patricia Urquiola (Milan), Defne Koz (Chicago/Milan/Ankara), Harald Gründl (EOOS, Vienna), textile designer Martin Leuthold (Jakob Schlaepfer, St. Gallen) and the editor Marco Velardi (apartamento, Milan/Barcelona), analyzes current trends in the world of interior design and projects them into the future.
The four interior trends identified will be summed up in a book called Interior Trends 2011, complete with names, exemplary products and photographed settings. At the show, this vision will be expressed in the form of installations, which will be presented by the members of the Trend Board in four exhibition cubes.
“Our task was to take a look at the various forms in which the trends are expressed,” said the Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola concerning the work of the Trend Board. “We have to realize that today there are completely different perspectives on what people consider innovative. Sometimes a new interpretation of something old or a particularly simple and intelligent production method is much more innovative than a new material or an innovative technology. The concept of innovation is changing. In my opinion, it’s closely connected with people’s needs and with the way we use objects.”
