Italian architecture has widely influenced the architecture of the world, and earlier this year, the Global Design team at Moen capitalized on all the country has to offer. The locale served as the backdrop for Sketchfest – an annual, inspirational, offsite event focused entirely on generating new product designs.
Sketchfest has evolved into a creative think tank that fuels the products Moen brings to market. As 2014 marked the 10th anniversary of Moen’s Sketchfest, the Global Design team traveled to Milan and Como, Italy, and spent a few days finding inspiration for the newest kitchen and bathroom fixtures within a colorful and romantic setting.
“If you talk about design in Europe, you usually talk about Italy,” said Jennifer Sedwick, senior industrial designer, Moen. “You can see things from several hundreds of years ago and easily realize how those details are translated into housewares and furniture…and faucets.”
“The serene and peaceful atmosphere of Como really allowed the team to uncover form exploration and the diverse thinking that only sketching provides,” said Chris Gilbert, principal designer at Moen. “Sketchfest for us is a shared, communal process that brings together designers from around the world. We’re all invested in this experience because we believe that together we can achieve something that is far greater than any one of us alone can accomplish.”
The most recent product that transitioned from sketch into reality is Moen’s modern 90° kitchen and bath collection.
“In the case of 90°, our inspiration featured the primary themes of flat/thin and linear designs,” said Gilbert. “Our muses were products such as wafer-thin electronic devices, cell phones, jewelry, appliances and architectural elements.”
At the conclusion of Sketchfest, the design team presents the sketches to Moen associates, and the top designs are chosen for further refinement, with most of the initial work being done by hand.
