Magabala Books: The Politics of Design

Magabala Books, Australia's first indigenous publishing house takes its name from an indigenous vine that flourishes on the pindan soil of north western Australia. Sam Cook is the publisher's first indigenous designer. She talks with Mara Mann.

Published March 1997

The Domestic Companion: Taking Stock of Furniture Futures

In 1990/91 the author was commissioned to research and develop a national furniture industry strategy. Examines domestic furniture futures, the concept of home, flexibility, transverse use, product families, trends and future furniture companions.

Published March 1997

A Touching Story

Sydney's Powerhouse Museum began collecting artefacts relating to industrial design in the late 1980s. Since then a number of designers and consultancies have been represented in the collection. The author, curator of Industrial Design, Innovation and Marketing at the Powerhouse tells the story of these unsung heros and heroines of the everyday.

Published March 1997

The & of Art & Design

Published 01 March 1997

Space Defined

Exhibition review Jewellery by Brenda Ridgewell,
New Collectibles Gallery,
East Fremantle WA
20 November - 1 December 1996

Published March 1997

SA Designer-makers Turn to Industry

A unique exhibition curated by Steve Ronayne (owner of Aptos Cruz Galleries) held at theJam Factory Gallery in 1996 'South Australia - Emerging crucible of contemporary design' showed just how many local designer-makers of contemporary craft are adopting industrial processes in their work.

Published March 1997

The Nature of Perception

Exhibition review Howard Taylor: Paintings and Drawings
Galerie Dusseldorf, Perth WA
1- 22 September 1996

Published March 1997

Australian Fine China: Artists and Industry

Perth based Australian Fine China, the only maker of porcelain in Australia and New Zealand, is currently using a number of artist-designers to move from being a stolid china manufacturer for railways and cafes to one whose products are seen in top flight restaurants in the big hotels, in classy tourist venues and now on the dining tables of the nation. They have some way to go to entice Australians to purchase the 'local product' for their homes but they are making steady progress.

Published March 1997

Wanton Fruits

Exhibition review Barbie Kjar
Dick Bett Gallery,
Salamanca Place,
Hobart Tasmania
26 November - 10 December 1996

Published March 1997

Inventive Australia

Book review Know-how, the guide to innovation in Australia
Interactive CD Rom published by Powerhouse Publications,
Powerhouse Museum, Sydney NSW
Macintosh/Windows
RRP $99.95

Published March 1997

Exhibiting Furniture

The exhibiting and collecting of contemporary Australian furniture design is a telling indicator of how we as a society regard design. Australian furniture has been seen at SOFA (Sculpture, Objects and Functional Art - Gallery Trade Fair Chicago USA) since 1993.

Published March 1997

Out of the Garden and into the Landscape

What landscape architects in Australia have been doing since about 1970 is to begin to address the Australian lanscape in all its extraordinariness and vastness - as a subject for design and interpretation in the creation not only of our settlements but all those places where we may leave our mark, even if we don't inhabit them.

Published March 1997