From its location (Copenhagen's increasingly hip meatpacking district) to its name (a reference to the 1's and 0's of binary code), Space10 sounds like any number of sleek startups spaces attempting to build a creative laboratory. But this enterprise has a fairly large patron: IKEA, the Swedish furniture behemoth. The recently opened venue will serve as a future-living lab, a place to innovate, iterate and explore ideas outside of the environs of the multinational firm.
A former fishmonger's shop, the space, designed by local firm Spacon & X, has many of the hallmarks of tech company interior design: communal seating, sparse interiors, and flexible seating. Formerly a warren of dilapidated coolers and small rooms, the redesign opened up the interior creating what designer Malene Hvidt hopes is seen as a "playground" for designers. Referencing the experimental mission statement, the entire 1,000-square-meter (10,763-square-feet) space has been decorated in hacked IKEA furniture.
A joint effort by the company and the Art Rebels creative agency, Space10 will serve as a research and exhibition space, hosting a rotating group of design collaborators to explore and collaborate on special projects. The first exhibition, Fresh Living Lab, features the work of a dozen students from the Copenhagen Institute of Interaction Design.
One of the projects currently on display, SMART (smart art) helps visualize home energy use and encourage conservation. The system measures average energy consumption and reflects usage back to the homeowner, changing color to indicate overuse.
Other projects include Heat Harvest, which utilizes the heat generated from, say, a coffee carafe, to charge a mobile device. A pad build inside a table or countertop would utilizing nanotechnology to help collect and repurpose energy used in the home.
Clunes, a smart chair, fights inactivity by popping up when users haven't met their fitness goals, providing a visual cue to go outside and get more exercise. Not only does this jump on the "sitting is the new smoking" bandwagon, but even the name seems like it would fit in an IKEA catalog.
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