This is what you get when you combine Ikea and contemporary fashion designers
Home furnishing giant Ikea has always shone a loving and communal spotlight on its industrial designers. Ikea has devoted pages of its annual keepsake catalogue to the people and process within its design ranks. But new for 2016 are three limited edition capsule collections that pair its interior smarts with the world of fashion. It’s hardly a stretch. Just think of wedding dress designer Vera Wang—her table settings reflect her achingly feminine aesthetic. Or funky Trina Turk who stamps the bohemia of her clothes all over her namesake bed linens.
British menswear designer Katie Eary will be first out of the Ikea gate with Giltig. Tea cups, lampshades and table coverings speak to Eary’s love of the graphic and pop art. Some will also know Eary for her early work with Kanye West on Donda.
Next is Glodande which hits Ikea stores in June and features playful designs on bowls, boxes and pillows from Belgium’s Walter Van Beirendonck. Not only is he an Antwerp Six alum, Van Beirendonck has musical ties too after designing the costumes for U2’s “PopMart” arena tour in 1997.
And in the fall Martin Bergstrom‘s Svärtan collection will be unveiled. Bergstrom, a Swedish textile designer worked with a group of 25 design students from the National Institute of Fashion Technology in New Delhi, India, to create bed linens, textiles, paper products, rugs, bowls, glassware and metal objects. If you’ve ever see the riotous colours of India, you’ll know that Ikea has taken a decidedly modern approach here. Svärt is Swedish for “black” hence the entire collection is black and white with shades of grey. Get them while you can.
