Four original customizations of Smeg FAB28 refrigerator were made by four New Zealander designers, finalists in the Smeg New Zeland Art Design Competition. The results of their work are very interesting, being inspired by the past and by the future at the same time.
With ‘Around the World’ Matt Blackmore was inspired by a family heirloom, a suitcase that belonged to the great-grandmother’s author, a symbol not only of the trip but also of the importance of family ties. The second work, ‘Direction of the Future’, sprang from an Aleisha Stanton idea. She installed on the FAB surface shards of mirror cut into triangular shapes and back-lit, which symbolically interpret the fragility and beauty of the connections between people, places, objects and eras. Eleganza is the Italian name of the third FAB28 and is a sort of tribute to the suggestions of Made-in-Italy design and fashion. Julie Ashby, the authoress, has dressed her refrigerator with a refined covering of white vinyl. And honoring the New Zealander tradition, the fourth finalist FAB uses a traditional New Zealand merino wool, but introduces a technological innovation: the geometric design of Nikolai Sorensen is in fact made possible thanks to a modern 3D printer. The winner fridge will be announced by the company next month.
