Interview by Ineke Schwartz, June 1999
How did you get involved in ecodesign? 'I have always made it my practice, in whatever I have designed, to consider the material, energy and financial costs and whether the product can eventually be reused or recycled. It's a matter of responsible behaviour. A good design goes beyond appearances.'
What is your pet project? 'It's innovation that matters to me. For the inflatable pavilion, I set myself the goal of designing a movable exhibition space which would cost only a tenth the price of conventional transportable pavilions and which would be more practical and attractive than they are. My research told me that inflatable elements would be the way to go, but I didn't stop there: I wanted to prove that you can make them in any shape you like - assuming you develop a suitable material for them, of course. The whole structure has no less than twelve patents. It weighs only 7.5 kg. per square metre, it contains hardly any metal at all and it fits into a standard container. The 330 inflatable volumes take three to five days to fill up. It is fully air conditioned and computer controlled. The flexible membranes (the 'muscles') are in continual movement, like those of a living organism, and hold the structure in equilibrium. It costs DM 2.1 million, which is extremely expensive in my view, although I suppose the price could fall in the long run.'
What are you currently involved in? 'I'm presently working on 'Cocoon', a self-inflating emergency tent weighing only 400 grams.'
What is it that attracts you about inflatable structures? 'Air is my favourite construction material. It's free, it's a fantastic insulator, it's utterly flexible and unbreakable, and you can shape it how you like. Of course, you have to contain it in some material, but the result can be as strong as steel - and a good deal more pliable. We're presently experimenting with the material used for bulletproof vests. It can be used to make practically anything from houses to inflatable space stations. We want our structures to be biodegradable, so we have also engineered a bacterium that eats the stuff.'
Who are your heroes and role models? 'Apart from Leonardo da Vinci, there is no one I know of who has combined innovative engineering with architecture and design in the same way as myself. The Renaissance was a fantastic period; nobody drew hard and fast lines between the profession of an artist and that of an engineer or architect. Dreams, concepts and ideas were what mattered. In my case I would add a concern for social and economic aspects.'
What's your biggest disappointment? 'The new Porsche. When I used to work for the company, they still followed the philosophy that made them great: a new car had to be a combination of task-goal engineering and design, and the form had to be a logical outcome of the engineering. A minimum of materials and energy combined with a maximum of comfort and speed. Then there was a shift in thinking and more emphasis was put on styling. The result is dreadful. I think it's a shame that designers are becoming more and more fixated on outward appearance and degrade themselves into mere stylists.'
What advice can you give young designers? 'Use your imagination and always think for yourself. Don't imitate things but reformulate all the questions and answers. That's the only valid attitude. If you want to build a bridge, don't look at existing bridges but decide what you want yourself; then develop the materials, techniques and machinery you need for it. Only then can you make a great leap forwards. When I want a hard, transparent material, I don't automatically choose glass. I go and talk to a chemist.'
How do you see the future? 'We are living in an age of styling. Look at any trendy magazine, such as Wallpaper. Interiors can be retro, Bauhaus, anything. Styles have become interchangeable and hence superficial and tedious. I believe a new mentality is on the horizon, one where people are going to make more thoughtful choices. Instead of buying a new coffee machine every six months because the latest model catches their eye, people will buy a new product only when it has something more to offer - when the improvement is a real one.'
Axel Thallemer is Head of Corporate Design, Festo AG & Co. He studied philosophy at Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich, architecture at the Munich Art Academy and business at the New York School of Interior Design, before joining Porsche AG as a design engineer in Styling.
The Airtecture Pneumatic Structure is a mobile exhibition hall. This extremely lightweight, collapsible structure with excellent energy-saving properties is unlike any conventional, inflated structure ever designed. Festo AG & Co. accepted the challenge to build a mobile structure from a rational and artistic perspective. Consisting of translucent membranes and other technical textiles, the structure is supported by a skeleton of inflatable chambers held in place by computer controlled pneumatic 'muscles'.
The cases section contains more information about airtecture.