In collaboration with USM, Aram unveils its latest design experiment in the exhibition space of its iconic London emporium. Exhibiting until the 14th of December, “Adaptations” showcases the work of 10 UK creatives who have reimagined USM Haller modular furniture system into exciting configurations that enhance their everyday lives.
Originally established in 2002, The Aram Gallery has been a place that platforms new and experimental design in London. Recently rebranded as part of Aram’s 60th anniversary celebrations in 2024, a new 2000 sq. ft gallery space welcomes a new era of design exhibitions, while building on the legacy led by Aram’s founder, the late Zeev Aram.
Most recently, the new gallery space has been occupied by creative variations of the USM Haller system, as envisioned as part of Aram’s collaboration with the Swiss brand. The brief of this design experiment however, was largely inspired by a visit to the USM factory headquarters in Switzerland. Here, Aram spotted engineers adapting the USM Haller system into bespoke pieces to suit their day to day working needs.
Influenced by the ingenuity of the company’s offices, as well as its mission to encourage artistic freedom, Aram set 10 UK based creatives an open brief to design a piece for their home life or studio. Thus, the select group of architects and product designers got to work devising pieces that veered from the traditional USM Haller designs, while showcasing the limitless qualities of these modular masterpieces.
While some designers modified existing USM Haller pieces, others transformed the iconic components into personal items of furniture, placing them in a completely new context. Scattered across the floor plan, you’ll find imaginative inventions of seating, shelves, a book stand, a camper van unit and more. enki took to Aram to learn more about the process behind each design, and how the designers have adapted USM Haller to benefit their day to day tasks. Here, we share our exhibition highlights…
London based product and furniture designer Livia Lauber creates works that centre around familiar yet unconventional narratives. Weaving this approach into her response to Aram’s brief, while also thinking about what was missing from her studio, the designer produced a floor lamp for her home and a bookshelf for her studio in an out of the ordinary form.
The lamp’s shade, made from freely hanging Washi, adds a soft contrast to the cuboid metal frame. Inside, a large dimmable globe bulb offers “both a functional reading light and a warm, ambient glow.” The compact bookshelf uses custom length diagonal support tubes, as well as castors, which allow the design to be moved around her studio space with ease.
The architect and associate of David Kohn Architects who’s helped lead award-winning-projects including the Red House (RIBA House of the Year, 2022), Jennifer Dyne, designed a multifunctional tool chest-trolley for her home studio. “Her mini tower of utility storage celebrates the origins of USM Modular Furniture as a building system, whilst soft and transparent reconfigurable adaptations contrast the rigid structure without concealing the precision engineering.”
Mitre and Mondays is a studio specialising in manufacturing objects and spaces that connect people to the material world around them using methods of disassembly, reuse and repair. Inspired by the need for efficiency for days working onsite and on the go, their response to the brief was experimental folding stools; designed to be popped up in offices or while navigating London’s narrow streets.
“Using USM Haller components, non-USM hardware fittings and a textile sling, the concept is a proposed way to enhance the ease of sharing meals while working onsite.”
Furniture and product designer David Searcy aims to create deeper connections between objects and users by delivering innovative and practical designs. For the brief, the designer created two pieces of modular furniture for his bedroom; a chair and a clothes rail. The armrests of Chair are reimagined USM Haller trolley rails, allowing items to be hung instead of gradually piling up.
Rail has been designed with smaller spaces in mind, to provide enough storage while remaining compact in stature. The design introduces a steel wire rope pinned within the threaded ball joint by grub screws, “creating a tensile structure that leans on the inherent potential of the USM Haller system.”
The Aram and USM collaboration is showcasing until the 14th of December, head to Aram to discover the full exhibition now.
Aram Address: 110 Drury Lane, WC2B 5SG, London
Opening Times: Monday to Saturday, 10am – 6pm.
Photos: Jack Orton
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