Altec and Postalco. What are the design values that communicate across countries?

Postalco and Artek. I believe that both Postalco and Artek share the same values in terms of quality and sustainable materials and products.

The pop-up is currently being held at the Artek Webstore and the Artek Tokyo Store in Omotesando, Tokyo, Japan.

To celebrate this collaboration, an online talk event was held between Marianne Goble, president of Altec, and Mike Abelson, designer of Postalco. HOUYHNHNM's is pleased to introduce the talk session, which was posted on the Artec website.

Artek & Postalco Online Talk Event
Date: Friday, April 1, 2021 19:00 - 20:00 Implementation
Speaker: Marianne Goble (, President of Altec ),
Mike Ableson ( Postalco Designer )
Moderator: Junya Hirokawa, Editor

Mike Ableson:My name is Mike Ableson. I am one of the founders of Postalco. Postalco was founded in Brooklyn 20 years ago and is now based in Tokyo. You can find a wide range of Postalco products, from stationery to clothing to furniture, at the Postalco Shop in Kyobashi. Humans are imperfect, and we live our lives supported by the "things" around us. At Postalco, we are constantly thinking about what is necessary to compensate for our imperfections and bring us closer to perfection. We are always thinking about what is necessary to compensate for our imperfections and bring us closer to perfection.

Session1: About the Body and Design

Marianne Goble:We feel that there is a mutual interactive dialogue between the human body and furniture. In the more than 80 years since Altec furniture was created, the human body and body shape have also changed. So a few years ago, we raised the height of our chairs and tables by about 2 cm. However, the "Stool 60" remained unchanged. The longer legs look awkward and uncomfortable, and the stool is used not only as a chair but also as a side table for many purposes. We believe that product development as well as product improvement and refinement will never end.

Mike Ableson:As designers, we tend to start from the point of what shape and color we want to create, but first we start and develop from the point that "human beings are neither perfect nor flawless. For example, if you have leather and laces, you can make a pair of sandals. With sandals, you can go to places where it used to be too hot to walk barefoot, or where rocks hurt. The impossible becomes possible, and that is wonderful. I feel it is the duty of designers to pursue this.

Mike Ableson:. not only the body, but the mind as well. Technology allows us to connect online, and with "snap pads," for example, we can write down the thoughts in our heads as words. Manufacturing and product design is an act in which one seeks to approach perfection, perfection. It is the pursuit of what is missing in the body and what is missing in the mind.

Session2: Carrying on the brand and design

Marianne Goble:Over the years, Altec furniture has undergone a series of changes in factories and machinery, as well as improvements in processes, sizes, and surface finishes. Colors also go out of fashion. In the midst of all this, the brand must be carried on. . is to deeply understand and carry on the thoughts of Aalto and the founder of "Altec" at the time of its founding in the 1930s. At the same time, I think it is important to stand by the people who will use the product in any age. If changes and improvements are made with respect for the original, then we believe that we can bring Alvar Aalto's thoughts and intentions to the people and lifestyles of today, just as he did with the first products he created.

Mike Ableson:You have the "Sanatorium of Paimio," a building for tuberculosis patients created by Mr. and Mrs. Aalto in the 1920s, and the furniture for it. Their ingenuity in using natural materials that are gentle to the bodies of patients with infectious diseases , is effective enough even in today's situation where people are exposed to the infection and spread of COVID-19. In today's world where various new technologies are being created, the fact that the techniques and designs of nearly 100 years ago are still valid today is a wonderful thing to be inherited.

Mike Ableson:Before I started Postalco, I wondered why the jackets I wore last year were out of style this year and why I couldn't wear them anymore. . I wondered. . It is not because I have one more arm this year that I cannot wear last year's jacket, is it? . On the other hand, in furniture, the appreciation and value of a piece of furniture does not change even if it is 80 years old. So, I wondered if it was possible to create the same kind of value in the field of fashion as it does in the field of furniture. I thought, "Why not create the same value in the field of fashion as in the field of furniture? I would like to create clothes that transcend fashions, rather than being bound by them.

Mike Ableson:The shirt I am wearing now is called the "Free Arm Shirt". . It is designed from a structure that allows for ease of movement of the shoulders and arms. Fashion, as the name implies, means "trend," but I think we must have a part of "core ( core )" that does not change and is not affected by trends. Furthermore, in terms of environmental friendliness, it is important to wear one piece of clothing for a long time. . we want to make furniture that can be worn." To bring people closer to perfection, there are first clothes on the outside of the body, then bags on the outside of the body, and then furniture on the outside of the bags. . It may be the image of expanding oneself.

Session3: "Siena" and "Snap Pad

Marianne Goble:Siena is an important textile design for Altec. This spring, new colors have been added to the Siena line, which features hand-painted images of Alvar Aalto's beloved Italian cities and architecture. The three new colors are "Brick/Sand Shadow," "Gray/Light Gray Shadow," and "Sand/White," inspired by the materials Alvar Aalto used in his architecture. The Japanese team at Altec came up with the idea to collaborate on the new Sienna colors and Postalco's Snap Pad. It must have been difficult to match the snap pads so that the pattern would not shift or break.

Snap Pad for Artek ¥7,260

Mike Ableson:At first, I found Sienna to be a simple textile, but after spending time with it, I became strangely attached to it. For the "Snap Pad for Artec," my partner Yuri came up with a color combination inside that matched the color of each fabric. Combining fabrics with the Snap Pad was a new experiment, but I am very pleased with how it turned out.

Marianne Goble:Altec is committed to bringing the functional and practical furniture designed by Alvar Aalto and others to modern life, and to developing new products with contemporary designers who respect and carry on Altec's cherished philosophy. We also collaborate with brands and companies in other fields that share the same aspirations and values of craftsmanship. We look forward to continuing the cross-border collaboration between Altec in Finland and Postalco in Tokyo in the years to come.

Photo_Ko Tsuchiya/Postalco/Artek