KoelnMesse Interviews the Owners of MUT Design about upcoming “Das Haus” at IMM 2020 Cologne

Furniture World News Desk on 11/29/2019

Eduardo Villalón and Alberto Sanchez of MUT Design.

KoelnMesse announced that the 2020 the Das Haus Installation will be displayed by the Spanish Designer Team MUT. The organizer of more than 80 trade fairs recently sat down to interview the owners of MUT Design about their plans for the upcoming “Das Haus” installation at IMM 2020 Cologne, Germany.

The yearly “Das Haus Installation” at IMM is a place where designers and architects are free to design and express their creativity, choosing whatever solution they prefer to create an architecture summarizing their vision of the house of the future. It’s not just an interior design project, it’s a picture of how people’s daily habits are changing.

The designers and architects of Das Haus change every year, each time choosing a designer, a couple of designers or a studio, coming from different countries and continents, with different cultures, which are clearly visible in the different design styles, in the diverse products they use and representative of different traditions.

The first eight editions of Das Haus featured as guests of honor the Anglo-Indian couple Doshi Levien (2012), the Italian designer Luca Nichetto (2013), the Danish designer Louise Campbell (2014), the American architects of Chinese origin Neri & Hu (2015), the German Sebastian Herkner (2016), the American Todd Bracher (2017), and the Czech designer Lucie Koldova (2018) and Dutch Design Studio Truly Truly (2019).


First of all, tell us about your approach to branding and furniture design.

Our approach is pretty much the same. We like to work brand and product, but also for our clients. We don't do branding unrelated to furniture design. It always has to do with product design and it is a service we exclusively offer to some selected clients but it stops there because we prefer focusing on design.


Is your design primarily geared towards the Mediterranean lifestyle?

The Mediterranean is our inspiration and yes, in some ways, our designs embody a certain lifestyle, but not exclusively. We are open to many other influences and we believe our products can be read, understood and used by consumers around the world.



When working on a design do you do focus groups, or just wait for the solution to come to you?

No, we never do focus groups. We work on the solution ourselves as a team. Sometimes we may gauge our entourage to see what they think, but in a very informal way. We basically do our own research and brainstorming and in cooperation with our clients.


You were selected from among internationally known designers to create the installation for imm cologne’s Das Haus exhibition in January 2020 based on a concept of a house without boundaries between indoor and outdoor. The whole concept seems to represent your philosophy of design. What do you hope for visitors to take away from this year’s Das Haus?

We hope they contemplate it as a real possibility for the future. It is a concept, but we think most of it could work with little adaptation. There are already houses that have successfully managed to soften the lines between the indoor and the outdoor or that have integrated nature into architecture. We have already developed pieces of furniture with brands such as Expormim that can be used in an interior or in the open air. Technology and new materials allow for it. In Das Haus, we might have taken it a step further but we believe many parts of the concept are easily feasible.



How might someone from the US or Canada interpret Das Haus?

As the Mediterranean house of the future, but also as a concept that can be adapted worldwide.



Where do you see transformative home furnishing design leadership coming from?

New materials and technologies, definitely. Industry is turning to more sustainable ways of producing. Consumers are also growing conscious. And this together with the many advances is contributing to the transformation of furniture design. Besides, we think many people are falling in love again with handcrafted objects because they have a soul. And normally these kind of products are more sustainable, so it makes a lot of sense. These are the main trends for us at the moment.


Do you have any specific advice for furniture retailers and interior designers?

We would not dare advise retailers or interior designers, but maybe they can draw inspiration from our Das Haus for future projects. ;)

More about Koelnmesse: Koelnmesse is the world’s top trade fair organiser for the areas of furnishing, living and lifestyle. At the trade fair hub of Cologne, the leading international fair imm cologne as well as the trade fair formats of LivingKitchen, ORGATEC, spoga+gafa, interzum and Kind + Jugend rank among the internationally renowned and established industry meeting places. These fairs comprehensively represent the upholstered and case furniture segment, the kitchen industry, the office furniture sector and outdoor living as well as the innovations of the furniture supply industry. Over the last few years, Koelnmesse has specifically added international fairs in the most important fast-expanding markets to its portfolio. These include the LivingKitchen/CIKB in Shanghai, interzum guangzhou in Guangzhou and Pueri Expo in Sao Paulo. With ambista, the network of the interior decorating industry, Koelnmesse offers direct access to relevant products, contacts, competence and events. For more information, visit http://www.global-competence.net/interiors/.