Strolling down
Brick Lane in London you will find the clever workshop Unto This Last. The one design that caught my eyes was the sheared
sphere CD rack. Like most great designs it is simple, easy to assemble,
transport and very attractive.
Unto This Last specializes in practical
design products, mostly constructed of sustainable harvested Birch Plywood that
is easily laminated in a large array of colors. The ethos here is “On-demand,
High Street Micro-Manufacturing”. They have over 2,000 designs on file with a
portion pre-constructed and on display.
But more then a showroom, the Brick Lane space is a workshop (including
a CNC machine!), where they easily manufacture any of the designs to order. Lowering overhead and inventory, they are
able to offer high design and a good price.
The design
house is aptly named after John Ruskin’s 1860 Book “Unto This Last”, where the
art critic exposes and denounces the devastating social consequences of
capitalism and the industrial revolution while advocating for the local
craftsman: a manifesto that inspired the arts and crafts movement.
