UPDATED: Volvo Concept You Revealed. Scandinavian Luxury with Smart Pad Technology in a Sleek Sedan.

Concept You from Volvo Cars: Luxurious Scandinavian design with intuitive smart pad technology




Last week Volvo teased the public with this video:


Volvo now takes the next bold step in the evolution of the company’s next luxury car. The Concept You, revealed today at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show, blends contemporary Scandinavian design and exquisite craftsmanship, with intuitive smart pad technology.



Concept You picks up where the Concept Universe, revealed at Auto Shanghai earlier this year, left off. With a full interior, Concept You gives the global car buying public an exciting glimpse of the craftsmanship and innovative technology that will be the hallmark of future Volvos.

Smart pad technology create an uncluttered interior
The Concept You explores new territories in Volvo’s search for the ultimate intuitive car. A number of touch screens are used to replace buttons and controls in order to make the driver totally connected, and in control. The technology also helps to create a refreshingly uncluttered interior.



The control centre in Concept You consists of four main areas; a digital Driver Information Monitor, a head-up display on the windscreen, a touch screen on the upper part of the centre console and a touch screen between the two individual rear seats. The wood/leather steering wheel has aluminium and glass paddles with integrated touch screens.





The touch screen in the upper part of the centre console remains in sleeping mode until the driver looks at it. A hidden infrared camera registers the eye movements and information is displayed on the screen. Another sensor registers hand movements and triggers the infotainment system’s control mode. The possibilities are different depending on if the screen is approached by the driver or by the front seat passenger. “Certain functions, such as surfing the web, are only accessible from the passenger side while the car is rolling. The technology knows who is the present operator and adapts itself automatically,” says Peter Horbury, Vice President Design at Volvo Car Corporation.

First-class craftsmanship and hand tufted wool carpets from Kasthall:


With a striking interior, Concept You offers luxury customers to experience true craftsmanship and Scandinavian design at its best.




The wooden floor, that echoes Scandinavian homes, is covered with a specially designed, hand tufted carpet from the world-famous Swedish brand Kasthall. Just like the rest of the interior it fades from dark in the front to light in the rear. The front texture has a sporty firmness, while the rear part of the carpet is luxuriously soft.



The four individual seats, blend chrome-free leather from Bridge of Wear with Dinamica ecological suede. The interior also integrates the luxury qualities of a tailor made suit into the car.



The back of the front seats and the door panels feature exclusive Italian fabric and designs from the Swedish fashion house Oscar Jacobson. “The interior is full of classic forms, materials and textures, used with a twist to create a special contemporary luxury experience. It is exceptionally refined, yet with all the simplistic assets that makes Volvo champions of the uncomplicated,” explains Peter Horbury.

Inspiration from Georg Jensen
The Concept You is Volvo’s largest and most luxurious sedan ever. Its fast and sculptural silhouette is emphasised by the liquid metal paint, and the 21-inch polished aluminium wheels with tyres from Pirelli. Up front, the grille – which has a more classic appearance than the Concept Universe – features details with the same, beautifully polished craftsmanship.



“The design of the wheels, the grille and details in the innovative headlamps has been inspired by the exquisite works of the world-famous Danish design house Georg Jensen. Their precious items capture the essence of Scandinavian design. Uncluttered, organic surfaces and superb craftsmanship that radiate timeless luxury. This design should feel handcrafted and durable enough to stand the test of time,” says Peter Horbury.

images and info courtesy of Volvo New updated photos courtesy of Pocket-Lint.

You can see a live unveiling of the car today at the Frankfurt Auto Show on Volvo's facebook page here.

Kmart Hips Up Their Image and Asks You to Show Us What You Got In A New Campaign.

Seems that Kmart has finally killed off that terrible talking blue lightbulb- or at least I hope so. Their big new fashion marketing effort created in conjunction with Minnesota based Peterson Milla Hooks, "Money Can't Buy Style," is complete with new logo, a new attitude, new music and a new blog.





Debuting in the fall of 2011, the new campaign is aimed at empowering customers to embrace their individualism when approaching fashion. Rather than focusing on brand names or even trends, the ads will emphasize self-expression in fashion by featuring real people in Kmart looks they've created themselves.




The series of digital spots created for the web range from 6 seconds to a minute and invite people to "show us what you got" and will include 20 real people in a variety of pieces from the fall 2011 Kmart collections, selected and styled by each individual. The Kmart team spent three weeks hitting the streets across the country to find real people who reveled in their individual style and brought it to life in incredibly unique ways.



"Our goal is to get people to look at Kmart apparel differently," said Tara Poseley, president of Apparel at Kmart. "We took a fresh approach in our campaign with a message that truly embodies what Kmart does best -- making the aspirational attainable. We have great fashion that we're not getting credit for today. We hope the campaign will get people to consider us for what is a very compelling brand portfolio."

When it came time to shoot the campaign, the creative team wanted to ensure a casual, upbeat atmosphere where everyone could feel at ease and comfortable in letting their style shine through. Each look was shot privately with the talent and photographer only for enhanced intimacy. As is typical in fashion shoots, surround sound music was blasted throughout the sessions to create a high-energy environment that kept participants energized throughout the day. Authenticity was essential: to capture the true essence of each participant, and encourage him or her to be both spontaneous and natural in their self-expression, the photographer asked fun and unconventional questions. The end result was a series of genuine responses and expressions captured on film.



"Our new campaign is a disruptive break from fashion advertising clutter," said Robin Creen, chief marketing officer of Apparel at Kmart. "It truly hits the mark in conveying how fun and accessible fashion can be, by capturing the essence of real people who know how to put it all together."

In addition to highlighting the true style of everyday people and the attainability of great fashion, the campaign is designed to convey the insignificance of money in making a statement. With new brands and a new approach to style, Kmart hopes its accessible fashion environment will also excite the senses and inspire unique, personal style through mixing and matching.

The new campaign will launch in September with an assortment of print, digital and outdoor advertising.

You can see all of the "Money Can't Buy Style" Kmart spots here

UPDATED: A Look At the 9/11 Memorial, Museum and Monument Designs at Ground Zero.

above: aerial view rendering of the 9/11 Memorial

above: one of the two 9/11 Memorial bronze name-etched reflecting pools in the foreground and the 9/11 Museum Pavilion entry in the background

Today, on the 10th anniversary of the tragic terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centers' twin towers and the Pentagon, there will be several memorials taking place as we honor the victims with moments of silence and reflection.

Below, President Obama, President Bush and their wives visit the Reflections of Absence this morning:


above photo by Robert Deutsch-Pool/Getty Images

The 9/11 Memorial will be dedicated on September 11, 2011 (today) in a special ceremony for victims’ families. Therefore, it is fitting that today I share with you photos, renderings, images and information about the 9/11 Memorial; its monuments, plaza and museum at the site of Ground Zero.


above photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

above photo AFP PHOTO/POOL/Justin Lane


Reflecting Absence



above: Water Falls in the Memorial North Pool (Photo by Joe Woolhead)

The 9/11 Memorial by Michael Arad (formally named "Reflecting Absence") is located at the site of the former World Trade Center complex, and occupies approximately half of the 16-acre site. The memorial features two enormous waterfalls and reflecting pools, each about an acre in size, set within the footprints of the original twin towers.



above: an aerial renderings of 9/11 Memorial Plaza and site


above: a cross-section of the Memorial Plaza and the Museum Pavilion and interior

above and below: rendering of the Bronze Names Parapets




above: a birdseye view of the 911 Memorial Monuments at night

The 2,983 names
The 2,983 names of the men, women, and children killed in the attacks of September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993, are inscribed into bronze parapets surrounding the twin Memorial pools, located in the footprints of the Twin Towers.



Every name has a code containing N for North Pool or S for South Pool, followed by a panel number that locates it on one of the Memorial Pools.



Names are placed within nine primary groups.


Around the North Pool:
World Trade Center North
Flight 11
February 26, 1993

Around the South Pool:
World Trade Center South
First Responders
Flight 175
Pentagon
Flight 77
Flight 93

Requested adjacencies within these groups:
Names are arranged by affiliation, so that the employees of a company or the crew of a flight are together. The next-of-kin of the victims and surviving colleagues made additional requests for specific names to be inscribed next to one another. Some requests were between relatives and friends; others were between people who had just met, but who responded together as events unfolded.



This design allows the names of family, friends, and colleagues to be together, as they lived and died. The requested adjacencies reflected on the Memorial make it unique from any other in existence.


above: rendering of interior of the Memorial Hall, a view of the reflecting pools from beneath

You can search for a name on the memorial here.

Memorial Plaza by Peter Walker and Partners

above: With its grove of trees, the Memorial’s plaza is an actual green roof for the structure housing the 9/11 Memorial Museum (May 2011, Photo by Joe Woolhead).

The landscape architecture of Memorial Plaza was designed by Peter Walker and Partners of Berkeley, CA. and is one of the most sustainable, green plazas ever constructed. Its irrigation, storm water and pest management systems will conserve energy, water and other resources.



above: renderings of the 9/11 Museum Plaza

Rainwater will be collected in storage tanks below the plaza surface. A majority of the daily and monthly irrigation requirements will be met by the harvested water.


above: The Survivor Tree Blooms on the Memorial Site (Photo by Amy Dreher)

The Memorial Museum and Entry Pavilion
The Museum’s entry pavilion was designed by the Norwegian architecture firm, Snøhetta and the underground museum exhibit space by Aedas, Museum architects.

The Mission of the Memorial Museum, located at the World Trade Center site, is to bear solemn witness to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993.


above: a birdseye rendering of the Museum’s entry pavilion

Visitors to the Memorial Museum will be presented with a sequence of experiences which allow for individual and personal encounters within an overall context of a historical narrative.


above: a rendering of the Museum’s entry pavilion

The nature of the Museum is such that the shell of the space, comprising existing foundations, the slurry wall and other in-situ elements of the site is as much an artifact of 9/11 as the contents of the exhibitions.


above: a rendering of the Museum atrium with Twin Tower "tridents."

Visitors will enter through a pavilion that houses an auditorium for public programming, a multi-purpose area for contemplation and refreshment and a private suite reserved for victims’ family members. Two of the original steel tridents from the Twin Towers will be enclosed within the pavilion’s grand glass atrium, standing as references to the past, while signaling hope for the future.


above: rendering of Memorial Exhibition in the heart of the museum site

Memorial Design Exhibition
The introductory exhibit leads to a gently ramped “ribbon,” toward the core exhibitions at bedrock, the archeological heart of the World Trade Center site.


above: rendering of the interior of the Museum

This descent echoes the ramp that once was used by construction workers to help build the World Trade Center and was again used in the aftermath of the attacks for the recovery and clean-up of the site and by victims’ family members to access bedrock on anniversaries of 9/11.


above: rendering of interactive tables and artifact cases

From the ramp, vistas will be created, providing a sense of the vastness of the site and the scale of the original Towers. Visitors will be able to stand between the locations of the original Twin Towers and experience their scale, which will be referenced by two metal-clad, ethereal volumes. The ramp that will bring visitors to the core Museum exhibitions has already been framed in steel and concrete.


above: rendering of space for remembrances

above: interactive tables and Wall of Faces

The final descent to the base of the site will take visitors alongside the Vesey Street Stair remnant – also known as the “Survivor Stairs,” which was used by hundreds to escape the destruction of the Towers on 9/11.


above: The "Survivor's Staircase" before being moved to the museum

After today's dedication ceremony the 9/11 Memorial will be open to the general public.

This post is in sincere remembrance of those lost in this tragedy. May they rest in peace.

More information can be found here.

some images courtesy of the LMCD and many of the computer renderings in this post were created by Squared Design Lab