Tom Strala

Tom Strala (born 1 April 1974) is a Swiss architect, designer and artist, known for his raw furniture and lighting designs. In 2005, Strala was awarded 2nd place of the European Luminary of the Year for the TMS 360 Series, a honeycomb structured light shade.^[1] His work is included in several exhibitions in museums and universities. Strala is known as design pioneer in marrying art and design.^[2]

Tom Strala
Born	1 April 1974 (1974-04) (age 50) Schaffhausen, Switzerland
Nationality	Swiss
Occupation(s)	Architect, designer, artist

Life and career

Strala was born as Thomas Michael Schmid ^[3] in Schaffhausen, Switzerland on April 1, 1974.^[4] He received his Master of Architecture degree in 2001 from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETHZ) in Zurich, Switzerland and was granted a scholarship for excellence from the Erich Degen Foundation for his master thesis.^[5]

Strala was the jury president for the first Innovation and Design Award (ida) in Zurich, Switzerland in 2007^[6] and was a jury member for the Zepter International Design Award in 2013.^[7]

Selected design work

Strala avoids industrial and mass production. He designs furniture as an object of utility that does not have to act like a consumer good.^[8]

• Chaos (2016), steel standing lamp, powder coated^[9]

 

Tom Strala chaos standing lamp

• Animal Farm NO. 2 (2011–2015), brass and concrete standing lamp^[10][11]
• Animal Farm NO. 1 (2011–2014), brass wall lamp^[12]
• Lazy Seefelder (2013), chaise longue, nature rattan, chrome steel^[13]
• Rocking Seefelder (2011–2013), rocking chair, nature rattan, chrome steel^[14]
• Seefelder (2011–2013), nature rattan chair, chrome steel^[15][14]
• Schweini die Origamisau (2012), copper object^[16]
• Ponte (2012), oak table, white glass^[17]
• Calmares 1 & 2 (2010), aluminum ceiling lamp, white coated^[18][19]
• Comic 1 & 2 (2009), concrete standing lamp, epoxy^[19][12]
• Pompidu 2 (2008), aluminum standing lamp, black coated^[20]
• Pompidu 1 (2008), aluminum wall lamp, black coated^[12]
• Bartok (2007), concrete, armouring steel table^[21][22][19]

 

Tom Strala bartok table

• Nelumbo (2007), plexiglas wall lamp, satined^[12]
• Strala Table (2006), brown oak oiled table^[23]
• Kalahario (2005), aluminum chair, black coated, leather^[19]
• Kalahari (2005), steel chair, black coated, gas spring, leather^[24]
• INCH (2005), steel standing lamp, black coated^[25]
• Kalahock (2005), stool, ottoman, aluminium black coated, leather^[24]
• TMS 360S (2001–2004), chrome steel standing lamp, white coated, browned steel^[26][27][24]
• TMS 90 (2001–2004), chrome steel corner lamp, white coated^[28]
• TMS 360K (2001–2004), chrome steel ceiling lamp, white coated^[29][24]

 

Tom Strala TMS 360k lamp

• TMS 180 (2001–2004), chrome steel wall lamp, white coated^[12]
• TMS 360G (2001–2004), chrome steel ceiling lamp, white coated^[30]

Selected exhibitions

• 2016 Radicality of Banality, Exhibition Galerie P!, Pierre Jeanneret vs Tom Strala, Zürich^[31]
• 2015 London Design Festival, 19th Greekstreet, London, UK^[32]
• 2015 BRAND NEW WORLD, Salone del Mobile Milano, Italy^[33]
• 2015 Design & Art exhibition, FOG, San Francisco, USA^[34]
• 2014 Exhibition Art Basel / Design Miami, USA^[35]
• 2014 Curated exhibition Dizajn-Park, Belgrad Serbien^[36]
• 2014 Solo exhibition, Instituto Svizzero di Milano, Italy^[37]
• 2014 Design & Art exhibition, FOG, San Francisco, USA^[38][39]
• Since 2013 Design exhibition, The New Black, San Francisco – Design Gallery^[40]
• 2011 Design exhibition, ICFF, New York City^[41]
• 2002 Group exhibition, Landschaftsarchitekturausstellung, Hamburg, Germany^[42]
• 2002 Group exhibition, Architekturfoyer ETH, Zurich, Switzerland^[42]

Talks

• 2016 Bridging Culture at the HSG Alumni Conference in Davos, Switzerland^[43][44]
• 2016 Workshop & talk at FHNW (Fachhochschule Nord-westschweiz), Basel, Switzerland^[45]
• 2014 Miami Ironside: Materialized Intelligence at Art Basel / Design Miami, USA^[46][47]
• 2014 The Leading Creative Minds of the 21st Century with Massimilian Fuksas, Idis Turato and Christian Kerez at Belgrade Design Week in Belgrade, Serbia^[48][36]
• 2013 Guest lecturer at the California College of the Arts, CCA, San Francisco, USA^[49][50]

Awards and recognition

• 2015 Yatzer: Best of Milano Design Week for Bartok and Frankenstein Chair^[22]
• 2013 AD Choice – architectural digest, best of architecture and interiors: selected as one of the best 500 furnitures^[51]
• 2005 Award European Luminary of the Year for the TMS 360 S (2nd place)^[1]
• 2001 Award Erich Degen Foundation^[5]

References

1. "Leuchte des Jahres 2005" (in German). May 10, 2019.
2. "Tom Strala". Brand New World. March 13, 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
3. "Thomas Michael Schmid aka Tom Strala". Schönes Leben (in German).
4. "Über Tom Strala". Architonic (in German).
5. Chris (November 19, 2014). "Tom Strala". Another Something. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
6. "Strala". Designlexikon International. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
7. "Winners of the Artzept International Design Award 2013". Zepter. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
8. "Tom Strala". artsy.
9. Schwarz, Suzanne (January 1, 2017). "Swiss Design". Spectrooms.
10. "ANIMAL FARM NO. 2". Architonic (in German). Retrieved 10 May 2019.
11. Ernst, Meret (June 1, 2015). "Stresstest". Hochparterre.
12. Rey, Debika (December 1, 2014). "Tom Strala". Icon. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
13. Phillips, Walter (November 26, 2013). "Lazy Seefelder' lounge chair by Tom Strala (CH)". daily Tonic. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
14. Simone & Fuls, Herrmann & Sally (March 2013). "Raus damit!". Architectural Digest (in German).
15. "Design News". Vogue. February 2014.
16. das (December 16, 2012). "Bau dir ein Schwein". NZZ am Sonntag (in German).
17. nh (August 2012). "Brückentisch". Modulor (in German): 17.
18. Ernst, Meret (May 2011). "Der Sparlüster". Hochparterre (in German).
19. Chin, Andrea (November 11, 2014). "tom strala on his design practice and intelligent materialization". Designboom. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
20. "Pompidu Lamps By Strala". dejournal. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
21. Manton, Maudie (March 23, 2015). "Brand New World to exhibit work by design entrepreneurs in Milan". DEZEEN. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
22. Voyatzis, Costas (April 26, 2015). "Best of Milan Design Week 2015". yatzer. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
23. Prada, Ariana (October 29, 2006). "Echter Streber". Sonntagszeitung (in German).
24. Tep, Ratha (June 8, 2011). "In Switzerland, Mixing Minimalism With Industrialism". The New York Times.
25. "Strala". Designlexikon (in German). Retrieved 10 May 2019.
26. "TMS 360S | Stehleuchte". Architonic (in German). Retrieved 10 May 2019.
27. "Tom Strala". artnet. May 10, 2019. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
28. Beetschen, Mirko (March 10, 2007). "Lichte Leuchten aus gefaltetem Stahl". Tages Anzeiger (in German).
29. Meier, Philipp (November 3, 2012). "Von guten Dingen". NZZ Neue Zürcher Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 10 May 2019.
30. pd/wl (February 2014). "Präzise und lässig". Raum und Wohnen (in German): 22.
31. "Radicality of Banality". artsy. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
32. McCartney, Karen (December 2015). "Doing the Honours – The design energy was all-embracing as every corner of the city opened up to celebrate the makers' art at London Design Festival". Belle Australia.
33. "Interview with TOM STRALA AT BRAND NEW WORLD MILANO 2015 @ DUSAN". Brand New World. April 15, 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
34. "San Francisco Design in Five Top Galleries". artsy. January 10, 2014. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
35. "Laufen in Miami – Miami Ironside". My Art Guides. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
36. "Tom Strala (CH)". Belgrade Design Week. November 3, 2015. Retrieved 5 May 2019.
37. "TIME IS MORE by STRALA e SHIBULERU". Istituto Svizzero. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
38. "FOG Design+Art Exhibitors". Fog Design + Art. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
39. FOG Design + Art. "Tom Strala". artsy. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
40. . The New Black Gallery. Archived from the original on 18 March 2013. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
41. Core Jr. (May 19, 2011). "NY Design Week 2011: ICFF Photo Gallery". Core77. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
42. Schwarz, Suzanne (June 2014). "Tom Strala" (PDF). Spectrooms – Fachmagazin für Innenarchitektur und Design (in German). Retrieved 10 May 2019.
43. "Tom Strala über das Dazwischen" – via YouTube. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
44. "Tom Strala – Architekt, Designpionier". HSG Alumni Konferenz (in German). Retrieved 10 May 2019.
45. "Querblicke Industrial Design" (PDF). Swiss Design Association (in German). Retrieved 10 May 2019.
46. "Campus Collective Party with Laufen during Art Basel / Design Miami". Frame. November 25, 2014. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
47. "Design Escape – MIami Ironside". My Art Guides. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
48. . Archived from the original on 20 September 2014. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
49. "Tom Strala Lecture at CCA". Swissnex San Francisco. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
50. California College of the Arts – CCA. "Lecture by Tom Strala" – via YouTube. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
51. "Die 500 besten Möbel 2013". AD Choice Special Edition. January 15, 2013.

External links

• Official Tom Strala website
• Tom Strala on Designlexikon
• Tom Strala on artsy
• Tom Strala on artnet