Looking Back 2008

Ursula Maier Werkstätten and Ursula Maier Möbel / Markgröningen and Stuttgart

Looking Back on 2008 and Outlook on 2009
We look back with joy on a great, successful year 2008.

We begin our cultural activities in 2008 with the closing of the exhibition by artist Albrecht Fendrich at the end of February. The Stuttgart journalist Reinhold Urmetzer gave a talk about “Furnishing” among other topics as well as about the new photographs by Albrecht Fendrich.

 

At the beginning of March, Ursula Maier Möbel and Werkstätten organised an Open Day in Markgröningen: family trip and bargain-hunting and a lot of good ideas for the home. Young and old alike were in springtime mood. Also on this weekend the open day “Innenarchitektur OFFEN” (“Interior Design OPEN”) 2008 organised by the Bund Deutscher Innenarchitekten (BDIA) took place all over Germany. On this occasion interesting objects and furniture were also presented in the CityPlaza showroom in Stuttgart. Interested planners and people “on the look-out for furniture” especially enjoyed these two days.

 

tollGRÜN was the highlight as far as garden and ambience were concerned at the Lifestyle 2008 at the beginning of April at the Neue Messe (New Trade Fairgrounds) in Stuttgart. Together with our partner Livinghouse we were able to invite our customers to the stand party “tollGrün” and a special garden and ambience world.
           

Interior design and joinery since 1910 – a family business coming from joinery is transferred to the fourth generation. The daughter Sarah Maier follows in her mother Ursula Maier’s footsteps and becomes Managing Director of Ursula Maier Werkstätten and Ursula Maier Möbel. This handing over and change of generations was celebrated appropriately with more than 200 guests, the best April weather and accompanied by the bagpipe players of the Markgröningen Schäferlauf. Donations instead of presents were also asked for at this celebration. The Hermann Maier Fund collected these. With the proceeds from this fund the training of young people at the trade school Masaka in Uganda is supported.

 

Art and social involvement are an integral part of the company culture. In this context an art auction for mostly well-known regional artists was held at the showroom in Stuttgart at the end of May in favour of the German Child Protection Agency. The extremely successful auction, held by auctioneer Gert Nagel, was curated by the members of the Lions Club Stuttgart City.

 

And only a few days later the exhibition “Wall 08” was opened at the CityPlaza showroom. The painter Thomas Hoffmann demonstrated a unique experiment with quark in front of a highly concentrated audience “Durable Paint of Quark, Lime and Pigment” – an old Bauhaus recipe. As a founding member of the “Farbrat Wertegemeinschaft”, Thomas Hoffmann contributed to the development of Farbrat paint for the interior. This paint is free of emissions, solvents and softeners. Farbrat paint is the first in Europe to have the blue octagonal TÜV certificate.

 

We welcomed summer with a matinee opening of the exhibition by painter Renate Leidner at the renovated furnishing house in Markgröningen at the beginning of June. Up until today her pictures hang in our offices.

 

Summer highlight 2008 in Stuttgart: Sarah Maier, edra furniture as well as the exclusive events in the CityPlaza showroom were the talk of the town in Stuttgart for several days. The opening on 1 July 2008 already attracted many people interested in architecture and design to visit the CityPlaza showroom on Rotebühlplatz in Stuttgart. In a discussion on this evening the delicate topic “How Much Art is Allowed in Architecture and Design – and How Much Applied Design Can Art Take?” lead by Barbara Friedrich, editor of A&W Architektur & Wohnen (Architecture & Living), was discussed. The design talk featured top-class speakers: Massimo Morozzi, Art Director of the avantgarde furniture manufacturer edra; Prof Peter Pfeiffer, Senior Vice President Daimler AG; Nicolaus Koliusis, Stuttgart artist; Tom Schönherr, Phoenix Design and Sarah Maier, Managing Director of Ursula Maier Möbel. And the discussion on Design Miami and Art Basel continued for a long time: the fusion of art and lifestyle. The exhibition highlight was the “Flap Diamond Sofa”, created by the Italian designer Francesco Binfaré for edra, studded with over 500,000 Swarowski crystals and one of the most discussed symbols of modern furniture design.

This object was among others at the centre of two evenings and the première of “Diamond Dance” with Benito Marcelino. Unforgotten as a star of the Stuttgart ballet, he danced exclusively for the edra exhibition on the invitation of Sarah Maier. His and Innsbruck based Andrea Bibolotti’s choreographies were the artistic highlight of these events.

How close the “product vocabulary” of wine and design can be, presented Sarah Maier and the wine historian Dr Christine Krämer with every drop and object on the evening of 2 July to a number of invited guests. The “philosophers” carried the audience off to pleasures unknown up until then – with taste, words and pictures. And what would furniture design be without fashion. Under the heading “Dressing”, the Stuttgart fashion guru Horst Wanschura presented extravagant fashion by Yamamoto and Issey Miyake as well as his own collections. And this evening was also characterised by the high quality of fashion design and edra furniture. It wasn’t Paris, nor London or New York – we were in the heart of Stuttgart: a creative firework and very well dressed guests.

 

September 2008. Art did not let go of us. We first needed to encounter the work of Christian Jankowskis and the project “Laboratory of Pictures”, in which students slipped into the role of artists and produced their own videos. The location was the Museum of Art in Stuttgart from 12 September 2008 until 11 January 2009. Videos are produced on monitors and monitors need tables, the best tables. The call for these tables reached the Workshop of Ursula Maier in Markgröningen at the beginning of August. Sarah Maier was fascinated by the idea of a video workshop and immediately decided to support the project with “11 Tables for Art”. An apple tree, if only as veneer, got its great moment in art in 11 specially made tables. In exclusive tours and evening events for our customers, lead by curator Dr. Ruth Diehl, we got insights into the unusual works of Christian Jankowski. A very special highlight was the “Video Workshop”. Here our guests learned editing techniques on videos produced earlier by their own. Dr. Marion Ackermann, Director of the Museum of Art in Stuttgart, was more than pleased to be able to present this unusual craft.

Sarah Maier was nominated for the Jury of the Design Award GUTE GESTALTUNG 09 organised by the German Designer’s Club (DDC). In mid-October 2008 the seven interdisciplinary juries chose 176 works from 586 total entries. The award ceremony took place on 6 December 2008 in the foyer of the Commerzbank Frankfurt. www.ddc.de

And there were plenty of awards in 2008 as well. As part of the competition “Furniture for Connoisseurs” organised by the Landesfachverband Schreinerhandwerk, Ursula Maier Werkstätten received the “Silberner Würfel” (“Silver Cube”) for the design of the satin walnut kitchen at the award.

 

And it’s no accident: Good training pays off. Since December 2008 a German master craftsman is working at Ursula Maier Werkstätten. Silvan Idler is the German Master Craftsman in Joinery. “This title shows how well he knows his trade. And how good the training is here,” said Ursula Maier, who is a master joiner and interior designer. The newly chosen German master craftsman is 23 years old and has very good career prospects according to Ursula Maier. Since not only companies appreciate craftsmanship but above all the customers. Ursula Maier knows what she is talking about. Since she herself won the German championships for joiners and carpenters in 1968 and the bronze medal at the world championship the following year.

Christmas fair at Livinghouse on 13 December: For the second time various artists and craftsmen created a festive atmosphere and a very nice Christmas fair in the Livinghouse showroom at the Westbahnhof.

Open days on Sundays in Stuttgart and Markgröningen attracted many visitors. We will continue these activities in 2009.

And in-between all of these events wonderful home and office projects were developed for our customers. For an understanding and successful cooperation and the confidence in our competence and quality: Many thanks to our customers!

 

More information about all events and projects is available at our website.

Press reports can be found in the Press Review.

 

Outlook 2009

14 February. Today we would already like to invite you to a very special experience for the senses: a cooking experience on Valentine’s Day. This kitchen made by a joiner has a very special feature: It is unique. We are able meet individual space and design requirements with many details. You can fall in love with our latest and meanwhile award-winning show kitchen. To make it easier for you, we invite you to a very special cooking experience: a cooking experience on Valentine’s Day. On Saturday, 14 February 2009, Miele Aktiv cooking with Petra Fehre in our extraordinary satin walnut show kitchen in Markgröningen. Come and try the sensational results of the Miele Kombi steamer and the Miele Klima oven. We will cook a three-course meal. And, of course, you will take home a present after an excellent meal. Please note that the number of participants is limited and prior registration is required.

           

12 March. “11 Tables for Art” are turned into “11 Tables for Dance”. Ursula Maier Möbel supports the International Solo Dance Festival at Treffpunkt Rotebühlplatz in Stuttgart. We will shortly make it possible for our customers to see the solo shows, which are already sold out. See the artists dance over tables and benches.

           

Summer 2009. Milan in Stuttgart: This summer we want to arouse Milan feeling in Stuttgart again. The first meetings with our new favourite candidates for the new show begin.

 

            We look forward to beautiful new projects in 2009 – with courage for unusual interior design.