Leiden, Netherlands-based IKEA has announced the launch date for its Överallt collection, a limited edition collection of furniture, tableware, textiles and even a Frakta bag resulting from a team composed of IKEA and African designers.
The ten African creatives were tapped from various creative backgrounds ranging from fashion to sculpture and architecture. The Överallt African design team includes Issa Diabaté, Selly Raby Kane, Naeem Biviji, Bethan Rayner, Bibi Seck, Mariam Hazem, Hend Riad, Renee Rossouw, Sindiso Khumalo and Laduma Ngxokolo.
All of the Överallt products were developed with Ikea in-house designers Johanna Jelinek, Kevin Gouriou, Hanna Dalrot, Mikael Axelsson and Ina Vuorivirta.
The collection inspiration from country-specific social rituals including meals and gatherings shared with friends and family. For example, Studio Propolis designers Biviji and Rayner created a round, eucalyptus wood table and rounded benches reflecting a Kenyan evening ritual of gathering in a circle to tell the story of the day. Meanwhile, Egyptian-born designers Hazem and Riad, founder of Reform Sutido, designed a Frakta shopping bag made of recycled packaging material.
All ten of the designers are alumni of South African-based Design Indaba, an annual conference founded by Ravi Naidoo that’s dedicated to new talents in design, art and music. The IKEA Överallt collection was on display at the 2019 conference, which took place in Cape Town from February 27th through March 1, 2019
The project was kicked off in 2017. Reflecting on the effort, designer Khumalo wrote on Instagram, “When the Design Indaba first approached me to collaborate on this project, I was 10 weeks pregnant with my daughter. She is now is very boisterous toddler and almost two. This is how long it takes to make a product at IKEA. Good design afterall takes time. After lots of design ideas, pitching, tweaking, here we are, two and a half years later, on stage at @designindaba, with our products. What an epic journey this has been, with so many learnings and teachings.”
IKEA and Överallt collection will launch in stores on May 1,2019.
Check out some of the items included in the collection below. Images via IKEA.
Quilt by Sindiso Khumalo, Renee Roussow and Johanna Jelinek
Plywood chair by Issa Diabaté
Rocking chair by Bibi Sec
Design Indaba gathering of all the Överallt designers
