Expressive Fold Motors by Rubberband

Design and creativity can be expressed in varied ways. Ideas transgress from the mind of the creator and are reflected in their art and creations. One such designer, who is known for his designs to stand out, is Ajay Shah who started the ASDS or Ajay Shah Design Studio in Mumbai in 1990. Today the studio is known for providing a different approach to interior and furniture designing, kiosk, graphics, brand development and more. Its pet project Rubberband which started in 2008 is about, ‘finding a balance between industrially produced series and experimentation’. The collection includes, paper products, office and personal accessories, pens, pencils, storage and travel products. The ‘business objective is to position Rubberband products as being design focused and suited for modern living’.

Collaborations

Rubberband has had much successful collaboration in the past. Nathalie Du Pasquier, Anthony Burrill and Jean Julien are some of the renowned international designers that have collaborated with Rubberband. The collection by Dutch designer Floris Hovers called ‘Fold Motors’ is its most recent foray in the world of delightful toy automobile designs. As described by Rubberband, ‘Fold Motors is an unserious expression of serious design.’ 

Fold Motors

Fold Motors takes a cue from the manufacturing process of the automobile industry, where sheet metal is die cut to create a pair of flat components. These are then folded to make the chassis and body of the vehicle. The Fold Motors collection boasts of seven variants of trucks and cars that are designed in bright and vivid colors. The seriousness in design is seen in the meticulous representation of making the toys in the way real automobiles are made. The chassis, body, wheels, axle are incorporate into the product. The ‘unseriousness’ of design is manifested by its beautiful vibrant colors that together with the design of the models are ‘meant to be played with for a lifetime’.

About Floris Hovers

An autonomous designer living in Raamsdonk, The Netherlands, Floris Hovers has gained fame through his creation the Archetoys. The series of ArcheToys has also been included in their collection by the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. His collaboration with Rubberband has led to creation of Fold Motors, a set of unique automobile toys that are perfected in character and design. Being a father of four children, Floris’s designs are ‘not only special for children but also for grown-ups who have forgotten that they were once children.’ As aptly said by Floris, ‘in the age of rapid development of technology and robotisation, we have to stay human!’ 

And that perhaps, surmises the collection of Fold Motors. On the face of it they are just toys. However, on a deeper note, they are sturdy miniature representations of the real world of automobiles, soaked in color and imagination that are the cornerstones of the architecture of toys. Moreover, they rekindle the sheer fascination and wonder that is so akin to children. Toys nudge the imagination to make stories, to escape into the meadows of fables and tales and to create in our minds an unreal world that is nothing but an extension of the real one. 

Other Rubberband products

Rubberband also houses a collection of furniture, paper, stationery and bags. Their customized furniture caters to the need and space, fitting into the urban spaces. Paper items are customized using emboss, deboss, screen painting or hot foil deboss to produce a myriad range of products. The essential idea is to create something artistic and unique in the everyday furniture and stationery that are used otherwise without much thought for design or placement. 

ASDS is a small team with Ajay Shah as its Principal Designer and Business Director. The fact that the studio and the designer himself, can ‘apply design to various scenarios and scales, be it a 4-5 lakh square feet mall or a pen’, is the real fun and challenge. Rubberband is one of its many creations and its essence also lies in its collaborations as much as in its concepts and idea. Whether it is Nathalie Du Pasquier’s notebook or Floris Hovers Fold Motors, Rubberband is all for eyeing the details in a splash of colors and designs that will stay in use and the imagination forever. 

Log on to Rubberband’s website, https://www.rubberbandproducts.com/ for more information or for ordering any of Fold Motors lovely models.