Hannes Koch
Description
Creative Pioneers Hannes Koch and Florian Ortkrass are using innovative product design to generate brand new uses for existing technologies. Their first signature product, 'Watchpaper' was a fully-functioning digital clock embedded in wallpaper.
Why we funded
The iF Design Award-winning innovation 'Watchpaper', uses heat-reactive technology to show a moving graphic - in this case an accurate, time-keeping digital clock - embedded within the paper. Although the technology isn't new, this use of it is. Hannes and Florian describe what they do as discovering "the sleeping beauty within existing technologies."
Their first move is to develop 'Watchpaper' for use in shop window displays. They also plan to market their creation as an over-sized digital clock.
Impact/benefit
NESTA's Creative Pioneer Academy helped Florian and Hannes develop a business model to stay financially afloat, while funding the longer-term prospects of their products.
"We set up a creative technology consultancy so we wouldn't have all our risk in one venture," Hannes explains. "Instead we have several projects and technologies, at the same time as consulting for our clients."
Since attending the Academy, they have developed new products, such as their PixelRoller device, which "paints" digital images onto large surfaces such as walls, ceilings or floors. The PixelRoller won Best Innovation at the 2006 Wallpaper* Design Awards.
Written: October 2006
Individual:
Hannes Koch
Programme:
Creative Pioneer
Discipline:
Design
Location:
London
Funding:
£35,000
Year funded:
2005
Website:
www.random-international.com