Mikro Man

Brand Overview

Mikro Man is the story of a product desinger who took his business card and made it into a career.

The Mikro World is a series of tiny, chemically milled sheets of stainless steel that fold out into a variety of interesting activities and environments. Only microns thick, each sheet is shipped flat and expands into a guy at a desk, a guy working out, a guy in a helicopter, an intricately detailed house, a guy on holiday (read: going through airport security), and many other enjoyable scenes.

Brand History

After graduating from the Royal Academy of Art design program in 1999, Sam Buxton had aspirations of designing experimental products using high tech materials. His designs were beautiful and functional but he was soon confronted with a difficult reality: he was hungry. Not so much for new challenges but rather for food. He soon focused on building his skills as a businessman and decided he needed a business card.

But of course Sam approached this need the same as he would a design problem. By employing a chemical milling process he had discovered in the electronics industry, Buxton created a flat fine stainless steel card, the various parts of which unfolded into a 3-D self-portrait complete with office environment. When a manufacturer spotted it in the Design Museum's 2001 exhibition "Design Now – London," the business card was put into mass-production as the first in the series of MIKRO-Man fold-up sculptures.

The Mikro-House was originally an experiment, to construct a complete living unit from a single sheet. The essential elements of a kitchen, bathroom, lounge and bedroom all fold from a central cube measuring only 80mm high. After exhibiting the House at the Milan and Tokyo design fairs it was put into production to satisfy public demand. Our personal favorites features are the hairs in the bathtub and the handcuffs on the bed.

In the summer of 2003 Sam was commissioned by the Design Museum London to build an installation for the Tank: a 24-hour glass box exhibition space outside the museum. It became known as Mikro-City; a series of laser cut stainless steel buildings placed close to the glass, echoing the cityscape outside, housing populations of Mikro characters and repetitions of Mikro-Houses.

All of his hard work was recognized when in 2004 he was one of four designers short-listed for the Design Museums Designer of the Year award.

The Collection

Mikro Man: Accident (in a gurney), Wheels (in a car), Muscle (working out), Autogiro (in a flying vehicle), Office (at work), Off Road (bicycle), Jungle (hiking), Player (video gamer), Mars (space explorer)

Mikro Cube: Work, Garden, Eat, Bath

Mikro House (so detailed there are hairs in the bath drain and handcuffs on the bedpost)

External Links

Follow Function (Mikro retailer)

Mikro World (outstandingly interactive flash site)

Category

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