Picture a glittering art-world soirée: Hipsters and hangers-on coo about an exhibit item's streamlined contours and soft purple shade, its dynamic combination of form and technology. The creator himself, a dashing Brit with a worldwide reputation, may even be on hand to wax eloquent about it. But it isn't a sculpture or art installation they're admiring: It's a vacuum cleaner.
It's not that far-fetched. The Dyson Dual Cyclone, designed by Sir James Dyson after years of tinkering and numerous prototypes, is in the permanent collections of the San Francisco Museum of Art, the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, Museum Boymans-Van Beuningen in Rotterdam and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. "It ... has an intriguing use of colour and form," says Samantha Sannella, director of Toronto's Design Exchange. "The design is bold and captivating."
These days, the humble home appliance is acquiring serious artistic cred, in large part because a number of appliance makers are devoting as much attention to design as they are to function. Many are garnering serious attention from critics and galleries and a hearty embrace by design-conscious consumers. "They're the new status symbol," says Sannella. "They tell other people entering the home that the homeowner has taste and style."
Over the past few decades, designers with a serious critical following have occasionally applied their talents to appliances and household gadgetry, but the efforts were sporadic, have rarely been mass-market and were sometimes even disastrous. (One famous example: Philippe Starck's handsome but useless countertop juicer, which sent juice everywhere except the glass.) Now, though, the industry as a whole appears to have cottoned on to the prestige factor of churning out sleek, sculptural appliances, both major and countertop. In the vacuum cleaner category, industry leaders such as Dyson and Miele have elevated a rather unsexy household tool into paragons of beauty and style. Among washing machines, Electrolux's Airwash, a waterless unit with a curved sheet-metal body, could easily be mistaken for a piece of futuristic art.
Home appliances have become statement pieces, says Christian Trudel, director of appliances at Future Shop. "As consumers [seek out]high-efficiency items and cutting-edge technology to meet their everyday needs, they also want items in their home to reflect their personal taste and style," he says. "Through a focus on simple design enhancements, appliances have evolved into an integral piece of interior design."
As homes grew larger and more modern over the years, appliances followed suit, reflecting contemporary architecture and interior design trends. Kitchens that were once kept out of sight today serve as the social hubs of homes, meaning everything in them is open to public scrutiny. In other words, what you keep on your countertop suddenly matters. And those matching canisters for flour and sugar aren't going to cut it.
"Consumers expect more than just innovation in products; they are looking for dramatically styled items that are pieces of artwork for the countertop," says Cindy Jardim, brand and trend director for Sears Home in Canada. As a result, all manner of appliances have to have chic looks if not outright wow factor. Above all, they have to say something flattering about the homeowner and his or her personal taste.
This is why stovetops are being made of ceramic and glass and range hoods are being crafted to look like abstract art. It's why brands such as SodaStream hire internationally acclaimed industrial designers such as Canada's Karim Rashid to create pop-art-style home soda makers. And it's why coffee makers, such as the elegantly ovoid Krups Nescafe Dolce Gusto espresso machine, look like mini Brancusi or Bauhaus works.
"Even small appliances are increasingly differentiating themselves from the everyday through unique sculptural shapes and distinctive finishes," says Jardim, citing the sexy shell-shaped Joseph Joseph digital scale that recently hit Sears shelves as an example.
Ultimately, style must yield to function when it comes to appliances, but that doesn't mean it's a frill, says Sannella. "It's about enhancing the quality of life, particularly where women are concerned," she says, suggesting that female consumers are the reason why appliance makers have become so design-savvy of late. In addition to driving many home-purchase decisions, "we like to surround ourselves with beautiful things and manufacturers are responding to that."
But while the Design Exchange director believes appliances "are definitely more beautiful, stylish and affordable these days," she also thinks there is still more work to be done in terms of improving functionality. "In large part, the industrial design profession is male," Sannella says. "But if women were consulted more during the design process, appliances would be designed for ease and cleanliness far beyond the self-cleaning features of ovens or the removable crumb trays of toasters."
"I love the Dyson, love how it looks," she adds. "But have you ever tried lifting one up the stairs? It weighs a ton."