Kinetic displays

I just treated myself to a new erm... mobile? message board? objet decoratif? Anyway one of these, to clip stuff into. I have yet to decide if there's a tiny space left uncrammed in our house to hang it, or whether it should go to the office (whilst wondering exactly how much of my taste I can impose on the rest of my - fortunately very generous spirited and aesthetically appreciative - office mates).

When I first saw it, it did feel strangely familiar, then as I unpacked it from its box, it clicked. A few years ago I researched Ingo Maurer for an exhibition I was working on. If you're a fellow design obsessive supporter you might remember his Zettel5 (below):


Obviously it was never my intention to buy something 'influenced' by a bona fide master craftsman such as Maurer. I would always rather support original design. Let's face it the top version is a poor and pale comparison. But I have it, I love it and am happy that it reminded me of Maurer's incredible piece.

Co-incidentally, whilst I was scouring links for this post, I also happened to come across someone who'd tried to make his own (because - that looks easy - you could make that right? oh those words... but that's another story). Again I'm not advocating anyone copy someone else's design - exactly the opposite. When you read this story you understand how hard it really is, and why top class design comes at a price.