Do we master tools or do they master us? Not only designers have to face the fact that our everyday lives take place in a constant co-dependency with tools of all kinds. Be it the corkscrew, whose function one might still call niche, or the smartphone, without which most people – at least gefühlt – can hardly survive. Not much happens without tools. More than that: They determine our humanity. This issue is therefore dedicated to these ambivalent helpers, their stories and their design. We learn that there is no such thing as a Swiss Army knife, talk to an archaeologist about the ultimate tool, question the idea of standardization inherent in many tools, zoom in a bit, encounter 13 pliers, and visit the Berlin studio Ertl und Zull.

We also introduce you to ten chainsaws, ask French product designer Inga Sempé what object she would have liked to design, ask Artek CEO Marianne Goebl four questions, and give designer Anja Kaiser space for undisciplined design. This and much more in form 293 – Tools.

By and with
Uli Mayer-Johanssen • Tim Schütze • Christoph Rauscher • Markus Hieke • Squizzy P • Lisa Baumgarten and Mara Recklies • Dirk Sorge • Faustkeilen • Lennart Franz • Eike Walkenhorst • Pliers • Karina Iwe • Webtechniken • Discuss with me • Anna Gebala • Clara Keseberg • Ticha Matting • Ertl and Zull • Anja Kaiser • Tatjana Stürmer • Richard Sapper Archive • Marianne Goebl • Felix Kosok • Inga Sempé • Mia Akhavan • Kim Kaborda • Jonas Aaron Lecointe • Thekla Liebmann

September 2021, Verlag form, 144 pages, 23 x 29.8 cm, softcover, German edition
ISBN 978-3-943962-54-3

form is published quarterly in German language. • form is published quarterly in German language.