IKEA hitches a ride to mars with NASA to create curious collection on space

IKEA‘s latest collection takes inspiration from life in space, following research conducted in partnership with NASA‘s mars desert research station. the RUMTID collection comprises four different product ranges that tackle four separate issues when it comes to urban, small space living: time, space, water and air.

the RUMTID collection includes an indoor terrarium as well as various lighting solutions

images courtesy of IKEA

the collections debuted at democratic design days, IKEA‘s two-day conference that took place earlier this month. they include a redesigned air purifier, a terrarium pod, a modular, block-based furniture system, a small indoor garden, and a new super light-weight material.

‘we want to learn from extreme scenarios and connect them back to earth, focusing on urbanization and small space living‘, says siri skillgate, one of five designers involved in the project who also spent time in tokyo staying in capsule hotels, to experience urban small-space living first hand. ‘in tokyo, there’s a literal built-in thinking around small space living that allows for modularity and mobility. we felt really inspired by all of the interesting solutions in people’s homes and at the capsule hotels – in particularly when it comes to storage,‘ she continues.

few details have been released on the air purifier IKEA is planning to debut

among the news is a lightweight veneer material made of ‘wood and waste’ and rolled into hollow tubes. the tubes can be taken apart and clamped together using connectors to build custom furniture solutions. ‘by cutting the tubes into different lengths and clamping them together we can build just about anything, be it sofas, wardrobes, beds, or something else completely‘, says creative leader michael nikolic.

a lightweight veneer material which can be joined together with connectors

several new designs and collaborations were announced during IKEA’s democratic design days including an extensive preview of fashion designer virgil abloh’s collection for the brand. the space-inspired collection is one of multiple collections set to be released over the next few years with first items launched in 2020.