One Corner of the Open Source Movement

NOSIGNER originally designed their Open Source Furniture collection for Mozilla Japan, one part of the company whose web browser I am using right now. Like the Mozilla Foundation develops and advocates for open source technology, the Open Source Furniture promotes “open” collaboration between designers and users. The instructions for creating and installing the Open Source Furniture are free, so that the public can recreate, revise, and share the designs without high prices and legal concerns. So far, the Open Source Furniture has been revised by Espace Loggia, a French company specializing in private home furnishings.

One popular piece from the NOSIGNER’s Open Source line is the “corner module,” a steel plate  made to support desks, shelves, and hanging lampshades. The module was originally made in black, gray, orange, and blue–Mozilla’s colors–but users may of course alter the color palette. Espace Loggia, for instance, redid its modules in fall colors. The module may be left freestanding (as a bookend) or screwed onto pretty much any structure with a ninety-degree angle. Along with all of the pieces of Open Source Furniture, the corner module encourages users to DIY the design and expand its possibilities for the community.

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