OUR SPECIALTY:

The MAGNO Wooden Radio, a beautifully crafted wooden gadget equipped with AM/FM tuning, two shortwave bands receivers and a mp3 player input, is built from sustainably grown wood and blends design elements of both retro and modern minimalist. It stands out against the commonplace plastic products all around us and comes in three sizes.

THE INNOVATION:

Through the production of the MAGNO Wooden Radios and other sustainable products that are made with environmentally responsible materials, designer Singgih Susilo Kartono hopes to improve the economic conditions of his Indonesian village of Kandangan with its local craft industries. He marries the two most abundant resources in the village of wood and labour, and employs 30 villagers who make about 150 handcrafted radios each month.

What’s more, Kartono who seeks to “redefine the relationship between a user and a product”, includes a built-in flaw in the radio: The MAGNO Wooden Radio’s surface is uncoated and has to be oiled periodically to protect the wood. He hopes that this would give the owner of each radio a chance to feel the wood and also to care for it.

BRIEF BACKGROUND:

The MAGNO Wooden Radio is produced under Piranti Works, which was founded by Kartono in 2005. The ingenious design of the company’s products has won several design competitions such as the Japan Good Design Award G-Mark 2008 in the category of Pioneering & Experimental Design as well as the Design Plus Award 2009 (Ambiente-Frankfurt Germany) among others.