A few thoughts on ski design

Skis, in their various forms and states of development, have been around for about 6000 years as a means of human movement. The earliest skis were primarily used for overcoming certain forms of terrain when hunting and travelling. Skis were first employed for military purposes as early as the 8th century. Since the end of the 19th century they have mainly found use as sports equipment. In the Nordic lands whence they originated, the artistic decoration of skis played an important role – each clan had its own pattern and livery. The different colours referred to the Nordic gods, but were also of use in identifiying a potential victim’s tribe.

With the nascence of the tourist trade, industrial norms developed in skiing – norms that relate to the production of skis as well didactic concepts for teaching skiing. Movement styles were developed (the Arlberg school) and structures were put in place that have enabled skiing to become accessible for a wide section of the population. As part of this process, skis too have become an industrial mass product, particularly as the main impetus for development comes from the field of professional ski racing. The ski industry develops its forms of articulation within the context of the media marketing and commercialisation of professional racing. This is the context in which contemporary ski design must be seen: a more or less uniform visual style determined by technology and speed.

The development of the snowboard has given birth to less rigid forms on the slopes, both in terms of aesthetics of movement as well as product design. At the same time, ski areas are expanding all over the world. New technologies (man-made snow, transport and access systems, indoor ski centres) are seeing skiing spread beyond the classical Scandinavian, Alpine and North American destinations to open up ‘exotic’ markets and other cultures. After an era of mass production, industrial tendencies at large point towards a greater consideration of individual demands.

Both the general developments in our society and the specific influences in the world of skiing outlined above prompt new thoughts that question the visual and technical norms of traditional ski products and that usher in new concepts. For a long time, ski design was the exclusive domain of the manufacturer and his development goals. The opening up of this area through the concepts offered by edelwiser shows that skis can take on a significant media and communication function and that as individual ‘objects’ they can support skiers in finding the courage to develop individual concepts of movement and their own personal skiing style. In this context, there is great scope for inquiry and research into the principles of ski design on the aesthetic level as well as those principles’ emanation.

edelwiser has been looking into these questions for some time and we have collected the experiences of many customers. Along with the different concepts of customer-driven ski design we have begun to see ski design as part of a bigger picture. The development of an interactive toolkit supporting this process is well underway. Additionally, we are also working on an appropriate business model on the basis of a gallery that integrates artists and designers into the creation of a product of significant value.