Three Little Pigs

Who’s afraid of the big bad wolf? Big bad wolf, big bad wolf? Who’s afraid of the big bad wolf? The Three Little Pigs is a very popular fairytale that everybody has heard in their childhood. It’s the kind of story that sticks in our minds and can often be applied to everyday situations in many unexpected ways. Some people see no further than the surface of the story and imagine three little pigs singing and dancing in the woods with the big bad wolf lurking nearby. And many will barely recall the moral of the story: if you want to enjoy life and be successful, first you have to work hard, whether that means building a house or doing your homework or, why not, designing a “sturdy” product or piece of furniture which responds to the need for which it was conceived. But every story can be interpreted under a different light and the Three Little Pigs is no exception. To our way of thinking, it is a fable about the value of materials. About the capital importance of features when comparing two materials for a specific purpose. And, obviously, just how important quality and efficiency can be when using these materials. That said, we shouldn’t forget that this is a fairytale and despite the different versions down through the years, the first publications date from the 18th century. Things have changed a lot since then, but the spirit of the fable is essentially the same. Nonetheless, some of its ideas need to be revamped and updated, seeing as houses are no longer built just of bricks, and less so with sticks or straw, or at least not for the moment. At the time nobody thought of implementing concepts—or values as we prefer to call them—such as sustainability or environmental friendliness. But one thing that does repeat itself over and over again is History, as if there was some kind of safety valve when we reach a saturation point. When Jean Paul Gaultier started out in fashion, he said haute couture was like “a sumptuous field of ruins through which the celebrated shadows of past elegance paraded, anchored in conventions blind to the changing times,” precisely at a time when the word ‘crisis’ gained currency in the everyday language of society and the media. When punks were spraying walls with the battle cry of youth: No Future! We are now going through another period of economic recession and the word 'crisis' has been taken out of mothballs. Innovation has woken up from a slumber of almost three decades. And though punk is no longer the revolutionary movement it was in the 1970s, its message still survives in the spirit of present generations. Maybe it’s high time "for a different way of understanding the Habitat" and to recall the moral of The Three Little Pigs… Who’s afraid of the big bad wolf? Big bad wolf, big bad wolf? Who’s afraid of the big bad wolf? Not us. We ain’t afraid. But we are also aware that society today demands more than a piece of furniture or a product conceived to satisfy a need, that is functional and aesthetically pleasing. We know that users are looking for added values, for furniture and products with soul, that convey cultural, social and environmental values. Along our way we came across something that satisfies all those requisites: cardboard. A material that has evolved in tandem with us, earned a reputation for itself as the perfect material for sustainable production and given rise to a new generation of pieces which, apart from fulfilling a purpose, also provide values. This is what you’ll find in Three Little Pigs: a breath of fresh air for the industry today, which is not willing to give up what has been accomplished so far and which contributes much more than most people think. […] The elder pig scolded his two young brothers for being lazy and putting their lives at risk. If you ever see three pigs when you’re walking through the forest, you’ll know it’s the Three Little Pigs when you hear them singing: Who’s afraid of the big bad wolf? Big bad wolf, big bad wolf? Who’s afraid of the big bad wolf?