Inspiration

The work of Berlin-based artist Eva Berendes invokes a beguiling effect on the viewer, which is imposed by intentionally blurred lines between product and art. Geometric forms and pops of bold colors permeate her creations which include room dividers, folding screens and wall units. Her pieces recall real functionality, yet certainly stand on their own as art. Grid lines...

We don’t want to speak to soon, but it seems to be warming up. The trees are in bloom and our vague memories of the sun are becoming more vivid. We may not have completely shed our winter skin, but we can’t help but dream of sunscreen, barbecues and swimming pools. The last frost may not have yet thawed, but we’re already compiling our wishlist of poolside lounging mater...

This small creation by the Japanese design studio is nothing complicated, but it works extremely well. A simple and fun idea that yet perfectly sums up nendo‘s philosophy of thinking out of the box, while remaining innocent and childlike. This set of paper blocks was created as an insert for a Japanese lifestyle magazine. It consists of a series of flat paper forms print...

Roadkill is pretty disgusting. That said, whenever we spot it, we’re overtaken by mixed feeling. On one hand, the repulsion forces you to look elsewhere, but on the other, a certain fascination makes you want to look – even though you know it’s wrong. In creating the Roadkill Carpet, Dutch designers Oooms play with that side of us. Both repulsive and kind of funny, th...

For last October’s Science Festival, French photographer Romain Giusiano was able to capture an unusual performance. During the visit of a waste processing plant, comedian and dancers started interacting with the extraordinary venue, exposing the plant from a brand new angle. The photo shoot resulted in a series of almost surreal images. But the interesting aspect of Gi...

The Stockholm Furniture Fair is officially in full swing! Each year, the Greenhouse serves as a “Garden of New Ideas”, displaying new talents from around the world. For the second year in a row, Stockholm-based Note Design Studio designed the hall. Intent on representing the social aspect of the event, the Swedish design studio put participant and customer interaction a...

New York artist Karen Margolis has a profound fascination with the inner workings of the mind. Her art, through a beautiful and almost obsessive repetition of circles, is actually a calculated expression of human psychology. Circles of shadow, color and absence map out the thoughts and feelings flying through our gray matter. Drawing upon her background in psychology,...

What looked like a great exhibition turned out to be more than that. From January 25th to April 6th, the Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is hosting one major event. A few figures can sum it up: 7 architects from 6 countries and 4 continents have the task of filling more than 2,000 square meters with one monumental exhibition. The point is to make architecture interact with ou...

Adding to his body of work titled An Aggregation, Seoul-based artist Seon Ghi Bahk is currently presenting his latest installations at the Zadok Gallery in Miami. Known for his delicate charcoal installations, Bahk hangs the substance from nylon threads to create concrete and abstract shapes that simultaneously seem to be crumbling, floating and flying away. More specif...

“It is not about what you see but how you see it.” And from behind the lens of Lebanese photographer Serge Najjar, Beirut’s concrete jungle flourishes with unexpected geometric patterns, contrasts, colors and stolen moments. If such elements exist outside of Najjar’s digital world, his patience and timing are impeccable. Every Saturday, Najjar drives without aim, until s...

What happens when a designer is facing difficulties? French designer Julien Carretero wanted to use the flexibility and low-cost of aluminum to avoid the additional costs of aluminum injection molding. After a few try-outs, he found out aluminum didn’t need to be too warm to melt and thus came his idea. Carretero figured this reasonably high temperature of melting wasn’t...

The M Family is a French brand launched by Michael Malapert that creates artistic 3D printed objects. Most recently, the brand debuted the Dark Side collection. The Dark Side revisits everyday objects, transforming vases, bowls and plates into sparse geometric forms. Mimicking the graphics of 3D modeling software, each 3D printed piece is reduced to its pure skeleton – ...

In a few years, China has become one of the most powerful countries in the world. But its growth hasn’t only been economic. The development of its cities and of its urban planning also has also come with a number of major architectural projects. Among these impressive buildings designed by some of the most iconic architects of our time, there have been quite a big number...

How to make storybook-like stool? Easy! First, grab some scrap wood and some wool from a newly shorn sheep. Now, put it all together and have a seat! Okay, it’s not quite that easy, but 0304 makes it seem as such. Using simple and sustainable materials, they create fun and funky designs. A collaboration between former Design Academy Eindhoven classmates, Tanja Kole, Raym...

Bamboo, bamboo, how we love you! We talked about Bo Reudler’s bamboo collection at DDW 2013, but it doesn’t stop there! In the wake of Beijing Design Week and Taiwan Designers Week, we’ve seen a resurgence of the eco-friendly wood. Durable, sustainable, beautiful, bamboo’s multitude of qualities make it a design dream. So have a gander at some of our favorite bamboo c...

Ah, Paris. We never get tired of Paris. The whirlwind of Paris Design Week spread from the Marais all the way to Maison & Objet in the suburb of Villepinte. We ran from stand to stand at Maison & Objet and from exhibition to exhibition in the city to find a selection of products that we love. Of course, our list is not limited to ten! Petite Friture, Collection Partic...

Kids may not have all the fun, but adulthood can definitely be a drag. Fortunately for the 18+ crowd, playful design is on the rise, and some of our childhood favorites are being revamped and revisited . So, in honor of the weekend, let’s take a few moments to indulge our inner child. And who knows? You might find some early holiday gift ideas!

The holidays are coming faster than a high speed train, but you’ve still got time to decorate! We’re not in love with the idea of a red and green explosion, so we decided to seek out some options. We’ve selected ten holiday decorations that we think will make the season just as jolly while stepping a little bit out of the holiday mold.

No longer relegated to grandma’s rump room or your newborn child’s nursery, dare we say that rocking chairs rock? New materials, bold colors and modern lines and ergonomics have rejuvenated the humble old wooden rocker. There are quite a few modern offerings that are sure to surprise and delight you, and we’ve compiled our favorites here for your rocking pleasure.

Bar cart, tea trolley or whatever you may call it, this fabulous rolling device can be the perfect home accoutrement. Whether it be a minimalist design or gold-plated shine, bar carts are a blank slate just waiting to be loved and accessorized. We’ve selected eight modern bar carts that we wouldn’t mind rolling around – decorated with our favorite martini, of course.

Some partnerships just produce great things. Peanut butter and jelly. Cookies and milk. Will Bryant and Eric Trine. Their Staycation already inspired us to take a (very) long holiday, and now, we are digging the bright shapes of their Alley-Oop II collection. As a continuation of their work with Los Angeles retailer Poketo, the designers filled the gallery with improbab...

Japanese culture has taken over the world in the last few decades. Whether it is architecture, design or simply art, it is everywhere for a simple reason: it has been able to evolve quickly with time, while preserving a strong link to tradition. Looking at Hayao Miyazaki‘s movies for instance, one quickly realizes that Japanese symbolism is still very present in modern c...

Villa Kugelhof by Paul de Ruiter Architects is a self-sufficient, carbon-neutral home that has won the prestigious Dutch ARC13 Architecture Award as well as a FIABCI Prix d’Excellence Award in the Sustainable Development and Residential (Low Rise) category. Situated in Noord-Beveland in the southerwestern Netherlands, the residence is located on 25 hectares of protected ...

Black houses hold a certain intrigue, perhaps due to the pure rarity of their existence. Black houses are the unicorns of the architecture world. That being said, we’ve managed to wrangle ten black houses that hold the intrigue for which they are known. Enjoy. Black Desert House by Oller & Pejic Architecture Oller & Pejic’s Black Desert House is located in the extr...

Workspace 3.0 at iSaloni left us a bit disappointed, as our contributor describes in his piece for our live coverage edition. However, certain furniture companies keep lighting the fire to our hope for office spaces. Turkish furniture brand, Koleksiyon, for example. In response to missing originality and deep understanding in office furniture, the brand director and desi...

During our visit to the Paris Design Week in September, we attended the Drawing Glass exhibition at the plush St Sulpice Christian Lacroix boutique. The Italian design workshop Fabrica presented a limited edition collection of glass pieces. In the face of computer domination and the rise of 3D printing, the workshop’s purpose was to bring a group of designers back to ...

From May 16th to June 20th, Chinese artist Jacky Tsai will present his work at Scream London for an exhibition called Eastern Orbit. Based in London since 2006, Tsai is trying to create a link between the two cultural worlds he has been evolving around all his life. Mixing several techniques and styles along with those two strong cultural influences, Jacky Tsai achieves ...

The kitchen is evolving. All of the essentials are still there, but modern kitchens have gone to the next level with materials, ergonomics and aesthetics. Designers are bringing back natural materials and using technology to create bring never before seen materials into the kitchen. Stand alone and modular kitchens are becoming a design staple, and integrated kitchen acc...

Romain Guillet and Louise de Saint Angel, the Parisian duo behind STATUE, use design to reinvent objects and spaces in unexpected ways. They chose STATUE as both the name of their design studio and as their mascot due to its architectural, artistic, decorative and epic attributes. The pair often takes antiquated objects and profoundly revives them. Despite their acousti...

Jonathan Muecke doesn’t like labels. Working from his studio in Minneapolis, Minnesota, he toes the line of design, teetering into art, architecture and back again. Indeed, his creations would be equally convincing in a private residence or modern art museum. Case in point: Step Stool is part of the collection at MAD in New York. For Open Objects, his second solo exhibit...

Slowly and steadily, time sculpts the urban landscape. Pollution, graffiti and precipitation leave their indelible mark on the city through a simple addition and subtraction of materials. Rain erodes and soot creates, building up on windowsills in a minuscule geography that often goes unnoticed. Often, but not always. Fortunately, there are some that take notice. Broo...

Summer is almost here, and it’s becoming impossible to move without breaking a sweat. ‘Tis the season to slow down and relax, and for that, there is always the ever practical, always reliable hammock. But what if we went above and beyond the hammock? What if? Let’s check out 10 suspended seats with an unusual twist. Tropicalia by Patricia Urquiola for Moroso Colorf...

These breathtaking floor installations are created by hand-placing bagillions of tiny mirrors, crystals, pieces of chromed metal, optical glass and precious stones in patterns once only accessible through the ubiquitous kaleidoscope tube. The craziest part of these mesmerizingly precise installations is that all of the pieces are loosely placed, AKA not fixated, glued ...

Trying to sum up a whole year in one building, one project or one idea is impossible. But somehow, Edward Burtynsky‘s 2013 exposition in Toronto comes close. Even though these photographs weren’t taken this year, it’s their compilation and exposition called Water Photography that mattered here. Indeed, these wonderful pictures, taken from the sky, reveal and remind us wh...

Inspired by the hand-made boucherouite rugs of the Atlas mountains in Morocco, Jan Kath exhibited his Lost Weave collection during Berlin Design Week at the Nyhues Flagship store. Using hand-processed highland wool from Tibet, Chinese silk and nettle fiber, Kath confects the rugs—applying the same technique used to weave cushions for Tibetan monks—with Eastern knowhow an...

What if sour was something that you could touch? How would it feel? Copenhagen-based designer Martyna Barbara Golik attempts to answer these questions with her Touch That Taste! project: five tangible objects that translate taste into touch. Sweet is interpreted as a pouf which imitates the feeling of sinking into something like when sugar melts slowly on your tongue, w...