Hasta La Ideas

By blending contemporary style, classic silhouettes and future-forward tech, these companies make super-advanced moto gear

Motorcycle apparel is evolving, blending tech, safety and style with aplomb. Small brands like REV’IT!, Iron and Resin and ATWYLD are using future-forward materials without sacrificing style. SA1NT (an Australian brand), Aether and Filson (both based in the US) fuse classic workwear and outerwear looks with embedded protective technology so that their clothing can be worn off the bike, but it holds true for the demands of hard riding.

Some standouts are SA1NT’s Unbreakable jeans with Dyneema (a type of polyethylene that’s woven into the cotton and makes them nearly tear-proof and up to 15 times stronger than steel) and Filson’s Alcan Canvas Cruiser, which utilizes the brand’s classic British Millerain waxed canvas that the company has deployed on outerwear for nearly a century, but is then made appropriate for motorcycling protection with a water-resistant polyurethane-coated ballistic nylon.

Aether’s Navigator Jacket harnesses two key Schoeller technologies. The first, called Dynatec, is a three-layer fabric that’s been abrasion-tested at up to 75mph, and is waterproof and breathable. Schoeller’s ColdBlack is also part of the formula and ingeniously makes darker colors reflect sunlight like lighter ones.

We interviewed SA1NT founder Aidan Clarke, Aether co-founder Palmer West and Filson design director Adam Hogarth to understand their collective philosophy on how a stronger tech pipeline combined with a refusal to follow the industry’s traditional apparel is yielding palpable gains in protection and style.

It seems like your background in sportswear at 2XU influences SA1NT in understanding the need for stretch as well as protection in a package that doesn’t appear covered in tech, despite it being embedded.

Aidan Clarke: Riders are changing. In Australia, we’re seeing more women buying our jeans—and they don’t want to look like a Storm Trooper. They want to be able to get off their bike and go into a restaurant and have nobody know they’re a rider. You’re going out in your Levi’s, so you look normal, but those aren’t protective at all. We wanted to go where moto wasn’t, which is why we’re making close silhouettes with stretch. You can build a wardrobe which crosses over; it’s totally functional just for every day.

Tell us about your upcoming Armored Moto Puffer.

AC: Like with our jeans, we’re embedding D30 armor—but at the shoulders and elbows. We think nobody’s done a puffer before because you have to position the armor so that it’s there for all differently sized people. We built a system that you can tighten that up when you ride, then loosen it when you get off the bike, so you have protection where and when you need it. We can sit in this position between fashion and safety and blend the two, and in doing so, be quite innovative.

There’s this flawed idea that it needs to be ugly to protect you

Aether’s successful in other areas for other activities. Can you explain a bit about why you wanted to get into the moto space?

Palmer West: Too much moto clothing is just… Crayola. It’s a sea of ugly. There’s this flawed idea that it needs to be ugly to protect you, and that’s false. We thought, “No, there are a lot of men and women who ride just as a means of transportation.” So we built just two pieces at first, to see if anybody was thinking what we were thinking and it turns out they were.

Tell us about choosing fabrics first, rather than fully envisioning a garment and then hunting for the fabric to fit the vision.

PW: We screen on whether we’d want to wear anything made of that fabric. Sure, we lean on what we already know, hiking or backcountry skiing, but really, first, we build a library of fabrics that call to us. What’s the hand? How does it behave when it moves? Schoeller is great for that because their Dynatec has all of those properties, but it’s also completely waterproof and will hold up in a crash—but it feels like something you want to wear. I know that sounds weird to say, but there are a lot of mills that just build for technicality, and not for wearability.

Filson’s Alcan Collection seems like something the brand could have released in 1965—balancing contemporary tech with classic design. But Filson began as a brand for outdoor enthusiasts, tell us about getting into the moto space. 

Adam Hogarth: Filson has always been about problem-solving. If you look back to who they outfitted, it was people cutting down massive trees, and they used the best “technology” from the era. You’re right that you can absolutely imagine us making a coat like the Alcan Cruiser a few generations ago. You can see it as ours, and that’s the beauty of it. We kept hearing from customers using our existing clothing for riding, so it was just obvious to do this, but to do it our way.

Can you each share something about each of these pieces that offer the biography of your brand—even if they are likely to be invisible or subconscious to many buyers?

AH: Everything we build has to be reworkable. A lot of brands will use recycled materials now, but Filson—from day one—was about being repairable. Too technical or too ornate and it would be harder to preserve. So you may not recognize the simplicity of the fabrication, but we can fix everything we make. To us sustainable design means we can keep it alive, and like everything Filson, handing it down for generations.

AC: We make a denim which is, at its peak, 200 times stronger than a standard Levi’s 501 denim. So, you know, 12-ounce denim. We can actually pick up a two-and-a-half-ton car with our jeans.

PW: We do something really subtle where we move seams so that they’re not going to bind the rider, but they’re also not in an impact zone so they won’t be the first thing that hits when you fall, which would compound the force. Also, we test all our seams so they work like welded metal. A proper weld is stronger than the metal it joins, and that’s how we have to think. Riding is dangerous, so if we’re going to do this dangerous thing we should build a product we expect to hold up for 20 years, but for 20 seconds of those two decades, it needs to save your life.

Hero image courtesy of Aether

Architecture discussion platform Sound Advice has gathered essays and interviews from 60 architects and urbanists of colour in a book to highlight racial inequality in architecture.

Sound Advice founders Joseph Henry and Pooja Agrawal assembled the book, titled Now You Know, in the wake of the murder of George Floyd and the #BlackoutTuesday.

The duo created the publication to build on the reaction to the murder of Floyd and to make clear that there is a lot of work to do to make the built environment more diverse.

“This book came into being as a response to a specific moment, #BlackoutTuesday, when all across social media individuals, businesses and institutions were posting a black square in response to the murder of George Floyd,” Henry told Dezeen.

“The publication became a means to hold the raw responses of people of colour in the architecture and design industry who were feeling anger, hurt and frustration,” he continued.

“Collectively we wanted to show how much work is needed to make change, to ensure people didn’t become complacent after #BlackoutTuesday and let them think that that was enough to guarantee progress.”

The book, which was designed by London-based Joel Antoine-Wilkinson, contains essays, poems and interviews from 60 people of colour working in the built environment including Dezeen content producer Siufan Adey and Dezeen Awards judge Priya Khanchandani.

It was compiled to showcase the ideas and thoughts of some of the many people working to make the built environment more inclusive.

“Totally fed up with how the built environment sector tackles, or doesn’t tackle, race, we wanted to hear from people who are already fighting to make the changes,” said Agrawal.

“What was their response to this moment? Where do they think we can go from here? How can we disrupt the inertia of the profession?”

Henry and Agrawal set up Sound Advice, which creates short quotes and tips on social media coupled with music, as a non-academic way of discussing diversity in the built environment.

They want the book, which is the first published by the platform, to bring attention to the opinions of people of colour working in the built environment.

“There is a gaping hole in the western architectural canon which is the perspective of people of colour and this book is our small contribution to balancing that out,” said Henry.

“We want the book to present an alternative vision for the future of our cities and showcase the people that are out there with great ideas and something to contribute.”

The duo hope that the book will both increase awareness of racism in the architecture profession and offer potential solutions.

“The content of the book can increase people’s awareness of people’s personal experiences of racism, but also knowledge of historical evidence of structural racism embedded in our cities,” said Henry.

“It has very direct ideas of how to take action to diversify the industry, but also how to fundamentally challenge who has access to space.”

They also hope that those reading it will be encouraged to take action and make changes so that the burden of changing the profession isn’t left to people of colour.

“But also, a lot of people of colour are tired of talking about how to make change and feel exploited and pressured to share their personal stories and experiences,” said Henry.

“This book puts the onus on people to stop looking at us, to digest the content and to take ownership to make change.”

Floyd was murdered by a police officer on 25 May 2020. His killing sparked global protests in support of racial equality with designers including David Adjaye, Jessica Walsh, Tom Dixon, Camille Walala and Yinka Ilori among the thousands of people posting a black square on Instagram in support.

Numerous graphic designers created illustrations in support and Dallas artist Jammie Holmes flew banners above US cities showing Floyd’s last words.

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The term Google is pretty self-explanatory! There’s nothing that we can really say about the tech giant, that it hasn’t already said for itself via its products. Google is always surprising and delighting us with its groundbreaking products – from the Google Pixel phones to their Nest Smart Speakers. Google’s cutting-edge technology and innovative design philosophies have been a major source of inspiration for designers and creators all over the world. And, we’ve curated some of the best Google-inspired designs that we have come across! From a Google Pixel smartwatch concept to a Google Glass-inspired bicycle accessory – this collection of designs will have you wishing that Google transforms them into a reality soon! And all this while seamless merging your home interior scheme.

This Google Chromecast design is designed to be a media hub. Designed with the stylings of the Apple TV box, Heyninck’s Chromecast 3 box looks pretty nifty, and in many ways follows Google’s product and CMF language. The box connects to a television via a single USB-C connection that has the ability to pull power as well as push media (I assume the cable branches into USB and HDMI ports at its other end.) Being a more budget-friendly option to the Apple TV, this Chromecast design brings to the forefront the ability for your remote to also function as a gaming controller. WHile Apple’s remote does it already, its about time Google brings this to its Chromecast and allow us to put that big screen TV through some quick gaming in a jiffy!

It preserves your aerodynamics while giving you an easy-access rear-view mirror… and it fits right on your spectacles/sunglasses like a rather futuristic, life-saving accessory. Designed to allow you to look behind you without physically glancing over your shoulder as you ride a cycle or motorbike, the CORKY X has an aesthetic that looks rather familiar if you’re a tech enthusiast. Modeled roughly on the form factor of the Google Glass, CORKY X gives you a different kind of HUD. Fitted with a small mirror, the eyewear accessory lets you instantly look behind you simply by glancing out of the corner of your eye.

The Pixel smartphone went onto redefine what a pure Android experience could look like, becoming the gold standard in the Android OS experience. James Tsai’s Google Pixel Smartwatch concept does the same for the Android Wear OS. Embodying Google’s playful-serious aesthetic, the Pixel Smartwatch concept comes in a traditional round format, and in a variety of quirkily named colors. The Android Wear OS logo displays clearly on the always-on display of the watch, transforming into a colorful set of watch hands every time you look at it to read the time. The watch comes with Google’s top-notch voice AI, all of Google’s native apps, and a heart-rate monitor on the back, which ties in well with Google’s plan of acquiring Fitbit and their entire fitness-tech ecosystem.

Designer Devin Sidell’s re-envisioned the Stadia controller as an NES-style bar-shaped controller that’s easy to slide into pockets and backpacks. Its slim profile feels almost like a remote and comes with all the functionality you need. Devin hasn’t taken away from the Stadia controller’s abilities, but rather just streamlined the form to make it more portable. In your hand, the Stadia Bar Controller concept feels a lot like a single Joy-Con from a Nintendo Switch (albeit slightly thicker).

Prosser is back for yet another prediction/leak which he feels is right on point. It’s the Pixel 6 and 6 Pro, which Google is slated to release this year… with Google’s first homemade silicone chip on the inside to rival Apple’s M1, and more noticeably, a whopper of a camera bump. I wouldn’t really call this a bump because it’s so wide and protruding, it’s practically a shelf. Like I could literally place a SIM card on top of it and it wouldn’t fall off. Objectively speaking, the band protrudes at least 2-3 millimeters from the phone’s back, making it look almost like a belt or a shelf emerging from the phone. Subjectively, it kind of makes the phone look like a criminal – serves them right for stealing the ‘Pro’ nomenclature from Apple!

The Google Us is a conceptual smart assistant designed to aid teleconferencing. Made to look like a part of Google’s existing smart hardware family, the Google Us is black, and shaped like a Home Mini, with a touchscreen. It runs a stripped-down version of Android and uses Google Hangouts to enable meetings and collaborative conversations by pairing with other smartphones and Us speakers running on the Hangouts platform. You can simply make group calls and conduct structured, timely meetings through the touchscreen interface on the device, much like a smartphone, but with a better focus on maintaining daily schedules and delivering crisp audio to both parties, thanks to Google’s efforts in audio engineering and far-field microphone technology.

Waqar Khan’s renders give us a clue of what a folding Pixel would look/feel like. Schematically, it’s no different from Samsung’s first folding phone; although with significant developments made in the world of flexible OLED displays, maybe the ‘Pixel Fold’ could avoid the pitfalls of the Galaxy Fold that came 2 years before it. The renders show a clean matte body (like last year’s Pixel device) along with the presence of a fingerprint reader on the back. That particular detail could be a creative call on Khan’s part, given that in-screen fingerprint readers seem to be quite the norm with Android phones over the past year.

The Spot fulfills the role of a toy, encyclopedia, and bedtime storybook, all in a single handheld device. The camera allows children to capture objects, living things, and phenomena around them, while inbuilt A.I. helps children understand what they are by using optics, object recognition, and machine learning. The in-built AI weaves explanations into storylike narratives, pushing the child to be empathetic, curious, and at the same time, get answers to every question they have, while machine learning helps pick up on the child’s interests and learning pace, adapting to the needs of each child. It’s like a Google Lens for children!

Designed for an absolutely robust grip, the Playdream has all the necessary controls, from the buttons to a redesigned D-Pad, to the triggers, Google button, and even two extra buttons on the inside of the grip. The ingenuity of the Playdream controller is in the way it ditches the status-quo (and its clever play on the word Daydream too!). Putting aside the standard organic styling popularized by Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft, and the likes, Playdream sets its own benchmark. The design is radical, but inviting and playful too… just like the Google brand!

Google did create the first wearable with the Google Glass, but honestly, with its $1500 price tag, it sounded like a failure at the get-go. Google also has a tendency to fumble with hardware. Their Project Ara met a sad end last year too. However, Intel picked up on the Glass project where Google left off, with its Recon Jet smart eyewear. Much like the Glass, but with much more style and a lot of refinement, the Recon Jet has the aesthetic of a modern Bluetooth earpiece but sits in front of your eye. It isn’t really an AR or VR device, but it puts a small screen in front of your eye, feeding you information from a small corner… so that you can still see everything around you. I’d like to call this Partial VR.

The Atmoph Window 2 isn’t really a window, but it behaves a lot like one. This smart high-definition display is capable of quite a few things, including playing from a library of 1000 videos of sceneries that you’ll love. The Atmoph Window 2 is the perfect example of a product that’s absolutely unique, even though it uses technology and hardware we’re so familiar with. The scene-shifting smart-window also displays the time, weather, as well as your calendar tasks, keeping you in touch with reality as you stare for hours into the Finnish Laplands, and even comes with Google Home compatibility, allowing you to execute simple voice tasks like “Hey Google, show me Hawaii and play some Hawaiian music”.

Architecture studio Hutchinson & Partners employed a neutral palette of cream-coloured hues to complement the stonework of this 1920s office building in London, which was previously refurbished by British architect Will Alsop.

Hutchinson & Partners‘ extensive refurbishment of the Victoria House was carried out by the London and Berlin-based firm for the workspace provider LABS, which acquired the property in 2019 with a vision to transform the building into a modern workspace.

The 13-storey building sits on the eastern edge of Bloomsbury Square and was originally designed as the headquarters for the insurance company Liverpool and Victoria Friendly Company by the architect Charles William Long.

The neoclassical Grade-II listed block, which was previously refurbished in the early 2000s by Alsop, contains 27,000 square metres of office space, alongside retail, hospitality and event spaces.

The studio aimed to update the historic marble-lined space to give it “a new, modern layer”.

Throughout, the team used a palette of natural hard-wearing materials – such as marble, terrazzo, patinated brass, bronze, oak timber and leather surfaces – that complement the original architecture and its elegant proportions but update it with “modern and minimal” details.

The ground floor’s grand spaces – a Subiaco marble and Italian travertine entrance hall, a terrazzo staircase and a triple-height central hall – have been reworked to host a series of social spaces.

These include a central bar, members’ lounge and informal meetings spaces, while the upper levels have been updated to provide flexible workspaces with communal lounges, kitchens, libraries, meeting rooms and phone booths clustered around central timber-lined axes.

The project includes more than 750 square metres of space within three communal suites.

The Alsop Suite and The Long Suite provide spaces for the office tenants to meet with clients, or collaborate and unwind, while The Heritage Suite contains a state-of-the-art gym, multi-use studio alongside a lecture room, boardroom and meeting room suite.

Some interventions introduced by Alsop during the previous 2000s refurbishment, such as a series of suspended office pods, remain untouched, while others have been updated, such as the floating glazed platform which has been reimagined in bespoke terrazzo and roughly hewn travertine slabs.

“The aim was to align the sense of old and new, while retaining a strict sense of historical narrative that easily allows the viewer to delineate between the past and the present and allows them to experience the building as a unified whole,” said the studio.

“This emergent language has been used as a basis on which the evolving phased refurbishment of the wider building has been carried out.”

British designer Fred Rigby was commissioned to create a bespoke furniture collection for the project that draws upon the soft forms found in nature.

The collection of curvaceous pieces includes a series of sinuous slatted oak privacy screens, oak and boucle fabric armchairs, and a collection of tables that nod to the oak doors of the landmark building.

Other recent London office projects include an office interior by Hollie Bowden with a rich material palette informed by London’s gentlemen’s clubs, and a mid-century medical laboratory that has been transformed into a flexible office space by dMFK.

Photography is by Ståle Eriksen.

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I think we’re beyond the point of debate when it comes to climate change. Whether you believe the earth is warming or not, summers are just unbearably hot, and that’s something I think we can collectively agree on. After all, even climate-change deniers feel the heat, right? Well, whether the climate is changing or not, fashion certainly is. Companies are focusing their efforts on developing sustainable and breathable fabrics, and heck, Sony even designed a portable AC that you can wear on the back of your neck to cool you down. Designer Alexandre Cailleaux believes it doesn’t have to be this complicated, though.

Designer: Alexandre Cailleaux

Click Here to Buy Now: $39 $93 (58% off). Hurry, only 78/100 left!

Having devised a way to infuse peppermint into fabrics, Alexandre’s company A.Brolly’s unveiled Mintie, a pair of yoga pants for women that rely on peppermint’s cooling/soothing qualities to keep you feeling cool and breezy. Just as how eating a mint makes your mouth feel cool, the peppermint-infused fabric keeps your body cool as you perspire. The patented fabric’s called FrostTech, and it uses food-grade Xylitol to keep you up to 7°C (or 12.6°F) cooler than a regular fabric would. Mintie’s fabric even goes so far as to block UV, protecting you against skin damage.

Along with keeping you cool, the high-waisted yoga pants also help shape and tone your body during workout (or through the day, if wearing yoga pants outdoors is your jam). The fabric is breathable, has a 4-way stretch because of Spandex, and helps shape/sculpt your body by flattening the abs, lifting your rear, and slimming your legs.

Oh, and aside from the fact that the pants literally cool you down, here’s yet another impressive feature… the Mintie pants come with pockets too! They’re made from the same Spandex-based material, which means your pants can store everything from cards, to keys, to even your smartphone. You don’t need to worry about small, practically non-existent pockets anymore!

Click Here to Buy Now: $39 $93 (58% off). Hurry, only 78/100 left!