Bad Ideas (lead to better ones) is a card game that develops creativity through play. The game consists of 75 cards with 3 categories: users, goals, and constraints. When the cards are combined together, they create a randomized problem to solve. Then it’s up to you and the other players to think of the most inventive solution. The game can be used in an educational or a home setting, and is available now for pre-order.

View the full project here

The timeless craft of Swedish rag rugs, a cherished tradition spanning over 150 years, finds a contemporary reinterpretation in the hands of Stockholm-based designer Lars Hofsjö. Rooted in a rich cultural heritage, these rugs have been woven by generations of women using worn-out clothes, curtains, sheets, and upholstery. The process transforms leftover fabrics into intricately patterned, durable rugs, celebrated for their strength and firm structure, a testament to the adaptive re-use of materials.

Designer: Lars Hofsjö

Lars Hofsjö, the creative force behind the Swedish furniture brand Rumbler, has skillfully reimagined these traditional rag rugs into a unique collection of furniture pieces. His approach involved scouring markets, antique shops, and the countryside to handpick rag rugs, chosen specifically for their thinness, tightness, and color. These selected fabrics are then meticulously wrapped around aluminum shapes, crafting plush side tables that blend the rustic charm of the rugs with modern design sensibilities.

The ‘Torp’ series, characterized by its rectangular shape, is a limited numbered edition, with each piece distinct in quality, palette, and characteristics. Contrasting this, the ‘Dunker’ collection features hexagonal units, accentuated with diverse materials like leather, stone, and wood, harmonizing with the texture of the rag rugs. This blend of materials not only adds a tactile dimension to the pieces but also pays homage to the multifaceted nature of Swedish design, where tradition and innovation coexist harmoniously.

Through his innovative approach, Hofsjö offers a fresh perspective on sustainable design. By repurposing these historical textiles, he not only preserves a vital part of Swedish heritage but also provides a contemporary relevance to the rag rugs, demonstrating their versatility beyond their original, utilitarian purpose. The tables stand as a testament to the enduring beauty of Swedish crafts, bridging the gap between historical craftsmanship and modern living spaces.

Hofsjö’s work is a remarkable example of how design can be both a custodian of tradition and a catalyst for innovation. It highlights the potential of traditional crafts to inspire contemporary design solutions, underscoring the importance of sustainability in design. By breathing new life into these age-old textiles, Hofsjö not only honors the legacy of the countless unnamed weavers who have kept this tradition alive but also points the way forward for future generations of designers to explore and reinvent.

The post Recycled Swedish rugs get transformed into furniture that honors the textile’s legacy first appeared on Yanko Design.

Saudi Arabia‘s capital Riyadh has won the competition to host the 2030 World Expo, becoming the second Middle Eastern city to host the international event after Dubai in 2020.

The Riyadh Expo 2030 won the bid after 119 out of the 182 members of the Paris-based Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), the World Expo supervisor, voted in its favour.

The news was announced yesterday and described by Riyadh Expo 2023 organisers as a “historic achievement” on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

Other cities bidding to host the event, which takes place every five years, were Rome in Italy and Busan in South Korea. Ukraine had also put in a bid for Odesa, but this was ruled out due to the Russian invasion.

Event coincides with “crucial year” for Saudi Arabia

The Riyadh Expo 2030 will take place between 1 October 2030 and 31 March 2031 and will be curated under the title The Era of Change: Together for a Foresighted Tomorrow.

Details of the studio that will lead the masterplan are yet to be disclosed, but the event will be divided into three sub-themes called A Different Tomorrow, Climate Action and Prosperity for All.

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman said the event will coincide with “a crucial year for the realization of the goals and plans outlined in Saudi Vision 2030” – a plan to diversify the country’s economy and reduce its dependence on oil.

“The Kingdom’s selection as the host of the World Expo 2030 underlines its influential and leading role, and the international confidence it enjoys,” said the crown prince.

“Saudi Arabia has become an ideal destination for hosting major international events, including the esteemed World Expo,” he continued.

“This Expo represents a remarkable opportunity to share with the world the lessons learned from our unprecedented journey of transformation.”

Expo latest major event to be held in Saudi Arabia

The Riyadh Expo 2030 will be located a five to ten-minute drive away from King Khalid International Airport, which is being constructed by Foster + Partners. With six runways, it is set to become one of the world’s largest airports.

It is the latest major event to be held in Saudi Arabia. Last year, it was revealed that the country would host the 2029 Asian Winter Games at its Trojena resort. Trojena forms will form part of Neom, a new region in Saudi Arabia being developed for the Saudi Vision 2030 plan under the direction of the crown prince.

Neom will contain numerous cities, resorts and other developments, such as The Line megacity, and is arguably the world’s most controversial architecture project having been widely criticised on human rights grounds.

Last year, human rights organisation ALQST reported that three men were sentenced to death after being “forcibly evicted” from the Neom site.

The Riyadh Expo 2030 is also the latest in a string of international events to be held in the Persian Gulf, following the 2022 FIFA World Cup Qatar and the Dubai Expo 2020.

Dubai Expo 2020, which actually took place in 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic, included pavilions designed by architects including Foster + Partners, WOHA and Santiago Calatrava.

The upcoming international fair is Osaka Expo 2025, due to take place on the artificial island Yumeshima in Osaka Bay with a masterplan developed by Japanese architect Sou Fujimoto.

Elsewhere in Riyadh, the Saudi Arabian government is also developing plans to build a 400-metre-high cube-shaped skyscraper named Mukaab.

The photo is by Tom Ravenscroft. 

The post Saudi Arabia set to host 2030 World Expo in Riyadh appeared first on Dezeen.

Dezeen School Shows: a sculptural object that symbolises Kansas‘s prairies is included in Dezeen’s latest school show by students at the University of Kansas.

Also included is an airport perched on the Hudson River in New York and a prototype house built as part of the work of Studio 804.

University of Kansas

Institution: University of Kansas
School: School of Architecture and Design

School statement:

“The Department of Architecture at the University of Kansas (KU) emphasises design education through diverse experiences which include learning through making, collaborative research and community engagement.

“We are committed to finding innovative, creative and forward-thinking ways of bringing together our students and faculty with our community and industry partners.

“All of our students are required to complete a hands-on designbuild experience and study abroad experience.

“KU’s Department of Architecture offers the Bachelor of Science in Interior Architecture (CIDA Candidacy) and NAAB-accredited Master of Architecture for high school applicants and the postgraduate Master of Architecture degree for students who have earned a bachelor degree.

“The final year of the MArch programme offers several unique specialised areas, including designbuild, health and wellness design, sports and entertainment design, urban design, social entrepreneurship, the Paris exchange programme and the Gensler/Gastinger Walker Co-op programme.

“The selected student work contains projects from the MArch final year options studios, the fourth-year integrated design studios (ARCH 609), the third-year designbuild studios (ARCH 509) and the interior architecture capstone studio.”

Haven Studio by students taking part in the Dirt Works Studio

“Haven Studio is a small, solar-powered, net-zero energy, bio-based, low-carbon demonstration home wrapped in a well-insulated and air-tight envelope utilising innovative continuous timber board insulation and quad-pane windows, with a simple, iconic and familiar form.

“Designed and built by students, Haven Studio’s naturally-lit footprint reduces artificial lighting. The glazed south facade is protected by an overhang, enabling passive solar heating without overheating in the summer.

“The prefabricated floor and walls maximise construction precision and minimize waste.

“These strategies are complemented by a mini-split heat pump and ERV, enabling twelve solar panels to produce more energy, annually, than the home consumes.”

Course: Arch 509 Designbuild Studio
Tutor: Chad Kraus

River Rock Elementary School for Visually Impaired by Liz Putman and Bridgett Espino

“The visually impaired population is forced to navigate through a world designed for the sighted people, facing unique daily challenges foreign to the rest of the world.

“Yet, despite the challenging circumstances, they are able to carve a beautiful path through their lives – this project presents a school that will assist them on their journey.

“The school emphasises reliance on the other four senses and is inspired by the many different landscapes that shape Colorado. The use of colour, texture, light and materiality will create wayfinding strategies to help the user navigate throughout the spaces.”

Students: Liz Putman and Bridgett Espino
Course: ARCH 609 Integrated Design Studio
Tutor: Nilou Vakil

Link KC: Restoration, Revitalisation and Recreation by Aaron Michalicek

“Kansas City once had one of the largest streetcar systems in the country. Today, only a single line exists, leaving KC, Kansas, and KC, Missouri separated via public transit.

“Link KC explores the socioeconomic impacts of connecting KCK and KCMO with an Aerial Lift across the West Bottoms, a flood-prone industrial neighbourhood that divides the two cities.

“Given the economic challenges involved with traditional streetcar infrastructure and the topographical challenge of traversing the adjacent bluffs, the aerial lift provides a cost-effective way of reimplementing the city’s public transit backbone while the interchange station provides recreational amenities to the envisioned future neighbourhood.”

Student: Aaron Michalicek
Course: Arch 806 Sports and Entertainment Capstone Studio
Tutor: Andrew Moddrell

Vitality: Innovative Design for Stroke Survivors’ Rehabilitation and Recovery Centre by Madeline Bradley and Bridgett Espino

“Health and Wellness design programme is one of the final year options of KU’s Master of Architecture programme.

“This project aims to establish an evidence-based design for rethinking how stroke rehabilitation facilities are designed and integrated into new models of care and redevelop and protect stroke survivors’ health and wellbeing.

“Rehabilitation offers many stroke survivors the opportunity to learn how to adapt to the challenges due to brain injury, including problems with speaking, thinking, moving, planning, etc.”

Students: Madeline Bradley and Bridgett Espino
Course: Arch 808: Health and Wellness Design Capstone Studio (Master of Architecture)
Tutor: Hui Cai, PhD

Hospitality for Holistic Wellness by Laura Aykroyd and Isiah Gallegos

“Just as the culture of Seoul is built in harmony, this luxury hotel provides a culture-based healing journey that balances the guest’s energy, essence and spirit.

“As users travel through the bottom floors, the colliding/flowing convergence of traditional Korean and modern minimalist design, energetic and restful spaces, and physical and mental resources, they are able to tangibly experience the bright and dark, good and difficult, and predictable and unexpected moments of their healing journey.

“Harmony in one’s person is not just supported by the calming, natural aesthetics and guiding light paths, but is also found in the respect and acceptance of all experiences towards holistic wellness.”

Students: Laura Aykroyd and Isiah Gallegos
Course: Interior Architecture (IA) 509 – 609 (Vertical Studio)
Tutors: Mohammad R. Dastmalchi, Ann Hossler, Herminia Machry

432 Indiana Street House at Pinkney Neighborhood DesignBuild by Studio 804

“Studio 804 is one of the final-year options for the KU Master of Architecture. Students work on all aspects of the design and the construction process over the course of a nine-month academic year.

“This includes all systems, construction documents, estimates, working with zoning and code officials, site layout, placing concrete, framing, roofing, siding, setting solar panels, landscape and more.

“In 2023, Studio 804 designed and built a house in the Pinkney neighbourhood – one of the oldest in the City of Lawrence.

“The scale of the house and its gabled forms fits the neighbourhood. The house has incorporated several sustainable design features and is expected to achieve LEED Platinum certification.

“Studio 804’s 2023 project aligns with the long-term mission of the City of Lawrence to support sustainable development as part of creating a sustainable community for the future.”

Course: Studio 804: DesignBuild
Tutor: Dan Rockhill

The Dancing Tower by Christian Hunn and Julia Gillman

“The Paris programme is one of the final year options for KU Master of Architecture programme.

“This programme enables students to complete studio coursework under the tutelage of Professor Pierre Engel at the Ecole Nationale Superieure D’Architecture Paris Val-de-Seine and Professor Steve Padget of the University of Kansas, as well as engage in a part-time, academic internship with one of Europe’s most prestigious practices.

“This project ‘Dancing Tower’ is a tiered building that serves as private student apartments, library and study space, floating green space, and a rooftop restaurant and bar.

“Highlighted throughout the levels is the steel structure, running along the curving layers, supporting the rotated platforms in a crossbracing pattern.

“Steel cores offer rigidity and support, continuing from the base of the addition to the cantilevered greenspace, a focal point stabilised by the dual structures working in tandem.”

Students: Christian Hunn and Julia Gillman
Course: ARCH 810_Paris Programme
Tutors: Pierre Engel and Steve Padget

Skyport New York by Jackson Bontty and Ashlyn Reece

“Nestled gracefully within New York’s Hudson Yards, Skyport New York stands as a vital and visionary transportation hub.

“Reshaping transit between New York, Washington, Philadelphia or Boston with unprecedented efficiency, a vertiport caters to diverse travellers seeking quick connections.

“Additionally, the vertiport plays a pivotal role in addressing the long-standing transportation gap, connecting Manhattan to nearby airports and fostering interconnectivity between all five boroughs.

“As a result, the city’s mobility is enhanced and the communities are drawn closer together.”

Student: Jackson Bontty and Ashlyn Reece
Course: ARCH 609: Integrated Design Studio
Tutor: Kapila D Silva, PhD

Prairie in the Wind by Brookelyn Vittitow, Isaac Decker, Louis Cobb and Kevin Bainter

“Prairies are contrived of thousands of individual plants but through gusts of wind, they become a uniform entity.

“The golden prairies of Kansas are covered in wheat that freely flows with every breeze that passes through the fields creating art through motion.

“This project takes the challenge that simulates the mechanism of prairies in architectural application by fabricating a three-dimensional surface which is defined by the tips of hundreds of individual wood members, just like prairies.

“A mutual relationship between two materials is defined.”

Students: Brookelyn Vittitow, Isaac Decker, Louis Cobb and Kevin Bainter
Course: ARCH509 Design Build Studio
Tutors: Dr Tzu-Chieh Kurt Hong, Matthew Hufft, Josh Ogren

Solport-SkyHive by Alex Lamoureux and Ethan Overland

“Solport-Skyhive in Jungu-gu, Seoul, is South Korea’s inaugural vertiport, seamlessly integrated into the city’s robust transportation system.

“This groundbreaking structure is set to revolutionise transportation in a city known for its efficient public transit.

“Named after the Korean word for pine trees – ‘sol’ – it’s a towering symbol of sustainable construction, marking the country’s first mass timber skyscraper.

“Drawing inspiration from the Korean red pine, the vertiport features a modular design that mimics the natural growth of a flourishing tree, enabling it to adapt and expand in response to evolving needs, much like the branches of a tree adjusting to their surroundings.”

Students: Alex Lamoureux and Ethan Overland
Course: ARCH 609: Integrated Design Studio
Tutor: Kapila D Silva

Partnership content

This school show is a partnership between Dezeen and University of Kansas. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.

The post The University of Kansas presents ten architecture projects appeared first on Dezeen.

Promotion: since the early 2000s furniture design brand Herman Miller has collaborated with Berlin-based design firm Studio 7.5 on a range of ergonomic workplace seating solutions, including the Cosm and Setu chairs.

Studio 7.5 says it places emphasis on developing furniture in three dimensions as opposed to relying solely on digital modelling programmes, in order for practical experimentation to occur.

The studio’s collaborations with Herman Miller have resulted in the design of four distinctive seating solutions – the Zeph Chair, Setu Chair, Cosm Chair and Mirra 2 Chair.

According to Studio 7.5, its furniture aims to bring a sense of playfulness and colour to workplace environments, which often prioritise functionality and efficiency over dynamic interior design schemes.

“As designers, we strive to do good work: creating something meaningful, that contributes to the wellbeing of people,” said co-founder of Studio 7.5 Carola Zwick.

Cosm designed by the studio has an in-built tilt mechanism that automatically adjusts to the sitter’s posture.

The tilting of traditional office chairs has to be fine-tuned by hand, manually making alterations to various knobs and levers. Studio 7.5 sought to eradicate this need to create a smoother experience for the user.

Cosm‘s design process involved the creation of hundreds of prototype segments – some hand-sculpted and others 3D-printed – resulting in refined features such as the chair’s gently inclined Leaf Arms, which provide a cradle that supports the elbow.

The chair has won various awards since its launch, including a Red Dot Best of the Best Product Design Award in the Office Chairs category in 2019, and was listed by TIME as one of the 100 Best Inventions of the same year. In 2020, it also received an iF Gold Award in the Office and Industry category.

The design of Studio 7.5’s Setu chair was informed by the studio’s observations of how people work throughout the day in the modern world.

The studio identified that people work more collaboratively across a variety of settings, but spend less time in each spot, calling for a chair that can “adapt to the needs of a variety of users over the course of a working day”.

For example, according to Herman Miller, post-pandemic workspaces need more collaborative spaces for interaction, including seating solutions that are adaptable to changing tasks and “flexible layouts for employee numbers in flux”.

The brand says this is due to hybrid working organisations facing a “constant change in the number of people working across spaces in the office” and its chairs – such as Setu – are not only designed for various tasks but also to adapt to different body shapes and heights.

Setu is equipped with a flexible segmented aperture that supports the chair and bends and flexes to provide immediate comfort.

The seat and back are formed of one piece of elasticated material, which has a taut suspension that provides both support and aeration and adapts to the natural movements of the body.

Cosm and Setu, alongside the other chairs in Herman Miller’s catalogue, can be used in a range of environments for a variety of purposes.

While Cosm and Mirra 2 are especially well-suited to desk use – where people sit for an extended period of time when working – Zeph and Setu can be used across other areas of offices, such as in breakout areas and meeting spaces.

Setu can also be used in hospitality settings, such as corporate rooms in hotels where individuals attend long training sessions or formal meetings.

The chairs can be specified in a range of colours and finishes to fit seamlessly into established interior design schemes.

Herman Miller and Studio 7.5’s partnership began with the launch of Mirra in 2003. Studio 7.5’s co-founders Burkhard Schmitz and Carola Zwick launched the practice in Berlin in 1992 and they say their work is informed by US designers Ray and Charles Eames.

To view more of Herman Miller’s products, visit its website.

Partnership content

This article was written by Dezeen for Herman Miller as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.

The post Studio 7.5 and Herman Miller co-create four cutting-edge office chairs appeared first on Dezeen.