Brick in Architecture Awards winners revealed

Brick exterior of Ace Hotel

Promotion: a Toronto hotel featuring dramatic brick arches and a parking lot converted into a public square in Texas are among the winning projects at the Brick in Architecture Awards.

The Brick Industry Association (BIA) recognised a total of 44 winning projects that demonstrated excellence through designs that used fired-clay brick.

Among the winners were nine projects receiving the highest merit of “best-in-class” across the competition’s nine categories, each broken down by type.

Categories ranged from craftsmanship, thin brick, international, residential single family, commercial, residential multi-family, education (colleges and universities), education (schools up to year 12), paving and landscaping, and historic renovation.

The organisers said: “These awards celebrate outstanding achievements in the realm of design by honouring projects that exemplify innovation, uniqueness, and aesthetic excellence through the prominent use of clay brick as their primary building material.”

Brick exterior of Ace Hotel in Toronto
The Ace Hotel Toronto was designed by Shim-Sutcliffe Architects. Photo by Scott Norsworthy

The overall craftsmanship award was presented to Ace Hotel Toronto in Canada, designed by Canadian architecture studio Shim-Sutcliffe Architects. The project, which features brick produced by Endicott Clay Products Company, also claimed the best-in-class award in the commercial category.

The modern hotel facade has curvilinear arched elements, accentuated by intricate brickwork executed by Canadian construction firm Limen Group.

Another best-in-class project in Toronto, Canvas House by architecture studio Partisans, took the top prize in the residential single family category.

Undulating pattern on exterior of a house
Canvas House won the residential single family category. Photo by Younes Bounhar

The exterior of Canvas House is characterised by an undulating skin of blonde brick, crafted by manufacturer Taylor Clay Products and arranged by contractor Finbarr Sheehan in a pixelated pattern.

Meanwhile, New York City project 1 Boerum Place by SLCE Architects was announced as the best-in-class winner of the residential multi-family category.

The Brooklyn housing complex features slim, sand-coloured bricks crafted by Taylor Clay Products and wrapped across rounded corners and cantilevered balconies by contractor HDK Construction.

The best-in-class award in the thin brick category was won by office building 345 North Morgan in Chicago, Illinois, which also achieved a bronze ranking in the commercial category.

Designed by architecture studio Eckenhoff Saunders, the building features lofty barrel vaults constructed with dark brick supplied by manufacturer Interstate Brick and laid by contractor Illinois Masonry Corporation.

Exterior of an office building
345 North Morgan in Chicago, Illinois, was recognised at the awards. Photo by Kendall McCaugherty

Elsewhere in the USA, projects in Texas achieved three best-in-class awards.

The TCU Music Center at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, designed by Bora Architecture & Interiors, won in the education (colleges and universities) category.

The project has a facade of multi-hued blonde brick that aims to evoke grains of sand when viewed from afar. Manufacturer Acme Brick supplied the material, while contractor Wilks Masonry executed the design.

The best-in-class award for the education “K-12” category (kindergarten to year 12) was presented to the John Webb Elementary School in the Texan city of Arlington.

BRW Architects worked with manufacturer Cloud Ceramics and contractor Accurate Masonry of Texas to create the bold exterior of the educational building, which includes darkly coloured brick arranged in an intricate protruded pattern.

A former parking lot turned into a green open urban space
West End Square used to be a parking lot. Photo by William Sundquist

Formerly a parking lot, West End Square, the only public park in its Dallas neighbourhood, won the best-in-class paving and landscaping category following its conversion by New York-based landscape architecture studio Field Operations.

The park is defined by a red-brick promenade that encircles a hilly, tree-covered park. The brick was produced by manufacturer Whitacre-Greer and the herringbone pattern was achieved by contractor Paver Pro.

The 62,000 square foot Texas Christian University (TCU) music centre was another best-in-class winner. The venue was recognised for its “creative commons” outdoor gathering space, “buff brick and limestone, while its soaring central concert hall and textured crown stand out as a celebration of artistry”.

Exterior of the Texas Christian University
The 62,000 square foot Texas Christian University

Moving away from Texas, community centre Foundry 101 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, was awarded best-in-class in the Historic Renovation category.

Local architecture studio Cambridgeseven worked with manufacturer The Stiles & Hart Brick Company and contractor Fernandes Masonry to sensitively convert the 103-year-old building for modern use while preserving its 19th-century brick.

A restored foundry
Foundry 101 received the top prize in the Historic Renovation category. Photo by Anton Grassl

Another project featuring classic red brick, the TIC Art Center in Guangzhou, China, was the best-in-class winner of the international category.

The civic structure has a solid base featuring long bricks in varying shades of red produced by manufacturer LOPO China. Crowning the base is a large atrium clad in a transparent skin of triangular breezeblocks.

The BIA says it is committed to showcasing the enduring quality and beauty of brick across architecture of all kinds.

“Brick is a versatile material that offers limitless design possibilities with inherent sustainability, unmatched durability, fire resistance and notable energy efficiency,” said BIA President Ray Leonhard.

To view the winning projects, visit the BIA’s website.

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Five Experimental Walking Stick Designs That Seek to Increase Functionality

Industrial designer Kenji Takeuchi curated “Walking Sticks & Canes,” a research exhibition currently running at the Triennale Milano. Takeuchi asked 17 fellow designers to re-imagine the titular object, considering the following:

“[The first walking stick] must have been one of those primitive objects that people made on the spot as needed. As time passed, it evolved in step with social changes and cultural developments, naturally taking on different purposes and meanings. At some point, it became a symbol of power and authority or religious status and later an icon of fashion and wealth.”

“Today, it is commonly associated with older adults, who tend to be viewed with pity. However, some have found novel and fascinating ways to express their personalities and stories through their canes, making them a source of pleasure and pride. Some people have canes that are almost self-caricatures, some completely customise them to suit their needs, and others go to great lengths to find a perfect match for their taste. It is a universal yet understated subject with limitless potential for exploration.”

You can see all 18 canes (Takeuchi himself designed one) here, but only five jumped out at me for having attempted—with varying degrees of success—to increase their functionality.

Cestino, by Portugese designer Hugo Passos, features a small integrated basket for gathering things in the garden.

Milanese, by Italian architect and designer Maddalena Casadei, perhaps takes inspiration from tablecloth clamps. The design provides a secure way to hang the cane at a table.

Gianni, by Italian architect Marialaura Irvine, playfully uses the material to hold a newspaper.

Off-Road, by Swiss industrial designer Michel Charlot, provides a wider base that doubles as a way to retrieve the cane if dropped. (Care would be required—I can see stepping on this thing too quickly and whacking myself.)

And finally Up, by Takeuchi himself, adds a paper cord wrap to the midsection of the cane. This provides purchase to the user when they are transitioning from seated to standing.

The exhibition was sponsored by Karimoku furniture, which prototyped the Up design.

Pietra Tiburtina tile collection by Casalgrande Padana

Pietra Tiburtina tile collection by Casalgrande Padana

Dezeen Showroom: drawing inspiration from historic Italian architecture, the Pietra Tiburtina tiles from Casalgrande Padana recreate the charm of natural travertine.

The Pietra Tiburtina porcelain stoneware tile collection is based on travertine – a staple of Italian construction and decorating since Roman times.

Pietra Tiburtina tile collection by Casalgrande Padana
The Pietra Tiburtina tile collection recreates the beauty of natural travertine

For the collection, Casalgrande Padana focused on the aesthetic effects of both vein-cut travertine, which shows off the rhythmic layers of limestone that are created over time, and cross-cut travertine, where the slab is cut parallel to the veining, giving a more delicate, cloud-like surface texture.

Pietra Tiburtina can be used on walls and floors thanks to the sturdiness of porcelain stoneware. It can also be used to create furnishings, partition walls, countertops and washbasins.

Pietra Tiburtina tile collection by Casalgrande Padana
The cross-cut style gives a delicate, cloudy appearance

The collection comes in four colours and a wide array of formats, including a mosaic tiles and options that can be used outdoors on sand, gravel or turf.

“Delicate earthy shades, beautiful streaks and a three-dimensional play of light and shadow give these tiles a texture full of charm and elegance,” said Casalgrande Padana.


Product details:

Product: Pietra Tiburtina
Brand: Casalgrande Padana
Contact: sara.costi@casalgrandepadana.it

Material: porcelain stoneware
Colours/finishes: Vein, Cross, Anticata Cross

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Top Ten Ways To Integrate Storage With Multifunctional Furniture

The latest trend in furniture design revolves around multifunctional furniture integrated with clever storage solutions. Choosing furniture with built-in storage offers numerous advantages, making it a smart choice for individuals and households alike. Here are some emerging trends in furniture design that are gaining popularity.

Designer: Vank

1. Embrace Flexibility

Modular multifunctional furniture pieces showcase creativity by adjusting to available space according to specific needs, whether it’s altering height, built-in storage configuration, or layout. This adaptability empowers homeowners to tailor their living spaces to fit their needs, rather than the other way around.

The Vank Cube is a modular furniture system by the Polish brand Vank. Crafted from flax and hemp fibers, these versatile “building blocks” can transform into storage units, space dividers, tables, and desks. Designed for adaptability, they seamlessly blend minimalist aesthetics with functionality, perfect for various interiors from homes to offices. With reversible connectors, modifications are quick and easy, while optional add-ons like upholstered cushions and biomaterial side panels offer further customization. Sustainable, sleek, and adaptable—the Vank Cube is the modern solution for versatile furniture needs.

2. Focus on Minimalism

Numerous minimalist furniture pieces prioritize sleek design aesthetics. These pieces feature smooth curves and seamlessly integrate storage options too.

Designer: Julian Topor

The KURVE furniture collection is a blend of minimalist design and functional innovation. Crafted from simple curved layers of plywood, each piece seamlessly integrates storage solutions into its sleek aesthetic. From the throne-like KURVE chair with a backless storage box to the KURVE Couch featuring a central console and ample storage space, every element maximizes utility without compromising style. The table and nightstand complete the collection, offering practicality with their trapezoidal designs and clever storage solutions.

3. Go for the Compact Home Office

In the post-COVID era, remote work became the new standard with the rise of WFH (work from home), and now, hybrid work models are becoming permanent fixtures. Consequently, our homes must now serve the dual purpose of living and office spaces. This shift is particularly challenging for urban dwellers residing in compact homes, leading to an increased demand for compact home office setups.

Designer: Gökçe Nafak

The Portable Compartment Desk Looha is a transformative piece designed for the contemporary workspace. Crafted with portable wire compartments, it redefines organization while seamlessly integrating practicality and aesthetics. Foldable legs ensure mobility and flexibility, allowing easy transitions between spaces. With adaptable trays for storage and pinboard functionality, this desk promotes efficiency and personalization. Made from durable, eco-friendly materials, Looha combines functionality with timeless design, elevating any workspace into a haven of productivity and style.

4. Prioritize Organization

Structured environments guarantee clutter-free spaces, achieved through multifunctional furniture equipped with storage solutions down to the smallest details. Take, for example, this gaming console.

Designer: Bauhutte

Bauhutte, renowned for its gaming comfort has introduced a sleek, organized solution which is a specially designed cabinet for storing game consoles and accessories. Featuring open shelves and a dark color scheme, it ensures optimal ventilation and maximizes storage space. Equipped with a hidden cable box and compatibility for multiple consoles, Bauhutte’s cabinet combines functionality and style for the ultimate gaming setup.

5. Say Yes to Quirky Furniture

Not all furniture needs to be serious; it can also infuse a playful touch into home decor while integrating storage and serving multifunctional purposes in any living space.

Designer: Priyam Doshi

The Moose Cabinet is a whimsical yet functional statement piece that is designed to infuse joy into your living space. Crafted by Priyam Doshi and winner of the A’ Design Award, this handmade cabinet features a playful silhouette inspired by the majestic moose. Made from Oakwood with a water-based matte finish, it integrates four storage areas, including open compartments in the legs and concealed storage in the body and face. The tabletop surface comes equipped with trays for organizing small items, while the moose’s tail features a built-in mirror. With horns that serve as convenient hangers, this cabinet adds both charm and practicality to any room.

6. Consider Rotating Furniture

Compact spaces inspire creativity and drive innovative product design. Consider a single piece of furniture that effortlessly functions as both a bedroom and an office, boasting a sleek and minimalist design without appearing bulky.

Designer: Expand Furniture

The Compatto Rotating Office Murphy Bed with Desk is the ultimate space-saving solution for small living spaces. This innovative furniture piece seamlessly transitions from a comfortable bed to a functional workspace and multimedia area with just a few rotations. Its wide desk offers ample space for dual monitors, TV screens, or all-in-one iMacs, while also providing storage for files, books, and decorations. Thoughtfully designed with provisions for power cords and wires, this compact yet versatile unit is perfect for those seeking a stylish bed and workstation combination.

7. Invest in Space Saving Furniture

To maximize storage capacity, make sure to use the walls effectively, transforming them into functional furniture when needed. This innovative approach revolutionizes design, optimizing space utilization in multifunctional ways.

Designer: Friday Furniture

This Space-Saving Marvel by Friday Furniture is closed with a sleek 6.6-inch fixture against the wall. Once opened it reveals a spacious workstation with a built-in webcam and warm LED lighting. Crafted from sturdy birch plywood, it seamlessly combines style and function, offering room for the monitor, accessories, and storage, along with smart features like cork pinboards and USB ports for organization. With dimmable LED lighting and a foldable design, it’s the perfect space-saving solution for any urban setting.

8. Experiment with Interlocking Storage

Leveraging 3D printing technology opens up boundless creative possibilities. Through 3D printing, multifunctional furniture pieces emerge, featuring interlocked storage options and fluid curves that craft captivating compositions while offering dedicated storage compartments.

Designer: Deniz Aktay for recozy

The Drop Side Table is a sleek and versatile piece of furniture designed by Deniz Aktay. Crafted with minimalist elegance, it’s 3D-printed using recycled materials for sustainability. Its unique asymmetrical twisting point allows for flexible usage from every angle, doubling as stylish storage for books, magazines, or decor. With a space-saving design and geometric aesthetic, the Drop Side Table effortlessly enhances any room with its functional charm and modern appeal.

9. Integrate Technology

As Generation Z enters the workforce, they are heavily influenced by technology and the digital era. Their preference leans towards furniture that is technologically advanced and can enhance storage capabilities.

Designer: KOREA DESIGN MEMBERSHIP PLUS (Chaewon Lee, Chan woo Park, Jungwon Lee, Da-yeon Choi)

PRISOOM is the ultimate party companion designed collaboratively by LG and KDM for the MZ generation. This sleek mobile serving table doubles as storage and features integrated lighting for captivating photos and a powerful speaker for the perfect party vibe. With customizable hues and user-friendly controls, PRISOOM enhances interaction and ambiance. Its stable design ensures items stay secure, while convenient cable management keeps things tidy. As the go-to solution for house parties, PRISOOM offers compact functionality tailored to modern socializing.

10. Add Interest in 3D Furniture

Three-dimensional furniture injects a dynamic vibe into interiors, doubling as an artful accent piece in any space, with the added functionality of accommodating storage.

Designer: Deniz Aktay

The ‘Overlap’ Table is a sleek and versatile furniture piece designed by the renowned Deniz Aktay. This innovative table combines functionality with minimalist elegance, serving as both a coffee table and a compact storage solution. Crafted from interlocking wooden boxes, it maximizes storage while maintaining a small footprint, perfect for modern living spaces. Whether as a centerpiece or tucked into a corner, the ‘Overlap’ Table offers both style and practicality for today’s homeowners.

The post Top Ten Ways To Integrate Storage With Multifunctional Furniture first appeared on Yanko Design.

Unique DIY watch moves liquid droplets around to tell the time

With the arrival of smartwatches, the divide between analog and digital has become a little bit blurrier. After all, you can create the illusion of a mechanical watch using a display and you’ll only realize the difference on closer inspection. That said, these two extremes aren’t the only ways to tell the time, and if you look hard enough, you’ll find other intriguing designs that make use of a combination of patterns and lights that you need to decipher and translate to regular numbers. This distinctive watch project doesn’t go to that extreme and still presents a more familiar face, but it does so using a medium that you’d least expect to see on an electronic watch.

Designer: Armin Bindzus

Analog watches and clocks use physical moving parts to indicate the passage of time, but there’s no hard rule that says there have to be three long bars or lines. Some minimalist designs even reduce those “hands” into circles, going so far as even removing all but four numbers from the watch face. This leaves a little wiggle room for experimentation, like this DIY electronics project that uses something like those aforementioned dots but also has those dots in liquid form.

Given how we’re often told not to let liquid near electronics, this might come as a bit of a surprise, but the droplets used in this intriguing design are actually polar liquids. This means they can be electrically charged and, in this case, move around a surface exactly because of that charge. The technical principle behind this technique is called “electrowetting,” and it is able to induce liquid motion by changing the electrical field on a given surface.

With the Droplet Watch, that shifting electrical field is done through three concentric circles of 60 electrodes, representing the 60 “ticks” on a watch face. Electrodes get charged or discharged, which causes the droplets along the lanes between these circles to move around, just like the hands on a clock. It’s a complicated process that has plenty of room for errors, but it’s certainly interesting to watch liquid dots moving around the clock, briefly leaving a trail before it catches up to the rest of the mass.

The Droplet Watch only consumes power when moving the liquid, which puts it on the same level as an E Ink display. Sadly, it’s also not a practical design, at least not for a watch that will move a lot since the liquid could be dislodged accidentally. And with many digital screens on clocks and watches these days, that same visual effect can be accomplished with little to no effort at all.

The post Unique DIY watch moves liquid droplets around to tell the time first appeared on Yanko Design.

Katie Longmyer: Design Tangents Episode Sixteen

We sit down with the misfit-magnet and cultural pioneer to discuss community, human connection and more

Podcast
Culture

Katie Longmyer: Design Tangents Episode Sixteen

We sit down with the misfit-magnet and cultural pioneer to discuss community, human connection and more

With a high-energy presence that pulls in everyone around her, Katie Longmyer is a self-proclaimed misfit, as well as a misfit-magnet who has built cultural experiences that so many others cherish. Her array of professional accolades—from chief of staff to one of the founders of WeWork to managing director of acclaimed creative agency Mother’s New York office to co-founder and CEO of the footwear startup Proto, which she just left—are rivaled only by her creation of one of NYC’s most successful parties at The Standard High Line’s rooftop, Le Bain, and the founding of the Brooklyn Electronic Music Festival. For this episode of Design Tangents, we spoke with Longmyer about her career arc, the peaceful power of Shibari, collaboration, connection, AI and more.

For Longmyer, community began in nightclubs. “I often say that nightclubs saved my life,” Longmyer shares. “In New York, I found clubs and people and I was surrounded by creatives. We were always just sitting in a club and someone would have an idea and we’d all pile onto it. A week or two later, a project would emerge. That manifested into so many things.” Simultaneously, she began to work in the music industry by day, and paired this corporate path with the people she met and skills she acquired through nightlife. This led to the creation of Good Peoples, an organization that launched careers (and marriages) and encouraged a mission to foster a collective, creative community.

I will forever be a club kid. I am always looking for my community there.

Katie Longmyer

One of the threads of Longmyer’s path is about connection. “My creativity expression is people. I am painting with the people,” she says, acknowledging that she thinks about community every day. It’s also about addressing communities in flux. “A lot of people talk about culture from the nascent communities that it comes out of and wanting to keep it small and, you know, ‘don’t sell out.’ What is better than everyone consuming what you made? I want people to feel it and be impacted by it. The way you do that is execution.”

Nightclubs continue to inform the way she problem solves and engages with others. “I will forever be a club kid. I am always looking for my community there,” she adds. “It’s something I will never put down.” Longmyer is not only seeking out community, she is forging it to develop safe spaces for other misfits. Tune in to Design Tangents to learn more about the development of Proto, the importance of her Gel-X stiletto nails, social media as a tool for connection and more.

Subscribe to Design Tangents on all major podcast platforms, including Apple and Spotify, so that when each episode comes out it’ll be ready and waiting in your player of choice.

Design Tangents is presented by Genesis and produced and edited by SANDOW Design Group. Special thanks to the podcast production team: Rob Schulte and Rachel Senatore and to Amber Lin for creating our show art.

Erlebnis-Hus seaside visitor centre wrapped in timber grid to "play in, on, under or beside"

Erlebnis-Hus visitor centre by Holzer Kobler Architekturen

A gridded timber frame creates a flexible armature for play equipment and social spaces at the Erlebnis-Hus visitor centre in Sankt Peter-Ording, Germany, which was designed by Holzer Kobler Architekturen.

Located alongside a dyke on a coastal promenade in Sankt Peter-Ording, the centre contains event spaces, a shop and restaurant and lookout points, housed in a series of “cubes” that slot into the structure’s gridded framework.

Erlebnis-Hus visitor centre in Germany by Holzer Kobler Architekturen
Spaces in Erlebnis-Hus slot into a gridded timber frame

The project forms part of a wider “experience promenade” developed by landscape architect Uniola, with which Holzer Kobler Architecture won a competition to replace an aging games house in the nearby village.

Holzer Kobler Architekturen was informed by the traditional pile structures found on the nearby beach that are elevated to cope with high tides for Erlebnis-Hus’s form, as well as the adaptable architecture of the 1980s Metabolism movement in Japan.

Silver slide spiralling around a timber frame structure
The timber grid structure was raised on concrete pile foundations

“Since the coastal area often experiences wet and windy weather, there was a need for an inclusive structure that provides an indoor program for visitors, [and] the community desired to create a new attraction as a landmark,” said Holzer Kobler Architekturen director Andrea Zickhardt.

“The timber matrix seamlessly integrates into the surroundings and intertwines with them – simultaneously, and according to our metabolic approach, it could continue to expand infinitely, or additional parts could be added in the future,” she told Dezeen.

“Our idea was to create a house with numerous offerings, where not only children but everyone could play or spend time – regardless of age, background, size, or physical limitations.”

Timber-frame visitor centre by Holzer Kobler Architekturen
Holzer Kobler Architekturen drew upon pile structures when designing Erlebnis-Hus

The building’s structure consists of a 4.5 x 4.5-metre timber grid, elevated on concrete pile foundations due to the site’s status as a flood protection zone.

Inserted into this grid are a series of five rectilinear volumes containing the centre’s internal spaces, connected both by an internal stair and lift and an external steel stair.

Full-height, glazed ends draw light and views into these interiors, which are simply lined with wooden panelling that complements the exposed timber structure.

The roofs of these cubes have been used to create a series of elevated terraces that are dotted with various pieces of play equipment, encouraging visitors to “play in, on, under, besides, and around the house.”

“The presence of people interacting with the building creates continuous movement, both on the exterior levels and inside, where glimpses are offered through the large glass fronts, whether it’s summer or winter, sun or rain,” Zickhardt told Dezeen.

Skate park in from of a timber frame structure in Germany
A skatepark was added outside the building

To the east of the main building is a small skatepark and outdoor seating, while on its western side a metal slide winds through the building’s grid from the roof to the ground floor.

A bridge extends southwards to connect the centre with the nearby dyke, ending in an elevated platform that provides visitors with views out across the landscape.

Interior of Erlebnis-Hus visitor centre by Holzer Kobler Architekturen
The visitor centre was designed as a place to play

Other projects recently completed in Germany include a university building in Reutlingen by Allmannwappner and Menges Scheffler Architekten that is wrapped in a robotically-woven screen of glass and carbon fibres.

The photography is by Jan Bitter.

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"Did I wake up in the wrong multiverse today?" asks commenter

Thomas Heatherwick humanise campaign Tower of London AI image

In this week’s comments update, readers are discussing Thomas Heatherwick’s Humanise campaign, which reimagines “boring” versions of UK landmarks including The Tower of London and Edinburgh Castle.

Creative agency Uncommon Creative Studio used artificial intelligence to demonstrate how six UK landmarks would look if designed in modernist styles.

Tower of London reimagined in modernist style Heatherwick campaign
Thomas Heatherwick’s Humanise campaign creates “boring alter-egos” of UK landmarks

“Did I wake up in the wrong multiverse today?”

Several commenters struggled to get on board with Heatherwick’s logic.

“Woa – hang on – wait, what?” asked a baffled Joe Public. “We’re being shown how boring architecture is with examples of some of our most interesting buildings faked up with AI. Did I wake up in the wrong multiverse today?” they asked.

For Clichy, it was “a trite, superficial conceit by the studio”. They argued that “replacing historic buildings with carefully selected modernist tropes with no reference to history, culture or society is just plain silly”.

Other commenters jumped to defend the modernist style represented in the campaign. Klaud argued that “actually, all those renderings are way more exciting architecturally than their kitsch and genuinely boring and over-consumed real versions”.

One of the few commenters to come to Heatherwick’s defence was Henry, who wrote “I love this – a very visceral way to demonstrate the mundanity of so much architecture today”.

They continued “Heatherwick is campaigning against globally anonymous ‘boxitecture’ and suggesting that it is texture and aesthetic tactility that give character to our built environment,” and put forward “I can’t see why that’s so contentious”.

Which side are you on? Join the discussion

Women working in office – Foster gender paygap
Foster + Partners gender pay gap widest on record

“This is just one aspect of a very complicated topic”

Another story sparking debate in the comments section this week was the news that the gender pay gap at Foster + Partners is the widest it has been since the data was first compiled six years ago despite an overall improvement in the UK’s largest architecture firms.

Whateverandeveramen joked “when the male junior architects and interns realise that the pittance they are being paid for their 80-hour work week without overtime is more than the pittance their female counterpart are paid for their 80-hour work week without overtime”.

Meanwhile, Z-dog made the argument that “I don’t think we can ever close the gender pay gap if mandatory paternity leave that is equivalent to maternity leave is never implemented in the UK”. They added “this is just one aspect of a very complicated topic”.

However, commenter The Truth highlighted that “Foster’s office was clear that both men and women receive the same pay for doing the exact same job” before suggesting “the pretence that there is a legitimate pay gap is not supported by facts.”

Franc Lea was on the same page as Z-dog and countered that “until there is maternity/paternity leave equality, there will always be a legitimate gender pay gap.”

What do you make of the report? Join the discussion ›

Workshop Architecture prefabricated home Ontario
Workshop Architecture Inc creates “raw and unvarnished” prefabricated home in Ontario

“The plywood interiors with the pops of blue are fun!”

Commenters had mixed reactions to a prefabricated home with an exposed structure and blue-painted elements in the interior, created by Toronto studio Workshop Architecture Inc.

“The plywood interiors with the pops of blue are fun!” admired Butnotreally, before saying “though I can’t get over the freestanding bath partially encapsulated in the tiled hob… what an odd choice”.

“I do like the resulting floorplan – this house is based on simplicity and is not a show off,” praised Leo. “But the tiles on the ceiling do not agree with the desire to reduce the use of resources”.

Meanwhile, JZ remarked that there had been “very strange decisions made on this one”, before adding “definitely a demonstration that process is product”.

What do you think? Join the discussion

Comments update

Dezeen is the world’s most commented architecture and design magazine, receiving thousands of comments each month from readers. Keep up to date on the latest discussions on our comments page and subscribe to our weekly Debate newsletter, where we feature the best reader comments from stories in the last seven days.

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Faye Toogood explores "sexuality and the body" in Rude Arts Club exhibition

Sofas and rugs by Faye Toogood in Rude Arts Club exhibition at Milan design week 2024

Pillowy lamps, daybeds that look like stacked mattresses and rugs featuring abstract renderings of private body parts feature in an exhibition of new launches from Faye Toogood at Milan design week.

The Rude Arts Club showcase brings together products created by the British designer for rug company CC-Tapis and furniture brand Tacchini that explore sex and the human form from a female perspective.

Sofas and rugs by Faye Toogood in Rude Arts Club exhibition at Milan design week 2024
Faye Toogood is exhibiting new products with CC-Tapis and Tacchini

“This is my take on embracing all that comes with being a woman,” Toogood told Dezeen. “I’m a couple of years off being 50 and I spent the last 20-30 years in design not really drawing attention to being female.”

“I’m a second-wave feminist,” she added. “We were much more like: being female is not part of the conversation. We don’t want to talk about it. We’re just designers.”

Pink and purple daybeds in a room
The rugs feature vaguely phallic shapes

The collection of Rude rugs was born from impromptu paintings made by Toogood after visiting an exhibition of work by artist Francis Bacon, who made the human body his central subject.

“It got me thinking about the male interpretation of sexuality and the body,” Toogood said. “And I thought, I’ll have a go at doing that myself.”

Rug with ovary patern
Others are emblazoned with ovarian forms

The designer initially suggested half as a joke that CC-Tapis should turn her “mischievous” paintings into rugs for their latest collaboration.

But co-founder Fabrizio Cantoni ran with the idea and produced one rug for each of the seven paintings, featuring abstract shapes reminiscent of breasts, ovaries and a three-pronged phallus.

“It’s a kind of expression of the human body – male, female, everyone – but also the sexual energy that is a big part of being human,” Toogood said.

Each rug was made using a different technique and different yarns, helping to translate the textural qualities of the different brush strokes.

“Normally when you do a collection, you pick your technique and then you run it across the five different designs,” the designer said. “So this is pretty mega in terms of the amount of work and the amount of master craftsmanship it’s taken to do this.”

Paintings by Faye Toogood
The designs are based on a series of paintings by the designer

At the Rude Arts Club exhibition, the rugs are hung on the walls alonside the paintings themselves.

They provide a backdrop for Toogood’s designs for Tacchini – the Solar daybeds and sofas, which are so plush they “feel like a cloud”, and the Lunar lights and mirrors made of “scrunchable” white artists’ canvas.

These offer a more subtle take on the theme, with soft curves and textures suggesting piles of pillows and mattresses as in the fairytale of the Princess and the Pea.

Side table and shelf by taye Toogood
Among the Tacchini designs are daybeds resembling stacked mattresses

“Celebrating female energy and womanhood in design – and acknowledging it – is not something that personally I have done,” Toogood said. “And I feel it’s not something that the design industry has done either.”

“There are still very few female designers that we all know about, talk about, write about,” she added. “And there’s not enough acknowledgement of female designers right at the top level.”

This is despite the fact that female designers bring a unique perspective to the table, according to Toogood, and can sometimes even be better at capturing that elusive emotional quality that helps an object resonate with people.

“The industrial designers have realised sales are showing that it pays when you create something that connects with other human beings,” Toogood said. “We don’t need more chairs, more rugs. So how can you make something that’s actually going to connect with people?

“It has to hold something other than the rigour of design and proportion and perfection of material, it has to have something else,” she added. “What’s that magic ingredient that connects people to that object? That’s what I’m really trying to discover.”

“I achieve it on some things and I don’t on others, and I don’t always know why.”

Daybeds in a pink-hued room
They are upholstered in a satiny fabric for the exhibition

Other highlights from this year’s edition of Milan design week include an inflatable gaming chair from IKEA and lighting sculptures by Leo Maher that reference “queer legends”.

Rude Arts Club is on display at the CC-Tapis showroom from 16 to 21 April. See our Milan design week 2024 guide on Dezeen Events Guide for information about the many other exhibitions, installations and talks taking place throughout the week.

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Nifemi Marcus-Bello highlights plight of migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea in Milan installation

Marcus-Bello Installation

Nigerian designer Nifemi Marcus-Bello has created a sculptural interpretation of a boat from stainless steel to highlight the dangerous crossing faced by people crossing the Mediterranean Sea to Europe.

Named Omi Iyọ – Yoruba for saltwater, the stainless steel sculptural object is on show at 5VIE Design Week during Milan’s annual design week.

Nifemi Marcus-Bello sculpture
Nifemi Marcus-Bello has created a sculptural piece informed by migrant ships

The shape is a reference to the boats that carry migrants from the coast of North Africa to southern European nations like Italy.

According to the designer it was rendered in highly polished stainless steel, to create a “space for reflection” for viewers of the piece, on show during this year’s Milan design week.

It was filled with salt that will fall slowly from a hole in the bottom of the piece, creating a pile on the floor over the course of the installation.

Marcus-Bello told Dezeen that the idea for the piece came from a conversation he had with a migrant during a previous Milan design week.

He believes that it was a perfect time to reflect on the ongoing tension over migrants in Italy by showing the piece, which debuted at last year’s Design Miami in Miami Beach.

“I don’t know if the conversation is being had as often as it should,” said Marcus-Bello. “In West Africa, where a lot of these migrants come from, it’s actually kind of swept under the rug.”

Nifemi Marcus-Bello installation
It functions like an hourglass, letting sand fall to the floor

For the designer, the “sensitive subject matter” and the potential for reflection it represents came before a consideration of materiality.

“The material isn’t as important as the message,” he said. “Most of the work that I’ve done in the past, there’s always a socioeconomic aspect to it,” he continued.

The piece was presented on a dark blue backing in a historic building in Milan. Marcus-Bello hopes the installation is one of the “calmest” during the busy design week.

Omi Iyọ is for sale, with the designer planning to donate the proceeds from the sale to a charity that aids migrants.

Other highlights from this year’s edition of Milan design week include an inflatable gaming chair from IKEA and lighting sculptures by Leo Maher that reference “queer legends”.

The photography is by Amir Farzad.

Omi Iyọ is on show from 15-21 April as part of Milan design week. See our Milan design week 2024 guide on Dezeen Events Guide for information about the many other exhibitions, installations and talks taking place throughout the week.

The post Nifemi Marcus-Bello highlights plight of migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea in Milan installation appeared first on Dezeen.