Stories
Design Line: 18 – 24 February
The design world addresses the climate crisis in this edition of Design Line, with new initiatives, prizes and promises to make the Venice Architecture Biennale carbon neutral.
To Be Clear
Phone (1) by tech startup Nothing is a transparent smartphone that’s a direct response to the industry’s obsession with black box design and programmed obsolescence.
Embrace the Weird
Sophie Tolhurst reviews Weird Sensation Feels Good, and asks what gets sanitised when an internet phenomena is embraced by traditional design institutions.
Design Line: 11 – 17 February
Pharrell Williams gets the nod from Louis Vuitton, Jony Ive’s new heraldry, and the 15-minute city moral panic all feature on Design Line this week.
Politically Erect
Photographer Alastair Philip Wiper documents the rigorous testing processes at Worlds Best Condom Factory in Denmark.
A Belief in Kindness
For Seen on Screen, Sharon Lam breaks down how the googly eye motif became the emotional through-line of Everything Everywhere All At Once.
Design Line: 4 – 10 February
This week, Design Line features the launch of the Scandinavian Design Awards, Burberry’s new (old) look, and a funeral home for composting.
Essential Forms
How some downtime watching Netflix provided the moment of inspiration for Julien Renault to design the Pastis chair and table for Hay.
Fibre to Form
Disegno reveals the secrets of Forward, Nike’s years-long confidential research project culminating in a new material made from plastic bottles.
Design Line: 28 January – 3 February
Jony Ive upgrades the Red Nose Day clown nose, Tiffany & Co and Nike join forces for a bland cash grab, and Mercedes-Benz promises a future where you can play video games behind the wheel on this week’s Design Line.
Caring is Sharing
Maison&Objet returns to Paris for 2023 with an enthusiastic message of caring for the environment and each other.
Delft Blue Rhymes with Fake Handbags
Eighteenth-century pottery meets knock-off Gucci in this column from Tetsuo Mukai mapping the history of designing and making fakes.
Design Line: 21 – 27 January
This week on Design Line, rebrands crib from the archive, fur flies over fashion’s faux taxidermy, and your humble kitchen bin becomes a subscription service.
The Crit #26: Beltless
The Crit is back in 2023! Join hosts Oli Stratford and India Block as they unpack on January’s design news and reflect upon their progress (or lack thereof) with their New Year’s resolutions.
Clinging On
Grab your backpack and trail mix, Tom Chung has gone full gorpcore with Piton, a portable lamp inspired by outdoor adventure gear for Muuto.
Design Line: 14 – 20 January
Join us on a journey through this week’s Design Line, with stop offs at England’s plastic ban, Sabine Marcelis’s new collection for Ikea, NASA’s scheme to redesign the airplane wing, and much more.
Front Did it First
A journey through the surprisingly prescient career of Front, the Swedish design studio selected as the Guest of Honour for the 2023 Stockholm Furniture Fair.
United by Design
How architectural workers in the UK and US are unionising to resist the industry’s toxic culture of overwork and underpay.