Olimp by Studio Raketa, as seen at Zagreb Design Week 2024 In context of critical reflections on the Bauhauses, reflections also intended to draw a distinction between the Bauhauses and the HfG Ulm, to explain that the HfG Ulm wasn't simply a post 1939-45 War continuation of the Bauhauses, Otl Aicher once asked, "is design an applied art, does it appear in the elements square, triangle and circle, or is it a discipline that draws its criteria from the task, from use, from production and
read moreBack in the spring Haitian musician Wyclef Jean informed us all he'd be "Gone Till November". And so he should be back any day now; and given how busy he's invariably been all summer, earning as he has been enough money to buy out blocks, he's probably not had a chance to visit an architecture or design museum. And so, we assume, will be absolutely desperate to stimulate his cognitive faculties. Our five recommendations for new exhibitions opening in November 2023 for Wyclef Jean, or indeed
read morePendulum Lamp by Matej Štefanac, as seen at Vienna Design Week 2023 In many regards the name of Ljubljana based designer Matej Štefanac's new lamp is a misnomer, because pendulums swing and the defining feature of, the argument made by, the joy of, Matej's lamp is that doesn't: It is resolutely, tenaciously, unapologetically static. Until you move it, then it follows your every whim; the technology allowing as it does the lamp to be swung through 180 degrees so that it can shine directly to
read moreAccording to Germanic folklore, A cold and wet June spoils the whole year. For farmers possibly, but not for the rest of us, as a cold, wet June is a perfect excuse to visit an architecture or design exhibition, an experience that can only enrich and enliven and invigorate the rest of the not only your year, but your life. Our recommendations for new showcases opening in June 2023 can be found in Värnamo, Ljubljana, East Lansing, Vienna and Ulm....... "Front: Design by Nature" at
read more"It is a very interesting thing indeed to ask myself certain questions", reflected H.G. Wells in 1937, "How did I come to know what I know about the world and myself? What ought I to know? What would I like to know that I don't know? If I want to know about this or that, where can I get the clearest, best and latest information? And where did these other people about me get their ideas about things? Which are sometimes so different from mine. Why do we differ so widely?"1 Questions whose
read moreWe thought long and hard as to if we should continue our online exhibition recommendations series, or go back to offline exhibitions...... and decided for a return to offline. We fully appreciate that in a lot of countries museums are still closed, as indeed are the international borders that you would normally and naturally criss-cross for a short city break to visit those that are open; however, many museums are open, many more are planned/planning to open in the course of June, and
read moreSuch are the vagaries of the autumn/spring cycle in the global design exhibition industry, and it is an industry people, let's not fool ourselves otherwise, August is traditionally a very lean month: curators are on holiday, critics are on holiday, exhibition designers are on holiday, protagonists are on holiday. Who wants to open an exhibition? The following five museums. That's who.......... "Dream out Loud" at the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, Holland Whereas museum exhibitions generally
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