Dezeen Showroom: office furniture brand Actiu has released a series of sit-stand desks and meeting tables that feature a cantilever design created with modularity in mind.

The Menssula work table range comprises desks and meeting tables that can be raised and lowered with the touch of a button. They deviate from other tables with the same functionality in their asymmetric silhouette.

"The collection's primary innovation is the offset placement of its electrical height-adjustable lift," said Actiu.

"By concentrating the mechanical components into a single lateral column, the design eliminates the traditional central or dual-leg configuration, creating a dramatic cantilever effect that maximises usable workspace and provides an obstruction-free footprint beneath the tabletop."

The tabletops – which the brand describes as "gravity-defying" – encourage active ergonomics when both solo working and conducting intimate meetings.

Tabletops are available in a number of durable yet tactile materials, including phenolic and laminated MDF in various finishes and patterns.

The collection also acts in a modular capacity, facilitating various configurations, from individual executive workstations to large-scale meeting and co-working tables.

Product details:

Product: Menssula
Brand: Actiu
Contact: london-showroom@actiu.com

Materials: compact laminate, laminated MDF
Colours/finishes: White Traffic, Pulpis Light, Samas Black, Fenix Black (anti-fingerprint) 

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Pink rubber, slanted timber and colourful micro-algae are among the materials that make up these eight standout pieces of furniture and lighting, spotted by Dezeen's design and interiors reporter Jane Englefield over the past month.

La Corbeille by Hauvette & Madani

Paris interiors studio Hauvette & Madani has redesigned its formerly timber La Corbeille wall lamps in strikingly veiny alabaster.

When attached to this sleek wooden wardrobe, also by the studio, the sculptural sconces create a clever two-in-one piece of furniture and lighting.

Blue Chair by Completedworks

Expanded polystyrene, polyurethane rubber and clay come together in Blue Chair, a rough-hewn piece of furniture that London brand Completedworks debuted at Paris's Matter and Shape fair earlier this month.

The armchair is characterised by large hunks of the materials, pleasingly arranged to create the impression of thick slabs of bright-blue butter.

4D Coffee Table by Kutarq Studio

No welding or screws were involved in the making of this coffee table, which was hand-bent by designer Jordi Lopez of Valencian studio Kutarq.

The low-slung, stainless steel table is a smart example of minimalist furniture that still makes a big impact with its craftsmanship.

Soof Chair by Hawa Al-Najjar

Rising Iraqi-British star Hawa Al-Najjar is one to watch for her narrative-led furniture and thoughtful application of materials.

For her Soof Chair, the emerging designer crafted a seat from wet and dry felted wool, silk and dyed waxed linen thread, which is supported by a mild steel frame and embellished with a duo of porcelain bells.

Al-Najjar designed the chair to pay homage to the ancient Kepenek, Faranji and Kulagir cloaks worn by generations of shepherds herding sheep across the Caucasus and Kurdistan.

"It is a celebration of wool as a living, renewable material that can be returned to the soil at the end of its life," she told Dezeen.

SO-Colored lighting by We+

SO-Colored is an ongoing project by Japanese design studio We+, which involves the amalgamation of powered micro-algae with naturally derived resins to create impressively vivid finishes for furniture and lighting.

Also presented at Matter and Shape, these geometric lamps are a unique interpretation of regular strip lighting that showcases a natural material that is billions of years old and not only looks good, but absorbs carbon dioxide at the same time.

X'Y'Z' by In Seoungsik

Emerging Japanese designer In Seoungsik is offering people alternative ways to sit with his trompe l'oeil X'Y'Z chair series.

The timber seating is slanted at unexpected angles, prompting instant visual intrigue and a handful of different ways to recline.

Pink Rubber Shifting by Brian Thoreen

Cascading folds of pink rubber make up this unusual sconce by Mexico City-based designer Brian Thoreen, who is known for his playful material experiments.

Thoreen created the lighting as a permanent installation for local restaurant Rosetta, where guests can enjoy the soft glow emitted through the wall lamp's generous curves.

Underground Vol III by Kirkby and Transport for London

Underground Vol III is the third collaboration between textiles brand Kirkby and Transport for London (TfL).

The duo upholstered pieces of furniture, including this armchair, with patterns informed by iconic moquette designs used across the London Underground since the 1910s.

Pictured here, this chair is covered with a simplified velvet version of Eden, a 1930s art deco houndstooth design that originally clad seating on trams and trolley buses across the city.

The post Dezeen's favourite furniture and lighting from March appeared first on Dezeen.

Dezeen Showroom: a table and stool for children designed to respect their "scale, autonomy and imagination" is among five new products featured on Dezeen Showroom.

Button table and Stool X by Babai

Ukrainian brand Babai aimed to make children's furniture timeless with this table and stool, both of which are handmade in Ukraine from birch plywood.

The Button table has a playful silhouette comprising wide legs and a circular top. Stool X shares this structure but features a cruciform cutout in its seat that gives it its name.

The pair were recently featured on Dezeen Showroom alongside a modular seating system for al fresco lounging and a magnetic, wall-mounted accessory for the entryway.

Read on to see more of the latest products:

Magnetic catch-alls by Dodomoom

An unassuming wall-mounted object made from wood and leather becomes a functional storage piece in Ukrainian brand Dodomoom's magnetic catch-alls.

Available in various neutral and earthy colour combinations, the magnetic element inside allows keys and other essentials to be easily accessed in entryways.

Find out more about magnetic catch-alls ›

Plus modular seating system by Francesco Rota for Lapalma

Designer Francesco Rota and Italian brand Lapalma have released a modular outdoor sofa system comprising capacious modules.

The Plus modular seating system includes sofas, chaise longues, armchairs, daybeds and poufs that connect to create sprawling, adaptable systems.

Find out more about Plus ›

Rift bench by Inglis Hall

Inglis Hall has aimed to create a timeless and multipurpose seat in the Rift bench, each made from a single oak tree wherever possible.

Expertly turned and finished details come together to form the two- to four-person bench, which intends to be as at home in historic interiors as it is in modern spaces.

Find out more about Rift ›

Kopa collection by Orlandini Design for Narbutas

Italian studio Orlandini Design collaborated with workplace furniture brand Narbutas on a collection of seating that aims to offer physical and mental comfort to office environments.

The Kopa collection comprises a sofa, lounge chair and armchair that can be ordered in various colours of fabric to suit a range of existing interior design schemes.

Find out more about Kopa ›

Dezeen Showroom

Dezeen Showroom offers an affordable space for brands to launch new products and showcase their designers and projects to Dezeen's huge global audience. For more details email showroom@dezeen.com.

Dezeen Showroom is an example of partnership content on Dezeen. Find out more about partnership content here.

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Nostalgia and risk-averse business practices have stifled innovation in the American furniture industry, Rarify founders David Rosenwasser and Jeremy Bilotti tell Dezeen in this interview.

Rarify is a platform for buying and learning about furniture and lighting, with a focus on vintage, hard-to-find pieces.

In their Pennsylvania warehouse, Bilotti and Rosenwasser believe they hold one of the world's largest collections of American mid-century modern furniture.

But despite their ongoing fascination with the brands associated with the mid-century period, such as Herman Miller, Knoll and Steelcase, the pair are highly critical of these companies' role in design today.

"Legacy manufacturers have been asleep at the wheel," said Rosenwasser. "There's no shortage of [design] practitioners or ideas. It seems that there's a shortage of willingness to support progress."

"If there's someone we are to blame on the furniture side or on the product side for not taking a leap of faith: Miller Knoll, Steelcase, Haworth."

"The landscape is bleak"

"The process involved in deciding what furniture is put into production today in the United States has nothing to do with innovation, for the most part," added Bilotti.

"While great designers do exist here, the current market and corporate condition prevents many of their innovative ideas from being exposed to the investment required to resolve them into widely available products."

Rosenwasser and Bilotti are frustrated by what they see as the gap between the inventiveness on which these brands established their reputations during the post-war period and the approach today.

"Sadly, in 2026, the landscape of American innovation in product and furniture design is far more bleak," said Bilotti.

"Furniture products that actually reach consumers now are relegated to be reboots, reissues of 20th-century design work," he added. "Nostalgia is safe, time-tested, widely appealing – and risk-opposite."

Ironically, the pair argue, the brands that have enjoyed the greatest commercial success off the back of experimentation are now the least open to pushing the envelope.

The larger the furniture producer gets, they contend, the less risk it is willing to take.

"Companies that are doing billions of dollars in revenue can afford to spend a few hundred thousand or perhaps even a few million dollars on taking risks and experimenting in a more radical subset of design innovation, instead of just bringing a stylish, hip interior designer to do a cool collaboration," said Rosenwasser.

"Why don't they do what they used to do, and actually fund some research to contribute meaningful new design work to the world?"

"Gatekeeping is such an important word"

While Bilotti and Rosenwasser say that innovative thinking does exist in the market – pointing to brands such as Blu Dot and Moooi – the profit margins of the firms willing to innovate are often tighter than at the larger ones, leading to certain concessions.

"Gatekeeping is such an important word in the context of design innovation," said Rosenwasser. "Moooi is the only example I can think of off the top of my head, that is innovating in somewhat accessible production furniture."

Companies without massive profit margins are usually forced to embrace minimalism to maintain material rigour and keep prices down, which limits the range of products.

"The economic constraints of pricing, contract discounting and the high cost of doing business in the US put significant constraints on the outcome of products, when compared to some of the wildly groundbreaking designs that were produced in the post-war boom," said Rosenwasser.

"A company like Blu Dot operating in 2026 is forced to be very strategic and develop a design language that is extremely minimalistic in order to keep prices low while still retaining a rigorous design process and high-quality materials."

The difficulties are highlighted by the recent closure of long-time home for experimentation Areaware and the acquisition of Heller, which has showcased new designers working in plastic in recent years, by furniture giant Haworth.

Despite their criticisms of the industry, the celebration of design is at the core of Rosenwasser and Bilotti's work.

For instance, they recently put on an exhibition in New York showcasing rare pieces custom-designed by SOM for architecture projects, rescued and restored.

However, the pair feel they struggle to be taken seriously in the market – with the recent opening of a Rarify showroom in Philadelphia partly an attempt to amplify their status as a serious outlet.

"To these big brands, working with a business like ours is a distraction from the retail domination and design conservatism that has driven their profits sky-high," said Bilotti.

With various barriers to stocking new products from the major design brands, they have gotten creative about sourcing second-hand items, such as rescuing furniture from office liquidations.

"Pull talent from the innovators"

In terms of solutions to the innovation problem, the Rarify founders look to the way that collaborations between design and manufacturing science led to game-changing mid-century modern products.

New methods for bending steel and wood, extrusion and machine cutting fed directly into the work of innovators such as the Eameses and Florence Knoll.

"Post-world war two, manufacturing experienced a paradigmatic transformation that led to the likes of the Eameses and other designers," said Bilotti.

"These designers were able to push the boundaries of new materials and methods in production – and miraculously, also create successful product after successful product that consumers found value in. It was a win-win."

Now, Rosenwasser and Bilotti believe the corporate power of big furniture brands should combine with the cutting-edge research happening in universities.

"Go to a conference like the ACADIA [Association for Computer Aided Design in Architecture] and go poach talent who actually have genuine experience like researching in innovative practices, which is kind of what happened post-world war two," Rosenwasser said.

"Knoll hired experimental designers or artists who were rigorous and talented to do exceptionally creative work, and there was a boom."

"We need to be looking to pull talent from the innovators, a lot of whom are in academia. We need to find a business model that pays the bills."

The top photo is by Garrison Block. 

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Forty years ago, Marc Newson designed what would become the most expensive work ever sold at auction by a living designer. In this interview, he reflects on affordability, collectible design and current projects, including Ferrari's first electric car.

Newson, who is considered one of the most influential designers of our time, has famously lent his biomorphic style to almost every kind of object imaginable. "Is there anything Marc Newson hasn't designed?" the New York Times asked in 2012.

Since then, the Australian's catalogue has only broadened. It now encompasses, among other things, a Hermès pen, a Beretta shotgun, AI binoculars, the Qantas Skybed, several lines of Louis Vuitton luggage, a samurai sword and, of course, the Apple Watch, which he designed with longtime collaborator Jony Ive in 2015.

Even so, Newson's most famous work remains one of the first things he ever created. The Lockheed Lounge, which turns 40 this year, is notorious for setting a new world record any time it shows up at auction.

The last time one of the metal chaise longues went under the hammer in 2015, it brought in £2.5 million – a price that no living designer has managed to surpass since.

Now, the Lockheed is making a rare appearance as part of a retrospective at art vineyard Château La Coste in the south of France, looking back at Newson's pioneering work in collectible design over the course of his 40-year career.

"They're impossible to find, but I managed to get one," Newson told Dezeen, admitting he had to borrow his chaise from a private collector for the sake of the exhibition. "We sort of nabbed it for a little while."

Interestingly, even Newson himself can't quite put his finger on what it is about the Lockheed that has made it so unprecedentedly expensive.

"I could say lots of things that wouldn't be very polite," he joked. "But I think it's a weird combination of things."

"It wasn't like anything anyone else was doing. And actually, at that time, it was the beginning of a new genre of work, which is this kind of stuff," Newson added, gesturing at the greatest hits in his exhibition, including seminal pieces like the Event Horizon table and Cloisonné seating.

"I didn't want these things to be expensive"

The Lockheed Lounge – known then as LC1 – was one of six experimental seating designs made by Newson for his debut solo show in 1986, fresh off the heels of finishing his degree in jewellery design and sculpture at the Sydney College of the Arts.

Due to popular demand, Newson ended up refining and reissuing the chaise as an edition of 12, mainly because that was all he could afford to make at the time.

"They were a means to an end," he said. "I could only afford to make things by myself if I didn't want to be answerable to anybody else. Which I didn't, ever. I just wanted to be able to do what I wanted, so they were necessarily limited."

When the designer sold the last of these editions in the late 1990s, he was too cash-strapped to hold onto one himself, even though he confesses that he wanted to.

"I needed the money, and they were amongst the more lucrative things that I could sell," Newson remembered.

Newson had anticipated the market for sculptural, limited-edition furniture a full two decades before it was formalised with the launch of the Design Miami fair in 2005.

As a result, he is considered one of the founding fathers of the design art movement – now known more commonly as collectible design – and remains the only designer represented by art gallery Gagosian, which counts Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons among its artists.

In recent years, this formerly niche discipline has risen to become a major force in design, with a slew of dedicated events popping up across the globe from Tokyo to Dubai to the new Raritas section at Milan's Salone del Mobile.

In the US, auction sales of design and furniture have even outpaced the traditional fine art market, growing by 20 per cent in the first half of 2025. So does Newson feel vindicated to have done it before it was cool?

"Yeah, I guess I do actually," he said. "But I was really doing it for completely the opposite reasons. I didn't want these things to be expensive. In fact, I didn't really care."

"But they did end up being expensive for, ultimately, the very same reasons that anything – if we mention the horrible word 'luxury' – but anything good is kind of costly."

Ironically, several decades and record-breaking auctions later, his collectible design work isn't the thing that pays the bills.

"I don't survive on this stuff," Newson admitted.

"I wouldn't call it a hobby," he added. "But it's a bit like working in the way that an artist would work – without having to have exhibitions every year or two years to sustain your livelihood."

Sustaining his livelihood instead is the commercial work he does for big-name brands and private clients.

"It's the stuff that I'm doing with Ferrari, it's the stuff that I'm doing with Vuitton, with the luxury companies, but also lots of other stuff," Newson said.

"I always loved the idea of doing something once and doing it properly"

A common theme among many of these projects is their high price point. In fact, the Lockheed isn't his only piece to set records for its costliness.

There's also the $610 million private yacht he designed for Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, which is billed as the most expensive custom superyacht in the world.

"If I look at the clients that I have now, like Ferrari or Louis Vuitton... these are things that obviously are costly," Newson said. "That is the way it is. But they're not disposable. They're things that, in theory, can last for a very long time – they can be repaired. They're human, and they live through generations."

"I always loved the idea of doing something once and doing it properly, creating something that you could have forever, like a piece of sculpture," he added.

Newson's argument is that, in the long run, investing once in a more expensive, well-made product is actually more cost-efficient than having to replace a cheaper product – except, perhaps, in the case of the superyacht and the Lockheed.

"It's not that I don't want to design things that are accessible for people," he said. "But ultimately, if I'm designing a piece of luggage for Louis Vuitton, everyone's like 'oh my God, that's really expensive', but I guarantee they will have spent more on luggage in their lifetime."

"I understand that's a hard logic to sell people, but I think it's the truth. I'm not suggesting that people go and buy Louis Vuitton luggage. But it is really well made, and it is repairable."

"I'm terrible with technology"

Most recently, Newson has been tinkering away at two hotly debated projects – Ferrari's first electric car and OpenAI's mysterious AI device – working together with Ive as part of their collective studio LoveFrom, which the duo founded after leaving Apple in 2019.

Envisioning the future of electronics presents an interesting challenge for Newson, even after 40 years of practice, given that he considers himself something of a Luddite.

"I'm terrible with technology," he laughed. "Famously really bad."

"I can understand materials and processes and techniques, that's my thing."

Nowhere is this clearer than in his collectible design work at Château La Coste, much of which is honed from a single material in a process carefully designed to either bring out or defy its inherent qualities.

Take the Cast Glass Chair, which turns molten glass structural by firing it in a kiln for up to six months, or his unibody Cloisonné seats, for which he spent months retraining a 40-strong team in China in the near-extinct tradition of cloisonné enamelling.

Ultimately, Newson argues, this kind of granular focus on tactility and materiality is exactly what technology is missing at the moment.

"People have this automatic and sort of instantaneous association that modern means digital and modern means touchscreens," he said.

"I think the opposite should be true," he added. "There's a huge opportunity, I believe, to interject simplicity via tactility, things like that, in ways that people just don't associate or don't expect. So that's why it's interesting for me."

"Creating objects that are understandable, either on an emotional level or a tactile level, that you connect with, that you can form relationships with or bonds with – I guess you could say they're kind of... old-fashioned emotions – but they're extremely valuable."

"Electric cars have done a great job of making people's lives really complicated"

In the Ferrari Luce, various buttons, switches and toggles are designed to regain some of the satisfying physical feedback that's lost when a combustion engine is swapped out for a battery.

"It's all done with the same ambition, which is to simplify," he said. "And I think a lot of the time, technology doesn't simplify."

"Certainly, when it comes to an electric car, they've done a great job of making people's lives really complicated, just in terms of trying to figure out how they work."

The Ferrari Luce is a particular passion project for Newson, partly because he's a longtime fan and proud owner of a 1955 Ferrari 857S.

But also because, unusually for automotive design, LoveFrom's work encompasses the whole vehicle.

"Typically in the industry, it's not the case where singular design entities do everything," said Newson. "There'll be someone that does the exterior, someone that does that part of the interior, and it's all sort of pieced together."

"That's the way the industry works, and that's evident," he added. "You can see that in cars, right? You can see the incoherence."

"Contemporary cars, I'm talking about. There are plenty of fantastic old ones, historical ones. People will say that I'm nostalgic and whatever. But there aren't that many great cars."

In the end, the five-year project speaks once again to Newson's omnivorous appetite to design absolutely everything.

"Designing cars, the way that we wanted to do it, is like designing dozens and dozens of products simultaneously that all have to fit together like a sort of jigsaw," he said.

"Variety is exciting, not because I like designing different things, but because I like learning. Actually, that's what it's about at the end of the day."

The exhibition photography is by Stéphane Aboudaram.

Marc Newson's retrospective is on show from 15 March to 21 June 2026 in the Auditorium Oscar Niemeyer at Château La Coste. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

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The post "Anything good is kind of costly" says Marc Newson appeared first on Dezeen.

Dezeen Showroom: all-glass tableware informed by Japan's winter landscapes and neon-lit cities is among seven new products featured on Dezeen Showroom.

Japanese Winter tableware by Yakush

Ukrainian brand Yakush used recycled huta glass to create this collection of tableware that features contemporary shapes and silhouettes.

Japanese Winter tableware comprises vases, bowls, jugs, cups, glasses and candleholders, all of which are available in a choice of two colourways.

The collection was recently featured on Dezeen Showroom alongside customisable table lamps for restaurants and a reissued all-metal pendant light from 1990.

Read on to see more of the latest products:

Custom cordless table lamps by Neoz

Lighting brand Neoz's custom cordless table lamp design service allows restaurants to imbue their aesthetics into functional table lighting solutions.

Martin Brudnizki Design Studio took advantage of this service when creating lamps to grace the tables of the Carbone Riviera restaurant at the Bellagio Resort and Casino in Las Vegas.

Find out more about custom cordless table lamps ›

Platform seating by Derlot

Australian designer Alexander Lotersztain has released a public seating system via his furniture brand Derlot.

Platform seating features integrated power outlets and a dual-layer seat that is comfortable yet hardwearing and easy to clean.

Find out more about Platform ›

Axia lighting by Martinelli Venezia for Lodes

Italian brand Lodes has released a statement chandelier in collaboration with design studio Martinelli Venezia, defined by its looping silhouette.

Axia lighting comprises translucent, opal-finished diffusers strung along slim loops that are attached to a central rod.

Find out more about Axia ›

Upglas lamp by Luca Nichetto for Astep

Danish lighting brand Astep has released an all-in-one table lamp by designer Luca Nichetto that is made from a material containing shards of waste Murano glass.

The Upglas lamp comes in four colourways and two sizes, each featuring a marbled surface that celebrates its glass-and-resin materiality.

Find out more about Upglas ›

Filosof lamp by Lars-Erik Ejlers and Fripon

Danish company Fripon has rereleased a metal pendant light designed by architect Lars-Erik Ejlers in 1990.

The Filosof lamp has a compact body composed of metal shades and was originally designed bespoke for a restaurant in Copenhagen over 30 years ago.

Find out more about Filosof ›

Moses baskets by Anna Zmiievska for Anzy Home

Ukrainian brand Anzy Home has released a series of hand-crocheted cots made from 100 per cent cotton yarn.

The moses baskets cradle a mattress made from organic coconut fibre and are supported by an ash hardwood rocking stand.

Find out more about moses baskets ›

Dezeen Showroom

Dezeen Showroom offers an affordable space for brands to launch new products and showcase their designers and projects to Dezeen's huge global audience. For more details email showroom@dezeen.com.

Dezeen Showroom is an example of partnership content on Dezeen. Find out more about partnership content here.

Dezeen Showroom new releases newsletter

Click here to subscribe to our Dezeen Showroom new releases newsletter, a quarterly bulletin highlighting our editor's pick of the products we have published in the previous season.

The post Japanese Winter tableware by Yakush among new products on Dezeen Showroom appeared first on Dezeen.

Danish designer Laerke Ryom has unveiled Raiments, a series of furniture shown at Copenhagen's Innenkreis gallery that aims to move away from traditional upholstery.

The exhibition, which opened yesterday at the new Innenkreis gallery in central Copenhagen, was named after an old English word for clothes.

"Raiments means garments from medieval English, originating from French," Ryom explained.

"The word carries a sense of adornment, intention and presentation, not just utility. I also chose the name to reference a time when there was space to dwell more deeply in craft."

Ryom enjoys exploring how textiles relate to furniture, as she thinks they have a "sensibility and inherent life that adds a lot to the finished pieces".

The Raiments exhibition shows pieces including a daybed, floor and wall lamps, chairs and a bench, in soothing cream and chocolate-brown hues.

The daybed, bench, table lamp and floor lamp are made from powder-coated steel, while the base of the wall lamps was constructed from stainless steel and the chair from aluminium.

Ryom used wool from textile brand Kvadrat that doesn't have visible weaving, leaving room for the stitching that she applies when quilting.

"For the edges, I chose an edge band that has this really beautiful twill weave," the designer said.

"Twill weave is a traditional textile weaving technique that is commonly used in both clothing and home textiles and the edgeband places the upholstery pieces somewhere in between, adding to the feeling of a tailored piece rather than upholstery."

Ryom aimed to create upholstery that would be more similar to clothing.

"Rather than traditional upholstery that relies on tension and force, stretching and stapling textiles into rigid forms, the pieces are tailored like garments that sit comfortably on the structure, allowing the material's natural drape and character to remain visible," she explained.

For the Raiments exhibition, her pieces were contrasted with historic designs, including a lamp by architect Gio Ponti and nesting tables by designer Josef Hoffmann.

According to Innenkreis founder Zeynep Rekkali Jensen, the gallery believes that contrasting the new designs with older pieces highlights the quality of both.

"At Innenkreis, we value design as thinking through poetry in material and making," she said.

"Here, the line between former and current fades. Showing Lærke's pieces alongside older works highlights qualities like finesse in production, sensitivity to use, and tactility over time. This pairing creates a dialogue and advances the story."

Ryom is the co-founder of Danish design platform Ukurant, which has shown exhibitions in a former woodworking factory and a former Copenhagen library.

The photography is by Line Klein unless stated otherwise. Main image by Robert Damisch.

Raiments is on show at Innenkreis, Herluf Trolles Gade 28, Copenhagen from 19 March to 23 May. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

The post Laerke Ryom creates furniture "tailored like garments" for Raiments exhibition appeared first on Dezeen.

Local studio Bruzkus Greenberg has designed a community co-working space in Berlin, filled with bespoke furniture created to shake off the impression of a branded showroom.

Bruzkus Greenberg, formerly known as Ester Bruzkus Architekten, designed the co-working space on the ground and first floors at the central office building C1 Alexanderplatz Berlin.

The duo of levels contains a range of shared amenities for the office workers above, from meeting rooms and informal workspaces to a cafe, a cinema and a gym.

Bruzkus Greenberg filled various rooms with custom furniture designed for the project, including the ground floor library, which features a floor-to-ceiling timber shelving unit and a large communal table illuminated by a continuous brass downlight.

"We didn't want it to feel like a showroom for a particular brand of furniture, so we designed our own," said studio co-founders Ester Bruzkus and Peter Greenberg.

"A good place to work should offer more than a boring desk," they told Dezeen.

Also on the ground floor, the "leopard room" is one of a handful of comfortable meeting spaces designed with domesticity in mind.

A bespoke sofa upholstered in salmon boucle was paired with a low-slung timber coffee table topped with veiny stone.

Designed by Austrian creative Laudris Gallée, a handwoven wall tapestry was suspended above the furniture, depicting an illustrative pink leopard.

Bruzkus and Greenberg explained that they wanted to create domestic-style rooms to help colleagues feel at home, and encourage them to return to the workplace by conceiving "zones that feel like living rooms or comfy corners".

"People like choices," said the designers. "Sometimes you want a desk to spread stuff out, and sometimes you want to type on your laptop on a sofa."

The duo selected vintage pieces to blend with their bespoke furniture to create a sense of eclecticism.

"We want to invite in quirky moments, not just to be foolishly consistent," they said. "Great rooms are made with contrast, not just uniformity. Combining old and new creates unique character."

The first floor includes the "arena", a built-in, stepped seating area finished with smooth stone flooring. A pair of swivelled Bruzkus Greenberg armchairs features in this space, clad with tiger-stripe-patterned fabric.

On the same level, a large conference room was clad with dark timber and filled with a mix of bespoke and vintage pieces, like the rest of the co-working space.

Ester Bruzkus Architekten was founded by Ester Bruzkus in 2002. In 2016, she joined forces with Peter Greenberg to create Bruzkus Greenberg.

The studio has completed other projects in Berlin ranging from a colourful poke restaurant designed to reference David Hockney paintings and another restaurant defined by cherry-red joinery.

The photography is by Robert Rieger.

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Designer Christoffer Söderqvist has launched a furniture brand focused on using technology to facilitate scalable artisanal production, which debuted at the recent Stockholm Design Days event.

Exakt MFG is an evolution of Söderqvist's carpentry business, which manufactures kitchens, shop fittings and furniture at its own factory in the southern Swedish town of Skurup.

With more than three decades of experience creating pieces for other companies, Söderqvist decided to develop his own collection and approached Helsingborg-based design firm Superlab to help create the first products.

The brand, which showed at an exhibition called The Listening Lounge during Stockholm Design Days, aims to produce high-quality furniture that it will sell directly to consumers to keep prices below those of its competitors.

During the event, Söderqvist told Dezeen that his core idea is to create a vertically integrated company with minimal reliance on external suppliers in order to reduce costs and enable a more sustainable, circular approach.

"This vertical integration approach works in the fashion industry and I think that's the way to go with furniture production today," he pointed out.

"We're going to open our own showrooms and sell direct to customers online – like Tesla does, but without Elon Musk."

Exakt MFG's debut collection includes pieces designed by Söderqvist, such as the cheekily titled Assprint stool, along with a sofa and shelving unit developed in collaboration with Superlab.

Söderqvist has known Superlab CEO Niklas Madsen for more than 20 years and felt his brand would benefit from his friend's expertise in helping large manufacturers react to global trends.

"Christopher approached us with the challenge of wanting to create well-made, traditional furniture with a modern touch," Madsen explained.

"What was interesting for us was to try to identify the sweet spot between utilising the factory's machinery and traditional craftsmanship to create products that fill a gap in the market."

The sofa Superlab designed features a painted-wood base and structure that is produced entirely in the Exakt factory, before being shipped to a specialist company in Älmhult to be upholstered using a recycled polyester fabric.

The Echo modular shelving system can be configured in various ways to create a repeating geometric grid. The product is made from particle board and Nordic pine veneer that adds a striking natural surface finish.

Söderqvist also designed a chest of drawers that is crafted from solid oak with traditional dovetail joints, as well as a sideboard and speakers intended to function as a matching set for use alongside premium Hifi equipment.

At Stockholm Design Days, the pieces were used to create a space informed by Japanese listening lounges in the library of the Swedish design association, Svensk Form.

A statement accompanying the exhibition described the brand's approach as "artisanry at scale, enabled by cutting-edge technology," while Söderqvist explained that, for him, "artisanry is about skill, care and responsibility."

"It is a way of working that has gradually shaped how I want to design and take responsibility for what I put into the world. Exakt MFG grew out of that process," he added.

Stockholm Design Days was one of many events that aimed to replace the cancelled Stockholm Design Week, along with Stockholm Creative edition and others.

The photography is courtesy of Christoffer Söderqvist.

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The latest edition of the Collectible fair in Brussels saw designers explore seating with a difference, presenting daybeds made from beeswax and metal, inverted sofas and a gigantic inflatable seat.

The Collectible fair, which focuses on collectible design and is held in Brussels and New York every year, doubled down on the trend for industrial-style design with pieces that might not look comfortable but definitely caught visitors' eyes.

Read on for our roundup of five unusual daybeds and sofas shown by Collectible participants:

Inflatable sofa by Naked Space for Vasto Gallery

Barcelona-based Vasto Gallery welcomed visitors with a massive inflatable sofa at the entrance to Collectable, featuring sleek, undulating lines that resemble those on a sports car.

The eight-metre-long translucent piece by design collective Naked Space was a collaboration between Vasto Gallery and Spanish brand Project Lobster and marks the start of a new inflatable furniture brand project.

"It has a peaceful power and a playful side," Vasto Gallery co-founder Carmen Riestra told Dezeen of the design.

"It's bringing back this kind of material indoors – you see it and imagine it outdoors, but it can be placed inside your home in a comfortable way. You can live with this inflatable furniture and you can pack it and transport it really easily."

Vasto Gallery will present smaller versions of the sofa, as well as inflatable armchairs, later this year.

Metal daybed by Anoe Melliou for Regarding Relations

Berlin collective Regarding Relations created a boudoir-inspired showcase of all-female designers, where delicate fabrics met gleaming metal, sharp edges and industrial designs.

"The idea was to recreate this intimate space of a woman beyond the cliches, because there's a lot of visual connotations associated with the idea of a boudoir and what a boudoir looks like," designer Anne-Lise Agossa, who co-curated the booth, told Dezeen.

"We thought it would be interesting to bring the work of women-only designers and that there's something unusual about recreating this space from our perspective, creating a feel that's not expected."

Among the pieces on show was designer and stall co-curator Anoe Melliou's metal daybed, which has a curved shape and sits on wheels – making it more of a design for a woman on the move than one looking for a place to lounge.

Foam daybed by Pablo Octavio for Full Circle

Designer Pablo Octavio created his brutalist daybed from polyurethane foam, spray-painted with a flexible paint to make it waterproof.

The padded seat, which features edges that were left visibly uneven, sits on top of a base made from bent aluminium sheets.

The daybed was the continuation of an earlier project by Octavio, the Lapis Lazuli series, for which he created a large, rock-like chair.

"I wanted to elevate the foam, lift it from the ground and make it more like furniture, instead of having the monolithic appearance of the chair," he told Dezeen. "From this piece on, I want to work on benches and other seating objects."

Alma Mater daybed by AB+AC Architects

The latest addition to Lisbon-based AB+AC Architects' Alma Mater collection is a daybed with a difference – upholstery made from cylinders of solid beeswax.

The wax is melted into aluminium moulds and dried in a slow process that makes them very smooth, before being placed on a custom-made metal frame.

"We really love the idea that over time people will start to leave their shape, their trace [in the wax]," AB+AC Architects co-founder Arianna Bavuso told Dezeen.

"It will become an indentation, like the memory form of a mattress," she continued. "I love this idea of creating a dialogue between the user and the designer."

The beeswax cylinders can be moved to create different designs for the daybed and if they begin to form a shape that the user doesn't like, they can be sent back to AB+AC Architects to be remelted and reshaped.

Invert sofa by Alan Prekop for Curated

The Invert sofa, designed by Slovak architect Alan Prekop and sculptor Sebastian Komáček, does indeed have an inverted design that highlights the metal structure normally found on the underside of a sofa.

Here, the sculptural sofa instead has a latex cushion as its primary structural element.

"We decided to create something bespoke because we are working with stainless steel a lot," Prekop told Dezeen. "And every time, stainless steel is the construction bearer, it's something heavy that bears everything and the cushion is something soft that you want to sit on."

"So we thought about flipping it, to invert it and create a cushion that will bear heavy constructions."

Collectible 2026 took place from 12 March to 15 March 2026 at Vanderborght, Rue de l'Ecuyer 50 Schildknaapstraat, Brussels. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

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Dezeen Showroom: a table lamp that recalls the segmented, architectural silhouette of Victorian chimneys is among five new products featured on Dezeen Showroom.

Heath table lamp by Zoe Stark for Tala

Designer Zoe Stark and lighting brand Tala collaborated on a table lamp that is rendered in a deep wine-red glaze and shaped like a Victorian chimney pot.

The Heath table lamp is crowned by a cotton shade that tapers from a broad quatrefoil-shaped footprint to a tighter one at the top.

Heath was recently featured on Dezeen Showroom alongside a headboard with ceramic, bead-like accents and a public seating module made from a block of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) thermoplastic.

Read on to see more of the latest products:

Rosary headboard by India Mahdavi for Bolzan

Architect India Mahdavi and Italian furniture brand Bolzan's Rosary headboard featured a cylindrical length of bead-like ceramic pieces strung across its top.

The colourful ceramic details sit at the top of a panel made from wood and recycled composite, which is covered with 100 per cent cotton velvet.

Find out more about Rosary ›

Trio seating by Derlot

Through his furniture brand Derlot, Australian designer Alexander Lotersztain has released a modular seating system comprising components made from a single chunk of low-density polyethylene (LDPE) thermoplastic.

Trio seating modules can be placed back-to-back or side-by-side, and come in various colourways, including a terrazzo-style pattern made from 85 per cent post-industrial waste plastic.

Find out more about Trio ›

Amble fabric by Designtex

US brand Designtex's Amble fabric is decorated with hand-drawn linear motifs that form shapes reminiscent of shells or fossils.

It is available in various colourways and can be used for a range of upholstery applications.

Find out more about Amble ›

Textures+ Collection by Antolini

Natural stone surfaces found in Italian company Antolini's catalogue now come in over 50 textured finishes via its new Textures+ Collection.

Among new textures are fabric-mimicking Linen, cratered Hard Rock and slip-proof Safe.

Find out more about Textures+ ›

Dezeen Showroom

Dezeen Showroom offers an affordable space for brands to launch new products and showcase their designers and projects to Dezeen's huge global audience. For more details email showroom@dezeen.com.

Dezeen Showroom is an example of partnership content on Dezeen. Find out more about partnership content here.

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Industrial design studio Caliper has developed a drafting table for American artist Daniel Arsham, featuring a backlit surface and magnifying lamp to support the creation of his small-scale charcoal and graphite drawings.

New York-based Arsham, who is known for his work exploring the concept of fictional archaeology, commissioned Caliper to design and manufacture the table using the studio's signature bead-blasted, anodised aluminium.

The Madrid-based studio founded by Quinner Baird previously worked with Arsham on projects including a limited edition poker set and the artist's clothing brand Hidden NY.

"Daniel's team gave us an outline of the required specifications," Baird told Dezeen. "And we drew from the material language that we had worked on together in previous collaborations, developing a form that aligned both with him as an artist and us as a studio."

The table was manufactured by Caliper from CNC-machined aluminium and features a large backlit drawing surface with an adjustable magnifying lamp to support detailed work.

The designers developed a tabletop tilt function and height-adjustment system to ensure the drawing surface can be used comfortably in both seated and standing positions.

"The development of the tilt and height adjustment were both technically challenging," Baird said.

"Implementing these two types of adjustments while maintaining an incredibly stable drawing surface meant over-engineering the gearing systems to some degree, while maintaining a visual aesthetic with the rest of the table."

In addition to the key functionality, the table includes storage compartments that provide straightforward access to paper, charcoal and other tools, as well as surface-mounted charging ports and controls for the light sources.

According to Baird, Arsham has enjoyed using the drafting table and has already ordered a second version, which will allow Caliper to make improvements to its original design.

"Projects like this are effectively prototypes," he added. "So having the opportunity to rework some of the smaller details, streamlining the manufacturing and assembly process is a great way to further improve and refine a special piece of furniture."

Multidisciplinary artist Arsham is best known for creating eroded casts of modern artefacts and pop culture icons.

He previously collaborated with Japanese design studio Nendo on an exhibition of partially destroyed styrofoam objects and with bathroom and kitchen brand Kohler on a layered, portal-like installation for the 2022 Milan design week.

Arsham is also the co-founder of collaborative architecture practice Snarkitecture, which develops experimental projects such as a flagship store for Pharrell Williams' clothing brand and a store for streetwear brand Kith featuring a chandelier made from Nike sneakers.

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Promotion: the China International Furniture Fair (CIFF) will take place in Guangzhou this month with an exhibition titled Contemporary Furniture Fair, spotlighting the best of contemporary Chinese design.

Founded in 1998, CIFF is a furniture trade show that takes place annually in Guangzhou in March and Shanghai in September.

The event will return this month for its 57th edition as a mega-event hosting over 5,100 exhibitors. It features the Contemporary Furniture Fair, created to platform the work of over 60 selected brands within this curated section and establish CIFF as a leading contemporary voice in the Chinese design scene.

"This contemporary design fair is a pivotal initiative in CIFF's transformation from a trade platform to an industry enabler," CIFF told Dezeen.

Among the participants of the Design Commons exhibition will be furniture brand Qianjin Mimei.

Founded in 2020, the brand strives to create furniture pieces that blend eastern aesthetics with sustainable design concepts for today's design- but environmentally-conscious consumers.

The brand is the younger arm of Qianjin Home, which has manufactured furniture for over four decades.

Also taking part in the show will be Cosmo Mobili, a Beijing-based minimalist furniture and homeware brand that eschews "over-design" with its products.

Founded in 2018, Cosmo Mobili will present furniture curated as "complete lifestyle solutions", according to CIFF.

More established brands will also be on display. Among this group will be Dixin, a furniture brand set up in Hong Kong in 1981.

HC28 Maison will also be part of the show – a brand that was founded in 2007 and has since collaborated with leading international designers, including Marcel Wanders, Yabu Pushelberg and Pearson Lloyd.

Dongguan-based Mextra Home is another brand among the group, which will showcase its pieces in an "immersive scene" brought to life with visual and sound effects.

Shenzhen brand A2Stone will also participate in the exhibition. Established in 2014, the studio specialises in creating home furnishings from natural stone.

Beijing brand Camerich will present a display that fuses inspiration from the modernist designs of seminal American designers Charles and Ray Eames with the "living spirit" of traditional Chinese courtyards.

Based in Dongguan, Recasa is a furniture brand that specialises in material experimentations. For Contemporary Furniture Fair, the brand will present pieces curated in a booth characterised by semi-transparent partitions and natural textures.

Many more Chinese brands will take part in the exhibition, cementing CIFF as a hub for local design, as well as international brands.

"Anchored by the theme 'design commons', this contemporary design fair aims to construct a supportive ecosystem for Chinese design, encompassing design, manufacturing, and commercial realisation," said CIFF.

To find out more about CIFF, visit its website, or to pre-register, click here.

China International Furniture Fair Guangzhou 2026 takes place from 18 to 31 March 2026 at the China Import and Export Fair Pazhou Complex, 380 Yuejiang Middle Road, Haizhu District, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province 510320, China. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

Partnership content

This article was written for CIFF as part of a partnership. Find out more about our partnership content here.

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Jony Ive's studio LoveFrom has collaborated with UK studio Benchmark to create a rostrum for Christie's that replaces one designed by Thomas Chippendale.

The rostrum, which was unveiled last week, will replace Chippendale-designed podiums in all of Christie's auction houses around the world.

LoveFrom founder Ive aimed to create a rostrum that was informed by the auction house's history and described following in the steps of Chippendale, who remains one of the world's best known furniture makers, as "rather intimidating".

"As a team, we have a robust research discipline," he said. "I often think our understanding of the future and our approach to design is absolutely based on how well we understand the past."

"The original Thomas Chippendale design is masterful and remains rather intimidating," he continued.

Chippendale's original rostrum was first used when the auction house opened in 1776. It was destroyed in 1941 by bombing during world war two, with reproductions used by the auction house since.

Because of the nature of the rostrum as the raised platform used by the auctioneer, it is often the most visible symbol of the auction house.

"The purpose of the rostrum is to literally and figuratively elevate the auctioneer, providing a stage for their authority and expertise that proudly carries the Christie's mark," said Ive.

Given that auctions are now watched by many on live streams, as well as in the room, Ive aimed at creating a podium that could be seen from all directions.

The rounded rostrum was made by UK studio Benchmark from 200-year-old oak, which was sourced from the same forest used to restore the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris.

"It's a beautiful thing that you can take a modest material – such as oak – and that with the expertise of the design and craftspeople involved, value is added in the process," said Ive. "I find that magical."

"We were struck by Benchmark's biological understanding of trees and the ethical sourcing of the timber we used, as well as the machining and creating of prototypes and the finished product," he continued.

Throughout the rostrum, Ive was keen to ensure that attention was paid to all the details, including how the podium would be used by auctioneers and the elements not seen by the public.

The stairs were designed to deploy silently using a touch mechanism, while particular attention was paid to the stainless steel latch to ensure it did not jar as the only non-timber element.

"So much design fails at the junction, at the composite of materials with such different properties," said Ive.

"The way two different materials connect can often feel uncomfortable. We had to work hard for some of the very visible elements – such as the latch on the door – not to be conspicuous, which is not the same as hiding it," he continued.

"For it to appear obvious and inevitable. And that sense of inevitability is really hard to create."

According to Ive, this focus on the details that may not be seen aligns with the principles pushed by Steve Jobs when he worked at Apple.

"Steve Jobs spoke about the great cabinet makers caring enough to finish the back of a drawer," said Ive. "Caring about the unseen is a defining characteristic of our work."

Ive founded LoveFrom in 2019, after nearly 30 years at Apple, where he designed many of the brand's leading products, including the iPhone. Recent projects by LoveFrom include creating the interiors of Ferrari's first electric car and a nautical lantern for Japanese manufacturer Balmuda.

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Dezeen Showroom: a collection of tables and chairs made from solid wood and featuring steam-bent elements is among six new products featured on Dezeen Showroom.

Silva collection by Union Design for KFI Studios

American studio Union Design worked with furniture brand KFI Studios on a collection of seating and tables characterised by their solid wood materiality and steam-bent details.

The Silva collection comprises three different sizes of table, a guest chair, bar stool and lounge chair – the latter featuring bentwood rear legs dramatically angled using steam bending methods.

The range was recently featured on Dezeen Showroom alongside a curvaceous table lamp made out of steel and a chair with a biodegradable, plinth-like base.

Read on to see more of the latest products:

Pantry Cupboard by Inglis Hall

British kitchen brand Inglis Hall has released a minimalist freestanding cabinet designed to store dry goods and kitchenware.

The Pantry Cupboard comprises an oaken base and matt Fenix cabinetry. It is available in a selection of colourways and various door furniture.

Find out more about Pantry Cupboard ›

HIMACS solid surface adds 15 new colourways to its versatile palette

Marble, stone and terrazzo effects as well as solid greens, whites and darks are among new colourways available for HIMACS solid surface.

The surfaces aim to provide optimal hygiene, safety and sustainability across commercial, public and residential interiors.

Find out more about HIMACS new colourways ›

Bolete chair and armchair by Patricia Urquiola for Andreu World

Furniture brand Andreu World and designer Patricia Urquiola have released an evolution of their modular Bolete seating in the form of a new chair and armchair made from the brand's BIO thermopolymer.

The Bolete chair and armchair's fluted bases are made from the material, which is said to be produced from living microorganisms and, as a result, is biodegradable.

Find out more about Bolete ›

Moss adds new metallic finishes to its Dune light

German brand Moss's lobed Dune light now comes in moody Dark Bronze, earthy Copper and bright Gold.

These new colourways render the undulating, modular statement lighting piece – which is informed by shifting dunes – in new metallic finish options.

Find out more about new Dune lights ›

Gambosa lamp by Mathias Hahn for Marset

Designer Mathias Hahn and Spanish brand Marset have released a statuesque table lamp made from steel and opal polycarbonate.

The colourful Gambosa lamp comprises a disc-shaped base, capsule-like body and domed shade, available in a selection of colour combinations.

Find out more about Gambosa ›

Dezeen Showroom

Dezeen Showroom offers an affordable space for brands to launch new products and showcase their designers and projects to Dezeen's huge global audience. For more details email showroom@dezeen.com.

Dezeen Showroom is an example of partnership content on Dezeen. Find out more about partnership content here.

Dezeen Showroom new releases newsletter

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Belgian designer Linde Hermans has developed a collection of furniture that evokes traditional wooden brushes, propped up by thousands of bristles that function as an alternative to wheels or gliders.

The Bristle collection comprises several objects that aim to balance function and form, including seating, side tables and coffee tables.

Hermans constructed the pieces using black-stained oak and various natural fibres. The fibres evoke the bristles of a brush, especially when the pieces are moved around, which creates the impression of sweeping.

The designer used natural materials such as reed or the tough fibres of palm leaves for the bristles. She created the pattern for positioning the fibres, drilled holes and inserted them by hand in her studio.

Each bunch of fibres is secured by hammering in a small wedge made of beech wood, introducing a subtle finishing element that speaks to the heritage of craftsmanship involved in making brushes.

The collection aims to celebrate humble objects that many people use daily without paying them much attention.

Hermans, who has previously created works that reinterpret existing brushes, told Dezeen she was intrigued by the history of these objects and the craft involved in making them.

"The brush evokes movement and action, symbolises cleaning, and sweeps away the old to make way for the new," she said. "Through a repetitive process, it becomes clear that beauty emerges from time, patience and care."

"A brush always suggests movement," added the designer. "That sense of motion allowed me to transform it into a mobile interior object."

A pair of limited-edition pieces utilises an alternative to the vegetal fibres in the form of reclaimed baleen – a material taken from the plates of baleen whales, which was once used in traditional brush making.

"I came across this old stock, the fibres already split and cut to size for brush making," explained Hermans.

"The material is dark, almost black, yet interspersed with lighter strands, creating a subtle and beautiful variation in tone at the base of the object."

With the baleen pieces, Hermans hopes to highlight the history and impact of whaling.

A portion of the proceeds from their sale will be donated to Sea Shepherd, a charity dedicated to protecting and preserving the oceans and marine life.

Hermans obtained a master's degree in product design in 1997.

Since then, she has carved out a niche reinterpreting familiar objects in playful ways to create new meanings and encourage the viewer to reflect on how we perceive the everyday.

Previously, Norwegian designer Poppy Lawman created steam-bent tabletop crumb brushes to encourage a slower, more conscious way of living, while Oornament Studio produced a set of porcelain artists' paintbrushes that are both functional design objects and decorative sculptures in their own right.

The photography is by Renaat Nijs.

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British designer Jasper Morrison and design brand Hay have collaborated on a collection of over more 30 objects designed for camping, styled with nautical striped fabrics informed by samples Morrison found in Majorca and the Pyrenees.

Hay co-founder Rolf Hay said the brand worked with Morrison's London-based Jasper Morrison Shop to create the Outdoor Market collection, which includes foldable lounge chairs, a fish-shaped BBQ, and a tent-shaped canopy.

The collaborators launched it at the MoMA Design Store in New York City this week.

Morrison, who had already been producing some of the objects on a smaller scale in his shop, such as a small circular stainless steel grill, noted the alignment with projects his studio was already working on. It was a natural collaboration.

"We quite quickly realised that the formula should be a collaboration between Hay and the small shop I have in London, because we were already making things like the barbecue in very, very small numbers," Morrison told Dezeen.

"From the beginning, the idea was that we would build the collection in the same way that we stocked the shop – so looking for things that are useful, characterful and affordable. From that, we just put together a comprehensive outdoor collection," continued Morrison.

The collection's material palette centres around "very easy going" red, blue and white striped textiles, stainless steel cookware, and a light beech wood that's used for the folding furniture.

Other objects include a stainless steel bottle-carrying crate and a folding sofa that can be stored in a large tote.

Morrison, who is known for his straightforward, "super normal" design approach to everyday objects, said he found the design of utilitarian, mobile outdoor camping gear "fascinating".

"I especially like that the kind of equipment you need for the outdoors has such tight constraints of practicality, folding and lightness – not using too much material," he said.

"It's really fascinating to me. It's a whole side of design, which, as designers for residential interiors, we sometimes forget – this utilitarian area of products."

Both Hay and Morrison noted that while not avid outdoorsmen themselves, they see the products being used for general outdoor activities, such as a day at the park.

It was also partially informed by the boom in outdoor activities that occurred during the pandemic, said Hay, which saw the aesthetics of outdoor clothing and gear leaking into fashion, design and pop culture.

Hay and Morrison both expressed interest in designing more outdoor equipment moving forward.

"Why not do a frying pan?" asked Morrison.

Hay collaborated with ASICS on a collection of suede-and-leather trainers that launched during the annual festival 3 Days of Design, while Morrison designed a collection of cherry wood cutlery for French silverware company Puiforcat.

The photography is courtesy of Hay

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Designer Han Seungmin has created a chair using the mass-produced stainless-steel fencing in Asian and West Indian neighbourhoods in New York to "challenge the idyllic image of the 'American Dream'".

The White Picket Chair by Han Seungmin, who is also known as Han Sonny, was manufactured in Brooklyn using the same components as the shiny, polished fences and guardrails found throughout New York City.

These were first mass-produced in China in the 1980s and are often installed around immigrant households throughout the city's boroughs.

The chair is composed of a curved backrest, with orb-shaped, decorative finials that correspond to the upper portions of household fencing. Its seat and stretchers are made of the pickets.

For Han, the chair "challenges the idyllic image of the 'American Dream' from an immigrant perspective".

"Walking through various Asian neighbourhoods in New York, one simply cannot miss the flashy presence of the highly polished, shiny stainless steel fences, guardrails, doors, and even awnings that line the brick and concrete buildings," said Han.

"More than distinct, these fences can often be a highly polarising aesthetic, if not downright unapologetic – an aptly defiant attitude for a current political climate where immigrant communities are unceasingly targeted."

According to Han, part of the fencing's appeal is in its modularity, durability and affordability, while also providing security.

The design is well known in New York, with the New York Times calling it a "status symbol" of Asian American and West Indian households.

Originating and mass-produced in China, it spread not only to the US, but to various countries such as South Korea, where the designer grew up.

"When I was growing up in South Korea, these types of fences were so common that I didn't think much of them – and I almost forgot about them as my family and I moved to the West Coast of the US," he told Dezeen.

"Then fast forward a couple of decades and I'm living in New York and started seeing them in the streets for the first time in so many years, but with a completely different perspective this time around," he continued.

"They felt different, but also so familiar. And as someone who makes furniture, I thought about how I could bring these fences, awnings and doors into my own space."

Han plans to manufacture four of the chairs made to order, with a portion of purchase proceeds donated to the New York Immigration Coalition.

The South Korean furniture and object maker is based in Brooklyn and describes his work as drawing from "the everyday environment of the past and present".

Other designers with international backgrounds have created work based on their experiences moving to and living in New York City, such as Massimiliano Malagò and Office of TNT.

The photography is by Han Seungmin.

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Studio Lionel Jadot has transformed a former military barracks in Ghent, Belgium, into a hotel featuring peeling plaster on the walls and furniture made from reclaimed materials.

The Ghent hotel is the latest destination from the Jam Hotels brand, which prioritises sustainability through the use of salvaged objects and local production.

Having previously worked on projects for Jam in Brussels and Lisbon, Studio Lionel Jadot was tasked with converting the building in Ghent's Arts Quarter into a 108-room hotel.

The hotel, which was originally the gatehouse of the early 20th-century Leopold Barracks, forms part of a complex of buildings arranged around a parade ground.

Brussels-based architecture firm B2Ai oversaw the restoration of the building's structure, which retains its thick walls, romantically-styled battlements, corner towers and embrasures.

Lionel Jadot's studio applied its Realistic Circle system to the project, which involves reusing found materials and collaborating with local artisans to craft contextually specific solutions.

More than 40 designers, makers and artists based within a 50-kilometre radius of the hotel were involved in shaping the interiors.

According to partner and designer Louise Michiels, the main objective was to create an evolving space with the feel of an artist's workshop.

"The Leopold Barracks already carries a long timeline, and we wanted to respect that," she told Dezeen. "The idea was to add new functions while making as few changes as possible."

"Instead of covering or correcting the space, we let the existing layers remain. The passage of time was already written in the walls, so our role was to work with that story rather than erase it."

The initial stage of the project involved stripping away additions such as false ceilings and cladding materials that had been added when the building was converted for use as a military office.

The demolition process revealed the building's original structure, along with layers of paint, plaster and brick that were retained to highlight the passage of time.

Materials salvaged during this phase were reused throughout the project, with old roof timber repurposed as flooring and cladding for the hotel's bar.

"The building itself became a gisement de matériaux délaissé, a deposit of abandoned materials ready to be reactivated rather than replaced," Jadot said.

"This approach is integral to the Realistic Circle and keeps the project grounded in what already exists instead of forcing a new identity on it," he added.

Among the local designers and makers who contributed pieces for the interior is Duplex Studio, which created simple wooden furniture used throughout the guest rooms and public areas.

Based on the idea of a constantly evolving atelier, OpenStructures developed a modular, reconfigurable system for the guest beds that allows them to be disassembled and reused in alternative ways in the future.

Local designer Pierre Emmanuel Vandeputte developed furniture using reclaimed boards sourced from an old school in Ghent, while industrial shelving sourced through salvage specialist Rotor Deconstruction was repurposed throughout the hotel.

The redesigned interior aims to create what the architects described as a "porous" feel, with a new thoroughfare that passes through the building providing access to communal spaces.

The entrance leads into a reception space featuring a counter made from old storage racks that is lined with Duplex Studio stools and illuminated by lamps from designer Cristina Gusano.

The shelving contains objects sourced from local artists' workshops, including leftover materials, stone fragments and fabric remnants, which were chosen to reinforce the space's communal energy.

Other key spaces in the hotel include the Kaiju restaurant, which features furniture by Gilbard Collective and mycelium lampshades by Permafunghi.

According to the designer, the process of working collaboratively with local creatives in a workshop-like format produced an eclectic outcome.

"Real collaboration creates a kind of snowball effect where each meeting leads to the next and every contribution influences the rest," Jadot said.

The interior architect set up his eponymous studio on the heels of founding Zaventem Ateliers, a workspace based in a repurposed paper factory near Brussels that is home to 26 independent ateliers.

Jadot's multidisciplinary work focuses on reimagining spaces and objects by using what already exists. He previously coordinated a team of 52 designers and makers to transform a 1960s office block in Brussels into a hotel.

The photography is by Stan Huaux.

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After a busy Mexico City art week, Dezeen's US editor Ben Dreith selects 11 studios whose recent work stands out, from decorative pieces that incorporate steel and candles to a bench with pneumatic-tube cushions.

The following list represents a swathe of designers at various points in their careers, working at different scales and in different categories, from furniture and lighting to full-fledged interiors and architecture. Most, but not all, practice in Mexico City.

Contrary to many contemporary highlights in Mexican design, which often feature monolithic or raw forms, many of the studios on this list focus on clean lines and constructions.

Read on for 11 stand-out studios:

Lanza Atelier

Known as the architecture studio selected to design this year's Serpentine Pavilion, Lanza Atelier also dabbles in industrial design and interiors, creating some of the most stylish restaurants in Mexico City, such as Ciena in Colonia Condesa.

Recently, they showcased a variety of conceptual furniture at Ago Projects, including a metal bench with cushions made out of recycled sails and a black-metal table with chairs that slot in to create a circle.

Formant Studio

The interior designers behind listening room Modular, created in the offices of photographer Fabián Martínez, Formant Studio custom-designs much of the furniture used in its interior projects.

Like many of its interior design schemes, this furniture features simple materials and forms and leans on the contrast between dark woods and aluminium, leather and chrome.

Panorammma

Panorammma is well-known for its stylish use of gothic elements, such as chainmail, with a breakout appearance during nomadic gallery Masa's takeover of a Rockefeller Center underground post office in 2022.

Recently, Panorammma's founder Maika Palazuelos opened a small vitrine gallery, Ovni, where she showed a collaboration with musician Sites featuring a chandelier made out of reused research equipment such as speciality centrifuge tubes.

Kenya Rodríguez Studio

Guadalajara-based Kenya Rodríguez Studio showcased work during the art week at an exhibition celebrating the scenographic design photography of Alejandro Ramírez Orozco at Difane.

The designer's lighting, in floor, pendant and table versions, features elements of mid-century modernism and art deco design, with natural wood colours and fibre. Elegant hinges give the pieces a sense of movement, while its large proportions add a contemporary feel.

Lucas Cantú

One part of iconic architecture duo Tezontle, Cantú, represented by local art gallery Peana, has spent the last few years working on a series of increasingly complex works.

Though he still works with large-scale objects that evoke Mesoamerican forms, this recent work functions at minuscule levels, integrating early mechanical technology such as clocks and simple lights for an unusual decorative effect.

Esteban Tamayo Ramos 

Known primarily as a fashion and brand designer, Ramos has quickly become one of the most exciting young designers working in Mexico, with a tripartite showing at the nomadic fair Unique X Design's showcase in the city this month.

Complemented by blue plinths, the pieces included a bench with cushions made from pneumatic tubes, natural-fibre sconces and a chair combining metal and woven elements.

Euclid

For Zona Maco's design section this year, contract furniture company Euclid created a series of aluminium furniture with blue accents, accompanied by technical drawings meant to make the furniture open source.

According to the studio, the pieces were meant to show the importance of aluminium in a time of trade tensions between the US and Mexico. The open-source design is meant to contrast with protectionist US policies, making the collection a "political object as much as an aesthetic one".

Regina Moreno

Director and co-founder of gallery Toro Manifesto and former employee at Mexican design studio Breuer, Moreno mixes symbolism with fascinating combinations of materials and forms.

For Toro Manifesto's showing at Unique X Design, Moreno created a table that incorporates "austere" lines at first glance. Upon closer inspection, there are multiple homages to stereotypical symbols of the Old West, from leather patterns to gun barrels.

A-G Estudio

Led by designer Andrés Gutiérrez, A-G Estudio is known for decking out its Roma Norte home base with rotating colourful installations and for its blocky furniture that features sleek monumental Mesoamerican forms.

Gutiérrez' most recent collection features black woods and polished black lacquer, while he also released a whole collection of outdoor furniture at the Zona Maco design section.

Sukre Studio

Part of this year's emerging section at Zona Maco's design section, Sukre creates highly functional designs from simple materials at small scales that encourage a "more present and attentive relationship with the ordinary".

Its Enso stool comes in two different colourways and features a retracting shelving system that allows it to function as a shelf, stool or step.

Xpan

Led by multidisciplinary designer Moisés Sacal Hadid, Xpan works in media and installation design.

Its installation design, as seen in a void-like space it created in Mexico City and a strikingly monochrome Guadalajara store, features multi-media elements such as sound, light and video that are meant to "function as active structures" engaging participants in networks.

Main photo is by Achach Fotografia. 

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Dezeen Showroom: the following pieces from our Showroom section are either reissues or reinterpretations of classic furnishings, spanning the 1800s to the 2010s.

The selection below spans faithful reworkings of William Morris wallpapers, a Danish modern desk from 1958, a retro-yet-futuristic 1980s task chair and a sofa system with moveable cushions released in 2014.

Seating, wallpapers, lighting and tables are among recent pieces published on Dezeen Showroom that present new colourways for iconic pieces, rereleases of design classics, continued runs of recognisable designs and reinterpretations of celebrated pieces.

Read on to discover more about these items, designed and manufactured by global design brands.

HÅG Capisco task chair by Peter Opsvik for Flokk

The saddle-like seat and cruciform backrest of this 1980s task chair produced by Scandinavian furniture manufacturer Flokk deliberately departs from the silhouette of conventional office seating.

The HÅG Capisco task chair was originally created by industrial designer Peter Opsvik in 1984, and its futuristic aesthetic has seen it used in set design for television and fashion shows over the four decades since its original launch.

Find out more about HÅG Capisco ›

Modular Neo lamps by Midgard Licht

German lighting brand Midgard Licht's adjustable Modular Neo lamps are an evolution of a previous lamp in their catalogue that was found in the Bauhaus Dessau.

Contemporary advances in lighting technology and joint mechanics bring the lamps into the 21st century, without detracting from their similarity to the TYP 113 lamp, which was developed in the 1920s and 1930s.

Find out more about Modular Neo ›

BKF chair by Antoni Bonet, Juan Kurchan and Jorge Ferrari Hardoy for Isist Atelier

The recognisable BKF chair by Antoni Bonet, Juan Kurchan and Jorge Ferrari Hardoy has been officially reissued by Spanish manufacturer Isist Atelier.

Examples of the original 1938 chair feature in MoMA's permanent collection and Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater house.

Find out more about BKF ›

Pantop lamp by Verner Panton for Verpan

Danish brand Verpan's Pantop lamp first hit the market in 1980, distinguished by its iconic flared, bell-shaped lampshade. It comes in pendant, portable or table iterations.

In the past few years, the brand has added a pair of contrasting colourways – matt terracotta and glossy light blue – to the existing run of bright colourways and metallic finishes.

Find out more about Pantop ›

1977 sofa by King Living

Australian furniture brand King Living has released a modular sofa that pays homage to a previous sofa that debuted in its catalogue in the 1977 named The Award.

Curved edges and removable covers set the 1977 sofa apart from its predecessor, however the overall design language of its modular components endure.

Find out more about 1977 ›

Model 36 desk by Severin Hansen and Dagmar

A desk originally created in 1958 by designer Severin Hansen has been reissued by Scandinavian furniture manufacturer Dagmar.

The Model 36 desk is a classic piece of mid-century Danish modern design, with its three-way mitred joints and tapered legs remaining as at home in the contemporary furniture market as they were in the 1950s.

Find out more about Model 36 ›

The Unfinished Works by Morris & Co

Heritage English brand Morris & Co has released a new collection of 26 fabrics and wallpapers based on designs by William Morris and his collaborator John Henry Dearle housed at The Huntington museum in the California.

The Unfinished Works feature botanical motifs typical of Morris's work that were painstakingly reproduced by hand by the company's skilled technicians at its studio in London.

Find out more about The Unfinished Works ›

Prado sofa by Christian Werner for Ligne Roset

Bottom-heavy cushions replace conventional backrests in this sofa by German designer Christian Werner for by furniture company Ligne Roset.

The Prado sofa was released in 2014, aiming to facilitate hosting and lounging alike with its movable backrests, which can be upholstered in a range of fabrics.

Find out more about Prado ›

Dezeen Showroom

Dezeen Showroom offers an affordable space for brands to launch new products and showcase their designers and projects to Dezeen's huge global audience. For more details email showroom@dezeen.com.

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Patchwork timber, frosted glass and fine horsehair are among the materials used to create the furniture displayed in the Max Radford Gallery debut exhibition at London's Collect fair.

The presentation is part of Collect, the annual craft and design fair at Somerset House, which opens today.

East London-based Max Radford Gallery brought together eclectic pieces by 11 emerging UK and European designers to highlight the breadth of materials that up-and-coming practitioners are experimenting with.

"For our first display at Collect with its relationship with the Crafts Council, we were very keen to bring a roster of British based designers whose work aligns with craft or has some sort of commentary on it," Radford told Dezeen.

Among the furniture is a chunky dining chair by local designer Lewis Kemmenoe. The timber seating is a melange of walnut, cherry, oak, elm, brown oak and plywood, arranged in a patchwork like a pair of jeans.

Kemmenoe applied the same patchwork technique to a plywood cabinet clad in painted pieces of copper.

British-Brazilian designer Tessa Silva is showing a statement Smock Lounge Chair upholstered with coconut fibres, horsehair, wool, hessian, cotton and calico.

Silva is known for her tactile creations, which are made over hours spent pleating and smocking deadstock textiles. A wool-clad floor lamp and stool, also part of the Smock series, feature in the show.

Self-taught London creative EJR Barnes is another exhibitor who has made a name for himself with his humour-inflected designs.

Barnes is presenting one wooden and one frosted glass table alongside a pearwood armchair, which is supported by playful croissant-shaped feet made from sandcast aluminium.

A striking floor lamp by Austrian designer Flora Lechner is also on display. Lechner used anodised aluminium and stainless steel to create the lighting, which features a shade shaped like a flower despite its harsh materials.

London designer Georgia Merritt is also showing metallic lighting in the form of a sculptural table lamp formed from pieces of stainless steel and nickel.

The lamp is on display alongside Merritt's equally sculptural table, rendered in stainless steel and glazed fibreboard.

Among the smaller-scale pieces is a spindly wall-mounted candelabra by local furniture maker Barnaby Lewis, whose steel creations recently formed the debut rotating gallery show at London's APOC Store.

Called Seven Fingers, the asymmetric candelabra features alongside another gothic-style mirror by Lewis, also formed from steel.

Since Max Radford launched his eponymous collectible design platform in 2021, the gallerist has hosted a series of exhibitions celebrating the work of emerging designers.

For last year's London Design Festival (LDF), Radford collaborated with British furniture maker Ercol to create a show in an old fire station featuring fresh takes on wooden furniture from six designers.

The photography is courtesy of Max Radford Gallery.

Collect 2026 takes place from 26 February to 1 March 2026 at Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 1LA, UK. See Dezeen Events Guide for more architecture and design events around the world.

Project credits:

Curator: Max Radford
Participating designers: EJR Barnes, Tom Bull, Samuel Collins, Carsten in der Elst, Lewis Kemmenoe, Flora Lechner, Barnaby Lewis, Georgia Merritt, Eddie Olin, Freddy Tuppen and Tessa Silva

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Futureobjekt, the inaugural collectible design salon held within Melbourne Art Fair, gathered some of Australia's most forward-thinking designers to present contemporary design and crafted objects.

Twenty leading Australian designers and studios were invited to present curated selections of their work, including new collections created exclusively for Melbourne Art Fair – the longest-running contemporary art fair in Australia.

From mushroom-like lamps made using Venetian glassmaking techniques to a series of furniture that can be folded into flat sheets, here, Dezeen has chosen ten key pieces from this year's Futureobjekt.

U lights and vases, by Anna Varendorff, Melbourne

Multidisciplinary artist and designer Anna Varendorff’s installation marks the first Melbourne Art Fair Design Commission to be presented first at the fair and later at National Gallery of Victoria.

Suspended ceiling lights in a series of interlocking modular units — each comprised of one upright and one inverted tube — formed a rhythmic composition that cast light both above and below.

Large-scale floor vessels in corresponding U-shaped tube forms were created to hold plants and flowers on the ground.

ReStitch, by Adam Goodrum, Sydney

ReStitch is a series of folding furniture in mirror-polished stainless steel. It is the latest evolution of industrial designer Adam Goodrum's iconic "Stitch" chair, released and manufactured by furniture brand Cappellini in 2008.

Comprising a chair, a side table and a table, each piece in the collection could be folded into a flat sheet, thanks to a fully integrated hinge and bisecting zig-zag knuckles connected by a shared pin.

Oxide, by Locki Humphrey, Melbourne

The Oxide collection, presented by artist and furniture maker Locki Humphrey, transformed waste materials into furniture and included a lamp, an occasional chair, shelving, a coffee table and wall designs.

Discarded steel and textile waste from industrial manufacturing were recycled to create the furniture collection, which also features timber stained with iron oxide derived from metal waste.

Additionally, a leather alternative was developed from the production waste of harvesting the local prickly pear tree, which, according to Humphrey, is an abundant invasive species and identified as one of Australia's worst weeds.

Comfort Zone, by Beci Orpin x Softer Studio, Melbourne

Comfort Zone is a collaborative work of artist Beci Orpin and Softer Studio, led by furniture designer Dustin Fritsche to explore the intersection between craft, material and technology.

The playful motifs in the collection were based on the shared grid image between traditional craft forms, such as filet lace and cross-stitch, and pixelated screens commonly seen in technology.

The title, Comfort Zone, reflects the tension within their collaboration: while Orpin works with soft textiles and digital imagery, Softer Studio shapes solid timber into tactile forms.

Pillar, by Dean Norton, Melbourne

Comprising tables, mirrors, and lighting, multidisciplinary designer Dean Norton's Pillar furniture collection was defined by its serrated edges.

Vertical layers of handcrafted wood and glass created geometric compositions that contrasted the smooth reflective surfaces, which the designer described as merging "sculptural elegance with architectural form".

All his furniture is manufactured in Melbourne, where Norton works closely with local factories and craftspeople.

Translations, by Don Cameron, Sydney

Don Cameron, the music video director-turned-designer, presented his limited-edition furniture collection "Translations", informed by his photography series of brutalist architecture in Europe.

Nevers Stool is reminiscent of the monolithic form of the Church of Sainte-Bernadette du Banlay in Nevers, Burgundy, designed by architect Claude Parent, but the furniture piece was crafted with black American walnut instead of concrete.

Bloc Floor Lamp 01, meanwhile, was made from patinated sheet steel and referenced the stacked rectangular blocks of the Wotrubakirche church in Vienna.

Pliz Collection, by Volker Haug, Melbourne

Pliz Collection comprised twelve lamps of various sizes, shaped like mushrooms. Volker Haug Studio travelled from Melbourne to Venice to work directly with Murano glassmakers, the Venetian artisans who mastered the 4,000-year-old technique.

Each lamp was blown in Murano, Italy, and given coloured floral or geometric patterns that were made from glass rods and revealed in cross-section when cut.

Cor Light, by Tom Fereday, Sydney

The Cor Light collection was made from a series of stone and aluminium towers with soft lighting interiors, revealed within an oval cut out on each of the surfaces.

Named after the Latin word for "heart", designer Tom Fereday exposed sections of the materials through an angled dissection that "speaks to the beauty of natural stone and raw cast aluminium", he said.

Basalt Shelf, by Dalton Stewart, Melbourne

The Basalt Shelf was designed by Dalton Stewart to demonstrate basalt's raw surfaces, in combination with the precision of laser-cut steel.

Stone and steel were interlocked through gravity and dry joinery, without the use of adhesives or mechanical fasteners.

Flute side table, by Zachary Frankel, Melbourne

Crafted from a solid piece of salvaged cypress, the short-lived trees commonly grown in Victoria, the Flute side table featured natural cracks and knots from the wood that will change as it ages.

According to designer Zachary Frankel, the effect was achieved by hand-brushing the wood with Milk Paint, a traditional paint that mixes pigments with milk protein and leaves the brush marks visible on the surface.

Alternatively, Frankel would burn the wood using Shou Sugi Ban, a Japanese charring technique. The latest edition of the Flute side table was brushed with aluminium or textured powder coat finishes.

Futureobjekt took place during Melbourne Art Fair from 19 to 22 February at Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. For more installations, talks and fairs in architecture and design, visit Dezeen Events Guide.   

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Local curator Raksha Sanikam has inaugurated South Asian furniture gallery House of Santal in a former office space in Midtown Manhattan with an exhibition organised around plinths resembling the central courtyards of historical Indian houses.

The House of Santal Edition 1 exhibition is the first installation for the gallery, which platforms both emerging and established practitioners of contemporary design from South Asia.

The gallery is located on the tenth floor of a Midtown skyscraper and spreads out over 8,000 square feet (740 square metres) of a former office space.

Edition 1 showcases work from 13 Indian designers and studios, including those working in rugs, seating, tables, wall installations and swings.

The show was arranged around deep red plinths at the centre of the space, which showcased chairs and stools, such as a woven stainless steel lounge chair by Upasana Jain and a sculptural teak chair by Akshay and Avani Khurana.

The display called to the central courtyards of grand, historic homes of northern and southern India "where domestic architecture often functioned as a living gallery" according to House of Santal.

The surrounding rooms, which were sectioned off by stark partitions, contained restrained vignettes with pieces that focused on specific materials, craft techniques, and contemporary design ideas.

"At House of Santal, the courtyard guides the flow of movement throughout the gallery where a sequence of thresholds leads visitors through distinct vignettes," said the gallery.

"Together, the thresholds and vignettes create a rhythmic journey through the gallery, allowing objects to be encountered gradually, with intention, context, and pause."

These smaller rooms contained peices such as the Beevi Pai Swing by Veeram Shah in collaboration with Majja Design, a standalone swing informed by "Corbusier's sculptural curves" made of a teak frame with a seat of hand-woven Pattamadai mats.

Two swings by Nishita Kamdar swung side by side in another corner, while a huge silver fibreboard wall sculpture by Aashka Desai was affixed to a far wall, with a similar piece reflected onto the floor below.

Another space, presumably a former boardroom, contained a large spread of refreshments.

Curator Raksha Sanikam told Dezeen the gallery's Manhattan location was an intentional gesture to assert South Asian work into the broader conversation of contemporary design.

"Manhattan is one of the world's great cultural melting pots, where global design conversations naturally happen," Sanikam told Dezeen. "We wanted to present the best of South Asian design in a city that already brings together the most important creative voices from around the world."

"It felt important to create a space where these designers and makers are seen not as regional craft, but as part of the global contemporary design dialogue, while also encouraging collaboration between South Asia and New York."

For now, House of Santal will operate from the Midtown gallery before re-assessing in the summer, according to the team.

Although India has a long history of highly detailed design and architecture, recently the country has been gaining more attention from the global design community.

Design principal Amit Khanna wrote about the unprecedented scale of building in the country, while British consumer technology brand Nothing's second store in India may herald how the nation will become "a design hub gradually".

The photography is by Joe Kramm

House of Santal Edition 1 is on show at 10th floor of 135 W 50th Street by appointment from 18 February until May. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world. 

The post House of Santal dedicates New York gallery to contemporary South Asian design appeared first on Dezeen.

Dezeen Showroom: a co-working desk equipped with a "trench" that houses electrical outlets is among seven new products featured on Dezeen Showroom.

TOT table by Isern Serra for Omelette Editions

Spanish designer Isern Serra worked with furniture brand Omelette Editions on this work table that aims to bring graphic aesthetics and enhanced cable organisation to workplaces.

The TOT table features a bisected desktop atop a cylindrical base, with a gap between the surfaces revealing a 12-outlet power board.

The desk was recently featured on Dezeen Showroom alongside a contemporary glazed interpretation of a metal 1960s lamp and a bed entirely clad in leather.

Read on to see more of the latest products:

Ball Glass lights by Frandsen

Danish brand Frandsen has extended its Ball lighting series – originally created in the 1960s by brand founder Benny Frandsen – with a glass-shaded table and floor lamp.

Ball Glass lights comprise a slim base and upright made from metal, crowned with a glossy glass shade that recalls the original range's globular metal heads.

Find out more about Ball Glass ›

Ink tile collection by Ceramiche Refin

This collection of tiles by Italian company Ceramiche Refin is decorated with a linear, flowing hand-drawn motif.

The Ink tile collection has eight colourways and is made from durable ceramic.

Find out more about Ink ›

Tata bed by Bolzan

This bed by Italian furniture brand Bolzan is defined by its frame, which is entirely wrapped in finely stitched leather.

The Tata bed's leather-clad headboard and footboard both have gently concave edges, creating a snug, cocooning feel.

Find out more about Tata ›

Oasis seating system by Antonio Citterio for Flexform

Architect Antonio Citterio worked with Italian brand Flexform on an outdoor modular seating system that has backrests made up of lengths of woven cord.

The Oasis seating system aims to have a laid-back, casual presence while remaining durable enough to withstand the elements.

Find out more about Oasis ›

Oko chair by Lucidi Pevere for Connection

Furniture company Connection – a sub-brand of British company Flokk – has released a tub-shaped seat comprising a hard outer shell and soft inner cushions.

The Oko chair comes in various finishes for both components and aims to bring domestic comfort to public spaces.

Find out more about Oko ›

Washlet bidet toilet by Toto

Bathroom brand Toto has released a bidet toilet that has enhanced hygiene functionality both for the user and for itself, including spray settings and misting capabilities.

The Washlet bidet toilet comes in two colourways – black or white – and has a soft-touch texture that makes it appealing to use.

Find out more about the Washlet bidet toilet›

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Materials ranging from wood and coiled metal to old tripods and motorcycle headlights were used to craft the pieces on display in the Peso y Presencia exhibition at Madrid Design Festival.

Peso y Presencia, which is Spanish for Weight and Presence, brought together furniture and objects from a group of architects, designers and artists who work with diverse materials.

The exhibition was curated by architect Yaiza Camacho of local studio Moneo Brock and is on display at Space to Be, the firm's Madrid gallery space.

"At a time defined by overproduction, the exhibition advocates for a slower, more conscious way of making, offering a critical perspective on how ideas are produced, represented, and perceived," said Camacho.

Among the pieces is a lighting and table series by architects Marta Ochoa and Elena Rocabert, characterised by lacquered pieces of wood arranged in abstract formations influenced by wild animals.

The two lights were crowned with handmade lampshades made of white linen, while the table was topped with a circular sheet of transparent glass.

Jesús Meseguer is another architect whose work features in the show.

Using music stands, tripods and second-hand parts including old motorcycle headlights and car radios, Meseguer designed a spindly speaker and floor lamp called Tuning.

"In English, 'tuning' refers to adjustment – a term commonly used to describe the modification and customisation of vehicles," explained Camacho.

"From this idea of readjustment, previously used stage structures were reassembled, detached from their original function," she added.

Designer Inés Miño Izquierdo presented her delicate "chimney" table lamp carved from Japanese walnut, alongside a shard-like shoehorn made from a thin sliver of the same wood.

Various other applications of timber feature throughout the exhibition, including an asymmetric bench by architect Ismael López made of pieces of pine wood constructed using "artisanal techniques".

Informed by rocking chairs, the furniture tilts to one side so that only four of its six legs are touching the ground at one time.

"Its silhouette invites movement and play, gently oscillating between the functional and the sculptural," noted Camacho.

Two works by designer Miguel Leiro are also on show. Spring Bench is a seat formed from a strikingly coiled piece of metal, which Leiro created as both a public bench and a bike rack.

Contrastingly, the designer is presenting a subtle coat rack made from ash wood, arranged to mimic a real tree.

Smaller-scale pieces are among the various other offerings in the exhibition, from artist Andrea Moreno's lumpy ceramic water fountain to a textile-draped table lamp by jewellery designer Rubén Gómez and interior designer Omar Miranda.

"Peso y Presencia invites us to think about design through both material and gaze," said Camacho.

"Through the weight with which an idea takes form and the presence with which that form asks us to pause."

Madrid Design Festival will take place across Spain's capital until 8 March.

Previous iterations of the city-wide event include an exhibition by Jorge Penadés showing how the discarded roots of olive trees could be turned into design objects, and an installation of woven lamps made from discarded plastic bottles by Álvaro Catalán de Ocón.

The photography is by Pablo Gómez-Ogando.

Peso y Presencia takes place from 3 to 24 February 2026 at Space to Be, Calle de Benigno Soto, 14 28002 Madrid, Spain. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world. 

Project credits:

Curator: Yaiza Camacho
Participating designers: Marta Ochoa and Elena Rocabert, Jesús Meseguer and Reparto, Eric Primo, Inés Miño Izquierdo, Ismael López, ESTO Estudio, Fun Furniture for Friends, Miguel Leiro, Sudor, Sofía Milans, Miguel Lantero, Clara Álvarez, Guille del Paso, Andrea Moreno, Guillermo Gutiérrez and La Cuarta Piel

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Architecture is the discipline at the core of creative Simone Brewster's multidisciplinary projects, she tells Dezeen in this interview following the opening of her debut exhibition at London's Design Museum.

North Londoner Brewster has a meandering portfolio that spans architecture, furniture, jewellery, clothing and painting.

A varied selection of these works is currently on show at the Design Museum in a free display. Speaking to Dezeen, Brewster explained that the starting point for almost every project in the collection, from totemic planters to a faux fur jacket, was her architectural training.

Architecture is "the thing that makes you understand"

"Architecture has informed all the ways I approach design," said the creative, who studied at the Bartlett School of Architecture before completing a master's in design products at the Royal College of Art.

"It's the thing that makes you understand how to approach it," she told Dezeen. "It might not even be the thing that defines the outcome."

Brewster said that the architecture discipline established her understanding of scale and proportion, which can be applied to "objects as much as jewellery and designing clothes".

She explained how her broad creative education expanded her horizons and led to her eclectic practice, including a pavilion designed to mimic ancient architecture and wooden combs influenced by the hairstyles of members of different African tribes.

"I ended up going on a very unconventional path because after I did my Part 1 and I worked in architecture for a bit, I did my master's in design products," she said.

"So then I wasn't technically a Part 2, but I had much more knowledge and experience than a Part 1, and then architecture practices didn't know how to deal with that," continued Brewster.

"In the end it meant that I ended up working more with designers, because designers don't get so scared of you having an architectural background and doing design."

Brewster's curiosity for architecture was ignited at an early age. At six years old, she visited her father's family in Trinidad and asked him how the temperature of the house they were staying in was so cool despite the hot weather. Her dad explained that his architect cousin had specifically designed it that way.

"I look back and I feel grateful for the moment when I was first understanding that space could make me and other people feel something," reflected Brewster.

"That design could help people feel comfortable, present, and at ease."

Design is "very grounding"

Brewster's fascination with space has led her to explore the body and deconstruct how it is represented in culture – themes that are integral to her portfolio.

Among her works on display at the Design Museum are three pieces of furniture created to examine historical objectifications of the Black female body, which she named after racist and obsolete stereotypes.

"The Negrita bench is a new piece, which follows on from one of the most important bodies of work that I've created – the Negress Chaise and the Mammy side table," explained Brewster.

Brewster crafted the bench from ebonised repurposed sapele wood. Like the chaise longue and the side table, the furniture is characterised by abstract shapes that represent fragmented body parts, including thighs and a breast with a gilded nipple.

"[The pieces] deal with really difficult subjects," she continued. "And it's very grounding, this idea of filling the void and talking about design and what it can offer, the barriers it can break down and the conversations it can open up."

Elsewhere, a selection of Brewster's "heritage necklaces" is on show. Finished in materials ranging from brass and aluminium to coloured paper and synthetic hair, the designer's jewellery was influenced by breastplates historically worn by warriors across Hawaii and Fiji.

As well as tracing back through time, Brewster remains keenly interested in the state of contemporary design, which she has partly explored through various educator roles.

"When I was teaching, I had a lot of students who weren't from the UK," she reflected.

"I was trying to get them to understand that their perspective on what design could be was valuable. And to enter our education system, they didn't have to lose that part of themselves."

Brewster said that students' preconceptions of what architecture should be often led them to limit their own ideas – something she always invited them to confront and question.

"We'd break it down first with drawings and paintings and collages," she explained of her teaching style.

"The moment the project became creating a space, [their work] became a white cube. That's what architecture is in their brain. It's nothing to do with the colours of their heritage, or the shapes from where they come from."

"It became a serious thing," she continued. "And the amount of conversations I had to have, asking them, why have you done that? Can't you see what you've done here? You've erased yourself."

"There was a lot of that, getting them to bring more of themselves into the spaces and objects that they were creating."

A creative career is "not a straight line"

One of Brewster's aims for her first museum exhibition is to "demystify" what architecture and design are, and vouch for the wide-ranging potential of both disciplines.

"One of the things I try and instil in students and people who want a creative career is that it's not a straight line," she said.

"So many visitors to the Design Museum are young," acknowledged Brewster. "So many teenagers visit who are really thinking about a career in design."

"And often what we see when we look at design is this idea that it's very straightforward, or that someone was always going to be an amazing designer," she continued.

"No, let's be real. It's that we like this thing, and we're going to explore it and see where it takes us."

"If we continue to ask good questions, we might make interesting things and continue to make products, objects and spaces that people engage with and find valuable and can become part of culture and society," she added.

This sentiment is echoed in a quote from the designer placed at the beginning of the show, which reads, "institutions never knew what to do with me... where to put me. I realised I would have to carve my own path to get anywhere".

"For me, I was filling my void, which was looking at the design world and thinking, where am I? I don't see it. I'm going to start making something," reflected Brewster.

"But your void is totally different from mine. So there's space for you and me."

Brewster's show is the second edition of Platform, an annual display series at the Design Museum dedicated to showcasing contemporary creativity. Last year's inaugural edition presented the work of British designer Bethan Laura Wood.

The photography is by Charles Emerson.

Platform: Simone Brewster takes place from 13 February 2026 to 25 January 2027 at the Design Museum, 224-238 Kensington High Street, London W8 6AG, UK. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world. 

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Furniture vendor Rarify has exhibited 60 pieces of SOM furniture, artifacts and photography across two floors of a New York shop, for the first-ever exhibition devoted to the furniture work of the iconic architecture studio.

Furniture by SOM: Design 1950–1991 displays SOM pieces on plinths throughout the LuisaViaRoma shop in SoHo, New York City, coinciding with the city's fashion week to mark "a shared commitment to design innovation, craftsmanship, and quality across architecture, furniture, and fashion".

The exhibit spans four decades of SOM interior work by designers such as Gordon Bunshaft and interior designer Davis Allen, and is accompanied by original architectural photography by Ezra Stoller that lines in-store shelving.

The pieces on display include a rare metal-mesh lounge chair by Allen, upholstered with original Jack Lenor Larsen fabric and the striped Italic Desk designed by Bunshaft and SOM, which are showcased on a central plinth.

Many of the pieces were created custom for the large-scale architectural projects the studio carried out in the 20th century, such as a long stainless steel and leather bench for a 1960s Chase Manhattan Bank project and bespoke side tables for ABC that line one wall.

The extensive exhibit comes from Rarify's own archive of vintage furniture, and according to co-CEO David Rosenwasser, is only a portion of the SOM pieces the vintage furniture collectors have amassed over the years from online sales and auctions.

"The interest in collecting and researching these works began by encountering furniture by Nicos Zographos nearly a decade ago, when we started acquiring large truckloads full of pieces from office liquidations," he told Dezeen.

"The metalwork was done with incredible craftsmanship, which I knew was massively labor-intensive, difficult, and expensive to do well. From that point onward, we started growing the foremost collection of Zographos furniture in the world."

Rosenwasser told Dezeen he spent over 1,000 hours working with SOM head of product development Satya Cacioppe to examine archival drawings, photography and period magazines to further identify the collection and, as research grew more intensive, eventually began matching pieces to their exact production year and corresponding project.

For the exhibition, Rosenwasser and co-CEO Jeremy Bilotti selected furniture they felt "most effectively communicated the breadth of SOM's work", dividing the collection between more standardised designs and "unusual works" that came from the 1970s and '80s.

"Roughly half of the collection showcases works that neatly fit into the strictly modernist vocabulary that SOM was developing through a set of standardised rules and details, whereas the other half showcases more unusual works that reflect a more experimental series of ideas and a wider range of designers," said Rosenwasser.

Without the archiving effort, he also said most of the pieces, although meticulously constructed, would end up in landfills, as many are unlabelled and unmarked.

"Sadly, the fate of many of these pieces over decades was likely a landfill," he said.

"With this archiving effort, however, the works are well documented enough that it allows for a thorough means of authenticating, aside from the fact that the pieces are constructed like heirloom works."

Rarify collects, restores, sells and educates the public on modern furniture. It has a gallery space in Philadelphia.

It previously collaborated with lighting brand Gantri and Studio Guapo on a 3D-printed light made with USM frames.

SOM continues to make strides in the architecture world, and is working on a skyscraper on the infamous Spire site in Chicago.

The photography is by Matthew Gordon. 

Furniture by SOM: Design 1950–1991 is on show through April at LuisaViaRoma. For more showcases, talks, and installations in architecture and design visit Dezeen Events Guide. 

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Dezeen Showroom: the following lighting, tables and drinkware recently published on our Showroom section showcase the many uses, colours and finishes of glass.

Glass continues to be an enduringly popular material among furniture and lighting designers and manufacturers, thanks to its robust nature and distinctive aesthetic properties.

From glass table lamps and glass-shaded pendant lights to transparent side tables, the following products are among those recently published on our furniture section that use glass as a primary material.

Read on to see a selection of recent glass products by both up-and-coming and established names in the design world.

Fragment Line lighting by Studio Dechem for Bomma

Leftover glass shards are reused using a technique developed by Czech glassmakers Studio Dechem, in this statement light by lighting brand Bomma.

Fragment Line lights feature a pair of long, slender panels made by combining shards into a single sheet, creating a mosaic-like, kaleidoscopic effect that is enhanced when the lighting fixture within is switched on.

Find out more about Fragment Line ›

Iris tables by Alejandra Gandía-Blasco for Gandia Blasco

Colour studies of sunsets and sunrises manifested in glazed surfaces crown this collection of tables by Spanish brand Gandia Blasco.

Iris tables are supported by slim, black metal legs and frames, and come in circular as well as rectangular formats, each decorated by colourful, abstract glass tops.

Find out more about Iris ›

118p portable lamp by Bocci

Canadian design brand Bocci's 118p portable lamp has a simple, globe-like shape rendered in glass that features a petal-like inclusion within.

Molten glass blown through a reusable steel cage forms the sculptural shape, which is lit from the inside and aims to be a distinctive and wireless focal point in tablescapes.

Find out more about 118p ›

Striche tables by Matteo Zorzenoni for Miniforms

Multiple glassmaking techniques meet in this series of colourful tables by Italian designer Matteo Zorzenoni for design brand Miniforms.

Striche tables have a dimpled base topped with a frosted-and-striped tabletop, showing off the versatility of working with Murano glass.

Find out more about Striche ›

Nola lamp by Tom Fereday for Nau

Australian brand Nau worked with designer Tom Fereday on a series of table lamps made from hand-cast crystal glass.

Nola lamps have an organic, rounded aesthetic characterised by the use of a combination of transparent and translucent glass.

Find out more about Nola ›

Hand-dyed glasses by Upstate

US design brand Upstate has designed and produced a series of drinking vessels made from coloured glass that recall the works of renowned painters.

Hand-dyed glasses are handmade using various combinations of coloured glass chips, resulting in a variety of colourways: Kokomo, Frankie, Fumé, Moss and Watermelon.

Find out more about hand-dyed glasses ›

Loja lighting collection by Sebastian Herkner for Midgard Licht

A chunky, glass pedestal base supports these table and floor lamps by German brand Midgard Licht and designer Sebastian Herkner.

Light radiates upward from the base of the lights in the Loja lighting collection, and is topped by a tiltable, hat-like shade.

Find out more about Loja ›

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Dezeen Showroom is an example of partnership content on Dezeen. Find out more about partnership content here.

The post Seven products that spotlight the versatility of glass appeared first on Dezeen.

The late mid-century modern designer Verner Panton was born 100 years ago today. To mark the occasion, we have rounded up 10 of his most enduring pieces of furniture and lighting.

Born in Brahesborg-Gamtofte in Denmark on 13 February 1926, Panton left an indelible mark on the design industry and is remembered as a household name who dared to experiment with swathes of colour, shapes and materials.

His career spanned furniture, lighting and product design as well as interiors and architecture – a common feature among many of Panton's mid-century peers, who were considered polymaths for their multidisciplinary capabilities.

To mark 100 years since Panton's birth, we have collected 10 of the designer's most iconic pieces of furniture and lighting.

Panton Chair, 1967

Characterised by its distinctive S-shape, Panton's eponymous chair is widely considered to be not only his most famous piece of furniture, but one of the most recognisable pieces of furniture ever created.

The seat made design history in the 1960s as the first cantilevered chair to be manufactured completely out of a single piece of plastic.

The Panton Chair has been enshrined in popular culture ever since, referenced in settings from Barbie Dreamhouses to an iconic Vogue magazine cover that depicts model Kate Moss sitting nude in the chair.

Flowerpot lamp, 1968

Panton designed his brightly-coloured Flowerpot lighting range in 1968 to embody the period's flower-power movement, which promoted peace, love and free thinking.

The original collection featured a duo of table lamps and a trio of pendant lamps. Each was made of two lacquered metal hemispheres, positioned at opposite angles to create a glare-free, ambient glow.

Heart Cone Chair, 1958

The Heart Cone Chair made waves in the late 1950s for its distinctively heart-shaped upholstered seat supported by a satin stainless steel base.

Manufacturer Vitra described the chair as a clear example of Panton's fascination with geometry, and his desire to create emotional impact despite the functionality of his furniture. The brand has marked the designer's centenary by producing a two-tone blue version.

Panton created the heart-shaped furniture as a playful follow-up to the Cone Chair, conceived for the Kom-Igen inn restaurant on Denmark's Funen island. He was responsible for both the design and interiors of the restaurant.

Panthella lamp, 1971

Designed three years after the Flowerpot lamp, the Panthella is another example of Panton's experimentations with glare-free lighting.

The first Panthella was produced in 1971 in five vibrant colours. Light is reflected from the oversized, mushroomy shade onto the lamp's trumpet-shaped chrome base. For Panton's centenary, Panthella manufacturer Louis Poulsen has reissued the lamp in its original bold hues, including red and orange.

Barboy trolley, 1963

Barboy is a flexible, mobile piece of furniture that has served as a side table or a drinks trolley since the early 1960s.

Panton crafted Barboy from four cylindrical wooden parts, which are supported by chrome-plated castors. The project is a classic example of the designer's penchant for combining blocky and colourful shapes with shinier accents.

Living Tower, 1969

Perhaps Panton's most unusual design, Living Tower is a sculptural piece of furniture fitted with interior niches for reclining.

The upholstered tower was crafted from polyurethane foam, a staple of the 1960s furniture industry, with a birch plywood frame. It measures over two metres in height and can accommodate up to three people in seated positions.

Cloverleaf sofa, 1969

Cloverleaf broke with the modernist tradition of rectilinear sofas, reimagining the couch as a modular structure of alternating inward and outward-facing niches.

This radical new form, resembling a many-leaf clover, was designed to encourage socialising and interaction, as well as allowing the sofa to be endlessly extended and reconfigured.

Globe lamp, 1969

Many of Panton's lighting designs stack several reflectors on top of each other to completely obscure the bulb, but none does it more impressively than the gravity-defying Globe pendant.

Here, five polished aluminium reflectors, accented in red and blue, are suspended inside a transparent acrylic sphere, emanating a soft ambient glow that seems to come from nowhere.

System 1-2-3 chair, 1973

It took Panton three years to develop the System 1-2-3 chair with its S-shaped cantilever seat that allows for next-level customisation.

Customers are able to pick between two backrest heights, four seat heights and six base types – including legs, runners, casters or plates – yielding around 20 different versions of the same design.

Fun lighting, 1963

Panton crafted his affectionately-named Fun lighting series from translucent discs of seashells, flexibly connected to each other using metal rings.

The heat that is emitted by each of the lights' central bulbs causes the discs to move and reflect patterns of light. Chains of varying lengths can be arranged to create lighting of various sizes.

The series offers an alternative to a traditional chandelier, and highlights the breadth of materials Panton used over his career.

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From ingenious sofa-rugs by Sabine Marcelis to an exhibition about waste in architecture and Mexican architects showing furniture in a modernist house, here are eight design-forward exhibitions from Mexico City art week.

With a growing design section at anchor fair Zona Maco and the world-class architectural pedigree of the city, it's no wonder that architecture and design have become more and more prominent during the week.

Here, we look at the stand-out exhibitions, from the conceptual to the chic.

Read on for more.

Fragmentos de Mar by Studio Davidpompa

Local outfit Studio Davidpompa renewed its collaboration with restaurant Contramar for an immersive exhibition showcasing the process that went into its lights made with discarded shells from seafood, accumulated over six months.

The lights add a sense of materiality and local supply to Studio Davidpompa's minimalist design, and feature high-gloss aluminium fixings that pleasantly contrast the aggregate.

The studio capped off the collaboration with a party that featured live ceviche making, cohosted by Dezeen.

Find out more about Fragmentos de Mar ›

Roll by Sabine Marcelis for CC-Tapis

Dutch designer Sabine Marcelis worked with Italian textile company CC-Tapis to create Roll, a rug with a fibreglass volume on one side that makes it function like a sofa.

Marcelis, who commented on the "subtle irony" of the piece, showcased the pieces in a 1970s house by modernist architect Agustín Hernández. Three earth-toned versions were draped over the elegant stone-and-wood platforms of the house.

Find out more about Roll ›

The Resident by Lee Broom at Diez Company

British designer Lee Broom made his Mexico City debut with a solo show at local lighting outfit Diez Company, further emphasising the international bona fides of the week.

For the Resident showcase, Broom decked out the Polanco mansion that hosts Diez Company's showroom. A range of the designer's lighting designs filled the space, with many of them outfitted in new finishes for the exhibition.

Find out more about The Resident ›

Azul y Verde by Lanza Atelier at Ago Projects

Fresh off an announcement that Lanza Atelier had received this year's prestigious Serpentine Pavilion commission, the studio returned to gallery Ago Projects for its second solo show in the skyscraper space in the central Avenida Paseo de la Reforma.

Leaning on its wide material range in architectural work, Lanza Atelier showcased furniture in metal, wood, and glass. The pieces emphasised perspectival shifts and uncanny mixes of material, highlighting the pieces that make a whole.

Find out more about Azul y Verde ›

Reuse: Architectures of Almost Nothing

Curators María Muñoz and Edgar Rodríguez used the wide spaces of the factory-turned-artspace Laguna – designed by architecture studio Productora – to showcase conceptual installations. Fifteen cutting-edge international architecture studios took part.

Based on an essay written by Rodriguez, the exhibition featured cars turned into benches, pavilions made out of windshields, and much more.

Find out more about Reuse: Architectures of Almost Nothing ›

Inner Stage by Studio 84 and Unno Gallery

Local gallery Studio 84 worked with Unno Gallery to stage an exhibition of collectible design and tapestries at the modernist Escuela del Ballet Folklórico de México.

Works by Italian glass company 6AM featured among CC-Tapis tapestries in the entry atrium, while highly stylised pieces by designers such as Alana Burns were placed, under spotlights, on the ballet stage in the theatre below.

Find out more about Inner Stage ›

Unique Design X

Nomadic design showcase Unique Design X returned to Mexico City for its third edition, bringing with it a range of international designers and galleries.

Stand-out pieces included a jukebox by French music collective Radiooooo, which plays songs based on time and place on knobs and a touch screen, as well as a furniture collection by local designer Esteban Tamayo Ramos.

Find out more about Unique Design X ›

Casa Locken showcase by Omet

Mexican design gallery Omet released its fourth collection of dedicated pieces, some of which were designed by well-known contemporary Mexican architects such as Tatiana Bilbao, Fernanda Canales and Omet founder Lorena Vieyra.

Arrayed in the open living room of modernist architect Francisco Artigas' Casa Locken, the showcase featured mixed materials, with a desk by Canales and a chaise lounge with monumental stone legs by Vieyra taking the show.

Find out more about Omet at Casa Locken ›

Mexico City art week took place across the city primarily from 2 to 9 February, with some extended dates. Find out more about global events in architecture and design at Dezeen Events Guide. 

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A collection of furniture by famed Mexican architects and designers under the Omet label was showcased in a modernist house in Mexico City during the city's art week.

The home was used to show the fourth collection by gallery Omet, an outfit led by architect Lorena Vieyra, whose Austin, Texas, outpost promotes Mexican design in the United States.

For Mexico City art week, Omet took over the house, using it not just as a backdrop but, according to Vieyra, an essential part of the show.

"The project came to life from a shared desire to give something back to architecture – by activating a house with an extraordinary legacy and opening it to the public in a meaningful way," said Vieyra. "This building was not chosen as a backdrop, but as a protagonist."

The house was designed by modernist architect Francisco Artigas and was once the home of Mexican president Adolfo Ruiz Cortines. It now serves as a showroom for furniture distributor Piacere.

Sited in the Jardines de Pedregal neighbourhood, masterplanned by architect Luis Barragán, the house has a long bar over a pool, subterranean passageways and internal courtyards and glass walls that punctuate the house as it stacks away from the pool.

It was restored two years ago by local architects Mauricio Gómez de Tuddo and Juan Pablo Wolffer.

"Francisco Artigas’ architecture carries a clarity and generosity that feels incredibly current," said Vieyra.

The majority of the furniture was showcased in the large, open room that overlooks the pool and extensive backyard.

Set on the smooth marble stone of the restored house are prominent works by architects Tatiana Bilbao, Fernanda Canales and Vieyra herself.

Bilbao's contributions included a series of pyramidal stools clad in multi-coloured fabric alongside pieces similar in style, but rendered in rich woods, with one featuring stripped marquetry.

This wooden aesthetic was repeated in the Sepan Cuántos console, which had striped spheres and pyramids stacked to form legs. It was accented with a large semisphere on top of the surface.

Canales' contribution also features diverse materials across several pieces – the most prominent being a wooden desk with a louvred shell accompanied by a chair with interlocking geometric forms. The desk is called Guarida, which in Spanish means a lair or a den, evoking shelter.

She also contributed a high-gloss stainless steel nesting table with three tiers, as well as a series of side tables and stools with movable stacked wooden elements.

Following on the theme of mixed material, Vieyra contributed a chaise lounge, with its leather bed draped over massive marble columns, buttressed by a steel frame.

Designer Raúl de la Cerda departed from his usual monolithic stone pieces, creating an elegant wooden bar with a travertine top.

Felipe Gómez and Dyad created the patterned textile, while several walls were adorned with geometric artwork by Ricardo Rendón.

Other design showcases during the busy week included a rug-sofa combo by Sabine Marcelis and a collection of lighting made from discarded shells by Studio Davidpompa.

The photography is by Lazarillo. 

Omet at Casa Locken is on show from 4 to 14 February, by appointment. For more showcases, talks, and installations in architecture and design visit Dezeen Events Guide. 

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During Stockholm Design Days, furniture brand Lammhults Design Group opened a showroom created by Note Design Studio to provide a neutral backdrop for presenting its range of contract furniture.

The company, which includes the Lammhults, Abstracta, Fora Form and Ragnars brands, wanted to develop a space to highlight its more unified offering while strengthening each brand's unique identity.

The showroom was designed by Note, whose co-founder Cristiano Pigazzini is now responsible for the group's creative direction in his role as creative advisor.

The project involved stripping back the unit located at Norrlandsgatan 20 in central Stockholm to reveal its raw structure before implementing a design that supports displays of products from the various brands.

"The ask from Lammhults Design Group was to create a space to house and represent all brands under one roof," explained Johannes Karlström, interior architect and founding partner at Note.

"This is also a natural extension of the strategic ambition to use the synergy of the group's brands to create a renewed and stronger presence in the industry."

The interior comprises a series of contextual environments, designed to showcase products alongside each other so that customers can engage with them and try them out.

Note utilised simple and affordable materials, including rattan carpets, through-coloured Valchromat panels and a matching brown eco-friendly floor tile to create a neutral scheme that allows the products to stand out.

The pared-back aesthetic is supported by a neutral colour palette chosen to complement the different furniture and create a sense of cohesion throughout the showroom's spaces.

"We leaned into a soft white palette with a contrasting dark red-brown, combined with a warmer deep burgundy accent to bring some dynamism and warmth to the space," Karlström told Dezeen.

"There are slight variations in how the palette is applied to the different rooms, creating flow and natural shifts in tempo."

The space currently contains some of Lammhults' key pieces, including the Geofanti sofa by designer Anya Sebton and a configuration of the modular Bao sofa system designed for the brand by Note.

Some of the environments also feature acoustic wall panels and lamps from Abstracta, with tables and cabinets from Ragnars and Fora Form furniture, including a yellow and chrome edition of the Bud meeting room chair.

Illumination is provided by rows of suspended LED light tubes that are dimmable and offer precise colour adjustment, allowing the atmosphere in the space to be altered to suit the time of day or occasion.

Lammhults Design Group is one of Scandinavia's leading producers of furniture for office interiors and the showroom was designed as a symbol of its more integrated and customer-focused approach.

"The space will become a hub for customer dialogue, creative collaborations and inspiration, while also strengthening the interplay between design, business and customer needs," said Susanna Hilleskog, CEO of Lammhults Design Group.

The company's new strategic direction is based on the concept "Scandinavian Design. Multiplied" and will see each brand continue to evolve its individual strengths while offering customers a holistic solution for contract projects.

Note previously designed a showroom in Copenhagen for Lammhults Design Group, which utilised the rough and rustic qualities of its setting in a historic former naval base.

The Stockholm-based studio, founded in 2008, works across architecture, interiors and product design, applying an adaptive, innovative mindset to projects ranging from a restaurant with quirky blue-and-white tiled walls to a Japanese-inspired wine bar that doubles as an office.

The photography is courtesy of Lammhults.

Stockholm Design Days took place from 3 to 5 Feb in locations across the city. For more installations, talks and fairs in architecture and design, visit Dezeen Events Guide.  

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Mexican design gallery Studio 84 and Unno Gallery have presented Inner Stage, a collection of works by designers including Sabine Marcelis and glassworks studio 6AM, at a local ballet theatre for Mexico City art week 2026.

For the Inner Stage presentation, rugs, lighting elements, screens, and other furniture pieces were on display in the lobby and on the stage of Escuela del Ballet Folklórico de México (Escuela del Ballet), a Brutalist building designed by architect Agustín Hernández Navarro.

The show was further activated by female folkloric dancers accompanied by musicians from the Banda Mixteca de Santa Cecilia, who danced around the objects in a piece choreographed by Mexican artist Mauricio Ascencio.

According to Studio 84 and Unno Gallery, both of which were founded by interior designer Maria Dolores Uribe, Inner Stage explored "femininity".

"The works explore femininity through intimate spaces associated with retreat, contemplation, and pause, as well as through the objects that inhabit them," said the organisers.

"The dancers interact with the designers' pieces, revealing femininity as a force of exchange, capable of receiving, sustaining, and transforming."

In the lobby of Escuela del Ballet, Italian glassworks company 6AM presented Murano glass side tables from its 1/1/1 sculpture series, as well as screen-printed lattimo glass 'Exit' signs, informed by similar safety signs of the 1920s.

In the same space, CC-Tapis presented rug collaborations with designers Sabine Marelis and Scarlett Rouge, which were placed on a grand stair and suspended from the ceiling, respectively.

On the theatre stage, three vignettes by local designers Alana Burns, Lucía Echavarría and Andrea Vargas Dieppa were presented under static spotlights.

The main pieces exhibited were a daybed by Burns, a "dressing room" with a folding screen by Echavarría, and a monolithic, wooden rocking chair by Dieppa.

According to the team, the three vienegttes included "contemplative objects" and areas for "meditative space".

"Positioned between tradition and contemporaneity, the pieces examine how design mediates between necessity and desire, shaping both emotional experience and material presence," said Studio 84.

Inner Stage was one of many shows on during this year's Mexico City art week, including a collection of furniture at AGO Projects and a local showrooom in a historic mansion filled with works by British designer Lee Broom.

The photography is by Fernando Farfán.

Inner Stage is on show at Escuela del Ballet Folklórico de México from 2 to 4 February for Mexico City art week. For more global exhibitions in architecture and design, visit Dezeen Events Guide. 

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As part of Stockholm Design Days, Swedish designer Malte Lundberg is exhibiting an ergonomic desk chair made entirely from wood, all the way down to the giant spiralling screw used to adjust the seat height.

Lundberg developed the Silas chair in collaboration with Swedish furniture brand Stolab as part of his studies at Stockholm's Beckmans College of Design.

Whereas most adjustable task chairs use metal and plastic for their various mechanical components, the designer set out to demonstrate that even these functions can be achieved using wood.

"I wanted to make an office chair for the home," he told Dezeen. "Because I see a trend where people don't want to have really technical office chairs in a domestic context."

"I tried to make an all-wooden project and also integrate sculptural forms into what is typically quite a strict, technical category."

The entire chair is made from birch wood, chosen for its light colour, which lends the piece a clean and simple aesthetic.

To provide comfort without the need for upholstery, Lundberg used Stolab's CNC mill to create ergonomic yet sculptural forms for the back and seat.

"The backrest, for example, is designed with a curved shape so it presses on the muscles rather than the backbone," he explained.

The giant screw mechanism used to adjust the seat height turned out to be the most challenging part to realise in timber.

Due to prohibitive tooling costs, Lundberg ended up lathe-turning the bolt to millimeter precision, which he said proved "insanely hard", while the corresponding nut in the base of the chair was 3D-printed from plastic as a proof of concept.

If production was scaled up and Stolab invested in special parts, Lundberg says both the nut and bolt could both be made using existing CNC milling technology.

The same is true for the chair's hand-carved slotted stem, featuring notches and a simple peg fixing that can be used to alter the height of the organically shaped backrest.

The versatile chair can be used at a desk, in a studio or at a dining table as an alternative to more utilitarian options designed primarily for office environments.

Lundberg said he hopes the chair will spark joy and curiosity, "almost like a small character that keeps you company throughout the day".

Silas is currently on show as part of Process, Material, Craft – an exhibition of student work from Stockholm's three major design schools during Stockholm Design Days.

The impromptu festival was conceived to fill the hole left by the Stockholm Furniture Fair and its associated design week, which were cancelled this year.

Other highlights from this year's unofficial event include lamps made from unwanted glassware, an exhibition of Josef Frank cabinets and a showcase of emerging Swedish designers.

The photography is by Madeleine Sjöberg.

Process, Material, Craft is on show from 3 to 7 February 2026 at MDT Moderna Dansteatern as part of Stockholm Design Days. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

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Mexican studio Lanza Atelier, this year's Serpentine Pavilion designer, has showcased a diverse collection of furniture at gallery AGO Projects that features reused materials such as rebar and sail fabric during Mexico City art week.

The show, called Azul y Verde, featured a wide array of furniture produced by Lanza Atelier, most of which was created for the show, with a few updated designs from past projects.

It is the second solo exhibition for the studio with AGO Projects, and similar to the first, it features a wide range of furniture created from different materials.

Studio co-founder Alessandro Arienzo told Dezeen that the diversity of the furniture present reflects the diversity of work and material carried out by Lanza Atelier itself since it was founded in 2015.

Spread across the floor of the sun-drenched glass gallery mid-way up an office building on the busy Avenida Paseo de la Reforma in Mexico City, the showcase centres around an expressive quarter-circle rug split between green and blue colours.

According to the studio, the rug is the unifying element for the show, reflecting its theme – "colour as a fluid and evolving concept shaped by perception and culture".

"All of the pieces show a contrast between materials, and how apparent contrasts can dissolve," studio co-founder Isabel Abascal told Dezeen.

"In many cultures from Antiquity, blue and green were referred to with a single word. How we call things actually influences how we perceive reality."

"Every piece in the show contains some kind of contrast, whether material, conceptual or geometrical."

On top of the rug are two angular, powder-coated steel pieces – a sofa and an armchair – upholstered with white up-cycled boat sail material, stitched together with blue thread that appears delicate in the thick fabric.

Next to these are a series of chairs that challenge perception. Made of wood with wicker seats, the chairs have double backs, and some are turned on their side to confuse the viewpoint.

Against one wall are shelves made from simple wooden boards that resemble scaffolding.

A high-gloss Black Flower table with a gear-like top and matching chairs that, when pushed in, make it circular, sits nearby. It is an update to a design included in some of the studio's residential work.

Also on show is a polished aluminium coffee table with a glass top that opens from one side like a mouth, allowing objects to be put under the glass so that it acts as a vitrine.

More on the sculptural side, the studio also recreated a sea coconut, at a one-to-one scale, from aluminium and foam.

Against the back wall are a series of metal works, including a lamp with a curvy wrought-iron stem that suspends a delicate paper lantern. Here, the rebar and the paper illustrate the show's central focus on contrasts.

Taken together, the pieces appear as pieces of architecture, deconstructed.

"We approach objects or furniture the same way we approach architecture; scale is not a boundary," said Abascal.

This exhibition follows a solo show by Lanza Atelier at AGO Projects in 2019, and the recent announcement that the studio was selected to design the Serpentine Pavilion in London, a prestigious commission.

Previously, the studio has worked on a range of projects, from residential architecture in Cancún to pavilions in Mexico City and elegant restaurant interiors.

The photography is by Santiago Ruiseñor.

Azul y Verde is on show at AGO Projects from 2 February to 2 May 2026. For more showcases in architecture and design, visit Dezeen Events Guide.

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Dutch designer Sabine Marcelis has created Roll, a rug with a wood-and-resin arm that transforms the product into a sofa, which she is debuting at a modernist house during Mexico City art week.

Roll takes its form and name from the act of unrolling a rug.

"With subtle irony, Roll suspends the rug mid-action, transforming it simultaneously into a rug and a seat," said Marcelis.

The designer created three limited-edition pieces for Italian carpet manufacturer CC-Tapis, in burgundy, baby pink and a reddish brown colour called rust.

Each piece of furniture was made from a flat textile of 100 per cent, robot-tufted wool. A curved, wool-clad arm was connected to one end of each of the textiles, to give the impression of a rug being rolled out on the floor.

Marcelis crafted the base of each arm from wood and finished them with glossy accents of resin – a staple material of the colourful but minimalist works the designer is known for.

When combined with their respective arms, the textiles transform from rugs into seats.

"The work draws on a familiar, everyday gesture typical of living spaces," explained Marcelis.

"Sitting on the rug and leaning against another element for support, making it explicit and fixing it into a singular form, suspended between use and sculpture."

Roll marks the first non-rug product produced by CC-Tapis, which Marcelis and the manufacturer unveiled during this week's Mexico City art week.

The trio of products is on display as part of a site-specific installation at the modernist Valner Residence, an early-1970s house in Mexico City designed by architect Agustín Hernández.

Elsewhere in the city this week, Davidpompa studio is showing lighting made from discarded seafood shells salvaged from local restaurant Contramar.

See Dezeen's curated list of 15 of the festival's must-see architecture and design events taking place across the Mexican capital.

Mexico City Art Week 2026 takes place from 1 to 9 February 2026 at various locations across Mexico City, Mexico. For more architecture and design talks, exhibitions and fairs visit Dezeen Events Guide.

The post Sabine Marcelis designs two-in-one rug and sofa with "subtle irony" for CC-Tapis appeared first on Dezeen.

Instead of its usual week-long Stockholm Design Week exhibition, Swedish design studio Form Us With Love has transformed its studio into an experimental showroom that will be open for four months.

With Stockholm Furniture Fair and the affiliated Stockholm Design Week postponed until 2027, Form Us With Love wanted to offer an alternative to the "compressed, high-intensity" feel of a design week show.

Named Showroom?, its exhibition was designed with slowness in mind. Rather than a static space, the adaptable interior will host a four-month programme of talks, events and workshops curated in collaboration with Studio Playground.

"The extended duration fundamentally changes the rhythm," said Form Us With Love co-founder Jonas Pettersson.

"The showroom becomes a living environment that evolves over time," he told Dezeen. "It allows us to observe how people return, how conversations deepen, and how ideas mature rather than peak and disappear."

"We see it as a slow feedback loop, which is increasingly rare in a fast, event-driven design culture. That slowness is valuable."

Form Us With Love is among many designers and brands that have chosen to stage an exhibition despite the cancellation of this year's furniture fair, under the umbrellas of Stockholm Design Days and Stockholm Creative Edition.

The exhibition takes the form of a furniture showroom, aiming to question the role of the physical showroom in today's culture.

It includes Form Us With Love's latest launches – a range of acoustic products from sister brand Baux and a collection of bespoke textiles created with Dutch brand Byborre.

These products are not on display in the traditional sense. Instead, they form part of an interior that includes three ambiguous spaces.

The red-toned main space was conceived as a meeting or gathering space, organised around a large table. On one side is a green material area, and on the other is a blue hybrid space that could be either an office or a bar.

"A showroom today is less about display and more about dialogue," said Pettersson. "In the past, it functioned primarily as a catalogue in physical form, a place to show finished objects, often frozen in a final state."

"Today, the showroom has become a spatial narrative: a place to communicate values, process, and intent as much as product," he added.

"It's no longer just about what is being shown, but why and how."

Dividing the spaces are the ceiling-hung Baux panels, which are made from a premium felt board called X-Felt.

The Iris textiles have meanwhile been used to create bespoke upholstery Form Us With Love's Savo Spine chair and a knitted version of the event poster, which is hanging in the window.

Showcasing Byborre's 3D knitting technologies, the featured textiles showcase three colourways and three print sizes, although the materials area reveals a wider selection of colour options.

Form Us With Love's ongoing collaboration with String Furniture forms a key part of the show. The designers will host workshops where visitors can give feedback on ideas and prototypes for a forthcoming range of accessories.

Completing the space are the Nomad power outlets and lamps, developed for Forming Function, which are now available in 130 new colours.

The exhibition becomes the latest instalment of Form Us With Love's Testing Grounds series, following on from a pop-up bistro in 2025 and a flexible co-working space in 2024.

Pettersson said that, with Stockholm Furniture Fair rebranding as a biennial event, it has created an opportunity for "smaller, more experimental, and more community-driven initiatives" to emerge.

"Stockholm has always been strong when it allows diversity of voices and scales to coexist," he said. "Events like this can absolutely galvanise the local design community, especially if they encourage collaboration rather than competition."

"The future of Stockholm's design scene won’t be defined by a single fair, but by how designers, brands, and institutions use the space between major moments to build something more resilient and connected."

Showroom? is on show at Form Us With Love's studio in Stockholm from 2 February to 2 June 2026. See Dezeen Events Guide for more design events taking place as part of Stockholm Creative Edition and in the wider city.

The photography is by Jonas Lindström, unless stated.

The post Form Us With Love unveils four-month show following Stockholm Design Week cancellation appeared first on Dezeen.

Dezeen Showroom: a cube-shaped, charred wood-clad sauna that aims to integrate into nature is among seven new products featured on Dezeen Showroom.

Jonas sauna by Celsium Wellness

Lithuanian company Celsium Wellness has released a sauna finished with blackened timber planks that aims to serve sauna-goers without interrupting natural surroundings.

The Jonas sauna has a stepped interior lined in warm aspen timber, from which users look out from a large square window onto the landscape beyond.

The sauna was recently featured on Dezeen Showroom alongside a collection of fabrics and wallpapers originally created by William Morris and a series of cushions and throws designed by John Pawson.

Read on to see more of the latest products:

Indienne collection by Zoffany

English brand Zoffany looked to archival designs celebrating Indian culture for this range of wallpapers and fabrics.

The Indienne collection comprises designs and motifs by both contemporary artists and traditional craftspeople, providing a rich and varied selection.

Find out more about Indienne ›

Omogenea surface collection by Dimore Surfaces

Italian brand Dimore Surfaces aimed to encapsulate the look and feel of volcanic rock in this range of surfaces.

The Omogenea surface collection comes in various cool- and warm-toned neutrals, each characterised by a matt, fine-grained appearance.

Find out more about Omogenea ›

The Unfinished Works by Morris & Co

Heritage English brand Morris & Co has released new range of wallpapers and fabrics that draw on 26 works by mid-19-century designer William Morris.

The Unfinished Works are based on designs in the collection of The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens in California, which were then repainted by the company's skilled technicians in its Chiswick studio.

Find out more about The Unfinished Works ›

Erased Heritage rug collection by Jan Kath

Jan Kath's Erased Heritage rug collection combines traditional Persian rugs with contemporary additions rendered in shimmering silk.

Aiming to "surprise, unsettle and invite reflection", the range includes the Bidjar Highgate Enjoy rug, characterised by an ornate, red base overlaid with scribble-like patterns.

Find out more about Erased Heritage ›

Awase bed by Omi Tahara Studio for Bolzan

Designer Omi Tahara worked with Italian brand Bolzan on a bed that aims to incorporate wood, rattan and Japanese minimalism.

The Awase bed is characterised by its headboard, which can be either padded or woven with rattan.

Find out more about Awase ›

Strata collection by John Pawson for Teixidors

Spanish brand Teixidors and designer John Pawson have released a series of throws and cushions informed by stone architecture.

The Strata collection comes in a pair of muted colourways – Rose and Neutral – both striated with raised lines that recall detailing found on building facades.

Find out more about Strata ›

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In the wake of this year's Stockholm Design Week being cancelled, designers and brands have taken matters into their own hands with an alternative programme of events across the city. Here are 10 highlights you won't want to miss.

Among the flurry of things on show across the city this week between 3 and 7 February is a pop-up listening lounge, a collection of prison furniture prototypes and a multi-brand exhibition in an old canon factory.

The grassroots programme was designed to fill the hole left by the Stockholm Furniture Fair and its associated design week, which were postponed until 2027 and will now run in a biennial format.

"Even though there is no proper Stockholm Design Week and people, including myself, have been so confused and negative, I must say I'm really impressed," Nordiska Galleriet's Hanna Nova Beatrice told Dezeen.

"There are so many activations and it's really brand-led," she added. "They've gone out of their way more than they usually do, because there's no fair."

The week-long event is rather confusingly branded, with more than 100 studios and manufacturers exhibiting under the umbrella of Stockholm Design Days, while emerging and independent designers are largely showing as part of Stockholm Creative Edition after the festival was moved forward from its usual time in May.

But we've weeded through the whole programme and broken down 10 of the most interesting things you'll want to see below.

Echo exhibition at Kanonverkstaden

Echo is a new exhibition platform for Swedish design, which will debut in an old cannon factory on Skeppsholmen island this week before travelling to Copenhagen for 3 Days of Design.

Geared first and foremost at architects and buyers, the show will see a selection of established brands including ASKO and Bang & Olufsen rub shoulders with younger designers like Fredrik Paulsen of JOY Objects and Desiré Apelgren, who is presenting an asymmetrical, metal take on the classic Swedish stick back chair (above).

"With the Stockholm Furniture Fair on hold, we just have to do something," said Karin Sköldberg, co-founder of Echo and PR agency Trendgruppen. "We do have to take care of our design history; it's an essential part of our culture and not the least a sustainability feat to still have manufacturing in Sweden."

In the Context of Sigurd Lewerentz at FAB Grönlandet

As part of Stockholm Creative Edition, design lovers will have the rare opportunity to enter Sweden's former National Insurance Institute – an icon of early Swedish modernism designed by Sigurd Lewerentz (above).

Inside, buzzy local furniture company Contem and ceramicist Ingrid Unsöld are showcasing site-specific projects made using materials partly sourced from the heritage-listed building, which now serves as an office and museum.

Ung Svensk Form at ArkDes

Work from Sweden's most promising young designers will be on show at Stockholm's ArkDes museum as part of an exhibition showing the winners of the annual Ung Svensk Form competition.

Standout projects include Christmas trees turned into furniture by Rickard Torstenfelt, Alma Duran's blobby neon lights and a series of tables from Svenskt Tenn Design Scholarship laureate Love Persson that reflect on the experience of losing a parent (above).

Breva mig! at Etage1

In response to the looming expansion of Sweden's prison system, industrial design students from Stockholm's Konstfack school have created a series of prototype furniture to investigate how these penitentiary spaces can be designed with empathy.

The resulting pieces, on show at Etage1, were created in collaboration with furniture maker Nola and the Swedish Prison and Probation Service, which facilitated a visit for the students to one of the country's largest prisons as part of the project.

The Listening Lounge by Exakt MFG and Superlab

Svensk Form's library is turning into a listening lounge this week courtesy of design studio Superlab and furniture brand Exakt MFG, which is making its debut as part of Stockholm Design Days.

Envisioned as a kind of public living room informed by Japanese listening bars, the space will be furnished using the company's first-ever collection, made entirely in-house to maintain full control over materials, processes and quality.

Stockholm Creative Edition at Industricentralen

Stockholm Creative Edition is taking over the city's 1937 Industricentralen building to host its main exhibition, with a spotlight on emerging designers including Nils Askhagen, Interesting Times Gang and Matsson Marnell.

"In our own exhibition, we want to offer insights into how the designers of the future think," explained founders Ulrika Kjellström Attar and Philippe Attar. "It is more exploratory, more risk-taking, and shows new ways of relating to material, function and form."

Visitors will be fed via a pop-up bakery from Håkan Johansson Frost – Sweden's only world-champion baker.

Beyond Design in SoFo

In Södermalm, or "SoFo", leading Swedish and European design brands will be opening their showrooms and studios between 3 and 5 February, culminating in a joint party on the final night.

Under the title Beyond Design in SoFo, the event will see longtime locals like Hem and Vitra joined by Danish exports Hay, &tradition, Fritz Hansen and Gubi, which are popping up at locations across the district.

Also taking part are local firms Note Design Studio and Färg & Blanche with its Extreme Stitching Lab, where visitors will be able to see Sweden's most powerful long-arm cylinder sewing machine in action.

Stay Curious by NK Interior

NK Interior CEO Kadi Harjak has curated an exhibition at the Nordiska Kompaniet department store that reflects on contemporary Swedish design across materials, disciplines and generations.

Under the theme Stay Curious, the show will take over the building's Light Court and its display windows along Hamngatan with work from Mimmi Blomquist, Nick Ross, Gustav Winsth and more.

The Building

Seven nordic design brands – including HAHA studio, String Furniture and Sweden's oldest furnituremaker Gemla – are presenting curated exhibitions under one roof as part of a group show at The Building.

Also on show will be works in glass, textiles, lighting and furniture from independent designers including Emilie Palle Holm and Simon Skinner, who was last year named as one of Dezeen's names to watch.

Process, Material, Craft at Moderna Dansteatern

Three of Stockholm's leading design schools are joining forces for an exhibition at the Moderna Dansteatern theatre, spotlighting standout student work around the theme of process, material and craft.

Konstfack's presentation Clay City will feature work made using locally sourced earth from Årsta, while Malmstens and Beckmans (above) will showcase furniture created by their graduates in collaboration with established Swedish design companies like Källemo, Nola and Stolab.

Stockholm Design Days and Stockholm Creative Edition are taking place at various locations across the Swedish capital this week. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

The post Ten must-see shows at Stockholm's unofficial design week appeared first on Dezeen.

Hand-carved lamps and NM3's debut timber furniture are among the striking woodwork pieces spotted by Dezeen's design and interiors reporter Jane Englefield over the past month.

When Dezeen spoke to interior designers about their trend predictions for 2026, creatives were united in forecasting less processed and more honest materials – chief among them wood.

The following pieces are a selection of recently designed furniture, lighting and accessories that demonstrate the versatility of timber, which continues to stand the test of time.

NMNG by NM3

Since its founding in 2020, Milan studio NM3 has been causing a stir with its distinctly utilitarian furniture made from slabs of stainless steel.

NMNG is the studio's latest collection of two tables and a chair, made for using the same meticulous methodology that the designers normally apply to steel but crafted entirely from solid oak.

The collection is produced by Stockholm's Nordiska Galleriet and will launch as part of an unofficial design festival taking place in the Swedish capital next week.

Acid Lamps by Josh Page

From a distance, these teak veneered plywood lamps look as if they have been stained with acid to create ink blot-style marks on their surfaces.

In fact, British designer Josh Page created the patterns by carving into the teak veneer to reveal the layers of plywood beneath. When carved in this way, each lamp is characterised by a unique "acid" design.

Page chose delicate poplin for the lampshades, which feature electric blue stitching to match the braided blue cables. The result is beautifully layered lighting that demonstrates the decorative potential of timber.

Shelf by Ralph Parks

This wall-mounted shelf was handcrafted by British designer Ralph Parks from unidentified, reclaimed wood that he has resolved is "possibly yew".

Characterised by all the meandering lumps and bumps that feature on an untreated tree branch, the shelf was created as a place to toss keys or small trinkets.

It is a satisfyingly tactile piece, made all the more charming by its unconfirmed origins.

Art cart by Dom Johnson

Multiple uses are packed into one piece of furniture in this nifty art cart by British designer Dom Johnson.

Johnson used Douglas fir plywood and hardwood to create the cart, which features a reversible worktop and pencil tray, as well as a birch plywood pegboard, a mounted paper roll and various bespoke storage.

The cart was designed for Watts Gallery in Surrey after the museum commissioned Johnson to create furniture that would encourage visitors to draw during their visit.

It is an approachable piece of furniture that feels as if it might attract even the most amateur of sketchers.

Thorn by Rickard Torstenfelt

Thorn is a distinctive coat rack by emerging Swedish designer Rickard Torstenfelt, made from the spiky branches of old Christmas trees.

The recent Malmstens furniture school graduate salvaged one of the most overlooked forms of timber and transformed it into a beautifully prickly piece of furniture that is as sculptural as it is functional.

Thorn will be on show in Stockholm next week as part of the annual Ung Svensk Form exhibition at architecture and design museum ArkDes.

Lamp by Charlotte Taylor and Garcé Dimofski

Known for her penchant for collaboration, British designer Charlotte Taylor worked with Lisbon studio Garcé Dimofski to design this chunky solid wood table lamp.

The pleasingly weighty lampshade crowns a base made using Japanese-style joinery not dissimilar to the kind seen in Taylor's Sombresa table, which she debuted at last summer's 3 Days of Design festival in Copenhagen.

Available in both a natural and a black-stained finish, the lamp casts a soft glow across the joinery when illuminated.

Candle holder by Carlo Raymann

Finnish designer Carlo Raymann is a founding member of Minestrone Workshop, a Helsinki-based design collective established to test the limits of timber.

Raymann created this simple but loveable candle holder from small slabs of Douglas fir, which were glued in place to encourage plenty of interaction around the dinner table.

"The idea is a simple play with shapes and grain directions," he told Dezeen. "Several candle holders can be arranged to form different kinds of patterns."

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From site-specific exhibitions in modernist houses and ballet theatres to climate-conscious curatorials, high-end British design and an exhibition by Serpentine Pavilion designers Lanza Atelier, we've picked out 15 events from the dizzying array on show at this year's Mexico City art week.

Over the past twenty years, anchor art fair Zona Maco has cemented early February as the apex of Mexico City art culture, with a whole slate of smaller fairs, gallery openings, and experiences popping up around the city.

Recently, design has become a more integral aspect of the city-wide art showcase, evidenced by the addition of an explicit design section to Zona Maco, and its recent announcement of a dedicated collectible design category.

Many of the exhibitions are extremely site specific, leveraging the rich architecture of the city. Last year, Dezeen collaborated with Studio Davidpompa on a guide to must-see buildings in the city.

There's a lot to see, so Dezeen has selected 15 things that design lovers should prioritise during the busy week.

Reuse: Architectures of Almost Nothing at Laguna

Fittingly sited at art space Laguna's home, a reused factory, this exhibition brings together 15 studios that "work with reuse, resource efficiency, and material precision as guiding design principles".

Curated by María Muñoz and Edgar Rodríguez, the show will highlight different cultural and aesthetic perspectives around architectural reuse.

Forma at Zona Maco

On top of the yearly design section that brings together designers at all career levels, this year Zona Maco will showcase six collectible design studios, spaced throughout the extensive international art programme.

Among the participants are international galleries Carpenters Workshop Gallery and Citco, as well as Mexican gallery Adn.

Find out more about Forma at Zona Maco ›

Fragmentos de Mar by Studio Davidpompa

Located at lighting designer Davidpompa's showroom, a neo-baroque building in the Roma neighbourhood, Fragmentos de Mar is the latest collaboration between the studio and iconic local restaurant Contramar.

It will feature a lighting collection and installation that uses shells and other aspects of the restaurant's seafood cuisine, "transformed into a material that tells a story of origin and renewal", with an opening night co-hosted by Dezeen.

Unique Design X

International fair Unique Design X returns to Mexico City for its third time, making its home on the ground level of the Expo Reforma building that also houses art fair Material, with dozens of international studios, galleries and institutions showing work in unconventional arrangements.

This year, it will feature special exhibitions by Fredrik Nielson, Lea Mestres and Lorena Saravia and a section dedicated to French-Mexican creative reciprocity.

Azul y Verde by Lanza Atelier at Ago Projects

Mexico City architecture studio Lanza Atelier, which was recently selected to design this year's Serpentine Pavilion, will present a solo exhibition at local gallery Ago Projects, in the Reforma neighbourhood.

Based around the "shared origins of blue and green across cultures and languages" the studio will present a variety of design objects.

The Resident by Lee Broom and Diez Company

British designer Lee Broom will join the lighting curator Diez Company at the company's showroom in a historic Polanco estate.

Broom's debut Mexico exhibition will see the designer transforming the estate with over 50 of his archival works, including some in new finishes for the exhibition.

Barragán en Barragán at La Cuadra

Founded by architect Fernando Romero, La Cuadra, designed by the famed Mexican architect Luis Barragán, has become a cultural campus. Romero's organisation wants to turn the site into a "new epicenter in the Latin American art circuit ".

For the art week, Romero has tasked architect Jorge Covarrubias, and the exhibition will explore the work of Barragán through scale models and photographs.

Sanctum: Where Memory Rests by Fábrica 

Part of curator Fábrica's ongoing La Sala internacional event series, Sanctum will be hosted in the studio of Mexico City furniture producer and restorer Azotea and feature sculpture, photography, and sound design by Com. The outfit partnered with Mexico City-based American designer Jonathan Bailey to design and curate the exhibition.

It will be an "immersive, completely shoppable environment" and feature designers such as New York's Eny Lee Parker and local Kimera Atelier.

Feria Territorio at Espacio CDMX

The organisers of Design Week Mexico, the yearly design fair in October, are launching their second major art week exhibition, underscoring the growing relevance of design during the week.

Located in the group's modernist pavilion in Chapultepec park, dozens of designers will showcase collectible and industrial design objects.

Casa Locken by Omet

Austin-based, Mexican design gallery Omet will showcase a new collection in Casa Locken, a 1957 home designed by modernist architect Francisco Artigas.

The exhibition will host work from big names in Mexican architecture and design, including pieces by Tatiana Bilbao, Fernanda Canales, and Raúl de la Cerda.

Inner Stage by Studio 84

Following up on its 2025 installation at Casa Max Cetto, Studio 84 has teamed up with several institutions for an exhibition and performance series at Escuela del Ballet Folklórico de México de Amalia Hernández.

Unno Gallery will showcase work by Alana Burns, Lucía Echavarría, and Andrea Vargas Dieppa; CC-Tapis is presenting rugs by Scarlett Rouge and Sabine Marcelis and 6:AM will show a series of sculptural works.

La Metropolitana at Edificio Vizcaya

Mexican designers and fabricators La Metropolitana will fill the historic Edificio Vizcaya, a historic building in the Juarez neighbourhood.

A series of sculptural chairs by the studio will be used for activations, such as a collaboration with the New York restaurant Comal at Origen in the space.

Viso Collective Materia by Viso Project

New York-based curatorial platform Viso Project is putting on an exhibition for the first time in Mexico.

With a focus on materials that show the "juxtaposition between the delicate and the robust" it will feature commissioned works by designers such as Chuch Estudio, Maremoto, and Esteban Tamayo Ramos.

Codices by Balmaceda

Milan-based Mexican rug design studio Balmaceda will present its new collection at an exhibition in the city's Loma neighbourhood.

The collections "draws inspiration from ancestral Mexican architecture, reinterpreting pyramids, reliefs, and ancient codices through a contemporary design language" in a series of rugs, tapestries and other woven works.

La Píldora by Clásicos Mexicanos

Local studio Clásicos Mexicanos, known for its recreation of iconic modernist design, sometimes from as little as hazy photographs, is putting on an exhibition at La Píladora, a house by modernist architect and designer Roberto Eibenschutz.

The exhibition will restore the house through the placement of historic design recreations.

Mexico City art week is on in locations across the city from 1 to 9 February. For more architecture and design happenings, visit Dezeen Events Guide.

The post Fifteen must-see design and architecture events during Mexico City art week 2026 appeared first on Dezeen.

Brexit has greatly hampered UK design brands' ability to sell their products in the EU and turned the "made in Britain" label into a costly burden, industry leaders tell Dezeen.

The UK formally left the European Union (EU) on 31 January 2020, departing the single market and customs union at the end of the same year.

For British brands exporting their products to the EU, the impact of the resulting administrative complexity has been severe.

"EU customers are wary about buying from the UK"

Furniture-maker Vitsœ is one such brand, selling both to business and private customers across the bloc.

"Five years on, Vitsœ's experience is that EU customers are increasingly wary about buying from the UK because they have been hit repeatedly by the barriers," company director Mark Adams told Dezeen.

"Brexit has imposed additional layers of bureaucracy, including customs declarations, VAT complexities, and border checks."

Heritage British furniture brand Ercol has also witnessed a huge downturn in trade with the EU.

"We've now seen an 88 per cent decrease in sales in Europe from 2019," chairman Henry Tadros told Dezeen. "As we weren't quite big enough to set up our own European operation, we've been hamstrung by shipping and customs fees."

"It's just so much easier for a European retailer to work with European brands than to deal with the headaches of importing from the UK."

For London-based furniture company SCP it has been a similar story.

"We have lost a number of our wholesale customers who gave up buying from us because of all of the extra paperwork," said founder Sheriden Coakley. "Our web sales to private clients [in the EU] all but disappeared."

EU customer confidence has got so bad as a result of burdensome paperwork and unexpected import charges that "made in UK" has become a turn-off for potential buyers, according to Adams.

"In the past, the country of origin was rarely a concern; however, today, it is," he said. "Vitsœ now considers carefully how and where its UK-production is mentioned."

"Brexit charges cost us £117,000 last year"

Businesses focused on importing design products from EU countries to sell to clients in the UK have also faced significant challenges.

"Brexit and customs charges cost us £117,000 last year, plus some delays," said James Mair, founder of London-based firm Viaduct.

Depending on the size of the project, these extra costs are either absorbed internally, hitting profit margins, or passed on to the client.

These costs are a reflection of the burden faced by the brand in an EU country on the other side of the transaction, explains Alice Breed, founder of UK-based design sales agency DNA.

"They too have to pay an export agent to complete paperwork," she said. "This cost is transferred to the UK buyer."

For buyers in the UK, the upshot is higher prices, often disguised by EU brands issuing UK-only price lists that incorporate higher shipping charges and unit costs.

All this doesn't just affect large orders – businesses like Breed's must even pay import paperwork charges for samples.

Bricks-and-mortar retail has felt the biggest impact, added Breed.

"Retail was already coming under intense pressure from several different directions before Brexit and margins for resellers were tight," she said.

"They are now squeezed further by import paperwork fees which can add anything between £25 and £250 per invoice."

"We find it difficult to operate from England"

Brands have attempted various different strategies to try to offset the pain of Brexit.

For businesses selling multiple small orders like Ercol, the admin and fees associated with selling in the EU are particularly cumbersome.

As a result, Tadros has increased Ercol's focus on sales within the UK.

"It is just so much harder to export and continue to be profitable," said. "We felt that we had an opportunity to focus on the UK and London and get it right here, and in doing so build a secure platform for us to look at exporting again in the future."

Nevertheless, according to the British Furniture Association, the trade organisation which represents the interests of the nation's furniture industry, challenging economic conditions have made it difficult to achieve buoyant trade within the UK.

Others have sought to set up operations within the EU, such as furniture and lighting brand Established & Sons.

Created in 2005 on strong British foundations, Established & Sons proudly began by manufacturing its products in the UK before expanding production across various countries.

A few months ago, the business launched a sister company in the Netherlands.

"[It's] a very simple and normal result of Brexit indeed," explained CEO Casper Vissers. "We are English by heritage, that will never change."

"But for the operations of an international business, we find it difficult to operate from England. And that would not have played any role without Brexit."

Buyers like Viaduct have also formed EU sister companies.

"For our orders within Europe using EU suppliers, we have registered for Dutch VAT to avoid those customs charges, but it leads to more additional costs," said Mair.

"The Netherlands then benefits from any VAT payable, rather than the UK," he added.

"It felt like we needed to apologise"

Others have tried to look further afield. One of the early political pledges in support of leaving the EU was that trade with non-EU countries would grow.

But the ongoing trade war with the US has hampered these efforts.

"Sales to Vitsœ's largest market in the US have been under pressure due to 25 per cent tariffs on aluminium and steel," said Adams.

"We did shift over to the US but that's been hammered by their own economic downturn and then all of the Trump tariff stuff happened," said Ercol's Tadros.

Ercol decided to shut down its US company in November and refocus everything it has on growing the UK business.

According to Adams, Brexit has even made trade with the US tougher.

"There have also been intellectual property issues for Vitsœ selling to the US because the UK is now a third country: EU IP registrations are no longer accepted in the US from a UK company," he said. "In other words, both EU and US markets have been adversely impacted for Vitsœ."

There have been other post-Brexit challenges too – notably with hiring talent from EU countries – while some of our interviewees pointed out a less tangible friction with European suppliers and clients who believed that they themselves had voted to leave the EU.

"At the beginning certainly it felt like we needed to apologise or explain that this wasn't something that we wanted as a company," said SCP Contracts managing director Debbie Donovan. "Many manufacturers were understandably offended that the UK had voted for this."

Everyone we spoke to was eager to rejoin the EU, or at least be back at the EU table.

"Apparently the buzzword is 'dynamic alignment': ease of movement of goods and people across EU borders," said Adams, something he said Norway and Switzerland have successfully managed.

Vissers feels disappointed by a change in perception of the UK. "I have so many friends around the world with businesses who just stopped focusing on the UK. That I find the most terrible effect of Brexit," he said.

"The UK has kindly given the ultimate present to the EU," said Adams. "No other country will be foolish enough to leave."

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For Stockholm Creative Edition, Swedish heritage brand Svenskt Tenn has unveiled an exhibition of cabinets by design icon Josef Frank, including a new edition of his Cabinet 522 in horsehair fabric.

On show in Svenskt Tenn's flagship Stockholm store, Standing Tall showcases six cabinets designed by the late Austrian-born architect and designer in the 1930s, 40s and 50s.

It will be on show throughout Stockholm Creative Edition, one of the main events taking place in lieu of the cancelled Stockholm Design Week.

The exhibition marks the launch of the new Cabinet 522 edition, which features a fine horsehair fabric woven at John Boyd Textiles in Somerset, England, in either black or white.

But it also tells a story about "the blend of utility and artistry that defined Josef Frank's work", according to Tora Grape, marketing and brand communications director at Svenskt Tenn.

"To Josef Frank, cabinets were works of both form and function – artworks created with the utmost attention to detail; he even designed the keys," she explained.

"With the spring exhibition, we want to offer insight into a foundational part of Josef Frank's design universe, presenting both the ideas and the craftsmanship behind his cabinets."

Presented against a theatrical backdrop of colourful curtains, the six featured cabinets share some characteristics.

All have tall legs, "designed to keep the meeting point between floor and wall visible", and are crafted from dark-toned woods with brass fittings, highlighting Frank's distaste for silver metals.

Cabinet 522 is the oldest of the designs, created between 1934 and 35, taking cues from British furniture traditions.

Cabinet 852, or the Flora Cabinet, is one of Frank's most recognisable designs. Clad with 115 botanical plates, its design was inspired by Svenskt Tenn founder Estrid Ericson's visit to the home of Swedish biologist Carl Linnaeus.

A similar level of detail features on the Stockholm Cabinet, which is clad in an intricate hand-drawn map of the Swedish capital made by lithographer Heinrich Neuhaus in 1875.

Cabinets 881 and 2192 are both chests of drawers. The 881, designed in 1938, combines vavona burl veneer with a playful composition of 19 drawers, while the 10-drawer 2192, from 1957, mixes birch burl, elm and padouk woods.

Completing the show is the 1954-designed Cabinet 2192, which boasts an irregular ribbed front.

Previous Svenskt Tenn exhibitions include an apartment installation in Copenhagen designed to look like a real home and a colourful exhibition by French architect India Mahdavi.

Standing Tall is on show at Svenskt Tenn's Stockholm store until 29 March 2026. See Dezeen Events Guide for more design events taking place as part of Stockholm Creative Edition, which runs from 3 to 7 February 2026, and in the wider city.

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From a psychedelic Moooi installation and a Coors beer spoof at IDS Toronto to a stylish display of Montreal talent in a Corso Italia basement, here are the standouts from the late January design events in Toronto.

Despite sub-zero temperatures, thousands of people made the trip to see trade show IDS Toronto and the hundreds of events that make up the city-wide Design TO festival.

With a focus on Canadian design, we looked at new releases of commercial projects, prototypes and collectible pieces across the events.

Read on for Dezeen's highlights from Toronto's January design fairs:

Out of Office by Ste Marie and Moooi

Dutch furniture company Moooi worked with legendary Vancouver design studio Ste Marie to create a booth within IDS Toronto's curated office exhibition, which was cleverly titled Out of Office as a nod to the middle three letters of the brand's name.

Its exterior was clad in classic office mineral fibre panels, but the inside was given a psychedelic treatment. The space was upholstered with Moooi Fluid fabric, featured a metal-wrapped planter, and four of Ron Gilad's Dear Ingo Chandeliers.

Tiered seating was accented by speakers, while features reminiscent of HVAC ventilation shafts held retro TVs running AI videos of conceptual Moooi furniture come to life, such as the life-size horse lamp by Swedish studio Front.

Tape curated by Jamie Wolfond 

Curated by designer Jamie Wolfond and his team, which operates 8x7 out of a space adjacent to his workshop, Tape showcased a range of pieces that celebrated different forms of the universal, yet often-overlooked, adhesive.

Stand-out pieces included the Working Condition lamp by Copenhagen-based Canadian designer Persia Mckinney Duncan that showcased glass pieces held together by duct tape as an exploration of the "space between repair and ornament".

Local MSDS Studio's Tape Vessels featured vase-like objects wrapped in aluminium-foil tape, while Wolfond himself experimented with drywall joint tape as a medium for 2D perspectival art.

Home deCoors by Coors Light

The Canadian arm of beer brand Coors Light put on an irreverent exhibition on the IDS Toronto showroom floor.

For the installation, 30-count cases of beer were displayed among contemporary design objects, serving a variety of functions, from console to coffee table, and lampstand. An accompanying pamphlet showed the "range" – a list of decor categories, above which were repeated images of the case of beer.

Pot-Au-Feu by Ensemble

Roving Montreal design collective Ensemble, led by designers Anaïe Dufresne and Nicholas Sangaré, is quickly becoming one of the most exciting showcases during DesignTO, if not in all of Canada. This year, the team returned to a basement gallery in the outskirts of the city, cladding the walls and floors with wood veneer and fabrics.

Some big-name Montreal lighting studios, such as D'armes and Lambert et Fils showed pieces, with D'armes co-founder Alex Joncas showing some of his personal work. Stand-out pieces included a collection of all-leather tables with removable tops by Séjour Studio, new rubber collections from Atelier Fomenta, and a metal chair by Les objets Raymond Raymond.

Atriani Interiors

Following its Best Booth Award at IDS Toronto 2025, Canadian design studio Atriani Interiors worked with local interior designer Mila Yudina to create a booth at this year's event featuring the luxurious decor the company is known for.

At the centre of the booth, though, were the lacquered Ottagono Coffee Table, a four-piece set. According to the company, the piece represents the "new direction and vision" for the brand.

Shell stool by Maxwell Sims

Local designer Maxwell Sims showcased his Shell stool at the Prototype section of IDS Toronto, which showcases work from early-career designers.

Shell consists of three parts that can be easily assembled and disassembled. For the project, Sims wanted to try and shape bent aluminium in a way similar to plastic stools, "preserving the visual simplicity of the stool while resolving the connection of parts as simply as possible".

Ourse

Located prominently at the top of the entry programme at IDS Toronto was the debut collection of Canadian furniture brand Ourse. The collection included mostly wood furniture and decor designed by Canadian design names such as Jake Oliveria Studio, Thom Fougere, MSDS Studio, Nicole Marion, and Small Medium Large.

The furniture is made from Canadian wood. According to Fougere, it provides a "platform to express a distinctly Canadian point of view, grounded in local making, material knowledge, and restraint". It reflected a sentiment expressed to Dezeen several times over the week – Canadians are seeking to design and consume locally, given the US's ongoing tariff threats on Canadian imports, including wood and furniture.

Coolican & Company 

Local manufacturer Coolican & Company showcased several of its wood-based furniture with new products, including the Asquith table series as well as an iteration of its Calla woven benches upholstered with fabric upcycled from the Paris fashion industry.

The company, which prioritises sustainable wood manufacturing, won a sustainability award for its IDS Toronto booth.

IDS Toronto ran from 22-25 January 2026; DesignTO is on show from 23 January to 1 February in locations across the city. For more installations, talks and fairs in architecture and design visit Dezeen Events Guide.  

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New York designer Joe Doucet used materials that will improve with age when creating a table and bench for Bulgarian brand Oublier, which he says will never need to be thrown away.

With the Columns collection, Doucet aims to challenge contemporary definitions of sustainable design by proposing that durability is more important than what a product is made from or whether it can be recycled.

"Sustainability is often discussed in terms of new materials, but the most sustainable chair is not one made from mushrooms or cork, it is a Louis XIV chair that has been cared for over generations," he said.

"That idea is rarely explored, and this project was an opportunity to address it directly," added Doucet, whose practice typically explores the intersection of design, innovation and sustainability.

The cylindrical Column I table combines a solid oak base with a glass top. A shallow bowl for storing everyday objects is carved into the surface, adding an extra layer of functionality that Doucet said helps to "subtly distinguish the piece without ornament".

The Column II bench features two sturdy oak legs that support a seat upholstered in natural leather. The seat uses horsehair padding because, unlike the manmade foams found in similar products, it will not break down or permanently compress.

"Horsehair has been used for centuries because it lasts," said Doucet. "It maintains resilience, breathes naturally and aligns with the broader goal of creating objects that do not require replacement."

All of the materials were chosen for their "longevity, repairability and ability to gain character over time", the designer added.

The Columns collection is the first to be released as part of an ongoing collaboration bringing together Doucet's innovation-led approach to sustainability, which has seen the designer create modular wind turbines and colour-changing paint, with Oublier's focus on permanence and craft.

"It is an old-world approach to making that I had not directly engaged with before, and that felt meaningful," Doucet told Dezeen.

The simple forms of the Columns collection reflect his desire to create timeless pieces that look good in any context and can be passed down over many generations.

"The forms are rooted in solidity rather than style," he said. "I wanted to avoid referencing a specific design era."

"The goal was to create objects that feel universal and difficult to place in time, reinforcing the idea that they are meant to endure rather than belong to a moment."

The pieces are produced in small batches by skilled craftspeople using processes that prioritise endurance and repairability over efficiency, the designer claimed.

As a result, the pieces retail for slightly higher prices, which are available on request. But Doucet argues this is justified because they reflect the "reality of months of handcraft and an object designed to last a thousand years", which he says will never need to be thrown away.

"While the initial cost is high, over time these become some of the least expensive objects one can own, much like a well-made pair of shoes that lasts a lifetime compared to cheaper ones that must be replaced repeatedly."

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Dezeen Showroom: a task chair upholstered with vintage pieces of Norwegian handwoven tapestry is among seven new products featured on Dezeen Showroom.

HÅG X Recouture Capisco task chair by Flokk

Flokk has released a version of the iconic Capisco task chair that features genuine vintage åkle textile that upholsters its cruciform backrest.

The HÅG X Recouture Capisco task chair's patterned sections vary in structure, pattern, colour and age, making each seat unique.

The chair was recently featured on Dezeen Showroom alongside a collection of fabrics that take cues from King Charles III's private gardens and a modular, multipurpose sofa system.

Read on to see more of the latest products:

Tamar Grande Chandelier by Sophia Han for Shakuff Bespoke Lighting

US brand Shakúff has released a statement pendant light created by designer Sophia Han that features a ridged, rippling glass surface texture.

The Tamar Grande Chandelier comes in clear or amber glass finishes and a choice of seven- or five-foot-long dimensions.

Find out more about Tamar Grande Chandelier ›

Defined Momentum fabrics and wallpapers by Harlequin

British brand Harlequin's Defined Momentum range comprises wallpaper and fabric that share dynamic, modern patterns that draw on nature.

Among the finishes are striped Sedimentary, linear Monolith and pool-like Molten.

Find out more about Defined Momentum ›

Neuland carpet tile collection by Ippolito Fleitz Group for Object Carpet

Sustainability was the core consideration that flooring brand Object Carpet made when creating this range of carpet tiles with Stuttgart-based design studio Ippolito Fleitz Group.

The Neuland carpet tile collection comes in four patterns and 31 colours, all of which are made using a dual-layer construction that enhances recyclability.

Find out more about Neuland ›

Highgrove collection by Sanderson

The trees and flowers growing in King Charles III's famous private gardens are celebrated in this collection of fabrics and wallpapers by British design brand and Royal Warrant holder Sanderson.

The Highgrove collection comprises contemporarily designed prints as well as fabrics from the brand's own 165-year-old archive, including damasks, toiles, tapestries and florals.

Find out more about Highgrove ›

Groundpiece sofa by Antonio Citterio for Flexform

Italian architect and designer Antonio Citterio collaborated with furniture brand Flexform on a modular sofa system that combines the functions of lounging, dining and working.

The sprawling Groundpiece sofa has capacious duck feather pillows bolstered by multi-functional end consoles.

Find out more about Groundpiece ›

Metropolitan collection by Clarke & Clarke

British brand Clarke & Clarke has developed a range of wallpapers and fabrics that encapsulate the buzzy atmosphere of city living.

The Metropolitan collection features prints that draw on the work of 20th-century artists, including those names Gormley, Hatoum and Kazimir.

Find out more about Metropolitan ›

Outline chair by Formiing

Hong Kong-based design brand Formiing has created a dining chair with a distinctive stainless steel tube frame that sees the front legs, back legs, armrests and back flow into each other seamlessly.

The Outline chair has a capacious seat to facilitate long periods of sitting, with cushions available in various cotton and wool upholstery fabrics by Danish brand Kvadrat.

Find out more about Outline ›

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Promotion: New York's International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) is partnering with Dezeen for the 10th edition of its Look Book design exhibition, which spotlights North American design.

ICFF is North America's premier event for contemporary design, offering international brands a gateway to the US market. The event takes place 17-19 May 2026 at the Javits Center in New York City.

The exhibition will present the work of more than 70 designers, and aims to connect members of the art and design community with high-end North American designers, makers and entrepreneurs.

The organisers view the event as an opportunity for curators, interior designers, buyers and architects to source original designs for a range of residential, hospitality and commercial projects.

"Each year at ICFF, thousands gather to visit the fair's exhibitions and programmes to see what's new, fresh and upcoming in design and Look Book is a not-to-be-missed destination at the show," said ICFF brand directors Odile Hainaut and Claire Pijoulat.

"ICFF is the global entry point for US and international brands looking to make product introductions and connections," they added.

"It's where design culture and commerce meet – and where business thrives."

Central to ICFF is WANTED, covering 20,000 square feet of the show floor.

The umbrella event includes Look Book, Launch Pad, the Design Schools Workshop, and a dedicated schools showcase, which aim to support young design talent.

ICFF explained that Look Book offers an opportunity to discover the diversity of North American design and craftsmanship.

The exhibition presents furniture, lighting, textiles and collectable objects, which highlight the scope of contemporary creativity and craft across North America.

This year's contributors include design studios 9 & 19, Brett Paulin Design, Coil + Drift and Charles Grantham. Also included are Concrete Poetics, Fernweh Woodworking and J. Rusten Studio.

Kate Dannessa, Kidwell Fabrications, Andi Li, Epoche Studio, William Storms and Studio J-E-D will also display collections, alongside works by Ian Love Design, Castilleja, Mokko Seishin, and Withers Studio.

To learn more about the exhibition, visit its website.

Dezeen is a media partner of ICFF.

The photography is courtesy of ICFF.

ICFF 2026 takes place from 17 to 19 May 2026 at Javits Center, 429 11th Avenue, New York City, New York 10001, USA. See Dezeen Events Guide for more architecture and design events around the world.

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Jackson 5 member Jackie Jackson, who recently launched furniture brand Hayvenhurst with his wife Emily Jackson and Dutch designer Robert Milder, explains why he made the move from singing to sofas in this exclusive interview.

Jackie Jackson achieved global fame as the oldest member of the Jackson 5, one of the most successful recording groups of all time while more than 150 million records sold. But, he claims, he has long wanted to create furniture.

"This is something I've always wanted to do – be in the furniture business," he told Dezeen from his home in Las Vegas.

"I didn't know I was going to get there, but I've always wanted to be in this business."

He explained that founding Hayvenhurst was the culmination of an idea that gestated in his early days touring the world during the 1970s and 80s with the Jackson 5 alongside his brothers Tito, Jermaine, Marlon and Michael.

"When my brothers and I would travel around the world doing concerts, we stayed in some of the best hotels you can ever imagine, and I used to look at the lobby in these hotels and see the furniture," he said.

"I would go out and buy all these magazines, I would travel with my brothers and look at luxury furniture and homes on the plane travelling to the next gig," he continued.

"I would just look at the fashion, furniture and design, I didn't know how I was going to do it, but I would just look at them all the time – you know, it was the dream."

Named after the Jackson family home in Encino, California, the Hayvenhurst furniture brand was launched last year with a strong focus on sustainability.

It is led by Jackie Jackson alongside his wife Emily Jackson and Dutch designer Milder.

"Hayvenhurst is the street we lived in Los Angeles and I thought it'd be a great name for a company for sustainable furniture," said Jackie Jackson.

"Hayvenhurst sounded epic to me, so we decided to take that name and use it for our company."

"Jackie always wanted to do his own furniture line"

The impetus for creating the brand came when Jackie and Emily Jackson couldn't find suitable sustainable furniture options when they were updating their own home.

"Jackie always wanted to do his own furniture line," explained Emily Jackson. "Then when we were remodelling our home in Las Vegas there were very few choices, if any, for sustainable solutions for your home."

"So we noticed there was a gap in the market for sustainable, luxury furniture."

Emily Jackson contacted Milder, who previously founded sustainable furniture brand Van de Sant, to develop the idea as she was aware that he was creating furniture with frames made from recycled plastic.

"I happened to hear about a Dutch company that was sustainable and took rebound ocean plastics to use in their frames," said Emily Jackson.

"And so I contacted him, and we put two and two together. Jackie has a passion and a lot of design ideas so let's be future forward and do something the right way for our children and the next generation."

Havenhurst's founders even believe that making sustainable furniture contributes to the legacy and values of the wider Jackson family.

"It fits beautifully with the what the Jackson family has always stood for: peace, unity and a more positive future," said Emily Jackson.

"You know, Michael had his songs about the Earth, about healing the world – and fans can really appreciate that too. When you do something, do it right and see the longer-term benefit in healing in the world."

Sofas made from recycled plastic, sheep wool, horse hair and natural latex

Hayvenhurst designs sofas and armchairs, which are all made predominantly from "recovered" materials, with frames made from recycled plastic.

Unlike most sofas, the brand's products do not use plastic foam, instead using a combination of sheep wool, horse hair, natural latex rubber and bio-based synthetics covered in natural materials, including linen and hemp.

"We use recycled plastic from the land and ocean, collaborating with recycling companies, and we press it in sheets to make the frame, so the frames are completely made from recycled content," explained Milder.

"Then depending on the designs, we use layers of sheep wool, coconut hair and horse hair, plus a layer from natural latex rubber – so it is foam, but natural," he continued. "Also in some pieces there's a layer of recycled jeans."

Hayvenhurst calculated that its No.1 Loveseat armchair utilised 25 kilograms of recycled plastic. By utilising recycled materials and renewable energy, the brand estimates that manufacturing the chair uses around 50 kilograms less CO2 than a standard armchair.

The brand also claims that selecting less water-intensive materials has reduced the amount of water consumed by the supply and manufacturing process.

It estimates that producing the No.1 Loveseat armchair consumes around 1,600 gallons of water, which is around 2,000 gallons less than the industry average.

"We can deconstruct completely, so it's completely circular"

According to Hayvenhurst, all of the materials are sourced transparently, with origin, processing, and environmental impact tracked from source to final production.

The sofas are designed to be disassembled and the brand will buy back the products at the end of their life, with the aim of returning the materials into its manufacturing cycle.

"I tell people after the end of lifecycle, we take it back, we buy it back from the from the customer, and use every part again in our manufacturing process," explained Milder.

"We can deconstruct completely, so it's completely circular. We already think that on the designs when we make it, that we always make sure that the infrastructure can be used."

Although the core emphasis for the founders is sustainability, they believe that a strong design focus will allow them to sell their furniture to customers who may not necessarily care about sustainability.

"Hayvenhurst has to become a brand that is known for being sustainable, but design is the most important, because we realise that sustainability is a thing that floats away," said Milder.

"Just before Covid, everyone was talking about sustainability, but now it is floating away," he continued. "So Emily, Jackie and I are really thinking about what market we can go for and that's design, and if it's sustainable then this is a plus, because everything adds up."

Along with aesthetics, the founders are aiming to create sofas that are extremely comfortable, as they believe that too many sofas are not designed to actually be sat on.

"It's about style and comfort," said Jackie Jackson. "Comfort is really important, you can sit on a couch and it doesn't feel right – well, that's a different story."

"People are always surprised when we when we show them the cut through of the sofas that there is Dutch wool inside and recycled jeans – all components that are atypical," said Emily Jackson.

"Most of the time, it's all man-made materials, but in our case, what makes it so extra comfortable is the natural materials."

Jackie Jackson believes that there are similarities between making music and designing furniture, and hopes his latest venture will add to his impressive musical legacy.

"It's true, this is creating in the same way," he said. "This is the future, sustainable furniture for our kids and family."

"That's where I think it's heading right now and we are able to jump on it right at the early stage, but this is where it's going."

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Objects and installations that demonstrate the scope and diversity of west African design are on display as part of an exhibition curated by Nicolas Bellavance-Lecompte for the Palais de Lomé arts centre in Lomé, Togo.

Design in West Africa: Unity in Multiplicity features a lineup of 22 artists and designers, whose work spans different styles and mediums from sculptural furniture to textiles, ceramics and conceptual installations.

Curator Bellavance-Lecompte, known for founding collectible design fair Nomad, and Palais de Lomé director Sonia Lawson set out to establish a new initiative that celebrates the region's creative diversity while also highlighting shared traditions and values.

"The exhibition affirms the role of design as a language of resistance, memory and vision, revealing the enduring ability of artists from the continent to build bridges between ancestral heritage and contemporary forms," the duo said.

The designers and artists showcased come from Mali, Togo, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Nigeria and the Ivory Coast, with notable names including Ivorian architect and former Dezeen Awards judge Issa Diabaté, as well as Rym Beydoun, founder of textile brand Super Yaya.

The show's key themes include storytelling through craftsmanship and the harmonious coexistence of different perspectives and cultures, as well as exploring ideas around Africa's future.

Several of the works were informed by geographically specific cultural references, among them a series of low seats by Togolese artist Kossi Assou that evoke the Sahel region's tradition of communal dining.

The exhibition also highlights aspects of shared history, including links to slavery. A large table by Togolese artist Steven Kwami Dodji Agbétoglo features eight unique legs, each representing a different community of former slaves united through shared experiences.

A variety of traditional and contemporary cultural influences are represented by the works on show.

Clay sculptures by Ghanaian artist Kobina Adusah, for example, draw inspiration from Akan mythology, while designer Hamed Ouattara's upcycled pieces reflect the evolving sociopolitical climate in Burkina Faso.

Nifemi Marcus-Bello, whose previous work includes a bamboo pavilion for a Lagos skateboarding company, is showing his cast-aluminium furniture, which pays homage to the vernacular fabrication of second-hand car parts in Lagos.

Through the broad scope of pieces on display, the exhibition team hopes to celebrate "the diversity of materials and creative processes, as well as the richness of cultural references, countries of origin and backgrounds of the artists and designers".

Other designers represented in the exhibition include Senegalese woodworker Balla Niang,  Mali's Aboubakar Fofana and Cheick Diallo; Togo's Amivi Homawoo, Afi Elikplim Akogonya, Estelle Yomeda, Tete Azonkpo, Affiavi and Gona; and Ghana's Michael Tetteh, Paa Joe and Serge Clottey.

Some of the artists featured in the exhibition also contributed to a showcase of chairs from across Africa that was presented as part of the inaugural Design Week South Africa in 2024.

Design in West Africa runs until 15 March 2026 at the Palais de Lomé. The art centre opened in 2020 with a retrospective exhibition of work by industrial designer Kossi Aguessy, who is also represented in the current exhibition.

The building, located in the Togolese capital Lomé, was constructed at the start of the 20th century by colonial German settlers and was comprehensively renovated in 2019 to create an institution dedicated to contemporary art, heritage and biodiversity.

The photography is by Matthieu Salvaing.

Design in West Africa takes place until 15 March at Palais de Lomé in Lomé, Togo. See Dezeen Events Guide for information about the event, plus other architecture and design events taking place around the world.

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