Design Debate

I kind of love this idea. A collection of the world’s weirdest buildings has been published by Hoxton Mini Press . It’s the antidote to the rather soulless boxes that keep popping up. I seem to drive past a new estate every day and can’t help feeling the lack of individuality. Sometimes you just want to see something that makes you stop and go ‘wow’! Okay, so in a best-case scenario, you get architecture that challenges your perception of what is possible: something that elevates a space, answers problems and poses questions. But sometimes I would settle for the quirk factor, something that makes me take a second look. This little book has some impressive buildings that twist and turn and assert their presence on the ground where they sit, but I think I love most the ones that make me crack a smile. The Portuguese house squished almost painfully between two rocks, the teapot gas station and the wo...

What a great name, I think they thought so too as the cover kind of shouts it! Authors Alberto Vieceli and Sebastian Cremers set out to collect images of bookends for an amazing catalogue of the hard working ornaments that prop up our favourite titles.   Presenting them all in black and white does give them an equalising quality. I like how the examples are arranged by type, you can really see how varied the art of propping is, and how book owners love to display their personalities proudly on their shelves. I am particularly partial to the Star Wars ones, or the parts of the body. Very intriguing!  Compiled between 2019 and 2022 (interesting years to be sure), the authors managed to photograph more than 2,000 bookends. Published by Everyedition, The End of Books is for the completist, and of course the book lover, if you have space in your bookcase that is.   

We are big fans of Joni Mitchell in our household. For me she soundtracked lazy summer days, family car journeys and cooking with friends. Not only an amazing singer-songwriter Joni is also an accomplished artist. Back when her famous Blue album was topping the charts across the world in 1971, Joni created some books for friends. These amazingly personal gifts were called Morning Glory on the Vine and contained her hand-written lyrics, poems and watercolour paintings. Each hand-crafted, signed and numbered, these original copies are rare but it was recently announced that these books are going to be printed again. In addition to what went before there will be a preface by the signer herself. Not being released until October 22nd 2019, you can pre-order your copy in advance. I can’t wait to see it! Story originally found at The Guardian .

        The work of Daily Overview and Benjamin Grant is well known across the internet, his Instagram has half a million followers. There is now a book entitled 'Overview' and springs from the idea that seeing the world from above helps to give us a unique and perhaps necessary perspective of us and our landscape. Astronauts get to see the Earth in its amazing beauty, perceive the patterns of nature - and the devastating marks we have left on the natural environment. Now we get to gaze in awe too.  For me it is the pattern that I am drawn to. Some locations are easy to fathom, while others confuse. The photographs could be an artist's palette, a child's play-mat or maybe something quite extraterrestrial.  Overwhelming in their scale, I think we are able to appreciate these landscapes due to Grant's clever cropping and framing of the images. Allowing us to stand back and perceive our world from a completel...

What a perfect hide-away space! The 'Hemmelig Room' ('secret room' in Norwegian), was a commission for a guest room and library in upstate New York. The designers were Studio Padron and they created this cosy dark box which houses a bed, a desk and a chair. The walls are horizontal beams of oak from the surounding forest cleverly stacked allowing for plenty of book nooks. Wherever you are in this cabin you are in easy reach of a good read! I really like the rich dark shape beautifully framed by the fallen snow. The trees behind like endpapers in a story book.  Originally found at Freshome .