The New Acropolis Museum Opens

Located only 300 meters Southeast of the Parthenon, with an exhibition space of 14,000 square meters and a cost of €130 million, the New Acropolis Museum houses some of the most famous works of classical antiquity. It aims at providing the visitors with a comprehensive picture of the human presence on the Acropolis, from the pre-historic times through late Antiquity, with the advantage of being built on the slope of the Acropolis itself.

The New Acropolis Museum, by architect Bernard Tschumi in collaboration with Michalis Photiadis & Associate Architects, Athens, Greece.
via: Yatzer

Monograph: Carlo Valsecchi Lumen

Industrial architecture, agro-industrial farmland, airports and urban landscapes are all subjects of the Italian photographer Carlo Valsecchi. He works with a extremely soft palette and nuanced chromatic scale, the images are painterly in its sensibility. By shooting long, slightly overexposed images Valsecchi manages to capture natural light bathing a subject not known for its intrinsic beauty. The compositions are considered and carefully composed, his goal is to make visible the dynamic process linking architecture, machinery and product.
Much of his work is clearly within the strong tradition of the industrial landscape developed by the German school, Bernd & Hilla Becher and Andreas Gursky, while others have noted similarities withe the Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky. The book follows an exhibition of his large-format photographs at Musée de l’Elysée in Lausanne, Switzerland.

Carlo Valsecchi: Lumen, Edited by Musée de l’Elysée, Lausanne, William A. Ewing, Nathalie Herschdorfer, Publisher: Hatje Cantz English, French, Pages 192, 134 color, hardcover, 29.7 x 27.6 cm, ISBN: 9783775724104
Buy it here: Amazon

Wajima by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec for Japan Brand

The Wajima collection is the fruit of a new collaboration between designers Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec and Japan Brand. A series of accessories for the home that incorporate traditional Japanese lacquer techniques and finishes.
“The Lamp is a luminous box that highlights the magnificence of lacquer while presenting large shiny surfaces reflecting light. Thanks to the red glow diffused by the light when switched on, a very subtle mood emanates from the lacquer and creates a smooth and captivating atmosphere.”
“The Desk Light is an assemblage of three elements that remind distinctly of very traditional lacquerware shapes. The final piece that derives from this simple combination suggests the infinite possibilities offered by the material and its classical elements. It shows that familiar forms can give birth to different and mysterious contemporary objects. The use of LEDs in both lights enhances the impact of the marriage between ancient and recent techniques.”

Wajima Collection, by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec, for Japan Brand
via MoCo Loco

SP Chair by Itoki Design

Winner of NeoCon’s Innovation Award, the SP Chair has a unique passive Seat Slide mechanism allows the seat to sink backwards, automatically triggering the Active Lumbar Support, which moves forward, creating a feeling of comfort in the lower back and hips. These seamless mechanisms allow SP to be in tune with the individual, regardless of weight and height, and eliminate the need for manual adjustment. Vertical ribs dissipate heat from the user creating airflow for ideal thermal comfort.

SP Chair, by Itoki Design

Saporiti Lounge Side Chair by Augusto Bozzi

A rare Augusto Bozzi lounge chair is for sale at City Furniture. It has been recovered in quality 1950’s upholstery. The labels are visible on the black iron frame.

Saporiti Lounge Side Chair, 1958, by Augusto Bozzi, € 3000, at City Furniture

Ciclope Architectural Lighting from Artemide

Artemide has introduced a series of outdoor luminaires using low energy LEDs. Ciclope is made from die-cast and extruded aluminium.

Ciclope, by Alessandro Pedretti, Studio Rota & Partners, for Artemide

Dancing Living House by A.L.X.

Designed as a single-family residence combined with a dance studio, this three-story reinforced concrete building is private and open to the sky, and best of all it has plenty of parking, which comes at a premium in Japan.

Dancing Living House, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan, by Junichi Sampei, for A.L.X. (Architect Label Xain)
via: What we do is Secret

Books: Never Use White Type on a Black Background

In design school you will encounter people who revel in ridiculous design rules, like the graphic design professor I had, who I still quote today: “When in doubt, use a drop shadow.” Anneloes van Gaalen has gathered some of the better known rules as they relate to the design discipline, including fashion, typography, art and advertising. The illustrated book is peppered with quotes from the famous and not-so-famous; like a condensed version of Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, but for design professionals.

Design has many rules that claim to be big truths and full of wisdom. Designers all go by rules that work for them. However, their rules may not work for someone else, or for a particular piece of design work. As Tibor Kalman once said, “Rules are good. Break them.”

Here are some quotes from the book, by some of our favorite people:

“The client may be king, but he’s not the art director.”
- Von R. Glitschka

Anyone can make the simple complicated. Creativity is making the complicated simple.”
- Charles Mingus

“Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months.”
- Oscar Wilde

“Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better.”
- Samuel Beckett

Never Use White Type on a Black Background: And 50 Other Ridiculous Design Rules, Edited by Anneloes van Gaalen, BIS Publishers, Hardcover, Dimensions: 12 x 17 cm, Pages: 160 ISBN: 9789063692070

Buy it here: Amazon

Beresford Hotel by Thomas Jacobsen

By mixing Danish furniture classics with their own designs, Thomas Jacobsen has re-created a utilitarian space with a touch of luxury. The details are considered, from the tables and chairs, right down to the ashtrays and cutting boards for the large outdoor bar.

Beresford Hotel, Sydney, Australia, by Thomas Jacobsen

Riciclantica Kitchen by Valcucine

The environmental-friendly kitchen. The Riciclantica door is the utmost expression of a design based on dematerialisation and is made of an extremely resistant structural aluminium frame together with a sophisticated decor panel that is only 2mm thick. The use of special materials such as carbon, aluminium, steel or layered laminate, the very accurate planning of construction details – for example, the inside of the new frame appears aesthetically pure because of the total absence of screws and hole caps – and the absolute resistance of all door versions to water, steam and heat, contribute to making the Riciclantica door unique in the furniture sector.

Riciclantica Kitchen, by Valcucine