Icon: Hagerty House by Walter Gropius

When the Hagerty House was built in 1938 along the rocky coastline of Cohasset, Massachusetts, the stodgy Yankee neighbors were appalled. The minimalist International Style structure may have sat in sharp contrast to the area’s traditional shingle, Federalist, and Greek Revival architecture, but it helped blaze a trail for the modern century to come. The story of the home begins in 1937, when Walter Gropius, the pioneering founder of Germany’s Bauhaus and a recent émigré to the United States, accepted a teaching position at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. After coming under increasing attack from the Nazi regime for his non-conformist, left-leaning ideas and spending almost three years in England with the modernist Isokon group, Gropius, with his wife, Ise, relocated to Cambridge, Massachusetts. At Harvard, Gropius would exert a profound influence over the minds of a generation of architects whose work would shape America’s built environment for decades to come.

Hagerty House, by Walter Gropius, via: dwell

Dear Ingo Chandelier from moooi

Dear Ingo, by Ron Gilad, for moooi

Exhibtion: Motoi Yamamoto Labyrinth at Reliefs

Labyrinth, by Motoi Yamamoto, Salt, 3.2 x 11m, Exhibition: Reliefs, 12 January – 26 February, at Fondation Espace Ecureuil , France

Slow Sofa by Frederik Roijé

Slow as a durable starting principle in the design in order to continuously produce new creations. Made in Holland, the sofa family is composed of nine elements that can be freely combined.

Slow Sofa, by Frederik Roijé

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Hand-crafted sofas, leather sofas and fabric sofas by Darlings Of Cheslea

Villa Amanzi by Original Vision

The defining elements are the rock and the view. They dominate at every juncture. They resonate on first approach, through the migration from public to private space, in the living and in the family areas, in the gardens, in the bedrooms; and they continue to command respect down the tropical jungle steps that arrive at a secluded rock platform, flanked by the same seam that welcomed you 60m above. Constant reference to these elements instills a feeling of solidity that contrasts with the openness of the house, reinforcing the dynamism and vibrancy that pays homage to the magic of the location.

The home grows out from the rock; the bedroom element rests between it and the wing that strikes the perpendicular, rising vertically from the slope. This composition defines the open living and dining space that is simply a transition between two garden areas. It is intimate but open and the uninterrupted clear span creates a bridge under which the conventions defining indoor space disappear.

Villa Amanzi, Phuket, Thailand, by Original Vision, via: archdaily

Icon: 699 Superleggera Chair by Gio Ponti

Cassina presents two new re-editions of the iconic 699 Superleggera chair designed by Gio Ponti for the Cassina I Contemporanei Collection. Alongside the current natural ash-wood, black lacquered and white lacquered chairs with an Indian cane seat, new variants taken from Cassina’s late 1950’s production are available with colourful padded seats in removable leather or fabric. This version, with 450 possible combinations, has a natural ash-wood frame that can be open pore varnished in black or white, elegantly revealing the true essence of the wooden structure. The second re-edition, inspired by a model designed by Ponti in the 1950’s for exhibitions but which was never serially produced, has a stunning bicolour black and white lacquered frame and padded white or graphite leather seat. “In the darkness” said Ponti “it will be even lighter because it will be supported by just two legs”.

Gio Ponti regarded the Superleggera chair as one of his three masterpieces (together with the Pirelli Tower in Milan and the Concattedrale of Taranto). It represents a symbol of perfection and balance between solidity and lightness, with a triangular section of just 18 millimetres and a minimum weight of 1,700 grams. It is the fruit of Gio Ponti’s research and the experimental and creative ability and expertise of Cassina and its craftsmen, who have produced this chair non-stop since 1957.

699 Superleggera Chair, by Gio Ponti, for Cassina

Gio Ponti (1891–1979) was one of Italy’s most influential designers whose work includes automobiles, furniture, interiors, and buildings. Working in a multitude of materials, he is a pivotal figure in the history of twentieth-century architecture and design, and his work continues to inspire young designers who are increasingly rediscovering it today. This expansive and exhaustively researched monograph chronicles the complete spectrum of Gio Ponti’s output, from early ceramic work as design director for Richard Ginori to his last and most famous architectural works, Milan’s Pirelli Tower and the Museum of Modern Art in Denver. Also featured are Ponti’s automobile designs for Alfa Romeo, interiors for Italian luxury liners, bathroom fixtures for American Standard, the famous Superleggera chair for Cassina, and the Alitalia offices in New York.

Gio Ponti, Edited by Ugo La Pietra, Hardcover, 8-7/8 x 11, ISBN: 9780847832705
Buy it Here: Amazon

Icon: Essence Glasses by Alfredo Häberli for Iittala

Possibly the most beautiful glassware ever designed–Alfredo Häberli has created supremely elegant modern glassware for Iittala. He suggested a new series of glasses and a carafe with one essential idea: have as few glasses as possible, while still being able to serve a full range of fine wines and other drinks.

Häberli says that he always designs his objects for a specific person. When he designed the Iittala Essence glasses, he kept thinking about a friend who is a wine expert. “I went to dinner with him. I wondered how someone with the latest model mobile phone, an expensive watch, a modern car and clothing, could hold an ugly old wine glass. As I was designing the glasses I thought that this must be something that he will like.”

“My personal heritage was essential for this project. Knowing the gastronomic business well (restaurant & hotel in my family), my aim was to integrate this knowledge in a modern shape. Not losing the scientific functionality of a shape in relation to the liquid. The idea for the glass range was to create a balance between tradition and modernity, between celebration and daily use, a balance with one and different uses. In a way, I tried to find the essence in-between. The shape was a challenge for production. The most difficult detail was the stem going into the completely flat bottom plate. This detail with the trapeze shape of the bowl gives the unusual character of the glasses. The water glass is without a stem and can be used as a shot glass or table wine glass in a daily function.”
- Alfredo Häberli

Iittala Essence Glassware, by Alfredo Häberli

Photography: Abandoned Bunkers by Jonathan Andrew

Traveling throughout France, Belgium and the Netherlands, photographer Jonathan Andrew has documented abandoned bunkers from World War II as a personal project.

Abandoned Bunkers, by Jonathan Andrew

Manymals by Markus Diebel

Manymals are a unique family of jewelry comprised of creatures that hang by nature. This first line is called “Wild Ones” and represents wild animals from around the world. The packaging is molded out of recycled newspaper featuring a story about each manymal. 5% of sales go to WildAid, a organization in San Francisco fighting against illegal wildlife trade.

Manymals by Markus Diebel

Oru Armchair by Ramón Esteve for Joquer

Created by architect and designer Ramón Esteve, The Oru Armchair is a lounge chair with a design inspired by the shapes of origami. With its crisp, unmistakeable form–which boasts a multitude of contours–the chair is highly conducive to rest and relaxation. Available in a range of colours–notably a strong red and vibrant yellow.

Oru Armchair, by Ramón Esteve, for Joquer