Practice: Materials

These architects helped to elevate a traditionally humble building typology.

He wanted to be a painter, but fortunately for Danish Modern aficionados, his father talked him into architecture instead. Like other architects of his time, he ended up creating bespoke fixtures and furnishings for his projects, many of which are still coveted and some that are frequently knocked off. On this day in 1902, Arne…

Back in the day, residential designers on a budget used to loathe having to specify laminate as oppo sed to real stone or solid surfacing on a kitchen countertop. But today, there’s a bumper crop of more realistic-looking options available, such as the designs of the new Maison family of products from Arborite. The leading Canadian…

One might wonder what motorcycles have in common with pendant lighting and conclude “very little.” B ut in the case of Danish designer Tom Rossau, the connection is, in a strange way, cause and effect. An avid motorcyclist, Rossau opened a biker apparel shop in the 1990s and created his own light fixtures for that space.…

“To be honest, I fell in love with architecture through music,” said celebrated architect Daniel Lib eskind at Moroso in New York City on Friday evening. “I was a virtuoso on a very bizarre instrument: the accordion.” At this official launch event for his Gemma chair, which was previewed by Moroso last spring, Libeskind was interviewed…

Everyone appreciates the warmth and natural beauty that wood finishes add to architecture and interi ors, but very few think about the wood that works behind the scenes in built environments. That’s where the Wood Design Award comes in: this annual program recognizes innovative use of the material as both a finish and structural material in…

There’s a revolution underway to quiet spaces, and not only in open-plan office settings. School bui ldings, healthcare facilities, retail spaces and hospitality venues, among others, can also experience their fair shares of noise pollution. Time was, architects and interior designers combated such issues by deftly and discreetly folding acoustical and sound-dampening elements and materials into…

Since it opened inside Chicago’s Merchandise Mart in 2003, LuxeHome has been a tremendous resource t o retail consumers and the trade alike, and quite literally so. Located on the ground floor of the Merchandise Mart, LuxeHome currently features 37 residential building and renovation brands stretching 125,000 square feet, making it the world’s largest collection of…

There’s no dispute (at least, not by us) that the Netherlands is full of great design across the spe ctrum, from houses and infrastructure to utilitarian utensils and objects. So it comes as no surprise that something like a pedestrian tunnel in Amsterdam would read almost like a public artwork to those fortunate enough to pass…