Design Anthology UK Issue 11 by designanthologyuk

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Outdoor

Børge Mogensen

1971

FOLDABLE FUNCTIONALITY

Originally designed for Børge Mogensen’s private balcony, the Outdoor Collection is a testament to the beauty of simple, functional design. The foldable designs in untreated, FSC™-certified teak bring lasting aesthetics to outdoor spaces trough their considered combination of careful craftsmanship and durable, high-quality materials.

FSCTM C135991

FROM THE EDITOR

was hoping for a peaceful 2022. But as we send issue 11 to print, there is a new land war being fought in Europe – an unfathomable idea a few months ago. And yet, here we are. So, like we’ve done time and again over the last two years, we will turn our attention to the things that shouldn’t ever be taken for granted. Our homes and time spent with loved ones are at the top of the list. The privilege of finding joy in the mundanities of the everyday is also up there. Fittingly for this era, on p24 we have compiled an array of eye candy for your wrists and fingers, to be worn with abandon at any time of day or night, for the task at hand. Why wait for the right occasion? Make the occasion, we say. Add some sparkle to your chores. Why not? The point is, amidst all the chaos, there is beauty to be had, and there are soulful and exciting things going on – all of which provide hope and fortitude during these endlessly trying times. On p108 we speak to Congolese-British artist Joy Yamusangie about their show Feeling Good, currently on at Now Gallery in Greenwich as part of its Young Artist Commission programme. The works in it portray a fictionalised jazz club, dealing with themes of community, family and personal experience that hit home for us all. We also give you a fresh take on what it means to travel in an ancient region of Saudi Arabia, a new frontier for intrepid travellers. Feast your eyes on it on p42. Until next time, enjoy. Elizabeth Choppin Editor-in-Chief

Overview by Elliott Barnes

Rug Design: Mulholland | Photography: Francis Amiand

Aerial perspectives of California landscapes in a spontaneous and graphic 1970’s style

MASTHEAD

April 2022

Publisher & Editor-in-Chief Elizabeth Choppin elizabeth@designanthologyuk.com Art Director Shazia Chaudhry shazia@designanthologyuk.com

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Media Sales, worldwide Rebecca Harkness rebecca@designanthologyuk.com

Sub Editor Emily Brooks Commercial Director Rebecca Harkness rebecca@designanthologyuk.com Editorial Concept Design Frankie Yuen, Blackhill Studio Words Jonathan Bell, Emily Brooks, Giovanna Dunmall, Philomena Epps, Amy Frearson, Kate Jacobs, Nicola Leigh Stewart, Karine Monié, Alice Morby, Emma O’Kelly Images BoysPlayNice, Jake Curtis, Ståle Eriksen, Kleinjan Groenewald, Victoria Ling, Ed Reeve, Timothy Soar, Astrid Templier Styling Sorrel Kinder

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CONTENTS

Front cover An apartment in Clapton, east London, reborn thanks to a collaboration between developer Mon Projects, architect Daytrip Studio, design store Béton Brut and gallery M.A.H. Image by Jake Curtis. See p52

Radar

Journey

Products Collections and collaborations of note

Read Delve into a selection of books on design, architecture and interiors

Hotel openings New design-centric destinations to explore, in Europe and beyond

Borough Yards A new mixed-use area amid the Victorian viaducts and warehouses

Hotel, Saudi Arabia Habitas, an art-filled oasis in the ancient desert region of AlUla

Jewellery Elevate at-home rituals to something extraordinary with this edit

Q&A Design Anthology UK speaks to Max Lamb about working in sacred spaces

Just the essentials Design Anthology UK wonders whether everyday tasks would be better with the addition of some sparkling adornments. See p24

Home 52

London Designers and curators collaborate to create a calm and comfortable interior

London A study in adding character and personality to newly built spaces

Prague An apartment with a contemporary response to its Old Town architecture

Suffolk Architect David Walker swaps designing large commercial buildings for renovating his own bungalow

CONTENTS

Art + Collecting

Style

Diary The most compelling art and design events for the coming months

122

108

Profile Joy Yamusangie imagines feelgood moments in a fictional jazz club

Architecture 114

London A House for Artists – affordable housing as you’ve never seen it before

Most wanted A compilation of clothes, tech and accessories that are beautiful, thoughtful and good

Pioneer 128

Richard Rogers The late architect couldn’t draw – but made up for it with profound empathy and an innovative spirit

State of the art Barking’s A House for Artists, designed by Apparata to be an affordable, sustainable model for housing. See p114

Signals light by Barber Osgerby. Read the full story on p18

R ADAR Global design news

R ADAR / Products

Ferm Living A hit of bold colour to herald sunnier days, Ferm Living’s Verso vase is available in a bright blue version: it’s a contemporary take on traditional Greek aesthetics, recalling its ancient amphora and brightly painted buildings. The Danish brand has also added a raised box planter in this distinctive hue to its portfolio, alongside garden necessities including oversized terracotta pots, a two-level coffee table and the relaxed steel-framed Desert sofa – all of which look equally good inside or out. fermliving.com

Calico Wallpaper Artists have been entranced by the ethereal nature of a cloudy sky for centuries, and Rachel Cope of Calico Wallpaper is the latest to turn her gaze upwards for inspiration. The original artwork for Colorwash, the Brooklyn brand’s latest collection, was created by layering chalk pastels on a textured

background, building up a haze of colour that’s like looking into a veil of mist and cloud. It creates a subtle backdrop for a room, with colours including stormy blues, soft pinks and knocked-back greys. calicowallpaper.com

R ADAR / Products

Örsjö Belysning It may look like cast plaster or carved stone, but Örsjö Belysnig’s Plissé White Edition lamp is actually made from a folded textile. It is the work of Anna Lovisa Holmquist and Chandra Ahlsell of Folkform, who were inspired by pleating techniques used in the fashion industry. Folkform originally launched the lamps at an exhibition in 2020, with fabrics by fashion designer and artist Roland Hjort, where they caused a storm. Örsjö releasing a version of it should see its star shine even brighter. orsjo.com

R ADAR / Products

Métaphores As part of Hermès’ stable of brands, fabric house Métaphores knows a bit about craftsmanship, but it has looked to disciplines other than textiles for its latest collection. Craft Galerie is inspired by handmaking techniques from metalwork to ceramics, emulating the textures that make them special: Suede is a tone-on-tone jacquard that’s as soft as napped leather, Raku channels the spontaneity of the Japanese pottery of the same name, while Melchior has a raised pattern like molten metal. metaphores.com

R ADAR / Products

Lelièvre Paris French fabric and wallpaper atelier Lelièvre Paris has for the first time moved into furniture, with Jeux de Salon. The daybed, armchair, ottoman and bench, released in collaboration with online retailer Made in Design, were created by fashion-turnedproduct-designer José Lévy, who describes them as “playful, graphic and colourful”. A colour-block approach to the upholstery spotlights the beauty of the tactile fabrics used, while cylindrical shapes perch elegantly as armrests or headrests. lelievreparis.com

Saba Italia Evocatively photographed at Turin’s newly restored Teatro Regio, Teatro Magico is a new release by Saba Italia. Milanese design and architecture firm 967Arch’s intention was to create a table whose base looks as fluid as a piece of draped fabric, a trick of the eye that is achieved in lacquered polyurethane

over a steel plate. The base comes in two sections, which can either be grouped together as a single pedestal or theatrically parted to create two legs, while the top is available in a round or oval shape. sabaitalia.it

R ADAR / Products

House of Hackney Giving traditional design an edgier new look is House of Hackney's bread and butter, and its latest wallpapers are no exception. The art-nouveauinspired Emania started life as a pattern in the archives of British silk-weaving mill Gainsborough: it's now been reinterpreted as an all-over design (opposite), a wide stripe (above) plus a bordered wallpaper. If you like the matchy-matchy look – and House of Hackney definitely does – pair it with fabric, cushions and lampshades in the same motif. houseofhackney.com

R ADAR / Products

Barber Osgerby Signals is Edward Barber and Jay Osgerby’s latest work for Galerie Kreo. The lighting collection consists of a series of aluminium boxes on to which are affixed conical glass shades. The forms have an air of utility about them – think wartime air-raid sirens – juxtaposed by riotous colour and the beautifully crafted shades, made in Venice’s Venini glassmaking factory. The pieces were unveiled in London in early 2022, but the show moves to Galerie Kreo’s Paris outpost from 26 April-14 July. barberosgerby.com // galeriekreo.com

R ADAR / Products

La Manufacture Aléa, a glass carafe, drinking glass and tumbler set, is a new creation by US designer and architect Marc Thorpe for La Manufacture. The moodily coloured pieces are made in the Nason Moretti factory, the century-old Murano glassworks that also counts Tiffany & Co, Valentino and Bottega Veneta as clients. Their vortex-like design gives them a natural dynamism: “aléa” is French for “random”, with the name aptly reflecting the natural imperfections that are part of the appeal of mouth-blown glass. lamanufacture-paris.fr

Massproductions Efficient production methods may not tell as alluring a design story as fevered artistic imagination, but the world needs more products that put ideas such as minimising waste at the top of the priority list. Sweden’s Massproductions’ latest offering is 4am, an economically designed chaise that was

devised to be comfortable despite being made from a hard material. Buy one, in Douglas fir or cherry, or build your own, aided by drawings downloadable from Massproductions’ website free of charge. massproductions.se

RADAR / Read

Country & Cozy: Countryside Homes and Rural Retreats

Yves Saint Laurent Museum Marrakech

Even if the post-pandemic mass exodus from our cities hasn’t materialised quite as predicted, the hardest urbanite still might yearn for a bit of fresh air and a simple country bolthole. Gestalten’s new book includes rural homes from upstate New York to a village outside Beijing: naturally, many homeowners are in the creative industries such as designer Nigel Coates’ Tuscan retreat or interior architect Ilkka Mälkiäinen’s Finnish farmhouse, while others are the clients of brilliant architects, as is the case with Will Gamble Architects’ Parchment Works, a contemporary extension to a partially ruined 17th-century factory. The underlying message is that the countryside is not just somewhere to get away from it all, but a place to better connect with what matters.

Not many contemporary buildings warrant their own monograph, but Studio KO’s Yves Saint Laurent Museum in Marrakech certainly feels deserving of the honour. The museum opened in 2017, with Studio KO working with Saint Laurent’s former partner Pierre Bergé to design a fitting tribute to the French couturier, with exhibition rooms, a library, bookshop and cafe. In diary format, the book takes readers behind the scenes of the making of the building – a heavenly hymn to local materials and craftsmanship, with decorative brickwork and a lush garden – illustrated with sketches, plans and photographs alongside images of Yves Saint Laurent’s couture creations. The start-to-finish creative process, and the story of a fascinating collaboration, are laid bare.

by Catherine Sabbah (Phaidon)

by Gestalten editors (Gestalten)

RADAR / Read

Design Emergency

Reinventing Cultural Architecture: A Radical Vision by OPEN

by Alice Rawsthorn and Paola Antonelli (Phaidon)

by Catherine Shaw (Rizzoli) This book started life as an Instagram account of the same name, set up in April 2020; its protagonists, MoMA curator Paolo Antonelli and design critic Alice Rawsthorn, wanted to explore the positive role that design could play in the pandemic. It broadened to embrace all the ways that design can build a better future, and now the book puts that into print. The essays and interviews here contain considerable cause for hope, even in unpromising circumstances, with interviewees including Ilse Crawford, who speaks about her work with Food for Soul, which fights food waste while encouraging social inclusion; Francesca Coloni, head of design for the UNHCR’s refugee camps; and Alex Ansen, campaigner for African land restoration project The Great Green Wall.

The noughties brought us museums, theatres and galleries designed by starchitects who were often working far from their home countries and cultural roots; Beijing-based OPEN is an example of how native architects subsequently regained that ground, putting local context to the fore. This book profiles six projects by the practice, including the utterly extraordinary Ucca Dune Art Museum on China’s coast, a series of cellular cave-like spaces shaped by hand in concrete by locals; and Shenzhen’s Pingshan Performing Arts Center, whose size and grandeur is softened by public green space. They pose questions about what we want from our cultural institutions today, shifting from distanced admiration of objects to places with a strong emphasis on social interaction.

RADAR / Architecture

Making new tracks

A retail and hospitality district has been cleverly carved from disused railway viaducts and warehouses in London’s Borough, connecting previously cut-off streets

Words Emily Brooks Images Ed Reeve

Facing page Clockwise from top: tunnels under the railway viaduct have been turned into walkways and retail space; the use of brick ties together old and new; art by FRA Creative draws on research into the characters that once frequented the locale

ondon’s Borough is testament to the power of A Good Wander: strolling through its famous market and threading through narrow streets before emerging on to the wide-skied South Bank is one of the capital’s most popular pastimes, judging by the weekend crowds. Now, the wandering options have expanded, thanks to developer Mark’s Borough Yards, designed by architects SPPARC. SPPARC has a specialism for what its founder Trevor Morriss refers to as “unlocking complex situations”, and this project fits the bill: when he took on the project, the majority of the site consisted of disused warehouses and railway viaducts radiating from London Bridge station. The practice has made it coherent thanks to several elements, including turning the arches into retail and hospitality space; opening up the area under the viaduct to create covered walk-throughs; a new corner-site retail store (now a Paul Smith) that’s a playful new take on the warehouse that stood here before it; and a smart Everyman cinema. A large neon artwork by FRA Creative spells out the characters that once frequented the area, “thief ”, “labourer”, “acrobat” and “scumbag” among them. The use of brick is “the DNA that stitches it all together”, says Morriss – echoing the Victorian surroundings but allowing you to pick out

the new buildings, which feature pierced brickwork and “pulled” bricks that light and shade can play across. “Modern architecture cohabits with Victorian architecture, and even beyond the Victorian: we’ve also used a detail from the top of Southwark cathedral to create a tapestry of brickwork on one building’s facade,” says Morriss. He also talks about the joys and challenges of working with railway arches: “They’re amazing structures, with their brickwork and generosity of height, but of course they weren’t designed to be modern retail spaces.” The illuminated internal walkways curve away in to the distance, inviting you to discover what’s at the end. “The viaduct was this wonderful Victorian structure that runs straight through the middle of the site, but it was really quite divisive, separating the market from everything to the west,” says Morriss. “We wanted to open up routes and use the viaduct as a conduit.” The arches were the fixed constraint that was the starting point for the scheme, but SPPARC has found the space alongside to revive some of the street pattern that was here before the railway, reintroducing street names that haven’t been in used for several centuries – so here’s to a weekend wander around the evocative Dirty Lane, Soap Yard and Clink Yard.

Just the essentials

Why save the best jewellery for leaving the house? Elevate at-home rituals to something more extraordinary with this selection of Design Anthology UK ʼs favourite pieces Images / Victoria Ling Styling / Sorrel Kinder

18ct gold Unchained Warrior Foursome cuff, Hannah Martin (hannahmartinlondon.com); gold Flow ring, Emefa Cole (emefacole. com); 18ct gold and citrine Gleam ring, Fernando Jorge (fernandojorge.com); 18ct gold Clam & Pearl ring, Cece Jewellery (cecejewellery.com); 18ct gold Oval Diamond Cigar Band, Jessie Thomas (jessiethomas.com). Camel silk shirt dress, Joseph at The Outnet (theoutnet.com)

Model’s left hand: black Tube bracelet, Emefa Cole (as before); Trace gold vermeil bracelet, Completedworks (completedworks. com); 18ct gold Black Diamond Castle ring, Theo Fennell (theofennell.com); gold ring, Alighieri (alighieri.co.uk); goldplated ring, Ruby Jack (rubyjack. com). Model’s right hand: Mamara bracelet, Ruby Jack (as before); 18ct rose gold Engraved Snake signet ring, Theo Fennell (as before); gold vermeil ring, Completedworks (as before). Bronze ruffled lamé mini dress, Dolce & Gabbana at The Outnet (as before)

Model’s left hand: silver Silk bangle, silver Rolò bracelet, silver and pearl Daisies Drop ring, all Giovanni Raspini (giovanniraspini. com); Silver folde ring, Liv Luttrell (livluttrell.com). Model’s right hand: Legend Diver watch, Longines (longines.co.uk); silver and motherof-pearl Cherry Blossom ring, Shaun Leane (shaunleane.com); white gold Monumental Arc ring, Hannah Martin (as before). Silkcrepon blouse, Maison Margiela at The Outnet (as before)

Model’s left hand: rope Sacred Knot bracelet, Pichulik at Akojo Market (akojomarket.com); Fancy Link bracelet, Celine at Omnē que (omneque.com); Gold ring, Alighieri (as before). Model’s right hand: 18ct gold Rose & Diamond ring, Cece Jewellery (as before); 9ct gold Lir ring, Angharad (angharadstudio. com); Oui ring, Dior at Omnē que (as before). Dress, Rag & Bone at The Outnet (as before)

18ct gold, diamond and light blue enamel Fruit Hoops bangle, Boochier (boochier.com; True Thinline Les Couleurs Le Corbusier Sunshine Yellow watch, Rado (rado.com); 9ct gold, crystal and enamel Baby Vine Tendril ring, Bea Bongiasca at Matches Fashion (matchesfashion.com); 18ct gold, diamond and orange enamel Fruit Hoops ring, Boochier (as before); 18ct gold, diamond and purple enamel Fruit Hoops ring, Boochier (as before); 9ct gold, peridot and enamel Baby Vine ring, Bea Bongiasca at Matches Fashion (as before); Melody organic cottonpoplin shirt, The Frankie Shop at Matches Fashion (as before)

RADAR / Q&A

Max Lamb

The designer has created a new altar for a modernist south London church; here he explains more about creating work for sacred spaces and the meaning behind the objects

As told to Elizabeth Choppin

How did you become involved in this project? I was invited to submit a proposal for the church by Aldo Rinaldi, the curator and producer who was working with Father Peter Packer, and the diocese. Peter has subsequently moved to Valetta in Malta, but was involved throughout. What did you create for them? A new altar, treatment of the large sanctuary floor area – the area in which the altar sits and the space immediately around it – along with a new pair of altar candles and a paschal candle, which is a very large candle used at Easter. It was felt that these elements needed to be of a higher design quality when the space was refurbished by Molyneux Architects, which is an upgrade to the original 1960s design by architect David Bush. Had you done anything similar before? This is the first series of works that I have created for a faith space. Was the process of designing for a sacred space different from any other brief ? Were you approaching it from a purely design point of view, or are you part of the congregation? I am not religious or part of the congregation, however I have always had an interest in churches in terms of architecture and their environment and atmosphere. I was really excited by the opportunity. How did that play into your thinking, or not? My creative process is always driven by the relationship between material and process,

guided by the functional requirements of the object I’m designing and making. I was interested in how the simplicity of concept, form and material could come to bear here, to honour the humble beauty of the existing modernist church. What materials did you use, and why? The altar and candles are made from Portland stone, a form of limestone from which large parts of London are built, and which is quarried from the Isle of Portland, on the south coast. My choice of the limestone referenced the existing font, which was salvaged from the original church that stood in its place – the buildings of St Jude and St Chrysostom were sadly bombed during the second world war and the current St John Chrysostom was erected in 1965 to David Bush’s design. One of the limestone columns was saved and turned into the font that is still used today. It was a natural choice to adopt the same Portland limestone from which to carve the new altar. How were the objects made? Were there challenges in working with the stone? I used the visual and physical properties of the stone, combined with diamond cutting techniques and hand-masonry, to design the method of construction. To reduce the weight and quantity of stone required, I made the early decision to create the monolithic form out of slabs and in doing so I was able to use the assembly of the intersecting slabs and the altar top to make a really efficient construction while naturally creating the five Maltese crosses. The Maltese cross is a symbol that

RADAR / Q&A

consists of four inverted “V” shaped arrows converging at a central vertex – but here, instead of the crosses being markings on the altar, they are formed from the stone sections and criss-crossing interplay of the elements on the corners and the central slab. Churches are one of the few public places in a city where people feel compelled to quieten down, sit still. Was that part of the allure? The church is a beautiful space; it is a refuge for the congregation, local people and its staff

– something that has become even more important during Covid. What do these pieces mean to people and why do they matter? It was clear from the start that this was more than a building, and that it was an important social space for the wider community to gather. Members of the congregation and church staff were really important to this project, supporting it throughout, in a process that took several years to realise.

Above Max Lamb’s new Portland stone altar, complementing the minimalist architecture of the 1960s church

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Habitas, AlUla. Read the full story on p42 Image by Kleinjan Groenewald

JOURNEY Distinctive destinations

JOURNEY / Openings

New hotels

Courtesy of Design Hotels™

Unique places to stay, in destinations of note

JOURNEY / Openings

Hotel Terrestre, Mexico The clean contemporary lines of Hotel Terrestre make a striking sight rising from the vibrant green Oaxacan jungle. Architect Alberto Kalach and his team at Taller de Arquitectura X (TAX) have constructed the 14 interconnected villas entirely of locally sourced materials, combining natural earth, wood and clay with concrete and brick to put a brutalist spin on Mexican craftsmanship. Paredback interiors by design studio RB + K eschew traditional glass windows in favour of wooden louvred doors to connect guests with the natural surroundings, and the earthy colour palette has been complemented by bespoke furniture by Mexican designer Oscar Hagerman. terrestrehotel.com

JOURNEY / Openings

The Shinmonzen, Japan A hotel ten years in the making, The Shinmonzen was designed by Tadao Ando, who wanted to create a space for the modern traveller that respected the history of Kyoto’s Gion neighbourhood. From the outside, the property is styled as a traditional machiya townhouse, and there are nine individually decorated suites that bring together contemporary East and West. A calming colour palette, natural

wood parquet and sleek monolithic marble sinks blend smoothly with Japanese tatami flooring, hinoki bathtubs and shoji sliding doors that open on to views of the Shirakawa river. The final touch is an impressive collection of modern art from friends such as Makoto Ofune and Damien Hirst. theshinmonzen.com

Ben Richards; Benoit Linero

JOURNEY / Openings

Hotel des Académie et des Arts, France Tucked away on Paris’ Left Bank in an old artistic belle époque quartier, Hotel des Académie et des Arts revives the creativity of the neighbourhood’s former artist studios. Architectural practice LizéeHugot has reimagined the interiors of the 18thcentury property, which now houses its own cafecum-atelier kitted out with easels and artists’ materials in case inspiration strikes. The 20 guest

rooms – one of which was once a studio used by Modigliani – reference the simplicity of Van Gogh’s The Bedroom with bespoke oak furniture and wooden-framed artwork contrasted against creamy walls, while ceilings frescoes inspired by the cubists and surrealists add the final touch of artistic flair. hoteldesacademies.fr

The Barö

JOURNEY / Openings

The Barö, Finland A respect for nature underpins the design of The Barö, a collection of ecologically built cabins located on the Barösund archipelago. Property developerturned-hotelier Jussi Paavoseppä used sustainable techniques when designing each of the structures, using the Japanese charring method of yakisugi to preserve the wooden exteriors and blend them in with the surrounding forest. Inside, the colour palette has been almost entirely reduced to a deep shade of charcoal, focusing attention on the scenery. Materials traditionally used in Finnish architecture such as stone, wood and copper nod to the country’s strong design heritage and complement the natural, tactile furnishings crafted by local designers. thebaro.fi

JOURNEY / Openings

room2 Chiswick, UK fishnets lead the way to guest rooms with bespoke marble print wallpaper (made by factories run on renewable energy), candy-striped headboards and recycled throws. Downstairs, the reclaimed elm bar adds another layer of texture to a mix of natural exposed concrete and handmade tiles. room2.com

room2 Chiswick; Amit Geron

Serious sustainability credentials lie behind room2 Chiswick, which claims to be the world’s first “whole life” net zero hotel, meaning it will leave no carbon footprint across its entire lifetime. Inspired by the area’s arts and crafts heritage, design studio House of Dré tapped a host of local artists to contribute to the bright and breezy interiors. Carpets made from fibres from discarded plastic

JOURNEY / Openings

Galei Kinneret Hotel, Israel When the Galei Kinneret Hotel originally opened its doors back in 1946 it stood out as one of Israel’s first luxury hotels, drawing everyone from heads of state to film stars to the waters of the Sea of Galilee. Now after years of sitting empty, Amsterdam-based studio Saar Zafrir Design has completely revitalised the 123-room property with calming interiors inspired by the hotel’s natural surroundings. Tactile

materials such as cool marble, soft linen and sculptural wood furnishings add interest to the muted colour palette, which in the restaurant is contrasted with bright green ceramic leaves that climb up the statement archways to point the way to the hotel’s private beach beyond. galei-kinneret.com

Risen from the rocks

Habitas, an oasis-like hotel in the desert region of AlUla, marks a new chapter for Saudi Arabia’s cradle of ancient civilization Words / Emma O’Kelly Images / Kleinjan Groenewald

JOURNEY / Saudi Arabia

n 13 February, I took the inaugural direct flight from Paris to AlUla in north-west Saudi (18 passengers, 15 crew, four hours 45 minutes). From there I was driven in a 4x4 to a tented outpost in a vast valley carved of soaring rocks whipped into impossible peaks and barren mesas by the wind. I took an outdoor shower under the stars and slept in a cabana that look liked it had been pegged to Mars. My intergalactic companions greeted me the next morning with namastes, wafts of incense and green tea. “Welcome to Habitas,” said Brenna, dressed in a colourful flowing abaya like a modern-day Princess Leia. “Please join us for a welcoming ceremony.” Habitas is the first of many hotels opening in AlUla, a cultural hotspot 620 miles from the Saudi capital Riyadh. Along with Caravan, a cluster of 22 Airstream trailers, it has brought a Burning Man-style festival spirit to this 14,000 sqm desert wilderness. Is teetotal Saudi ready for the type of traveller who likes to swap TVs for tepees, room service for making new friends around the Gathering Tent? Habitas founder Oliver Ripley thinks so. “Most of my guests are Saudi. Two-thirds of the population are under 35, and during the pandemic, young educated expats returned home and started exploring their own country.” When the rest of the world was in lockdown, Ripley rigged up the 92-cabana resort and set about cultivating the type of community that frequents his properties in Mexico, Namibia and Costa Rica. “Everything here is changing so fast; people are open and ready for new things,” says Ripley. In lieu of liquor, entertainment stretches to a spa, outdoor wellness rituals, trampolines and swings (installations left over from the art biennial Desert X, which used the same site in 2020) and a gender-neutral pool and gym (a concept unheard of in Saudi). By night, fashionistas in farwahs (the long furry coats worn by locals to keep out the cold), influencers from Riyadh and groups of girlfriends sip tea and stargaze, watching the majestic landscape shapeshift in the moonlight.

Above All the buildings are modular and made to be minimally invasive on the surrounding landscape Facing page The hotel’s interior mixes traditional crafts, such as the pierced-metal pendants, with modern minimalism Previous page Poolside at Habitas. Wellness options at the hotel include a spa, yoga studio and quiet lounge space

Appreciation of AlUla’s natural wonders is a new idea. Until 2014, Saudis had been led to

JOURNEY / Saudi Arabia

believe that visiting was the region was unlucky. It wasn’t the soaring canyons, rising bubbly and dough-like from the crust of the earth, or the Arabian wolves, foxes and gazelles that were stopping them. Nor was it logistics or climate; AlUla, 620 miles north of Riyadh, opened its international airport in 2011 and is blessed with cool nights and verdant oases. No, the problem was its abundance of petroglyphs, tombs and ruins – remnants of civilizations and that had left their mark long before the Prophet Mohammed – and the jinn, or evil spirits, that lived within them. Disturbing the tombs was considered bad karma. AlUla’s most precious site, Hegra, is being excavated and documented by archaeologists from all over the world. Home to nomadic

Nabataeans who left Petra in Jordan and moved here to continue working their trading routes, Hegra is an open air museum in the making. More than 100 tombs dating back to the fourth century BC have been discovered – a handful of which have been excavated so far – and Roman ruins and inscriptions in ten languages have also been found. Hegra is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and as its story unfolds as a historic cradle of civilization, visits are timed and numbers controlled. Guides speak sketchy English and offer scant information (speaking into Google Translate on a stranger’s phone is a popular modus operandi) and the absence of hawkers peddling plastic keyrings and offering camel rides, à la Petra, is a relief. Next year, The Aman

Above Namja, an artwork by Lita Albuquerque, sits on top of a boulder in a hidden valley Previous page Habitas’ cabanas all embrace the breathtaking rocky views, with private decks and outdoor showers

JOURNEY / Saudi Arabia

Hotel plans to open two tented camps nearby and in 2024 the Sharaan luxury resort, carved into the rocks by French architect Jean Nouvel opens. (How carving anything into the ancient sandstone can be seen as authentic is debatable, but the RCU – the Royal Commission for AlUla – gave it the green light.) In AlUla Old Town, a mud hut village built in the 12th century, carpets and woven baskets hang from the walls and windows of slicked up wattle and daub; women in burqas plait reeds into rugs and jewellers work with local stones. The rustic display is heavily orchestrated; participants had to be invited by the RCU for a spot in the Old Town, buskers are vetted and officials keep an eye on proceedings. But the regeneration of dying skills is to be celebrated;

until recently no one came to AlUla, and now Saudi tourists bring their children to see how their grandparents used to live. The new Madrasat Addeera Girls Art School, refurbished in 2020, trains unemployed local women to preserve these crafts, sharing ideas with international artists in residence at the new Sigg Art Foundation. French artist Kevin Bray, who spent four weeks living at Sigg, found some inspiration in AlUla’s ancient petroglyphs. “I came across incredible rock drawings when I was out hiking,” he says. “Where else in the world can you do that?” The RCU masterplan wants AlUla to host two million visitors a year by 2035. There is nothing like Habitas in AlUla. Not yet. And there’s nowhere like AlUla. The time to go is now.

Above Cabanas have close views of the sandstone canyons

An apartment in London. Read the full story on 64 Image by Astrid Templier

HOME Timeless spaces

Careful consideration A thoughtful collaboration between designers and curators brings comfort and calm to this London home Words / Kate Jacobs Images / Jake Curtis

HOME / London

“W

hen we’re designing a house, we always envision the end user and how they’ll interact with the space. We want our homes to feel welcoming, calm and full of possibilities,” says Iwan Halstead, co-founder with Emily Potter of Daytrip Studio. Their architectural design practice may have the most pleasingly carefree of names, but they pull no punches when it comes to ambitious intent. Daytrip’s body of work spans wellness environments, workspaces and retail, for clients including Turner Contemporary and Liberty of London, as well as a new focus on residential. “Houses weren’t part our plan, but when clients asked us to look at their own homes, it took us on a journey, with each new project exploring different ways of living,” says Halstead. It was at the open house for another of Daytrip’s retrofits that Halstead met developer Pete Monaghan, who works with his father, Richard, under the name of Mon Projects, finding and renovating interesting properties to balance their historic character with modern additions, with hotspots in Clapton and Cornwall. “The Monaghans have been creating and building in Hackney since the early 20th century, when my grandfather opened his upholstery and cabinetry workshop here,” says Monaghan. “When I was a child my parents bought a derelict house and we lived in the attic while they slowly restored it. I loved living around the action, it’s in my blood.”

Previous page The restored living room, a serene study in light and off-white tones Facing page An early-1990s chair (one of a pair in the house) by Jane Dillon and Peter Wheeler, alongside a Haxch stool, all supplied by Béton Brut

The open house that Monaghan so admired was a collaboration between Daytrip, Sophie Pearce of Béton Brut and Laura Fulmine of M.A.H (Modern Art Hire) gallery. “Daytrip have an ability to select and combine materials which beautifully complement each other and Sophie and Laura have a natural talent for elevating spaces with perfectly chosen furniture and art,” enthuses Monaghan. He decided to bring the whole team on board for the renovation of this early Victorian terrace in east London’s Clapton. “The space felt honest

and somehow humble and that informed our approach to the design. We knew we didn’t want anything showy or ostentatious,” explains Halstead, “and Clapton is such an interesting, creative place, so that came into play too.” Daytrip’s vision for this apartment on the lower floors was to create a calming, minimalist sanctuary with a sense of comfort and ease and an aesthetic that mixed “Victorian minimalism with avant-garde pieces from eighties and nineties Japan. These unexpected combinations excite me and make for a unique and compelling project.” The work began by extending the space, pushing out to the rear to create a new room on each floor. The entrance is on the upper ground floor – the most authentically Victorian part of the apartment, where the largely lost original plaster coving has been remoulded and reinstated by a local craftsman. Here there’s a wonderfully serene living room and behind it, a contemplative study. To the rear, the new kitchen and dining area creates a bracing contrast. This space is defined by its material palette; a poured concrete floor that Halstead took pains to have buffed to exactly the right soft sheen “for a cloudy, ethereal quality”; and the pleasingly austere brickwork. “We ordered a lot of samples of different grey bricks, looking for tonal variation as well as a sense of age,” remembers Halstead. This room also takes its energy from the adjoining garden, linked as they are by the brick wall and concrete floor that extend across both spaces. The garden, designed by Tyler Goldfinch, is a masterclass in what can be achieved in a modest outside space, with textural grasses lolling over tiered concrete terraces, while a multi-stemmed river birch in a circular well of pebbles nods to Japanese garden aesthetics. The kitchen cabinetry was kept ultra simple, to avoid competing with the other elements in this room. It’s a study in clean lines that contrasts with the subtly

Facing page The kitchen in the newly extended rear of the property has a more austere look than the original Victorian fabric, with tadelakt walls and a concrete floor

Above A rustic antique dining table has been paired with a set of cream 1980s dining chairs. The exposed grey brick wall extends into the garden beyond

HOME / London

mottled tadelakt splashback and Bauwerk lime-painted walls. The pared-back colour palette throughout the house combines warm cream tones with cooler pale greys, such as the cream tubular Allmilmö chairs, grouped around an unpretentious 19th-century Alpine table in bleached wood. Downstairs, where once there was just a lowceilinged coal cellar and larder, there are two tranquil bedrooms and a bathroom, all with a calm and restorative air. “A good night’s sleep sets the tone for the whole day, so we wanted these rooms a to feel like a soothing retreat,” says Halstead. The tadelakt, which also makes an appearance in the bathroom, was a labour of love, with Monaghan taking a deep dive into researching this traditional Moroccan material. “It can be problematic in the UK climate, so I wanted to become an expert in applying it authentically, while using modern technologies to seal and protect it.” These carefully considered materials merited a proportional level of thought when it came to furnishing the apartment, and Béton Brut and M.A.H each stepped up to add their own dynamic yet harmonious layers to the aesthetic. Sophie Pearce’s design store Béton Brut has found its niche sourcing rare and unexpected 20th-century design pieces, with an aesthetic that’s minimal, sculptural and architectural. She places a focus on European and Japanese design and Béton Brut’s pull lies in this juxtaposition, which she has brought to this space through pieces such as the Cornaro sofa by Carlo Scarpa in the living room, with its plush alpaca upholstery, encased in an ebonised wooden frame knotted together by leather ties, which explores the space between Japanese minimalism and Italian rationalism. Pearce selected many light and off-white pieces for this apartment, chosen to sync with the architectural scheme, but also to bring youth to the Victorian bones of the house, with novel

forms and materials: in the study, the Kazuhide Takahama desk lamp looks as if a cloth has been nonchalantly tossed on to a brass frame while, in the living room, metal tentacles extrude from Ron Arad’s Treetop lamp, alongside a prototype coffee table by Faye Toogood, as well as work by local makers, including stools by Marc Bell of Haxch. To provide the art and objets for the project, M.A.H was the natural choice. Sharing sister showrooms with Béton Brut in east London under the umbrella name 50 Vyner, the company is the progeny of industry-leading stylist and creative director Laura Fulmine. With her astute eye, Fulmine nurtures the talents of over a hundred artists and designers from around the world – both established names and emerging talent – offering their work for sale or hire (work that, crucially, if it’s being included in commercial photo shoots or films, is licensed). She works closely with interior designers, property developers and stylists, as well as private clients, to find diverse and exciting pieces to elevate interior projects to the next level. For this apartment, Fulmine also used pieces by local artists, including several paintings by Scott Licznerski. She sought to bring graphic depth to the pale and ethereal surroundings and introduce elements of the experimental and unexpected, while striving to balance that with an overall atmosphere of deep calm, which she achieved by using single pieces, rather than groups, to tell their own story. The inclinations of the trio are aligned but even their differences play well together and the finished effect is alchemical, somehow more than the sum of its already impressive parts. As Halstead puts it: “It is always exciting working with Sophie and Laura. As these rooms were adorned with furniture and art, they slowly took on a character and persona of their own. We’ve created a clean sanctuary for living, where personal touches can flourish.”

Facing page M.A.H supplied art and objects across the project; the painting on the wall of the study is 2017’s Scribble by Scott Licznerski

Above The basement, carved from what was a coal cellar and larder, now houses two bedrooms and two bathrooms

Facing page A solid oak side table sits next to the simply presented bed, topped with a conical alabaster lamp

“The space felt honest and somehow humble and that informed our approach to the design. We knew we didn’t want anything showy or ostentatious”

Facing page In the Japanese-inspired garden designed by Tyler Goldfinch, grasses spill informally over concrete terraces

Above A planted gap in the concrete leads the eye to a multi-stemmed river birch tree within a circle of pebbles

Character study Texture and craftsmanship bring personality to this extended London flat Words / Giovanna Dunmall Images / Astrid Templier

HOME / London

ondon studio All & Nxthing’s recent remodelling of a large split-level flat in north-west London was like being given a blank canvas. “It was a very, very, derelict flat inside a beautiful period apartment block but nothing in it was salvageable,” says Stephen Nash, the studio’s founder and creative director. On the one hand this meant the practice could get “really stuck into it” instead of agonising over which architectural features should be kept and which could be done away with. But it also meant they had to work that little bit harder to get some materiality, tactility and patina into the project. “Brand-new spaces can look a bit forced and weird,” he says. “And if you’re making everything quite modern and minimal they can lack texture too.” By extending the house on the lower ground level on one side and also to the rear, and incorporating an old garage into the living space, the footprint has been extended from 170 sqm to 260 sqm. And by reconfiguring the internal spaces, the studio was able to create three double bedrooms and two bathrooms on the upper ground floor and another bedroom and bathroom on the lower ground floor, as well as the kitchen and dining/living room. A large garden only adds to the feeling of leafy expansiveness that is rare in the city. To resolve the “newness” dilemma, Nash and his team chose to use natural materials where possible – English oak slats on the living and dining room ceilings for instance, and more oak, sometimes natural, sometimes painted, for all the in-built wardrobes in the bedrooms and cabinets in the hall, bathrooms and kitchen – and added patterns and detailing too. “A lot of flat oak would have been too much,” says Nash. “So we added a ribbed detail on three of the four bathroom sink cabinet doors and chamfered the kitchen island cabinet doors into a V-shape. You can run your fingers along them and it makes a really fun noise.” The downstairs shower room features hundreds of slim finger-width grey handmade Japanese tiles with imperfect edges that keep the colour palette minimal but add a great deal of texture. “The setting out of these tiles was difficult to say the least,” recalls Nash with a smile. “Just

getting the bottom row in place took the tiler a day and a half because it was literally loads of individual pieces that were all slightly different shapes and sizes. When the boxes turned up the tiler looked at me like I was crazy.” The practice also left some signs of what had been in the flat before, such as the two gnarled but characterful concrete-encased steel posts in the new hallway that mark what used to be the old outdoor walkway between the garage and the house. “We ended up not retaining a single existing internal wall so we were quite keen to keep things exposed. That way, when you walk in through the front door, you can see some of the work that’s gone into the building, rather than hiding it away.” For the same reasons the architects chose reclaimed parquet for the upstairs bedroom floors. “A lot of work goes into reclaiming parquet so it’s not the cheapest material to use,” says Nash. “But walking into a beautifully refurbished bedroom and having the feel of time-worn boards that are at least 100 years old underfoot is very nice.” The flat’s main living area is a large open plan kitchen, living and dining room that overlooks the landscaped garden, which has been given a very natural and organic makeover. French Crittall-style doors, a 5.5m-long rooflight and an oriel window fill the space with daylight and bring the lush green in. In this space your eyes are immediately drawn to two works of art. One is a large, enigmatic all-white piece by Dutch photographer Erwin Olaf, hanging behind the sofa, while the other is in the kitchen itself. A spectacular 3.6m-long pill-shaped kitchen island features terrazzo or, as Nash calls it, exposed aggregate (“since it’s actually concrete with stones in it”) worktops and splashbacks. “It was all hand-poured on site then diamond-ground by a very talented team of concrete guys,” he explains. “It was important for everything to be millimetrespecific so it took over two weeks to do.” It’s that level of attention to detail and the careful crafting of objects and surfaces that make this project both aesthetically pleasing but also rich, warm and layered. As Nash himself says, that’s far from a given for a brand new space.

Previous page Painted brickwork and oak ceilings add character to the newly built extension Facing page Timber shelving wraps around a library corner, creating cosier nooks within a much larger room Next page An oriel window in the living area offers a place to recline and enjoy the garden

“We were quite keen to keep things exposed. That way, when you walk in through the front door, you can see some of the work that’s gone into the building, rather than hiding it away”

Previous page Meticulously crafted concrete terrazzo and fluted timber surfaces combine together in the kitchen

Above Built-in wardrobes have been given a panelled effect to add textural interest in one of the bedrooms

Above Left to right: black brassware stands out against plaster pink in one of the bathrooms; upstairs bedrooms feature reclaimed parquet floors

Next page One of the three bedrooms in the split-level flat. Muted tones and natural materials create a sense of calm across the interiors

Old Town, renewed A Prague apartment with a contemporary response to its functionalist architecture Words / Karine Monié Images / BoysPlayNice

Previous page A sliding glass partition separates the kitchen from the dining space

Above Bespoke lighting was designed by Studio Dechem for the project

HOME / Prague

n the Old Town quarter of the Czech Republic capital, this 250 sqm apartment is home to many visual surprises. Extending over a full floor, it was inspired by the late 1920s building in which it lies. “The architecture suggests a stylistic shift from an art deco style to early functionalism, which became the inspiration for our interior concept,” explains Lenka Míková, who has helmed Prague-based practice Lenka Míková Architects since 2014. Despite the rough state that the apartment was in when Míková first visited it, she was immediately convinced by the generosity of the space as well as by the openness of the homeowners – a young married couple – to her ideas. Ideal in many aspects, the project, however, came with a particular challenge. “The only trouble of the otherwise smooth process was the pandemic and the restrictions it brought,” she says. “The clients were abroad during most of the construction period so we communicated online…but I believe they had an even nicer surprise when they finally arrived and saw everything finished.” Fortunately, every decision could be made quickly and easily due to the parties’ shared vision. The brief was straightforward: to create a space for unpretentious, contemporary living with timeless materials, which would make reference to the style and the historic location of Prague’s city centre. “The original layout had a very articulated shape that we wanted to resolve and simplify,” says Míková. The process took a total of 16 months to complete, from the first meeting to the handover of the keys. Refined details and many bespoke and built-in furniture pieces

– including the dining table, basins and windowsills, among other elements – were introduced, creating a one-of-a-kind interior. Míková re-envisaged the apartment as three zones: a “social” zone with the main living areas, a “private” zone for the bedrooms and finally a “threshold” zone connecting the two, containing the bathrooms and corridors. Accessed from the entrance hallway, the main social area is filled with natural light thanks to its large windows, complemented by bespoke lighting fixtures designed and produced by Bohemian glass specialists Studio Dechem. Here, there is an airy living room furnished with a Mags modular sofa by Hay and a contemporary black granite fireplace that contrasts with the rest of the palette; a dining area with burgundy Betty chairs designed by

Above Materials are repeated to form a rhythm: the kitchen’s black granite worktop echoes a fireplace within sight in the living area

“The clients were abroad during most of the construction period so we communicated online…but I believe they had an even nicer surprise when they finally arrived”

Facing page The guest bathroom, with blue tiles wrapping both the bath and walls to create a monolithic effect

Above A splash of yellow in the office. Built in cabinetry streamlines the look of the whole apartment

HOME / Prague

Right Míková plays with a tone-on-tone scheme in the WC, mixing fiery travertine with red painted walls Facing page Brass accents have been used throughout, used for lighting, door hardware and inside a hidden bar

Thau & Kallio for &Tradition; and a kitchen area separated by a sliding glass partition wall. There is also a separate office. “Some details were very demanding [here], such as the precise connection between the oak parquet that runs through all the living area as a unifying soft texture, the pattern of which continues in the kitchen with custom-cut marble floor tiles,” says Míková. At the rear of the apartment, the bedrooms – including the main bedroom, which features wall cladding, an adjacent walk-in closet, bright blue Louis Poulsen wall lights and a brass and glass Molecola pendant light by Il Fanale – are more intimate and peaceful. Míková’s use of multiple types of stone stands out in this project. There are six different ones, with black granite and red travertine joined by four types of marble, and they’ve been mixed with brass accents throughout, for example inside the hidden bar and on the door handles. “This rich material scope is balanced by a minimalistic design with clean lines, so the final feeling is modern yet warm,” says Míková. Colour also plays a key role, helping to emphasise the layout and create a different feel between each zone. Several hues of grey were chosen for the corridors and the private areas (darker for the guest and children’s bedrooms, and lighter for the main bedroom). Each of the bathrooms has a distinct colour: neutral and

bright in the beige and white main bathroom; intimate in the guest bathroom with its dark blue walls and tiles combined with brown marble and walnut; and energetic in the red powder room with its travertine basin and floor. In the office, a wall incorporating hidden doors and cupboards was painted in mustard yellow for an added eye-catching touch. The idea for Míková was to play with a variety of materials and colours, creating a mix of interrelationships and distinct areas with their own character, “while keeping some unifying elements or principles in order to stay coherent.” She has focused on intentionally shaping unexpected moments through the interior design: “I like to use the parallel to an advent chocolate calendar, where opening some doors leads to a different taste or mood each time.”

Facing page A statement bed in the master bedroom, with a fluted upholstered headboard and decorative timber joinery

Above The master bedroom’s light grey tones, contrasting with a pink Gubi Beetle chair, mark a calmer atmosphere

Slowly does it

At a leisurely pace, architect David Walker has turned a Suffolk bungalow into something more like a barn Words / Jonathan Bell Images / Timothy Soar

HOME / Suffolk

he architect David Walker is best known for his practice’s major works in London, ranging from large-scale offices to hotels and apartment buildings. Born in Canada in 1957, Walker studied architecture in California and New York, before taking a master’s degree at Yale, where his teachers included Frank Gehry and Cesar Pelli. Prior to setting up his own studio in London in 2002, Walker worked for SOM and Swanke Hayden Connell Architects.

on the outskirts of Aldeburgh with an amazing site but a terrible interior,” Walker recalls. “The site looked out across open land because it’s right next to the town’s golf course.” In many respects, it was the perfect blank slate. “There were some interesting ideas in there,” he says diplomatically of the house, a 1960s bungalow allegedly built by the president of the golf club (hence the prime site). Its most successful features were its large windows, but the original internal plan was convoluted and didn’t make the most of the space.

Walker’s country retreat in Suffolk forms a stark counterpoint to the work of his practice, DWA. The studio’s portfolio includes the bold, colourful facade of 2010’s Riverbank House and The Heron, adjacent to the Barbican, which incorporates the Guildhall School of Music and Drama’s Milton Court building. These projects and others have won numerous accolades, including recognition from the UK’s Civic Trust Awards for the way in which they integrate into the ancient and eclectic cityscape.

After buying the house, the couple decided to spend a while living in it just as it was. “We were exploring ways of what our home could be,” says Walker. Out of this came the first phase of construction, completed about a year later, which involved completely gutting the interior and creating a new layout. The singlestorey house is arranged in a U-shape, around a central courtyard. The west wing houses the living, dining and kitchen areas, with a corridor that snakes around the internal courtyard, past four bedrooms, until it culminates in a family room. “We made the public spaces much more engaging and dynamic,” Walker explains, “whereas before it was a horrible mess, with a low ceiling.” Walls were removed and the main living space was opened up and the ceiling raised, with new brick walls to support the new structural beams. The kitchen is connected to this main space, set behind the brick. The generous existing window openings were retained, with the new layout delivering better sightlines to connect to the garden.

The wilds of Suffolk couldn’t be further in spirit from the City of London. “We’d been looking for a place to go away to for a long time,” says Walker from his London studio. “We’d found a rubbish house with beautiful views in Wales, and I set my heart on it. We got into a bidding war – at the height of the recession – and we lost it.” Instead, the couple flipped their search from west to east, looking closer to home along the Suffolk coast. This stretch of the UK is renowned for its open landscapes and beaches and has long been a favoured spot for creative types seeking a retreat from London.

The expanded living room makes the most of the bungalow’s original pitched roof, with a lofty raised ceiling that’s mirrored by timber floors underfoot. Slate tile flooring unites the

In among the low-rise, low-density of seaside suburbia, they eventually stumbled across a diamond in the rough. “We found the house

Facing page The house’s pitched roof has been opened up to create a more generous feeling of space, with its timber ceiling beams whitewashed

Previous page David Walker’s home in Suffolk, incrementally remodelled and unrecognisable from the 1960s bungalow the architect first acquired

This page Clockwise from left: mid-century classics furnish the dining area, echoing the house’s 1960s origins; the original house’s generously proportioned glazing has been retained; a more open layout creates better visual connections between inside and out Facing page A pared-back palette soothes the eye, with warm natural timber and white-painted brickwork

HOME / Suffolk

rest of the house. “The bedrooms are still quite modest, but the public spaces are much larger,” says Walker. “It also wasn’t well insulated or heated, so we put in a ground source heat pump.” After the works to create the new layout, the house has been continuously added to, inside and out, over the years. One recent addition was the first floor sleeping area, a dorm room containing four beds and its own workspace and bathroom, set in the eaves above the bedroom wing.

Walker says. “It’s been a long labour of love. Like getting tattoos, you get addicted to the process.” Architects’ own houses are often places of experimentation and a slow pace of change. “It’s a strange thing to be able to do whatever you want,” he adds, pointing out that spending money to make things look ‘ordinary’ is a hard thing to sell to a client, whether private or commercial. “For the kind of work we normally do in large-scale urban commercial buildings, what we’ve always engaged with is their responsibility to their setting. Because of their location, there’s often the budget to do something special. You don’t always get that in domestic work.”

Outside there is a new greenhouse and studio space, both carefully sited within a meticulous garden scheme designed in collaboration with Brita von Schoenaich of the award-winning Bradley-Hole Schoenaich Landscape. The studio is a strictly low-tech space, with a covered passage, potting shed and playroom/ workspace. The surrounding planting carefully blurs the distinction between inside and out, with low walls, courtyards, gravel and brick; the overall site plan resembles a masterful deStijl-like composition of grids and lines.

In many respects, the house provided the perfect chance to enact this slow architectural approach. “There are a lot of suburban sixties houses here, set in the middle of this Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. We wanted to push the house towards a more modest, rural building,” the architect says. “It’s conceived of as a kind of barn – you can see all the structure. The idea was to make it look original.”

The final piece of the jigsaw was recently completed. “We remodelled the outside of the house and replaced the original roof which had these great big overhanging eaves,” says Walker. “It made all the liminal spaces around the edge of the plan very dark and gloomy. Now the house has a modesty and quality of proportions that was missing from the original plans, plus you always have this transparency through the house.” As before, every detail was subject to high levels of scrutiny, such as the individually fixed exterior cladding slats that are juxtaposed with the white-painted brickwork.

The lack of deadlines allowed key pieces to have care (and money) lavished on them. For example, the kitchen island is a bespoke piece of solid maple, a meticulously crafted object that many commercial clients would baulk at: “Most people wouldn’t even realise it was solid wood. But I know.” Walker adds that “people are always asking architects if they want to design their dream house. This wasn’t really like that – it was an incremental, organic process.” There’s an important final question to be asked – is it finished? “I have a vision to do something more in the garden,” Walker admits. “The house is still a canvas to be worked on.”

“For an architect, this house was done in exactly the wrong way – from the inside out,”

Facing page The bungalow now has an extra storey, with a four-bed dorm room, a bathroom and working area

Facing page The exterior of the house was one of the last things to be remodelled, with deep eaves removed and timber slats added

Above Brita von Schoenaich designed the garden, where flowers naturalistically tumble over gravel pathways

DESIGN AND DEXTERITY.

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Trumpet !, 2021 By Joy Yamusangie. Read the full story on p108

ART & COLLECTING A cultural review

ART & COLLECTING / Diary

Agenda

Sights to behold: a calendar of shows and fairs for the coming months Words / Philomena Epps

Carrie Mae Weems: The Evidence of Things Not Seen, Württembergischer Kunstverein, Stuttgart 2 April–10 July

The title of Carrie Mae Weems’ solo exhibition, The Evidence of Things Not Seen, takes its name from the 1985 book-length essay by James Baldwin. This retrospective is the first extensive presentation in Germany of the work of the contemporary American artist, who has investigated

race, cultural identity, sexism, class and power over the last three decades. Featuring photographic series, videos and installations, the show will also feature a new photo series titled Monuments, a pertinent project that explores the colonialist implications of public commemoration.

ART & COLLECTING / Diary

Yves Saint Laurent aux Musées, various locations, Paris Until 15 May

This multi-venue celebration marks the 60th anniversary of Yves Saint Laurent’s first runway show, and highlights how the legendary designer was inspired by artists such as Mondrian, Matisse, Braque, Picasso and Léger. In addition to a detailed, archival presentation at the Musée

Yves Saint Laurent about the couturier, a selection of his iconic designs and garments will be staged in dialogue with the permanent collection at the Centre Pompidou (above), Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris, Musée d’Orsay, Musée National Picasso Paris and Musée du Louvre.

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ART & COLLECTING / Diary

A Century of the Artist’s Studio, Whitechapel Gallery, London

Charles Ray, Bourse de Commerce & the Pompidou Centre, Paris

After three years of research with a curatorial committee, this survey presentation will mark the final exhibition curated by the Whitechapel Gallery’s outgoing director Iwona Blazwick. With over 100 artworks made by over 80 artists and collectives from across the globe, the show depicts the artist’s studio as the “crucible of creativity”. It’s an exhibition of two halves: the public studio, examining how artists have embraced the studio as an open arena; and the private studio, demonstrating how it can be a refuge or space for political resistance. Expect to see work by Francis Bacon, Vanessa Bell, Andy Warhol, Louise Bourgeois and Pablo Picasso (above), among others.

American sculptor Charles Ray is the subject of two concurrent shows in Paris, one at the Pompidou Centre and the other at the Bourse de Commerce, the former Parisian stock exchange that now houses the private collection of François Pinault. Both exhibitions are driven by Ray’s interest in the human figure, demonstrating a range of scales and sculptural materials including stainless steel, fibreglass, aluminium, concrete and marble. The Pompidou focuses on works from the 1970s until the early 2000s, while the Bourse de Commerce considers his use of human figuration from the 1990s until today (including 2012’s Sleeping Woman, above).

Until 5 June

Until 6 June & 20 June

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Hito Steyerl: I Will Survive, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam

Barbara Kruger, Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin

The Stedelijk Museum will present Hito Steyerl’s most expansive retrospective exhibition in the Netherlands to date. I Will Survive starts with the documentary work Steyerl made in the 1990s, moving on to the immersive videos and multimedia installations she has become internationally known for in the last decade. Over the last 30 years, Steyerl has used her polymathic career as an artist, critic, filmmaker and professor to research, illuminate and query contemporary socio-political issues, often using satire to disrupt the status quo. Recent work (such as 2013’s How Not To Be Seen, above) has critiqued capitalism, nationalism, the digital information age and questioned the status of art and culture.

The iconic American conceptual artist Barbara Kruger has designed a new text installation for the exhibition hall at the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin, which will occupy the entire floor of the space. Formerly working as a commercial artist in advertising, in the late 1970s Kruger began co-opting the arresting and bold techniques of graphic design to create large-format posters that explored consumerism, gender and identity politics. The installation is reduced to her trademark colours of black, white and red, creating a powerful contrast with the original Mies van der Rohe architecture. The critical slogans have been deliberately phrased to address political and social issues and current public debate.

Until 12 June

29 April–28 August

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Courtesy the artist, Andrew Kreps Gallery NY & Esther Schipper, Berlin. © VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn, 2021. Film still © Hito Steyerl; Courtesy of the artist, Friends of the High Line & Sprüth Magers/ Timothy Schenck

ART & COLLECTING / Diary

Etel Adnan: Colour as Language, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam 20 May–4 September

Colour as Language marks the first major retrospective by the Lebanese artist, poet and writer Etel Adnan in the Netherlands. Adnan, who died in 2021 at the age of 96, said that “colours exist for me as entities in themselves, as metaphysical beings.” The exhibition will focus on her

nature painting, in which intense, energetic colours and block-like abstract forms are used to convey the landscape, presented alongside a selection of work by Van Gogh. The show will also feature examples of her ‘leporellos’, concertina-folded notebooks of text and images.

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In the Black Fantastic, Hayward Gallery, London

Documenta Fifteen, Kassel, Germany

Curated by the British writer and journalist Ekow Eshun, In the Black Fantastic is a group exhibition showing work by contemporary artists from the African diaspora who are engaged with the speculative and the mythic. With painting, photography, video, sculpture and mixed media installations on offer, the artist list includes Wangechi Mutu (a still from whose The End of Eating Everything is pictured), Ellen Gallagher, Hew Locke, Chris Ofili and Kara Walker. Guided by the legacies of Afrofuturism, the show highlights how these artists reimagine ways of depicting both the past and the future, through utilising elements of folklore, myth, science fiction and spirituality.

Initiated in 1955, Documenta is contemporary art show that takes place every five years for 100 days in the city of Kassel in Germany. Each has a different artistic director, with this year’s 15th edition overseen by Ruangrupa, a collective of artists and creatives from Jakarta, Indonesia, who have commissioned over 50 artists and collectives to make work, announcing their vision of “a globally oriented, collaborative and interdisciplinary art and culture platform that will remain effective beyond the 100 days”. Johannesburg’s Keleketla! Library, Nairobibased Nest Collective and the Archives of Women’s Struggles in Algeria (above) are among those listed so far.

30 June–18 September

18 June–25 September

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ART & COLLECTING / Diary

Kunstmuseum Den Haag

ART & COLLECTING / Diary

Mondrian, Fondation Beyeler, Switzerland 5 June–9 October

Celebrating the 150th anniversary of Mondrian’s birth, Riehen’s Fondation Beyeler and Düsseldorf ’s K20 have organised a touring exhibition. The retrospective focuses on Mondrian’s impact on the evolution of avant-garde painting, moving from figuration to abstraction in the

early 1920s. It will particularly hone in on his earlier practice, which explored motifs of windmills, dunes, land and seascapes, and how that fed into his iconic nonrepresentational work – culminating with Victory Boogie Woogie (above), his last painting before his death in 1944.

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Photo: Any Gwatkin

ART & COLLECTING / Diary

Fashioning Masculinities: The Art of Menswear, V&A Museum, London Until 6 November

The V&A’s first show to exclusively focus on menswear, this exhibition charts a historical and contemporary impression of how masculinity has been performed through fashion and style. It will be organised along three themes: Undressed will focus on the idealised

male body and underwear; Overdressed explores the elite masculine wardrobe, with oversized silhouettes and lavish materials; and Redressed reflects on the history of tailoring and origin of the suit (and its subversions, such as the deconstructed example by Craig Green pictured).

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ART & COLLECTING / Diary

Venice Biennale, Italy 23 April–27 November

The delayed 59th edition of the Venice Biennale will finally open this spring. Italian curator Cecilia Alemani states that her shows at the Giardini and Arsenale will focus on “the representation of bodies and their metamorphoses; the relationship between individuals and technologies;

the connection between bodies and the earth” including work by late Brazilian artist Jaider Esbell (above). In the national pavilions, look out for Sonia Boyce representing Great Britain, Simone Leigh for the US, Yuki Kihara for New Zealand and Alberta Whittle for Scotland.

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ART & COLLECTING / Profile

Don’t miss a beat

Ephemeral moments in a fictional, idealised jazz club are imagined by artist Joy Yamusangie at Greenwich’s Now Gallery

or Greenwich’s Now Gallery’s latest show, Congolese-British artist Joy Yamusangie has created something we’ve all been craving. The exhibition, Feeling Good, has transformed the gallery into a jazz club of the same name, and features bold-hued paintings on paper and fabric that depict the deliciousness of human interaction – from kissing by the bar to deep chats in the smoking area. “In that painting, we get a glimpse of the intimate conversation they are having at that moment, nothing before and nothing after,” Yamusangie says, “like when you overhear bits of a conversation that leaves more questions than it answers.” Like many, Yamusangie found inspiration to be lacking as a result of lockdowns and restrictions. Their work, as a trans, non-binary artist, often takes an autobiographical approach, and has themes of community, family, and personal experience at its core. But for this commission, the springboard came in the form of a book on their partner’s shelf, Trumpet. Published in 1998 by Scottish writer and poet Jackie Kay, Trumpet tells the story of a fictional jazz artist named Joss Moody through recollections and memories of those closest to him. The book begins just after Moody’s death, upon which it is revealed that his biological sex was in fact female. Kay has spoken of how she had been inspired by the real life of Billy Tipton, an American jazz musician who had lived with the secret of being transgender. “The book initially stood out to me as I was considering learning a musical instrument at the time,” says Yamusangie. “But after finding out about Billy Tipton’s story, I realised that it sounded so familiar to me.” They subsequently ended up in what they describe as an “online

wormhole” – researching as much as they possibly could. “But as there wasn’t much online about Tipton. It left a lot of room for imagination.” The musician was born in 1914 and died in 1989, and his experience of simply existing as a trans man in the world at that time is something that played on Yamusangie’s mind. They began to imagine the clubs that Tipton may have played in, and how venues may exist now – envisioning them as spaces of “acceptance and belonging for trans and gender non-conforming people”.

Words Alice Morby

It was imagining Tipton’s future existence that brought Yamusangie to the image of the club. Large-scale, colourful paintings feature bold line work, and stay true to the artist’s signature style, which has been informed over the years through experimentation across a number of mediums. Yamusangie’s training in illustration is always a key foundation, and they describe that approach as being a way to find “visual solutions” for briefs and imagined ideas alike. “I see the works in this exhibition as a collage of everything that I’ve learned and tried over the years,” they say. “It feels like the best way to describe it would be as a reflection of me. But it was important to me to show moments of worry, fear, sadness – because in reality we don’t always feel good all the time.” Feeling Good is the latest in Now Gallery’s Young Artist Commission programme, now in its fourth year, which has presented shows by promising up and coming names: Yamusangie follows on from illustrators Manjit Thapp and Hattie Stewart and crystal artist Sara Shakeel. It’s on at the gallery’s Greenwich Peninsula location from 24 March-5 June.

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Facing page Joy Yamusangie, whose work touches on family, community and personal experience

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“It was important to me to show moments of worry, fear, sadness – because in reality we don’t always feel good all the time”

Facing page Top to bottom: Strangers and Missed Your Chance. For their show at Now Gallery, Yamusangie imagines a jazz club that’s a place of acceptance and belonging

Above The Show is Over: Yamusangie’s background in illustration brings a graphic quality to their art

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A House for Artists, London. Read the full story on p114 Image by Ståle Eriksen

ARCHITECTURE Surveying the built environment

ARCHITECTURE / London

State of the art

Adaptable interiors, communal living and an arts programme – A House for Artists is affordable housing as you’ve never seen it before

rom the moment that treasured British artist Grayson Perry threw his support behind a council housing project in Barking, east London, it was never going to be an ordinary block of flats. True to form, A House for Artists is a pioneering new housing model that not only offers affordable living and working spaces for artists and their families, but also provides a framework for these individuals to inspire others. At a time when creative talent is increasingly being priced out of the city, it capitalises on the value that art can bring to local communities. “We’re trying to say that culture and art has to be in the centre of every community,” says Darren Rodwell, council leader for the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, and the driving force behind the project. He is standing inside a space created exactly for this purpose, the open-plan ground floor of this five-storey building. With its raw interior and openable glass facade, it be a venue for a communityfacing arts programme led by the non-profit Create London. Residents are given affordable rents set at 65% of the market rate, in exchange for their participation in this programme. The hope is that it will help Barking to nurture a new generation of talent, says Rodwell: “If

someone’s expertise can inspire others, that’s got to be good for the economy."

Words Amy Frearson

Continuing up, into the open-air walkways and generously daylit two- and three-bedroom apartments on the upper levels, it’s clear that there’s a lot more to this building than a clever business model. Designed by local architects Nicholas Lobo Brennan and Astrid Smitham of Apparata, A House for Artists offers a level of flexibility that is rare in modern residential design. The occupants have the opportunity to add or remove walls, or even relocate their kitchen, to better suit their homes to their needs. This is made possible by an efficient floor plan that provides windows and fire escape access at the front and back of each home. “You can essentially get a free room in your two-bedroom flat, if you need it for working from home, for a new child or if you have caring responsibilities,” says Smitham. “Or you can remove walls to make it a one-bed with a continuous space from back to front.”

Images Ståle Eriksen

Instead of making all 12 homes more or less the same, the architects have worked hard to ensure that variety is built in. A third-floor apartment boasts a double-height ceiling with the possibility of a mezzanine, while the three

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Facing page With flexible living space for 12 artists and their families, A House for Artists is an affordable, sustainable model for new housing

Above The approach to the apartments is outside – rather than through unwelcoming corridors

Facing page Apparata’s building features playfully stacked geometric shapes, with a generous allowance for balconies

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ARCHITECTURE / London

Above On the first floor, the appartments are connected, creating potential for co-living Facing page Internal layouts are designed to be flexible to adapt to occupants’ changing needs

apartments on the first floor come with heavyduty connecting doors that allow for different types of co-living arrangements. “Depending on who lives there, these could be used every day or only a couple of times a year,” suggests Lobo Brennan. All homes are also fronted by spacious balconies, deliberately large enough to allow room for outdoor furniture and plants. Unlike the “streets in the sky” you might find in the council housing of the 1960s, these decks feel like places to spend time, rather than simply pass through. “It’s really all about providing the spaces that will help form communities,” says Smitham. A solid concrete structure eliminates the need for superfluous cladding materials and, with its low cement content, even reduces the building’s carbon footprint. The raw expression of this material gives the facade a monumental quality

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that feels appropriate, but which is softened by the quirkiness of square, circular and triangular cutaways. The effect is somewhere between a contemporary gallery and a children’s toy. The first 16 artists moving into the building – selected by a panel that included Grayson Perry – are aged between 23 and 70, and cover a diverse range of disciplines, from photography to theatre. While there may be a sense that they’re getting something tailor-made, the project was actually delivered on a typical council housing budget. “The whole project was built with very normal products,” says Lobo Brennan. “There’s nothing bespoke going on here, it’s all off-the-shelf.” With that in mind, it’s hard not to wonder why design this good has to be reserved just for artists. With so much bad housing being built across the UK, A House for Artists offers a breath of fresh air.

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Johan Delin

The Design Dialogues Conversations with luminaries

In Design Anthology’s original audio series, our editors take an international tour to meet some of the most recognisable names working in design, architecture and interiors. design-anthology.com/podcast

Greet bag by Shrimps. Read the full story on p124

STYLE Fashionable pursuits

Most wanted

Mark Kean

Clothing, accessories and tech that are thoughtful, expressive, beautiful and good

STYLE / Products

Margaret Howell The reigning queen of democratic fashion, Margaret Howell’s menswear for spring features soft, loose silhouettes that seem designed to ease us in to the idea that there are fewer restrictions on our lives now than there have been in a while. Ankle-cropped trousers are paired with gently unstructured blazers and finished off with a casually worn silk scarf or tie

and “school loafers”, while knitted sweatshirts are layered over light cotton shirting; the palette is equally soothing, in warm-toned bay, rust and clay. Sweatshirt, £175, work shirt, £110 and slant-pocket trouser, £395; blazer, £925, safari shirt, £185, officer’s trouser, £525 and shoes, £285; margarethowell.co.uk

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STYLE / Products

Shrimps Crochet is having an unlikely fashion revival, with Miu Miu and Valentino among the brands to have given this most cosy of crafts a more design-led focus recently. Joining them is Shrimps, whose Greet bag is handmade from merino wool in a navy and cream check, with a wavy asymmetrical acrylic handle wrapped in brightly contrasting red and

cream cotton thread. Checkerboard patterns are a signature motif this season for the idiosyncratic British brand, from coordinating knitted short and vest sets to gingham puff-sleeved blouses and wideleg trousers. Homespun style at its best. £350; shrimps.com

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STYLE / Products

Loewe German electronics brand Loewe first unveiled its more youthful sister brand We. by Loewe in 2019, kicking off with the launch of a cute all-weather cylindrical outdoor speaker in a range of colours. That same playful approach is in evidence for a new range of televisions called We.See, which has an integrated 80W soundbar highlighted in coral red,

aqua blue or storm grey. Featuring a slim design, Ultra HD display and streaming capabilities, it comes in four sizes; the price is designed to attract a more cost-conscious consumer than Loewe’s premium products, but with the same design flair. From £899; we-by-loewe.com

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Julia Fischer & Lucas Cruz

STYLE / Products

Mizar & Alcor A lightweight beach towel is a summer staple, and Mizar & Alcor makes some of the best. The Turkish brand works with Anatolian weavers, supporting local economies and preserving traditional crafts, and this striped example was inspired by the work of American 20th-century photographer Slim Aarons, who captured, in his own words, “attractive

people doing attractive things in attractive places.” Whether you’re taking it to Malibu, Mykonos or Morecambe Bay, its fine linen and cotton weave gives it a lightness that makes it fast-drying, easy to pack and adaptable as a sarong or head-wrap. €42; mizarandalcor.com

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STYLE / Products

Momoc Brighten up a neutral wardrobe with these Toucan shoes from Momoc. The classic flats are made from faux-suede (all Momoc’s shoes are vegan), with a sole and heel made from recycled tyres and wood. The brand was launched in Madrid by Gabriela Machado, who aims to create footwear that is as ethical and sustainable as possible; other products

incorporate materials such as Piñatex pineapple leather and recycled polyester. Alongside Toucan, look out for more new designs with the same joyful approach, including the zebra-print Félin Noir and a winding snake embroidery, L’âme de Colette. £95.75; momocshoes.com

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PIONEER

Underdog story

The late Richard Rogers couldn’t draw – but it didn’t stop him becoming one of the greatest architects of his generation Words / Amy Frearson Image / Courtesy of Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners

“H

e has a genuine interest in and a feeling for architecture, but lacks the intellectual equipment to translate these feelings into sound building.” Thus reads a report card issued to Richard Rogers in 1958, while he was studying at London’s prestigious Architectural Association. Within 30 years, he had produced two of the 20th century’s most important buildings, the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the Lloyd’s building in London.

Collaboration was key to Rogers’ approach. He won the commission for the Pompidou by partnering with Italian architect Renzo Piano, and many of his later works, from the Leadenhall Building to Spain’s Bodegas Protos winery, were completed under the name Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners to celebrate the contribution of younger partners Graham Stirk and Ivan Harbour. Rogers’ career was not without controversy. As an adviser to the former London mayor Ken Livingstone, he was outspoken on the importance of making good architecture available to all, yet also designed some of London’s most expensive housing; he also made an enemy of the Prince of Wales, who personally intervened to block him from working on a project at Chelsea Barracks. His innovative spirit and exuberant character never faltered, however – and with his death in December 2021, the architecture world lost a true inspiration.

Rogers didn’t fit the mould of the traditional architect – he couldn’t draw well and was chaotic in his approach – but he had an understanding of how buildings should make people feel. So while his designs were among the first to embrace the high-tech style of architecture, with its steel, glass and exposed services, they also had a human quality. The Stirling Prize-winning Barajas Airport in Madrid is the perfect example, turning the unwelcoming environment of air travel into a place of light and warmth.

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Design Anthology UK Issue 11

Articles inside

Richard Rogers The late architect couldn’t draw – but made up for it with profound empathy and an innovative spirit

Diary

Most wanted A compilation of clothes, tech and accessories that are beautiful, thoughtful and good

London A House for Artists – affordable housing as you’ve never seen it before

Suffolk Architect David Walker swaps designing large commercial buildings for renovating his own bungalow

Prague

Profile Joy Yamusangie imagines feelgood moments in a fictional jazz club

London Designers and curators collaborate to create a calm and comfortable interior

Products Collections and collaborations of note

Borough Yards A new mixed-use area amid the Victorian viaducts and warehouses

Hotel, Saudi Arabia Habitas, an art-filled oasis in the ancient desert region of AlUla

London A study in adding character and personality to newly built spaces

Q&A

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Jewellery Elevate at-home rituals to something extraordinary with this edit