Design Mindset steps into episode 16 with a clear purpose: to understand how industrial designers are navigating a world where tools, platforms, and expectations keep shifting under their feet. Yanko Design's weekly podcast, Design Mindset, powered by KeyShot, is less about design celebrity and more about design thinking, unpacking how decisions get made, how stories are built around products, and how technology is reshaping the craft from the inside out.
Pavilions are architecture's fast, experimental structures that test ideas long before they scale up to cities. This year's highlights push that spirit further, blurring the lines between sculpture, shelter, ritual space, and ecological device. From bamboo vaults rising in flood-prone villages to inflatable dream temples, from wind-driven feather structures on remote islands to LEGO-built playscapes in London, the pavilion becomes a tool for storytelling.
In recent years, designers increasingly recognize that a home's luxury is not defined by its size but by how space is sequenced, detailed, and experienced. In small residences, limited square footage becomes an opportunity to refine material honesty, elevate craftsmanship, and curate a focused expression of high-end living. This shift frames luxury as a philosophy rooted in intention rather than excess.
Humble brag incoming, but one of my favorite parts of my job is that I get to preview products and brand look books before they're available to the public. It's fun to get a first look at launches, and sometimes those sneak peeks happen in fabulous settings, like the recent Boll & Branch holiday preview at The Ritz-Carlton New York, NoMad.
The ritual of bedtime is why I care so much about what my bed feels like, and especially the fabrics I'm tucking myself into. I've tried a ton of different sheets over the years, and I know all the perks of different types, from percale to jersey knit, but never have I found a set that makes me feel like I'm spending the night at a fancy hotel as much as the Cotton Piping Design Bed Sheet Set from American Blossom Linens.
Located in the heart of Copenhagen's Bredgade, the new joint showroom for Danish cabinetmaker Kolon and lighting company Anour has been thoughtfully designed as a calm, tactile space celebrating local craftsmanship and material honesty. The interior unfolds in a palette of warm neutrals and natural textures from oak and walnut to brushed metal and softly colored textiles forming a serene backdrop for the furniture and lighting on display.
Its façade features a mosaic of locally sourced stone, wrapping the building in hues that echo the surrounding Red Rock Mountains. A canopy extending beyond the roof is designed to provide a shaded "front porch" for the entry plaza. A signature grand staircase, visible through the entry level's floor-to-ceiling windows, transforms the interior core into a canyon, from which visitors ascend toward galleries that appear to float on the second floor.
There's just one small problem: It's a good two feet longer than my previous sofa, which ultimately leaves very little room for a side table or storage of any kind. As someone who spends mostof her couch time with a crochet hook in hand, I can't go without a spot to stash away my yarn and other miscellaneous items that always end up cluttering the coffee table.
For the first time in its eight editions, (Ithra) introduced creative partners as part of its program, marking a significant step in the platform's evolution. In this edition, Isola Design Group and Dubai Design Week joined as creative partners, expanding the event's reach across the Gulf region and beyond. Through exhibitions, dialogue, and shared expertise, both platforms amplified Tanween's international outlook while reinforcing its community-driven foundation.
This week's architectural news reflects a broad engagement with how institutions, practitioners, and cultural platforms are positioning themselves in relation to both legacy and long-term change. Across museums, galleries, and major cultural events, architecture is being framed as an evolving public infrastructure, one that must respond to expanding collections, shifting curatorial models, and growing expectations around accessibility, sustainability, and civic presence.
Foscarini has a habit of pushing lighting beyond glass and metal, experimenting with concrete, fabric, and now molten rock. The brand often treats materials as the starting point rather than the afterthought, asking what unexpected substances can become when wrapped around a light source. The Eolie collection continues that line by looking at the volcanic charisma of the Aeolian Islands and asking what happens when lava waste becomes the main ingredient for a pendant lamp.
Amid countless questions, reflections, and debates about rethinking what a hotel can be, current hotel architecture faces growing complexities that span user experience, environmental responsibility, and the relationship with local context. Contemporary hotel design shows a clear-and increasingly prominent-intention to blend seamlessly and harmoniously with its surroundings, building a sense of identity that responds to local cultures, traditions, and character.
This year (2025), Tanween designs the unspoken. It could be environmental, social, cultural, or educational - but it always returns design to humanity. We focus on the actual needs of people across many disciplines. That is the real role of Tanween: to experiment, to inspire each other, to support each other, and to develop ideas with ambition. Each edition builds a thematic path in the design process, allowing designers to explore what truly matters,
In 2025, the architectural field has been marked by a dense calendar of exhibitions, a measured slowdown in construction across multiple regions, and a period of reflection that scrutinizes the impact of intelligence (artificial and natural)-both on professional practice and workplace culture, as well as its use as a pedagogical tool. Over this calendar year, ArchDaily has published more than 30 interviews in a range of formats-Q&As, in-person conversations, video features, and more.
The proposed Elche Congress Centre 'Espardenyer' by Luca Poian Forms and Frade Arquitectos is planned for a site between the Spanish city's historic Vila and the contemporary district of Altabix. Conceived as a civic building with an urban role, the project occupies a transitional edge and treats it as a place of connection rather than separation, giving built form to a shared public space.
When you're setting up a space for a cozy vibe, our guess is that harsh, cool-toned hospital lighting isn't on your mood board. That's what makes choosing the right mood lighting such an art. Soft, warm lighting is a mainstay across our home tours-like this scenic Silver Lake house-for a welcoming ambience. And tons of celebrities and design enthusiasts are forgoing overheads altogether-a through line across Mariah Carey's massive real estate portfolio and in commercial director Talia Mayden's romantic Brooklyn Heights apartment.
The owners of this house, a young entrepreneurial couple with a deep appreciation for traditional Korean culture, sought a personal retreatone that resides on the boundary between city and nature, offering them a refuge from the harshness of modern life. They will come to enjoy the contrasting pleasures of a life that moves between these two extremes, embracing a dynamic and ever-changing daily existence.
Conceived as a significant new addition to one of Europe's leading sculpture parks and cultural destinations, the project is scheduled to open in 2031 and will house the art collection of Kistefos founder and collector Christen Sveaas through the Christen Sveaas Art Foundation. Following the announcement, Christ & Gantenbein will now work with Kistefos Museum to further develop the concept design toward realization.
TRAGA is known for "redefining core utility objects," with a particular focus on glassware. Its name, TRAGA, comes from a Slavic word meaning "trace" - the act of leaving a mark. It's a fitting idea for a brand centered on objects that linger long after use, like the faint imprint a glass leaves on a tablecloth after a cozy evening. Though TRAGA often leans into Brutalist sensibilities, the Mario Mug taps into its more whimsical side.
