Design Wire January/February 2024
MAINE PRESERVATION, a nonprofit advocacy organization based in Yarmouth, has been releasing their annual list of the Most Endangered Historic Places in Maine since 1996 in an effort to raise public awareness about the state’s threatened properties. The seven landmarks recognized on the 2023 list include a 1970s candlepin bowling alley in Ellsworth, the Gayety Theatre in Van Buren, a handful of historic Swan Island properties, Bowdoinham Town Hall, colonist Major Reuben Colburn’s Revolutionary War–era house in Pittston, the plank-frame Jonathan Fisher House in Blue Hill, and the Winter Harbor schoolhouse (now a museum), which was built in 1877 and moved to its current location via oxen ten years later.
Utilizing the modular U-Build system developed by STUDIO BARK, architectural designer GEORGE FISHER created outdoor social spaces for PROJECT MALACHI, a homeless hostel in London, made of three plywood structures that can be easily slotted together. Residents of the hostel were involved in both the design and construction of the communal spaces, which include a table, alcoves for storing books, and translucent plastic roofs to shield residents from wet weather. “[The] project embodies the possibilities afforded by modern construction methods, portraying its potential to democratize the design and construction ethos within our built environment,” Fisher told Dezeen in October. All plywood for the community-growing project was donated by LATHAM TIMBER.
In 2017 a woman browsing the framing section at the SAVERS thrift store in Manchester, New Hampshire, purchased a dusty painting for four dollars, which she promptly hung in her bedroom. She later stored it in a closet, then eventually she posted an image of the piece on Facebook asking for assistance in identifying the work. According to the New York Times, art conservator LAUREN LEWIS saw the post online and realized the thrift store find was an original N.C. WYETH oil panel, part of a four-image set the artist contributed for a 1939 edition of Helen Hunt Jackson’s novel Ramona. In fall of 2023, the panel sold for $191,000 at a Bonhams Skinner American art auction in Massachusetts, netting the owner nearly $190,996, which she says she will use to pay off bills and to visit one of her children in Germany.
In the category of “news we couldn’t have predicted 20 years ago,” outdoor retailer EDDIE BAUER is changing its logo from cursive script to all-caps block lettering in order to reach a new generation of customers who were never taught to read cursive in school. The updated logo also features a goose, paying homage to the company’s innovative, patented 1936 down jacket (the first of its kind in the United States), which was stuffed with goose feathers. Eddie Bauer joins a handful of other companies, including Johnson and Johnson, that have recently swapped their historic script logos for more minimalistic branding.
Nestled in a forested site in northern Germany, designers JULIAN KRÜGER and BENJAMIN KEMPER created DIGITAL HOUSE, a micro home made from recycled aluminum and timber that can be assembled by just two people without using any nails, screws, or other hardware. Plywood panels designed with an inventive plug-in assembly system and cross-shaped joints allow the structure to slot together, while its facade is made up of horizontal bands of interlocking aluminum sheets that are laser cut to include all required fastening details. Digital House features an open interior lined with pinewood panels and illuminated by two windows. The project is meant to emphasize flexibility in construction, sustainability, and material reuse.
Direct-to-consumer luggage start-up MONOS is taking a different approach to building a business than its biggest competitor, Away, which relied upon venture capital funding to grow at a rapid pace before the pandemic caused a massive drop in airline travel. Led by serial entrepreneur VICTOR TAM (who previously founded ROVE CONCEPTS) along with friends HUBERT CHAN and DANIEL SHIN, Monos is focused on growing profitably with a trusted collection of affordable, impeccably designed travel products, including polycarbonate suitcases as well as duffels, backpacks, packing cubes, and a newly launched line of clothing designed specifically for travel. Monos is currently opening its first brick-and-mortar store in Vancouver, British Columbia, featuring a visually pleasing minimalist aesthetic that includes large windows, concrete floors, and exposed brick.
A design-build firm in Malta called MATTER MAKE is redefining the home theater with a new project made to enhance the cinematic experience. Known as CINEMA VISIONA and named after Danish architect and designer Verner Panton’s “Visiona” exhibitions from the 1970s, the playful concept features an undulating landscape of seating with eight optimized recliners engineered for ultimate comfort. Emphasis is placed on sight lines, ensuring an unobstructed view of the screen from every seat. Acoustic paneling made from recycled water bottles, LED mood lighting, a concealed projector, and a timber-edge profile add elements of luxury to the residential theater.