Who We're Celebrating Now: Issey Miyake
🖤 Lessons in #Trailblazing: In tribute to the creative life & contributions of Japanese design visionary, Issey Miyake, April 22, 1938 - August 5, 2022. Born in Hiroshima, he was 7 years old when the US dropped an atomic bomb in August '45. Since his experiences that day, he said he preferred to "think of things that can be created, not destroyed, and that bring beauty and joy". For more than 4 decades he created textiles, clothing and accessories for people who embrace contemporary visual culture. Steve Jobs loved Miyake's perfected minimalism so much that it became his uniform.
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Mmuseumm in Manhattan: A Tiny Museum in a Freight Elevator #CreativeSpaces
🗽Opened in 2013, a quintessentially New York City art experience ~ this teeny-tiny museum lives in a freight elevator at 4 Cortlandt Alley. 🥁 Mmuseumm is a style of storytelling about the modern world - it's Object Journalism. The viewing windows are always open, and private viewing sessions are available. 👉 Continue reading to see inside this special curated gem.
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Art in the West: Judy Chicago x Donald Woodman's Art Mecca in New Mexico
🏜 We love a historic building out West, and even more so when an iconic American artist reinvents it ~ Enter Feminist Artist @judy.chicago x her husband, Photographer @donaldwoodman’s New Mexico Art Mecca, Hotel Belen, Est. 2019. The creative pair transformed a one time hotel in a remote desert town into a center of imaginative output. 🌵 90min south of Santa Fe, Belen has been Judy's home for nearly 30 years.
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Designing Interiors: How To Create Signature Moments that Delight
💡 Ultimately, the goal of an interior environment is to move forward the intention of a space and engage the user in meaningful ways. One way to do that is by designing spaces to activate the 5 basic senses: sight, sound, touch, smell, & taste. Read more to discover our key learnings to implement when crafting your spaces.
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File this under #ArtintheWild: The Valley Curtain in Colorado
⛰ We love having an office in Colorado - this beautiful state provides great inspiration, simply step outside and you have mammoth beauty of large scale all around. Christo & Jeanne-Claude must've agreed with this notion ~ their incredible 1972 "Valley Curtain" installation in Rifle, Colorado remains an iconic moment in the art world.
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Old to New: Evolution of the Grocery Concept - Hello Amazon Fresh
🏪 File this under #TheNewGrocer: We love to travel through time via the atmospheric photographs of New York City storefronts captured by @jamesandkarla - the corner shop has evolved into many iterations over the last 100 years; perhaps the farthest departure, the Amazon Fresh cashierless grocery concept - read on to see what makes this a success.
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I Shop Therefore I Am: Branding & Beliefs, #TheNewGrocer Edition
💰The power of branding has perhaps never been more ingrained in our personal identities - the associations many consumers choose to have with the brands they select to purchase from and endorse has undoubtedly become a part of how they represent what they believe in and subscribe to. 🛒 The shift towards conscious consumerism and an awareness of consumption impact is a shift we're thrilled to see adopted. We're big believers in supporting brands with a conscience, read on to see which brands made the list as part of our #TheNewGrocer Series.
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#TheNewGrocer Series: Lucy Sparrow makes everyday objects into whimsical felt art
🍅 We're in our feelings about this one: Contemporary British Artist Lucy Sparrow has charmed us from the UK and Shanghai, to New York and Miami, re-creating a bevy of household items hand-stitched entirely out of felt. Check out the highlights for how Sparrow has re-imagined the corner store.
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The Netflix Effect: Evolution of a Behemoth
🎬 From Silicon Valley upstart (remember those red envelopes?) to Hollywood Studio, Netflix' dominance in American Culture is clear; their biggest hits are society's cult favorites. Soaring chess set sales thanks to The Queen’s Gambit, a shift in dressing courtesy of Bridgerton and an increased interest in the wellbeing of Big Cats thanks to Tiger King, Netflix' ability to steer global interest and behaviors is fascinating.
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Lessons in #Monochrome: The Power of Color by way of Yves Klein
🌎Known worldwide for his signature IKB (International Klein Blue), this striking blue was invented by him and used in his artworks ~ although interestingly enough, it was never patented. Made from dry ultramarine pigment and clear synthetic resin, during his Blue Period, he created more than 200 monochrome works that explored the vibrant shade in different ways. Read more to see a few of our favorite Klein artworks.
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Life Beyond the Pandemic: What Brands Can Do Now
🔦 The world that Brands operate in has changed in the blink of an eye. In order to thrive, Brands need an accurate map of the new territory that they're operating in. Our Action Checklist provides 8 things to do now, to build that map so you can adapt quickly and effectively to a new reality.
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7 Certainties for Uncertain Times
🌎 We are all dealing with a lot of uncertainty at the moment. Given how bizarre and unpredictable COVID-19 has been as a disease, trying to plan a business based on what the virus may, or may not, do, could well be an exercise in futility. Read on to learn key principles for business and brand management during these unprecedented times.
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Who We're Celebrating Now: Helen Frankenthaler
🎨In honor of Women’s History Month, we’re celebrating the iconic American Painter, Helen Frankenthaler. Frankenthaler (1928-2011) was an abstract expressionist painter with a body of work that spans over six decades. She influenced many a painter, and printmaker. We can't get enough of the spectrums created by her soak-stain technique - read more to see notable highlights from her iconic career in Art.
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What We're Exploring Now: Calgary Central Library
📚We love a well-designed public space that’s intentionally built for gathering and community. Enter the stunning Calgary Central Library. Completed in 2018, this architectural gem by Snohetta is phenomenal. The design lifts the main entry over the encapsulated train line below. Gently terraced slopes rise up to the heart of the building, allowing for people arriving from every direction to interact with the library. Continuing reading for the full architectural story.
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Who We're Celebrating Now: Josef Albers
🔳Squares haven't been the same since Josef Albers applied his color spectrums to them. This leading color theorist has forever impacted how we interpret, design and apply color. This month, we celebrate his invaluable teachings on color theory and relationships. His beginnings as a stained glass maker at the Bauhaus in 1922 lit a fire to his life-long pursuit or color exploration. See our must-read books after the jump…
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Who We're Celebrating Now: Ingo Maurer
✨#ThePowerofLight: It transforms space, sets an atmospheric tone, and can be unforgettable - most certainly true in the case of Ingo Maurer, our long-time favorite light artist. If you've seen them, chances are you can remember, in detail, his creative, boundary-breaking fixtures. Over the years we've sought out his poetic light sculptures through travel (hello @ampersandhotel London), visited @ingomaurersoho countless times and collected prints of his work.
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What We're Exploring Now: When Digital goes Physical (Retail that is)
🕶 #TheFutureofRetail: We believe retail isn't dead, boring retail is. A new study by IBM & the National Retail Foundation shows that 67% of Gen Z shop in-store most of the time, with another 31% shopping in-store sometimes, revealing 98% still shop in physical retail stores. If you're going to expect customers to visit your in-store, it should be an experience that goes beyond products on a shelf, it should entertain, surprise & delight. See our roundup of our favorite retail concepts.
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New Work: Interior Design for The Wills Group Corporate Office
📎 For The Wills Group, a new corporate HQ space was a critical component in their broader corporate transformation that included new ways of doing things for existing employees, and a need to attract a new generation of talent to fulfill the company’s strategic aspirations. Our design touched every aspect of the 50,000 square foot project designed to house up to 400 employees, including reception areas, workspaces, collaboration areas, conference rooms, training facilities and dining facilities.
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Where We're Exploring Now: The Best NYC Parks
🌳 #UrbanPlanning done right: As the summer season comes to a close, we're enjoying the transition into Fall at our favorite NYC parks. James Corner's urban planning practice, @FieldOperations, has us tapping into our inner-horticulturist at these two New York City gems, The Highline on Manhattan’s west-side and Domino Park in Williamsburg.
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What We're Discussing Now: Craveworthy Plant-based Proteins
🌿As nature enthusiasts & advocates for the Environment, we love to see the mass adoption of vegetarian eating and meat alternatives that help significantly reduce the impact of our food consumption on the Earth. Tofu, lentils, chickpeas, oh my! Check out our top tips for delicious, earth-friendly, eating.
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