Above: the SmartScreen’s shape-memory strands at different stages of transformation

Last week’s unseasonable temperature spike on the East Coast found many of us scrambling to get out of the 100-degree sun. So it seems appropriate that we just got word from Martina Decker, one of our Next Gen alums, about new developments with her SmartScreen shading system. Her design could potentially have a profound impact on the amount of energy resources our buildings consume. Read more…

Therese Virserius Design recently unveiled Xie-Xie, a new restaurant brand from chef Angelo Sosa. Xie-Xie (pronounced shay-shay), which means “thank you” in Mandarin, brings us affordable Asian street food fare in a high-end setting.

Some thoughts from Therese Virserius on her design concept after the jump. Read more…

Jean-Marc Gady refuses to be pigeonholed. With a hand in interior design, product design, luxury brands, teaching, directing his own creative agency, Gady is one active jack-of-all-trades. A graduate of the L’ecole Bleue in 1997, the French designer has only just begun and now you can see some of his work that is currently showcased at Gallery R’Pure in New York.

French Cancan in black

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The American Design Club opened their third exhibit, Hue Are You? last Friday at Future Perfect in Brooklyn. Focusing on the theme of color, the show features a vibrant mix of furniture, jewelry, and revamped found objects from up and coming American designers.

Strict chairs[2008], Hugh Hayden; Nesting Tables [2008], Elisa Werbler; Modern Stripes pillows  [2008]
Fred Red; Burton Custom snowboard, JDK Design for Burton Snowboard

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In a time when the thought of AIG doling out millions (yet again) in bonuses makes you want to tear your hair out, it is understandably difficult to understand big business. Have those at the helm of large companies lost their mind? And what about design-oriented companies—how will they fare? Enter Alberto Alessi—a beacon of hope with a mind for both business and design.

Alberto, a third generation Alessi, recently joined New York Times’ style magazine design editor, Pilar Viladas, for a conversation on all things design. At once philosophical and pragmatic, it is no wonder Alessi continues to be an enduring force. “Design conjures up images to make people happier,” he asserts. “It really is the new form of art and poetry for our times.” Indeed. Some additional thoughts and highlights from the self-described “artistic mediator” after the jump.

Alessi’s informal chat with Viladas

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Hot on the heels of Compostmodern comes What the *#&! Is Social Design, an exhibit from SoftSpot, opening at Gallery 79 in San Francisco tonight.

Is “social design” more than just the latest buzz phrase? Designers and advocates think yes, but when actually pressed to define it, many come up short. Proponents are working to clarify the matter, including Metropolis which recently published Expanding Architecture on this very topic, and now a set of young designers in California are taking it into their own hands. Read more…

The Oscars are so last month. It’s now time to focus on the Big White Way as Broadway gears up for TONY nominations. And while attention often turns to gossip and celebrity antics (What revival will be the biggest flop? Who’s next in line for the dreaded sushi-iron debacle?), an exhibition from the New York Public Library highlights some of the exceptional off-stage talent of the theater–designers; specifically, women designers.

Heidi Ettinger’s model for The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
(Photograph: Ken Howard)

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It’s the middle of February; most of us just want to sleep the rest of winter away and awake when it’s spring. Not so for artist/designer Hongtao Zhou. He is making the most of this bitterly cold winter and thoroughly enjoying himself in the process.These days Zhou, an MFA candidate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, can be found on the frozen Lake Mendota, having coffee with the locals and marveling at the way people interact with his latest installation, Icy Furniture. “Madison is a fantastic place to work with the weather,” he says.

On the lake with a view of the UW-Madison Memorial Union Terrace shoreline
(Photos: Hongtao Zhou, unless otherwise noted)

Drawing on his knowledge on green design, Zhou has found perhaps the most sustainable way of making furniture. “I came up with the idea to make snow furniture because humans need to work with nature instead of working against it.” Read more…

“I have my own house. It’s made of old planks put together, and it suits me just fine,” said Le Corbusier. Cabanon, Le Corbusier’s wooden house/studio in Cap-Martin on the Cote Azure, appears from the outside to be not much more than a compact log cabin. The interior, however, reveals a masterful exercise in micro-architecture rooted in absolute simplicity.

This spring the Royal Institute of British Architects and Cassina give you a glimpse inside by reconstructing the remarkable interior of Cabanon.

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Ever found yourself engaged in a mindless activityin public—adjusting your tights or “scratching” your nose—only to have it suddenly dawn on you that someone has probably been watching? You may want to check that subconscious behavior at the door of Drawing Lightscapes, a light installation that invites the viewer to be viewed.

Orion
(All images courtesy the artists unless otherwise noted)

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