Eat. Drink. Design.
Founded in 2007
When I wrote about A24’s newest cookbook “Scrounging” I was excited to see that New York creative duo Wade and Leta were behind the photography. The pair of artists run the gamut from branding to large-scale installations. You name it, the couple can make it. So I reached out to see if they’d give us a behind-the-scenes look at how the imagery came together, their inspirations, and what they did and didn’t eat.
The Bee Home project is a free and open-source design that allows anyone to support their local pollinators and contribute to preserving biodiversity. The project, developed by SPACE10 in collaboration with Tanita Klein and Bakken & Bæck, aims to raise awareness about the importance of bees and their role in shaping the natural environment.
The Bee Home project is designed with the needs of bees in mind, with holes for each bee to store food and provide shelter for the eggs they lay. The project is parametrically customizable, allowing people to design their own unique Bee Home, and doesn’t require tools of any kind, making it easy to assemble and dismantle. To create a Bee Home, visit beehome.design and design your own Bee Home based on the predefined parameters. Once satisfied with your design, you can download the design files and forward them to your local makerspace to have them made locally and on demand. The final step is to place your Bee Home, plant some flowers, and let nature do the rest. Personally, I think they look super cool, like tiny bee cities that live in a garden. It would be great to see cities also take this concept and run with it, for the betterment of our public spaces.
Stumbled upon Tamitu last week, an herbal honey that is made by mixing several types of herbs and spices with carefully selected pure honey, which is supposed to give a complex depth to the natural sweetness. The company was created by Mizutani Bee Garden (great name for a band, btw), which was founded in 1912 and has been producing pure honey for over a century.
I really like that they’ve taken a contemporary approach to their branding and marketing. The look of the packaging makes me think of a fragrance, kind of like what Margiela does with REPLICA, and the bottle is kind of new apothecary feeling, it immediately gives me the vibe of “being healthy.” Paired with the photography utilized across the products, site and social, you get this really peaceful, pure feeling that seals the deal here.
There’s something so peaceful and magical about a small, dimly lit bar. At this point in my life, I personally prefer tucking in for a nice glass of wine while nibbling on some olives with a couple of close friends. And that’s why I’m so taken with Gota, a small wine bar in Madrid that was designed by the team at Plantea Estudio.
They’ve managed to transform a rather small space, only about 70 square meters, and use it to their advantage. The first space is brighter, fitted with a combination of grey stone and plaster, grounded by a beautiful wooden counter with a built-in turntable. Beyond this main space is the moodier, cave like space covered in a beautiful red-orange textured walls, meant to reflect the history of brickwork in the area. I’m obsessed with how light is being utilized in the space, with the small windows that overlook a garden, and other small warm lights that highlight the space in a non-intrusive way. It sets the mood for the space, making even a small cave feel cozy and comfortable.
Solen, which is the Swedish word for “sun”, is also recently opened restaurant in Stockholm from chefs Adam Dahlberg and Albin Wessman. Inspired by sun drenched locales like Tel Aviv, Naples, and Oaxaca, with a menu that features a delicious looking mix of dishes from those cities.
To help bring the space to life, Solen tapped designer Daniel Carlsten to create a visual identity. Leaning into bold, sun-inspired colors and a mid-century minimalism, it all feels timeless, like the restaurant has been around for decades, a touchstone of the neighborhood. I especially love the custom mobile, which was crafted by Ray Atelier. If you’re in Stockholm, stop by for a visit and let me know how it is.
Design comes in many forms. I think one unexpected way of designing comes in the form of landscape design, a field that seems to have really bloomed over the last 20 years. In the documentary below, Piet Oudolf describes what he does best within the first 5 minutes, saying, “This is what you’d like to see in the wild.”
He is well-known around the world for his work, such as projects like The High Line in New York, the gardens at Hauser & Wirth Somerset, or the Vitra campus in Weil am Rhein. Instead of creating traditional, structured gardens, he focuses on making literally wild organizations of plants which create an idealized atmosphere for people to enjoy. It’s like the ultimate user-experience design, as you can’t really control the outcome, and that inherently is part of the beauty. I love this documentary as it speaks to the rich depth of design, and I think it’s incredibly important to find inspiration from fields that are so different from my own.
“In this captivating five-season documentary, we delve into the world of Piet Oudolf, a renowned Dutch garden designer known for his breathtaking naturalistic landscapes. From his iconic works like the High Line in New York City to his private garden in the Netherlands, we witness the creation of stunning gardens that evolve with the changing seasons. Join us on this visual journey through the eyes of Piet Oudolf, as we explore his unique design philosophy and see how his gardens come to life. Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or simply appreciate the beauty of nature, this documentary is a must-watch for anyone looking to be inspired by the natural world.”
Let’s kick things off this week with a mix I’ve been enjoying lately. While looking for mixes by Roméo Poirier, a Brussels-based ambient artist, I inadvertently discovered pleasure gallery, a Bristol-based mix series and radio show. Now on their 4th season of mixes (really 12 episodes per season), Roméo actually kicked off the series with the mix below, an eclectic blend of found sounds and ambient din. I love working to Roméo’s music, and for me, mixes like these help me focus on my projects.
Wow, Friday already! This week flew by for me, how was your week? Things were eventful, with the the sad passing of Sinead O’Connor, and aliens maybe exist for real now but and no one cares. Most non-reluctant folks are all saying, “will the aliens solve the housing crisis or dissolve student loans?” Prolly not, sadly. Next week I’m headed off to San Sebastián for a month with the fam and our friend Kate. Very excited to see what the north coast is like (definitely going to be much cooler), make a quick stop into France, visit Bilbao, see some museums, lay on some beaches. I can’t wait.
Things To Read
“We Deserve to Have Fun”: The Women Going All Out for Barbie
Lots of stories around Barbie though this one has been my favorite. Author Tess Garcia shares how we can be both fully aware of the tough shit we’re all going through and how value it is to enjoy your life at the same time.
The excellent Arc browser is now available for anyone to download
I switched over to Arc for my desktop browser and I love it. They’ve made so many interesting refinements, quicker ways to organize your browser, and they make lots of incremental quality-of-life updates.
Why Patrick Bringley Left His Job at the ‘New Yorker’ To Become a Museum Guard
I love this story because Patrick did what many of us want to do. Quit having “careers” and focus on doing the one thing you love. One day!
How Long Gone Ep. 518 with Geoff McFetridge
The HLG boys chat with Geoff McFetridge, dishing about Carlyle room service, raising a horse girl, growing up on Canada’s Oregon Trail, back in the day when computers took all day to export a jpg, cheaper can sometimes be better, making the title sequence for Sofia Coppola’s Virgin Suicides, being a ski bunny, how he uses Instagram now vs. then, when brands stopped hiring artists and started “wanting to collab” with them, and why Greta doing Barbie is a good thing.
Things To Hear
Love Hallucination by Jessy Lanza
Jessy’s album Love Hallucination is described as her “trust fall” as she embraces newfound confidence and personal authenticity after moving from the Bay Area to Los Angeles. The album showcases an evolved sound, with club-ready songs and downbeat, sultry works, exploring the depths of love while highlighting self-assuredness and trusting one’s instincts.
Headlock by MoMa Ready
MoMa Ready is not joking this year! This is his third release this year and the man keeps putting out consistently puts out hits. Headlock is no different, in fact, I had it on many times today and kept wanting to hear it on repeat. In his own words: PUTTING THE GAME INA CHOKEHOLD. Music for smoking dj’s and clubs. Use with caution. Not to be missed.
Blackbox Life Recorder 21f / in a room7 F760 by Aphex Twin
Getting new music from Aphex Twin is always a treat, and BLR21f (lol) is an energetic and pop-y affair. When I saw him play Sónar I believe he played a couple of these tracks, though it was hard to tell through all the noise.
rRoxymore — Early Hours (DJ Mix)
I love love love these Apple Music Early Hours mixes. They’ve had such a beautiful mix of artists, and the most recent release from French-born, Mexico City based rRoxymore is one of my faves. Like it says on the can, this in fact is a perfect get-your-day-going mixtape.
You know I love some tiny little cafés, those spaces that make the most of not much, though the still have such a robust sense of character. A take-out-only shop for “Canule-dou,” a pastry shop specializing in canelés, CANELE du JAPON sits in a small space that was previously used as a lottery ticket sales booth.
To preserve the Canule-dou brand image and its unique organic and distinct nature, the design integrates these characteristics, using earth as a material for the exterior walls and solid chestnut wood and handcrafted “Kurotani washi” paper by Hatanowataru for the interior. Overall, there’s so much thought and care that went into the shop, it’s a delight to see.
I think it’s so special when someone is able to develop a brand identity that looks how something would feel. Case in point, this season’s look and feel for the Théâtre des Salins developed by Image Format. Now, these days, gradients are everywhere, it’s literally impossible to avoid them at this point. Though in this case I love what Image Format has done, giving the impression of time and seasons shifting, or that’s how it reads to me personally. And the typeface they’re using, Baste, has such an eclectic look, like a silly, rounded monospace, which feels retro and quite contemporary.
It’s been 10 years since Craig Green started designing clothes and it’s incredible how he continues to reach into new spaces. He presented his AW23 and SS24 Collections this week, and each had very unique points of view, you’d be hard-pressed to know these are from the same mind if you aren’t familiar with Green’s work.
There’s the knitwear, that feels like an assemblage of blankets and sweaters, maybe colorful kites from times past. They come together in the most fascinating ways, some that feel ceremonial, others that feel organic. Then there are these sparring dummy meet Evangelion looks, the models adorned with the hulking, lifeless frames. And finally, he gave us these patchwork suits, like Gene Kelly’s Singing in the Rain attire have gone through a futuristic transformation for our modern times. It’s all so fascinating when you view it together, and truly shows how Green’s mind is so expansive, constantly reaching for new ways to think about what clothing can possibly be.
I joked when we got to Barcelona that there wasn’t an Aesop, and what the hell was I going to moisturize my face with? Cut to like, six months later and a beautifully designed Aesop shop was opened. Located right off of Passeig de Gràcia, in perhaps quite the center of the city, is a beautifully minimalist, perhaps even brutalist, interpretation of the Aesop brand. It’s quite a departure, in my opinion, if you’re familiar with what their other shops tend to look.
The space was designed by Barozzi Veiga, local Barcelona architects, who have done quite a lot with quite a petite space. In their own words:
The store is made up of a few elements, expressive and precise in their position, and with three materials: stucco on the walls and ceilings, terrazzo on the floor, and burnished steel on the columns, the counter, and the display case. It is a simple and complex space at the same time, which aspires to be sophisticated and close, and in a certain way intimate and monumental.
The space does indeed feel monumental. The height of the ceilings are remarkable, it feels almost like a cathedral. I’m really fond of their use of steel, which gives such a Donald Judd energy. I’m seeing steel used like this in so many interior design projects and I’m a huge fan, especially with the way light bounces off the surfaces. Such an exquisite space to experience.
