01Design
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Naoto Fukasawa: music begins with a gesture
In his wall-mounted CD player, a hanging cord connects hand and sound: design also means observing things we do without thinking.
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People and objects that teach us to look more closely. One design at a time.
27 results
Newest first02Design
Eva Zeisel: two objects keeping each other company
Eva Zeisel's ceramics show how different forms can relate to each other: design also involves the space between objects.
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April Greiman: pixels can stay in view
A magazine became a poster in 1986 as April Greiman explored computer design while keeping the texture of digital images visible.
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Lucienne Day: a garden can become a language of shapes
The British designer turned plants and colours into textile patterns: recognising a form does not require copying every detail.
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George Carwardine: a lamp that finds its balance
An adjustable lamp shows how springs, moving arms and a steady base can work together to solve an everyday problem.
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Sori Yanagi: two curves can become a stool
The Butterfly Stool invites us to follow the wood from seat to floor: one shape can do more than one job.
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Anni Albers: a wall can be made of threads
A textile can divide a room while letting light through: start by noticing the materials, the gaps and the weave.
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Saul Bass: the film begins before the first scene
A few shapes can prepare us for a story: his film titles turn movement into a way of giving images meaning.
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Margaret Calvert: the sign that lets you concentrate on the road
Letters, pictures and spacing work together in her road signs: the most useful design makes sense before you notice it.
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William Morris: a leaf can become a rhythm
Looking at a plant and inventing a pattern are different activities. William Morris helps us explore the conversation between them.
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Paul Rand: a small mark can do a big job
A mark needs to be recognisable. Paul Rand helps us explore simple shapes, visual play and the value of testing ideas.
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Florence Knoll: people come before the chairs
A room connects movements, routes and materials. Florence Knoll’s approach began with the people who would actually use the space.
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Massimo Vignelli: a map does not need to say everything
His subway map turns a network into a diagram: connections become clearer, while real walking distances need a different drawing.
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Susan Kare: a computer begins with a square
A notebook of squares invites us to design small, understandable pictures that can survive the test of another person using them.
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Otl Aicher: a picture that helps you find your way
The Munich 1972 pictograms show how shared rules and teamwork can make information easier to recognise and use.
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Rietveld: a chair you can see through
The Red Blue Chair brings planes, bars and empty space into conversation. Its famous colours came later: even icons have histories.
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Enzo Mari: making something changes how you look
A simple piece of furniture becomes a question about design: what do we understand when we help make an object?
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Charlotte Perriand: a chair begins with a gesture
Steel, posture and authorship: two seats reveal design as a practical response to the ways people move and rest.
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The Eameses: when wood suggests a change of plan
Charles and Ray Eames turned plywood experiments into useful objects: separating a form into parts can also be progress.
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Achille Castiglioni, light takes a shortcut
Arco, designed with Pier Giacomo, brings light above a table while allowing the ceiling to stay out of the conversation.
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Alvar Aalto, a bend that makes room
Stool 60 turns a bent wooden leg into a simple, stackable system designed to fit everyday life.
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Verner Panton, a chair in one piece
The Panton Chair shows how much work a continuous shape can conceal: one curve, many trials and several different materials.
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Eileen Gray, a table that makes itself comfortable
An adjustable glass tabletop captures Eileen Gray’s approach to design: begin with everyday gestures, even breakfast in bed.
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Isamu Noguchi: a sculpture you can switch on
With Akari, Noguchi brings paper, bamboo and light together: a lamp can become a sculpture while still doing its everyday job.
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Marianne Brandt, geometry at teatime
In Marianne Brandt’s small tea infuser, circles and semicircles become everyday gestures: modernism makes it all the way into your cup.
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Bruno Munari: the use of a useless machine
Lightweight shapes, air and shadows: Munari’s machines invite us to look closely without insisting that everything must produce something.
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Dieter Rams: fewer things, done better
From the 606 shelving system to a useful idea: a thoughtfully designed object makes room for the lives we lead.
Read the discoveryIllustrated reads with verifiable sources. Original illustrations made with AI assistance.