Morning Brew

In attendance:

Harry McKinley, Managing Editor
Chloé Petersen Snell, Deputy Editor
Charlotte Slinger, Editorial Assistant

CPS – Good weekend?

HM – Belated unpacking mostly, after my working week in Denmark. But Copenhagen is always a good idea, right?

CPS – No arguments from me.

HM – I was able to squeeze in a few cultural off-shoots thankfully. At Design Museum Danmark, there’s a magnificent exploration of how design will shape the future; including some interesting thoughts on how our cities will need to evolve to consider more than human needs.

CS – Ah, interspecies design, a hot topic. We broached it back in issue 228 and it certainly got readers talking.

HM – Lots of radical product ideas too. ‘What if you could book your death like an Airbnb?’ and a gel to mimic human touch, as we all grow more isolated.

CPS – How dystopian.

HM – Depressing, yes, but also beautiful because…Danish design. Sadly the Danish Modern exhibition, set to feature 125 renowned chairs, is still under construction, so one for next time. But I shouldn’t complain, I did get to see a fair few icons in situ across the week.

CPS – Did you manage to get a glimpse of Room 606, at the Radisson Collection Royal?

HM – I did: a shrine to all things Arne Jacobsen – who we recently featured in our Disruptors Series – and Fritz Hansen. Even got the book. I’m still amazed the building used to serve as an airline terminal – you could check in downstairs, get bussed to the airport and collect your case on the other end. A golden age.

CS – Now you leave your case at the airport and may still never see it again.

HM – Definitely been there. I was actually staying directly below in the Jaime Hayon Signature Suite, complete with Ro Chair and graphic wall hangings. He’ll be featured in our next issue, of course.

CPS – Any other recs?

HM – Well, there’s a brand-new exhibition at the Danish Architecture Centre: Aware – Architecture and Senses. It challenges us to consider the relationship between spaces and human emotion; running until September.

CPS – Speaking of emotion, I’m thrilled that we’ve closed entries for this year’s Mix Awards with a record number of submissions. Some fantastic work in there, so we won’t be making life easy for our judges.

CS – It’s going to be a special year. Looking forward to seeing the winners unveiled on the big night.

CPS – I also had something of a silver screen weekend: Poor Things and Dune: Part Two. What incredible set design. They’ve sparked a conversation around how cinematic spaces might influence real-world interiors. They both have a bit of an AI feel.

HM – Refik Anadol’s exhibition at The Serpentine on the aesthetics of AI design is certainly making waves.

CS – Another person set to be featured in the next issue.

CPS – Plus David Lynch will be bringing his filmic sensibility to Salone; the countdown well and truly on now. I’m particularly excited that it’s 25 years of SaloneSatellite, celebrating young and emerging talent.

CS – Not unlike our own 30 under 30; entries still pouring in.

HM – And just as we’ve all recovered from Milan, we’ll be taking to Clerkenwell Design Week.

CS – We’ll sleep when we’re dead as they say. Beyond our own Conversations at Clerkenwell talk and Zaha Hadid Architects and ERCO discussions series, I’m perhaps most eager to see the installations. Lois O’Hara, Jestico + Whiles…there are some brilliant names in there and I can’t wait to see what they do to bring the neighbourhood to life.

CPS – Did you see Samuel Ross has been named artistic director of the London Design Biennale for 2025?

CS – He’s apparently planning to bring more of an emphasis to art and design, versus fashion, moving forward.

HM – I have no intention of dressing down. But Ross has been an outspoken advocate for inclusivity and diversity in design, so it will be interesting to see how that influences the event – in terms of new perspectives.

CPS – It’s still an elitist industry in many ways, let’s be honest – something Shawn Adams tackled in his most recent column for us.

HM – Any good reads? I’ll be dashing off to Paris soon and could do with something to keep me awake on my painfully early flight.

CPS – I just finished something on Medieval graffiti?

HM – I said keep me awake.

CPS – In that case Everlasting Plastics is on pre-order. Essentially, how can we live without plastics? It’s not out until 30^th April though, so perhaps more of a CDW train read than something to take to the airport with you.

HM – Morning papers and lots of bad coffee it is.