Milano.

I spent last weekend zooming around Milan in a quest to see as much of the Funiture Fair as possible and experience the sights and sounds of the city in a total of 48 hours. The fair itself was so inspiring but to begin with here is just a taste of the Italian culture we soaked up along the way... From the magnificent Duomo and wonderful architecture and stumbling upon a lovely authentic flea market! And despite my aching shoulders, blistered feet and lack of sleep I loved every minute of it! I will be back!

Climbing Wall...

Amazing climbing wall by Nendo in the Illoiha Store on Omotesando. Wish I had known about this when I was in Japan, this would be a really fun edition to my living room! Take a look at his website, he's done some amazing work!

You Can Find Inspiration in Everything...

Last night I was lucky enough to attend a great lecture by Paul Smith at Nottingham Contemporary followed by Christmas drinks and mince pies at Willoughby House.

To begin with Smith, full of energy as usual, led us through his profile. He explained how he started out running his first shop in Nottingham alongside his wife, Pauline and Afghan hound Homer, through to how he gains inspiration for the 26 collections now under the Paul Smith brand.

A couple of things that really stuck with me were how hard you have to work to really be able to achieve your ambitions and remain pure to your work ethos. Smith emphasised how 4 days a week he worked to earn money so that the remainder of the week he could do what he was passionate about. Also, how important individuality is; to make each thing special and interesting, to capture attention and most importantly, to show your personality. A couple of things I will take forward into my work are the importance of colour in design and the need to be brave in order to be distinctive! It was a great evening and i was given lots of food for thought! Plus a few mince pies!

Effort Costs Nothing.

Images via here and here.

Next Generation House.

More amazing architecture from Sou Fujimoto Architects… This is the Next Generation House, a 4m by 4m cube created using stacked, cedar blocks. The interlocking elements generate layers and crevices which fulfill the primary functions of a house; a ceiling and four walls as well as added warmth, insulation and comfort the wood brings. This multilevel structure blurs the lines between conventional rooms and levels creating seating, shelving, and storage throughout. It is nestled in the hillside in Kumamura, Japan and I only wish I had time to visit while I am here! (photographed by Iwan Baan)

Temples...

I couldn't spend a week in Kyoto and not post anything about all the temples I have visited. It is jam-packed full of them and I am pretty bad at remebering all the different names, so I tend to recall them by their size, the materials they are made from, sights I saw there and the colours! Here is just a small taste of the ones I have visited....

Capsule Apartments

Today, after lots of searching, I finally found the Nakagin Capsule Apartments in Tokyo! Hurrah! These were designed by architect Kisho Kurokawa in the 1970s, who also designed the Tokyo National Arts Centre, from my previous post. Each capsule measures 2.5 x 2.5 x 4 metres and can be detached separately or interconnected to make rooms larger. These apartments were the first example of capsule architecture to be built and used. They are a great source of inspiration for my new project, so pleased I have seen them in person!

So Solid yet So Transparent

I have been continuing with my research into Japanese living and came across these photographs by Iwan Baan. This house is amazing! The large windows and interconnecting nature of the interior makes the solid structure appear so light and airy, challenging the concepts of volume, space and light! I'm not sure how it would work to live in, but I would definitely like to pay a visit! House H was designed by Tokyo based architect Sou Fujimoto. I love how his designs push the limits of housing and space.

Kisho Kurokawa...

Last week we took a trip to The National Arts Centre of Tokyo in Roppongi to catch an exhibition about shadows. The exhibition was a good insight into the way artists interpret shadows, the roles they play and the type of expressions they have inspired. However, what really captured my imagination was the space within the Arts Centre. The architecture, designed by Kisho Kurokawa, was really impressive. The interior of building had a haunting, industrial feel about it contrast against an undualating, organic facade. We caught it at just the right time of the day, when the sun was beginning to lower in the sky, creating great long shadows. I particularly like the choice of seating too! My favourite is the Three-legged Shell Chair by Hans.J Wegner.