1 Colour-Changing Garments by The Unseen
During London Fashion Week in February, designer Lauren Bowker grabbed the media spotlight with her intricately layered leather pieces. Each of the feather-like fins that make up the plumage, which suggests armour, is dyed with pressure-sensitive ink that changes colour when the wearer moves.
2 Abyss Table by Christopher Duffy
Christopher Duffy’s coffee table simulates oceanic topography with stacked sheets of glass over a similarly layered wooden base.
3 Micro-Housing by Affect-T
This proposal by Hong Kong firm Affect‑T aims to ease the city’s chronic housing shortage through the construction of eco-friendly bamboo shelters that can be inserted into vacant industrial buildings.
4 Blue Honey
The natural and the unnatural sometimes come together in unexpected ways. Recently, an apiary in France discovered that its bees were sourcing sugar from a supply of M&Ms, which caused their honey to turn blue.
5 Arezzo Textile by Knoll
Knoll creative director Dorothy Cosonas was inspired by an Alexander McQueen garment with a pattern of splattered paint sprayed on by robots – a merging of hand and machine – when she created the Arezzo upholstery, a velvety, green-tinged viscose-polyester-cotton blend.
6 Kipu Stools by La Palma
Anderssen & Voll’s beautiful island-like forms for La Palma, which debuted in Milan this year, echo the smooth shapes of river pebbles.
7 Hexx Lamp by Foscarini
In this hexagonal table lamp, by Diesel Living with Foscarini, two offset layers of perforated metal enhance the unique lighting effect. Available in black or a verdigris finish.
8 399 Vico Sofa by Cassina
Blues and greens were seen everywhere at iSaloni this spring. Shown here, the 399 Vico sofa by Jaime Hayon.
9 Atoll Lounge Chair by Tacchini
Four verdant islands fit together snugly atop a metal frame with wooden legs in Patrick Norguet’s curvy new chaise.
10 House of Trees by Vo Trong Nghia Architects
Mature Banyan trees, with their aerial prop roots, fill the rooftops of five planter-like houses designed by Vo Trong Nghia Architects. The residential project aims to return greenery to a densely populated area of Ho Chi Minh City.
11 Vermilion Sands by Matthew Soules
This temporary canopy, installed in West Vancouver in August, consists of 260 modules seeded with white clover and grass, and equipped with an automatic misting system. The project, by Vancouver architect Matthew Soules, explores the merging of nature with the artificial.
12 Memorial to Arcadia Woodlands Clear Cut
Artist Andrea Bowers’ chandelier-shaped sculpture is a response to a failed attempt at saving a forested habitat in California. The wood chips, tied to the ends of hundreds of green ropes, were gathered from the site when the forest was cut down.
13 Quantomais by A4A Rivolta Savioni Architetti
These corn crops in Milan, planted by A4A Rivolta Savioni Architetti, form a preamble to Expo Milano 2015, which opens next May. Over 140 pavilions will explore the future of food and global agricultural sustainability.