Light & shade
ARCHITECTURE
Edinburgh’s Fruitmarket has reopened as a multi art form space. Brilliantly extended & revitalised by architects Reiach and Hall, Susanna Beaumont talks to their design director, Neil Gillespie about the importance of light & dark, shade & shadow in its transformation.
Dixon goes public! Mirrl’s drinking fountain makes its debut in Glasgow’s Queen’s Park.
DESIGN INNOVATION
DES is developing eye-catchingly good looking fountains for the contemporary age. So here’s Dixon, a minty-fresh fountain designed & built by Simon Harlow & Lewis Harley, keen fountaineers & the founders of Mirrl of Glasgow.
Sculptural forms in space
Edinburgh’s reopened & revitalised Fruitmarket is embracing functional objects commissioned from artists & designers. Here DES takes a look at Tania Kovats drinking fountain WELL & light sculptures by Andrew Miller.
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DES suggests . . . looking at the work of Charlotte Perriand.
DES cuts through the thicket of catch up, things to read & must dos & signposts the interesting stuff & shares important news on shows, call-outs & new work.
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Building the dream – architecture that inspires, delights, perplexes or intrigues.
ARCHITECTURE
Architect Paul Stallan of the Glasgow practice Stallan-Brand, shares his thoughts on six buildings in Scotland that inspire, delight, perplex or intrigue him. And he offers insights into Stallan-Brand’s recent project, Broomlands primary school (pictured) in the Border’s town of Kelso.
Weave been waiting . . . says Beca Lipscombe
DESIGN CLASSIC
Archie Brennan was arguably the most inventive tapestry weaver of the 20th century. Here designer Beca Lipscombe celebrates his work & heralds the exhibition of Brennan’s work which is currently on at the Dovecot Studios in Edinburgh until the 30 August.
Arrange Whatever Pieces Come Your Way
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Sheelagh Boyce & Annabelle Harty have known each for decades yet it was only recently that they began their collective practice of quilting. Here they talk ideas, inspiration & their current show at Glasgow Print Studio & their forthcoming exhibition at Mount Stuart on the Isle of Bute.
towards a right-angled sock, for Ružena
NEW WRITING
Artist, writer, designer, Kate Morgan explores & exposes the fascinating intricacies of knitting proper socks from the mighty MUJI to a modest Czech grandmother.
Questions & Answers / Cooking Sections
‘Spatial practitioners’, Daniel Fernández Pascual & Alon Schwabe founded Cooking Sections in 2013. Here they discuss Climavore, their recent project on the Isle of Skye & why what we eat should focus our minds on food supply chains & ecosystems.
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Draff unveils children’s furniture for Dundee Science Centre
MATERIAL INNOVATION | FURNITURE
Made of ‘spent grain’ leftover from the distilling process, Draff is a new & brilliant material developed by Aymeric Renoud. DES reports on the Dundee-based design & build studio & their commission for Dundee Science Centre.
Shroom with a view
MATERIAL INNOVATION | GRADUATE DESIGN
Glasgow School of Art graduate, Catriona Brown had long thought the ubiquitous plastic tree protector was a blot on the landscape, so she set out to design an alternative. Here Catriona tells the story of Shroom, her newly designed tree protector made of mycelium.
Up against a better brick wall
MATERIAL INNOVATION
Accolades have been showered on the K-Briq. A building brick made of over 90% construction waste, it was invented by Prof Gabriela Medero of Edinburgh’s Heriot-Watt University. Susanna Beaumont finds out more about a sustainable building block, now in production in East Lothian.
Geometric Variations . . Paolozzi the designer
DESIGN CLASSIC
Eduardo Paolozzi, the Leith-born artist is celebrated widely for his sculptures & collages but his work in design & collaborations with industry are arguably lesser known. Here curator Sarah Rothwell applauds his brilliance in design.
Travels by Design | Then & Now
GRADUATE DESIGN
Times are challenging for everyone right now but for last year’s design & applied arts graduates, the ‘real world’ has been particularly tough. Helen Voce catches up with three of the graduates she profiled last summer in DES, to see how their worlds are shaping up.
Ica Headlam
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
Ica Headlam makes things happen. A social worker living in Aberdeen, he champions creativity. The man behind Creative-Me-Podcasts, last autumn Ica launched We Are Here Scotland, to raise funds to support BIPOC creatives.
Shop Window
PRODUCT DESIGN
DES brings news of exceptional objects to buy by designers & artists we have exhibited . . tables & stools from Flux, flamboyant coasters from Mirrl & Adam Nathaniel Furman & Urpflanza, a new series of lights by Rachel Adams, inspired by the brilliance that is brassicas!
Catch up with . . Design for our Times
DES TALKS
DES presents three talks bringing together designers, architects & academics to debate fresh ideas, explore new materials & imagine a brighter future. All three conversations, Design in Postnormal Times, Material World & Circular Thinking in Design are now available to listen / watch again online. Autumn 2020
Questions & Answers / Leonie Bell
Leonie Bell is V&A Dundee’s new director. Here she discusses her role, the vital importance of design in the age of a pandemic & her delight in the clothes of Mary Quant & Jean Muir. Winter 2020
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Questions & Answers / Christina Gaiger
Christina Gaiger was recently appointed the youngest president, to date of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland. Here she talks to fellow architect Andy Summers about her career path, cycling routes & activism in architecture. Winter 2020
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In Your Own Sweet Time
DESIGN INNOVATION
Contemporary horology is flourishing . . Scotland’s watchmakers Paulin, Instrmnt & anOrdain are making sure that time still moves, beautifully. Watch enthusiast James Hall celebrates the tick & the tock. Winter 2020