Abundance, though an invitation to a wellspring, has become a central tension of our lives as our time and resources remain finite. Surrounded by such profusion, discovery lies not simply in finding more, but in seeing what we already know in new ways.
We believe the familiar can reveal new dimensions when encountered in an unfamiliar context, and that new possibilities emerge when different worlds meet, just as humanity has long evolved through intersecting paths.
SELENPARC uncovers ‘collective synergies’ at these crossroads, exploring experiences that intertwine across wellness, art, style, culinary, travel, and tech. We aspire to create a medium where unique intersections unveil new perspectives and possibilities, inviting our audience to see the world through a fresh lens and embrace a richer, more connected way of life.
Sansiri has unveiled a one-of-a-kind show residence furnished with RH, a leading purveyor of luxury design, set within Narasiri Victoire Krungthep Kreetha in Bangkok.
The show house, Manoir No.6, reflects Narasiri’s "A Matter of Refinement", merging architecture, landscape, interiority, craftsmanship, and service together as a complete expression of considered living. Timeless Prestige sets the overall tone, bringing Modern French Renaissance architecture that reinterprets the grandeur of Versailles and the opulence of Louis XIV's era.
With its first RH Contract collaboration, French classicism meets the understated design sensibility of RH through proportions, natural tonalities, layered textures and craftsmanship.
Image credit: Sansiri | ©2026 RH
Sep 16, 2026
On, with Post Archive Faction (PAF) and land artist Strijdom van der Merwe, constructed a permanent 50m circular stone running loop in Tenerife’s volcanic Poris Desert, drawing a visual parallel with ancient stone circles.
Cultivating permanence in a transient industry, the project finds consonance at a novel intersection of artistic intervention, natural landscapes, and athletic movement, its sculptural footprint persisting as a usable trail that evolves through weather, time, and footfall.
At the heart is the new Cloudsoma PAF, marking the final chapter of the On x PAF collaboration and drawing from the rugged rock formations encountered by PAF co-founder and creative director Dongjoon Lim while hiking in Switzerland’s Engadin region.
Image credit: On | Post Archive Faction (PAF) Beltran
Sep 8, 2026
HAY founders Mette and Rolf Hay, alongside a neighbouring creative couple Barbara Husted Werner and Martin Werner, restored a 19th century palazzo in Puglia, Italy to create Villa Colucci, a rentable retreat immersed in art, design, and history.
Refusing to erase the building's age, they renewed it as unusually art dense lodging that allows encountering the collection inseparable from rhythms of living in the house.
In its Puglian architectural shell, the house holds objects, artworks and furniture accumulated from the owners’ lives and relationships, with the restoration led by architect Francesco Mastrorosa and regional artisans.
The interiors bring together HAY designs, mid-century pieces and Puglian flea-market finds with an extensive collection of contemporary paintings, ceramics and textiles that extends throughout the villa.
Image credit: Villa Colucci | Marina Denisova
Sep 1, 2026
Fragrance enters club culture — drawing upon its historical connection with music and underground culture, Rabanne became the inaugural exclusive fragrance partner for the renowned UK club series, The Warehouse Project, for the Manchester club's 20th year season, from Sep 2026 to Jan 2027.
Rabanne threads its olfactory identity into the very fabric of the clubbing experience with a curated suite of immersive scent environments and bespoke cultural activations.
The partnership serves as a sensory launchpad for the new 1 Million Black, a scent expressing embodiment of intensity, confidence, individuality, and magnetic allure.
Image credit: Rabanne | The Warehouse Project | Francesca Beltran
Aug 13, 2026
Artist duo Bigert & Bergström crafted Lithium Crystal Sauna at WasteLand Climate Action Park, a remediated former industrial site in Skellefteå, Sweden, to symbolize the complex paradoxes of today’s green energy transition.
As a functional wellness amenity and a performative artwork, it sits at a long-polluted site that endured 17 years of rigorous soil renewal to be reborn as a fertile space for ecology, art, and communal gathering.
In sharp contrast to its surreal facade, the sauna opens into a warm wood grotto reminiscent of mankind’s earliest shelters, with a heater that places future energy in dialogue with primal tools, fire, and shelter.
Image credit: Bigert & Bergström | Pär Olofsson | Jonas Westling
Aug 22, 2026
What cannot be named may still be remembered by the skin: PAÑPURI gathers three inner states carried through scent, allowing memory to return to the body.
Care Eau de Parfum
"WHAT STAYS, STAYS CLOSE"
Its core idea rethinks the outward projection of perfumery, turning scent into an intimate presence worn softly, primarily for oneself.
Memory may be invisible, yet it finds expression through material traces; the following three scents are interpreted through architecture, an object, and ceramics.
No One Is Watching
The Soft Within
Little Light Still Burning
Image credit: PAÑPURI
Aug 8, 2026
Born from the late collector's dream, a museum marks a pivotal shift in the region's cultural ecosystem, with architecture staging this turn as a mindful spatial narrative.
Dib Bangkok
—Thailand’s first international contemporary art museum
Architect Kulapat Yantrasast, who trained under Tadao Ando, revitalized a 1980s warehouse through "acupuncture architecture" — healing instead of eclipsing it — and a spatial progression inspired by the Buddhist journey toward enlightenment. Within this spatial sequence, James Turrell’s Straight Up, the artist’s first Skyspace in Southeast Asia, moves from a sky-projecting camera obscura to a dawn-and-dusk Skyspace, turning sight inward.
Its debut exhibit, (In)visible Presence, running only until August 3, explores what it means to sense beyond vision, with works by 40 leading artists, notably including:
Alex Katz
Alicja Kwade
Anselm Kiefer
Lee Bul
Montien Boonma
Image credit: Dib Bangkok | W Workspace | Auntika Ounjittichai | Watcharapong Sermwichitchai | SELENPARC
Jul 29, 2026
Formula 1 and Moët Hennessy merged fine dining with Grand Prix circuits, reimagining the driver’s lap through the track’s storied corners as a gastronomic experience.
"The Out Lap"
Belgium | Jul 17–19
Netherlands | Aug 21–23
Italy | Sep 4–6
Spain | Sep 11–13
Turning F1’s physical and historic fabric into a multisensory narrative medium, luxury takes form as privileged access and firsthand recollections in one moving journey.
Beginning with Yannick Alléno, a changing roster of Michelin-starred chefs creates menus for dining in motion, paired with Moët Hennessy wines and spirits, as twelve diners move through landmark corners, step onto the raceway, and hear former Formula 1 World Champions recount defining moments tied to that stretch of track.
Image credit: F1 | Moët Hennessy
Jul 28, 2026
Paimio Sanatorium, originally built in 1933 by seminal architects Alvar and Aino Aalto as an architecture of healing, will be re-envisioned by Snøhetta as a Finnish destination for hospitality, wellness, and cultural dialogue.
Conceived as a tuberculosis healing domain at a time when no cure existed, Paimio Sanatorium embodied the Aaltos’ patient-centred philosophy that light, air, and the surrounding forest are integral to human wellbeing—a principle of enduring contemporary relevance.
The former surgery and patient wings will become an auditorium and hotel accommodation respectively, complemented by restored sun balconies, a lower-level spa, and freestanding amenities that distinguish new interventions from historic fabric.
*In partnership with the Paimio Sanatorium Foundation, ALA Architects, and Mustonen Architects.
Image credit: Paimio Sanatorium Foundation | Paimio Sanatorium | Snøhetta | Proloog | Tuomas Uusheimo
Jul 23, 2026
Mariko Mori, the multidisciplinary artist who continually expands the possibilities of art, exhibits her three decade evolution through an expansive showcase.
Mariko Mori: All That Shines
Mori Art Museum, Tokyo
Oct 31, 2026 – Mar 28, 2027
Chronicling her evolution from post-human aesthetics to metaphysical inquiries, the exhibition illuminates a thematic pivot from societal critique to transcendence.
*Organized by the Mori Art Museum in collaboration with the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and co-curated by Alexandra Munroe and Mami Kataoka.
Image credit: Mori Art Museum | Guggenheim | Richard Learoyd | Tom Powel | SCAI THE BATHHOUSE | Sean Kelly | Stephanie Leal | Marta Buso
Jul 21, 2026
New York’s New Museum, through its new wing designed by OMA adjoining the original building designed by SANAA, opened the first restaurant in its nearly five decade history.
Oberon, New York City
Operated by the Oberon Group
As a third space where artists, curators, collectors, and residents intersect naturally, Oberon embeds creative practices into its self-contained setting where diverse disciplines meet.
Architecture
by OMA, led by Shohei Shigematsu
Giving the volume its own identity while keeping it tied to the museum, like a jewel box or an inverted white cube gallery "hidden in plain sight".
Cuisine
by Chef and artist Julia Sherman with Ali Ghriskey
Crafting the zero waste, vegetable forward culinary experience, sourcing ingredients from the Hudson Valley.
Agentic AI Bar Art
by Ian Cheng
Shrine Oberon interacts with guests, remembers regulars, and evolves through their visits.
Furniture and Lighting
by Minjae Kim
Custom wood furnishings and quilted fiberglass lights bring tactile warmth to the cork interior.
After-Dinner Chocolates
by Laurie Anderson
Dark mint chocolates arrive in wrappers bearing Laurie Anderson’s words and poems.
Image credit: Alex Fradkin | New Museum | Oberon
Jul 17, 2026
Oaken Lab, the artisan perfume house, launched its flagship space in Ubud, Bali, as a multisensory destination bringing together perfumery, culinary, and cultural collaboration.
OAKEN LAB UBUD
OAKEN STILLROOM
Reimagining retail as a convergence of sensory modalities, the space dismantles transactional logic and engages the entirety of the human sensorium by synthesizing scent, taste, texture, architecture, sound, objects, and social ritual.
Designed by Rantara Studio, the architecture becomes a progression of perception—enclosure, transition, openness, gathering—with two pre-existing Balinese shrines preserved within a dialogue that reconciles modern intervention with Javanese and Balinese spatial sensibilities.
At the sensory culmination of the experience lies the Oaken Stillroom, an innovative culinary laboratory concept designed to translate olfactory notes into tastes.
Image credit: OAKEN LAB
Jul 15, 2026
Jia CURATED, the annual Bali event dedicated to craft, design, and culture, stages its main event at a beachfront, with over 250 international brands and exhibitors.
August 13 – 17, 2026
Pengembak Beach in Sanur, Bali
Guided by the theme "Nature Weave" rooted in biophilia, this edition invites creatives to work in conversation with the raw landscape rather than imposing forms onto it, challenging them to thoughtfully consider the “afterlife” of their designs, ensuring their reuse, relocation, and long-term sustainability long after the event concludes.
The platform reframes design as an act of coexistence, convening a cross-cultural field of homegrown and international designers, artisans, and architectural practices including:
Kengo Kuma & Associates
andramatin
IBUKU
DDAP Architect
ATMA
Ong Cen Kuang
alvinT
Jin Kuramoto
Shikai Tseng
Sander Wassink
Gabriel Lichauco
STVMP
Blancostudio
LUAR
Image credit: Jia CURATED
Jul 7, 2026
Chef Gaggan Anand, with designer Bill Bensley, is launching Gaggan Hotel at Daimon Sake Brewery, a working 200 year old sake brewery between Kyoto and Osaka.
Placing avant garde cuisine, theatrical design, and a historic sake producer within a single concept, the intimate luxury stay becomes a mutually elevating whole, where guests surrender decision making to a pre-planned itinerary, eliminating the fatigue of constant planning.
Opening targeted around 2029, in collaboration with hotelier Jason Friedman.
Image credit: Daimon Brewery | Gaggan Anand
Jun 27, 2026
Midjourney, best known for AI image generation, made an unexpected move into healthcare, unveiling a 60 second full body ultrasonic scanner and wellness spa concept.
"Midjourney Medical"
in partnership with Butterfly Network
The water based experience moves the user through a shallow pool, where underwater ultrasonic sensors send sound waves through the body from multiple angles, allowing the device to convert the resulting echoes into a 3D reconstruction of the body’s internal structures.
To make the experience feel closer to a wellness ritual than a clinical procedure, Midjourney will embed the scanners within wellness spas alongside hot tubs, saunas, and cold plunges, starting with a San Francisco location scheduled to debut by the end of 2027.
Image credit: Midjourney
Jun 23, 2026
Getty has inaugurated a meditation focused visual podcast series, "OMMM: Our Museum Mindfulness Meditation", designed to cultivate mindful encounters with artworks from the Getty Museum’s collection.
Merging guided breathing, meditation, and art led reflection, the remediation of screen fatigue becomes paradoxical yet purposeful digital media use against modern distraction.
Hosted by Lilit Sadoyan, a museum educator and meditation practitioner, the premiere season includes 12 meditation episodes centered on selected works, including explorations of Vincent van Gogh’s 1889 painting Irises, Edgar Degas’s Waiting, Edvard Munch’s Starry Night, and Robert Irwin’s Central Garden.
Image credit: Getty Museum
Jun 19, 2026
Chanel supported the renovation and revival of Le Saint-Germain-des-Prés, a historic arthouse cinema on Paris’s Left Bank, as an act of cultural stewardship to safeguard cinematic heritage.
The project, realized alongside Les Films du Losange and a consortium of cultural investors, goes beyond restoration, extending Chanel’s century long devotion to the cinematic arts at a time when arthouse cinemas face mounting pressure.
Revealing creative synergy between the fashion house and its artistic muses, the preview of Roma Elastica concluded with an intimate dialogue with the film's star and Chanel ambassador, Marion Cotillard.
Image credit: Chanel | Le Saint-Germain-des-Prés | Matteo Verzini | Fabrizio Casiraghi
Jun 15, 2026
Marking a transition from his nomadic culinary platform WE ARE ONA, Luca Pronzato has unveiled Casa Ideale, a multidimensional retreat in Arles, France.
As his first longer form hospitality model, it unfolds as a hybrid space between a private residence, cultural residency, gallery, culinary venue, and high-end guest house, uniting talent from the worlds of art, gastronomy, and design.
"Casa Ideale"
begins as a pop-up hotel
July 1 - 10, 2026
Image credit: Casa Ideale | Laurent Giannesini
Jun 11, 2026
Fashion house WOOYOUNGMI, in collaboration with Alain Ducasse, opened Sapid Seoul, a refined dining experience at the brand's Itaewon flagship designed by Stocker Lee Architetti, bringing together fashion, architecture, and gastronomy.
Reinterpreting Sapid Paris’ "Nomad Cuisine" for Korea, Sapid Seoul departs from the butter- and cream-heavy traditions of classical French gastronomy for a lighter, restrained approach guided by nature and seasonality, with over 80% domestically sourced ingredients from farms and small producers composing a menu of vegetables, grains, seafood, and nuanced Korean staples such as kimchi.
The space holds WOOYOUNGMI's aesthetic and the restaurant’s naturalist philosophy, forming a restrained language through fabric, light, objects, botanical cues, and uniforms.
Image credit: Sapid Seoul | WOOYOUNGMI | Yongjoon Choi
Jun 10, 2026
Artist Fujiko Nakaya unveiled an ephemeral fog sculpture, placing atmospheric practice in direct conversation with Tadao Ando’s architectural intervention.
Cloud #07156
June 4 - September 14, 2026
Bourse de Commerce, Paris
Conceived as "negative sculpture", revealing invisible atmospheric forces that render the spatial interpretation of ma, its continuous transformation draws audiences to perceive the artwork as an embodied, temporal passage.
The work illustrates a sensory tension, modulating Tadao Ando’s immutable architecture through acts of disappearance that intermittently obscure, soften, and reveal it, as the cloud gathers, thins, ascends, dissolves, and returns in response to air currents, temperature, air moisture, air circulation, and human warmth.
Image credit: Florent Michel | 11h45 | Pinault Collection | Bourse de Commerce
Jun 9, 2026
Fritz Hansen presents Sound Club, a 3daysofdesign installation in Copenhagen that explores how sound shapes the way furniture, light and materials are experienced in space.
Conceived as a sequence of three connected spaces, the installation, created in collaboration with Japanese audio brand Technics and participating sound artists, unfolds across listening focused environments: the listening lounge, courtyard and store.
The installation brings together listening spaces, recordings from the making of Fritz Hansen furniture, podcast material, a curated record selection, live DJ sessions and an original vinyl release.
Fritz Hansen Sound Club
Løvestræde 5, Copenhagen
10–12 June 2026
Image credit: Fritz Hansen
Jun 5, 2026
Hermès, working through its bespoke Atelier Horizons division, crafted and unveiled the Atelier Horizons Disque Jockey Club, a fully functioning DJ console created in collaboration with British DJ Prince Charles.
Creative director Axel de Beaufort reimagines the utilitarian console as an architectural centerpiece, bridging the gap between high-fidelity audio engineering and collectible furniture.
Closer to fine cabinetry than conventional sound equipment, the booth presents a rich mahogany wooden frame crafted by esteemed French cabinetmakers, juxtaposed with hand finished, pale Pippa cowhide leather panels. Beneath its leather covered upper sections, the console integrates professional grade equipment, including Japanese turntables and a high performance audio mixer.
Available at the Hermès flagship boutique in Berlin.
Image credit: Hermès | Highsnobiety
May 29, 2026
An exhibition at a mystical garden transforms contemplative listening into an artistic and spiritual act, turning sound, silence, and nature into a musical instrument.
"The Ear is the Eye of the Soul"
May 9 – Nov 22, 2026
Across two Venetian sites
*Presented by the Dicastery for Culture and Education of the Holy See. Curated by Hans Ulrich Obrist and Ben Vickers, in collaboration with Soundwalk Collective.
The Pavilion is a contemporary interpretation of Saint Hildegard of Bingen’s worldview, one that conceived of sound, nature, faith, healing, and cosmic order as intrinsically connected, inviting us to slow down, heal, and reflect amid modern society’s sensory overload.
The meditative auditory encounter brings together an unexpected and illustrious roster of 24 artists, musicians, poets, architects, filmmakers, and religious voices, including Brian Eno, Patti Smith, FKA twigs, and many more, with Soundwalk Collective weaving their works and the garden’s bioelectric data into a continuous sonic realm.
Image credit: Dicastery for Culture and Education | David Levene
May 28, 2026
Actor and artist Tilda Swinton debuts a new live performance to explore the conceptual parallels between place, memory, gesture, and the expressive terroir of wine.
"House of Gestures"
June 5 – 6, 2026
Presented by Dom Pérignon and the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, designed by Frank Gehry, in collaboration with fashion historian Olivier Saillard.
The voice of terroir becomes a moment of artistic embodiment, as Swinton’s unscripted, unspoken movement through changing garments turns architectural space into a charged emotional and narrative field, allowing character and memory to emerge into an abstract, shared human experience.
Image credit: Guggenheim Museum Bilbao | Dom Pérignon
May 26, 2026
Kengo Kuma & Associates, joined with Dinesen and Danish partners, presents a sensory installation tracing the primal shelter of nature through architectural experience.
Earth | Tree
Copenhagen Contemporary
Runs until 21 February 2027
Translating the primal human impulse of finding comfort and shelter beneath a forest canopy into an elemental experience, the work draws on the concept of komorebi, the dappled light and dancing shadows formed as sunlight filters through leaves.
The installation combines two primal strata: a canopy of Dinesen Douglas timber and grounded brick landscape by Petersen Tegl, with lighting by Anker & Co, animating an interplay between wood, earth, air, shadow, scent, texture, and bodily movement.
Image credit: British Pullman
May 20, 2026
The British Pullman, A Belmond Train, England, has collaborated with revered filmmaker Baz Luhrmann and Oscar-winning production designer Catherine Martin to design "Celia", a cinematic carriage conceptualized around a fictional 1930s actress who was gifted the car after her grand performance as Titania in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
The director behind Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge!, and The Great Gatsby reveals a dreamlike, theatrical atmosphere much like the unfolding acts of a stage play, with an interior that renders Shakespearean fantasy into beguiling opulence, where English marquetry, velvet staging, floral motifs, acoustic detailing, and artisanal craft converge.
Image credit: British Pullman
May 16, 2026
Pocketbook Hudson is a historic 19th century textile and pocketbook factory in Hudson, New York, transformed into a hotel, bathhouse, restaurant, retail, art, and cultural destination, designed by acclaimed design firm Charlap Hyman & Herrero.
Within this industrial shell infused with avant-garde design, Pocketbook Hudson layers a 'gourmet' approach to bathing rituals and somatic healing, a multidisciplinary landscape of curated art, Argentine culinary craft, and a vanguard retail ecosystem.
Image credit: Pocketbook Hudson | Adrian Gaut | Sean Davidson
May 12, 2026
District Vision, a performance apparel and eyewear label with foundational devotion to mindfulness, running, and inner training, translates its brand belief system into architecture, programming, and daily ritual, navigating its notion of 'human technologies' by bridging the metaphysical divide between avant-garde engineering and esoteric consciousness.
Reimagining the shopping experience as a hybrid retail and research concept, the Los Angeles flagship converges a conventional storefront with holistic wellbeing—presenting the brand’s product universe by day before transitioning into a venue for meditation, movement, and breathwork after hours.
Image credit: District Vision | Rich Stapleton | Max Vallot
May 9, 2026
An art collector’s habitus is incarnated as a gallery, guesthouse, and café, realized by architect Yoo Ehwa, whose work unfetteredly mediates the monumentality of architect Itami Jun, her father.
SIHOJAE & SICHA
Chilgok (Daegu), Korea
SIHOJAE, meaning "a bow that shoots towards time", is sculpted like a bow drawn across the landscape, a curvilinear geometry that elicits a slower encounter with time, memory, light, and respite.
Yoo Ehwa’s topographic rooflines avoid disrupting the Palgongsan ridgeline, permeating into the native, undulating terrain as if they had always been integral to the land. An elongated wall leads to two arc-shaped wings unfolding like open arms, creating a threshold that severs ties with the discordant outside world upon entry.
Image credit: SIHOJAE & SICHA | ITM Yoo Ehwa architects | Yong Kwan Kim
May 8, 2026
The design of an optical retail space translates the anatomy of the human eye as a spatial sequence, turning vision itself into a narrative driven sensory experience.
AUGA Clinic — Wrocław, Poland
designed by architectural studio Znamy się
The project synthesizes neurobiology and architecture, treating its concept not as a superficial motif, but as the structural logic behind a disciplined framework for physiological intricacies, sensory navigation, clinical function, and retail presentation.
Rooted in the physiological journey of a photon, visitors are positioned as light entering the eye, fluidly passing through progressive layers of the ocular system.
Image credit: Migdal Studio | AUGA | Znamy się
May 5, 2026
Sotheby's, with design firm Roman and Williams, opened Marcel, a restaurant and gallery at a Brutalist landmark in New York where dining, architecture, design, and art intersect.
Named after architect Marcel Breuer, the hospitality venue reimagines the building’s subterranean sunken sculpture garden as a lush dining retreat set among verdant trees and distinguished masterworks, functioning as a living gallery where a rotating curation of Sotheby’s rarities synthesizes viewing, dining, and acquisition into a single experience.
Image credit: Sotheby's | Roman and Williams | Ezra Stoller | Rich Stapleton | Sean Thomas | Suzanne Saroff
May 2, 2026
Italian design collective Studio Nucleo's Terra! grass armchair is a radical, participatory design concept that begins as a biodegradable cardboard frame and grows into a living piece of furniture through soil, seeds, water, and time.
Conceived as a philosophical antidote to the alienating nature of instantly gratifying, mass produced commodities, Terra! ingeniously turns the owner into a co-creator.
A cardboard frame is filled with stabilising materials and soil, seeded with grass, then watered until growth begins in 10 days and becomes fully usable in two months, embodying patience, continual care, and the meditative act of slow design and process over product.
Image credit: Studio Nucleo
Apr 30, 2026
LEMAIRE unveiled "Objets Senteur", its inaugural home fragrance collection that integrates scent and artisanal craft, reimagining olfaction as an architectural and domestic material.
Rather than approaching scent as a fleeting aroma for the skin, the concept translates fragrance into a physical material that engages in an intimate dialogue with clay, wood, linen, and cotton, bringing this material language into domestic spaces, particularly wardrobes, drawers, and areas where garments are kept.
Two centerpieces, Pomme and Emboîtage, were created in partnership with the estate of Annie Fourmanoir, a celebrated French ceramicist and sculptor who explored the tension between form, texture, and glazes.
Image credit: LEMAIRE | Zhenya Posternak | Tanya Posternak
Apr 27, 2026
Zara, in partnership with Crosby Studios led by Harry Nuriev, presents Calma, an immersive installation at Palazzina Appiani in Milan, created for Salone del Mobile 2026 as a restful and sensorial pause within the setting of Parco Sempione.
The project reinterprets the spatial experience of ancient Roman thermae (bathhouses) through a contemporary language of wellbeing, positioning the installation as a modern retreat rather than a conventional display.
The installation unfolds through a sequenced progression of spaces—from threshold and corridor to central hall and loggia—guiding visitors to slow down, reflect, and enter a quieter state of perception through an atmosphere shaped by light, sound, and materiality, where mirrored arches extend the sense of interior space, metal surfaces soften the illumination, and a subdued soundscape blends classical Italian compositions with ambient voices.
April 21 to 26, 2026
Palazzina Appiani
Viale Giorgio Byron 2, Milan
Image credit: Zara
Apr 24, 2026
Aesop presents "The Factory of Light", a sensory installation and unveiling that reflects the brand's philosophy of illumination, purposeful craft, and sustainable design.
Salone del Mobile
April 21 – 26, 2026
Santa Maria del Carmine
Signifying Aesop’s considered foray into an architect of holistic domestic atmospheres, the project's approach to light blends scientific rigor with poetic sensibility by orchestrating shadows, calibrating amber refractions, and diffusing intimate warmth.
Central to the spatial dialogue is the debut of Aposē, Aēsop's first handmade lamp that reimagines how the brand embodies its luminous identity across space and skin.
Image credit: Aesop
Apr 23, 2026
Prada, with artist Theaster Gates and four Japanese ceramic artists, presents a multisensory exhibition "Chawan Cabinet by Theaster Gates" at Via Montenapoleone 6, intertwining ceramic craftsmanship, a tea house, and a sonic dimension.
At the heart lies chawan, the Japanese tea bowl that transcends its role as a utile vessel into an elemental carrier of care, hospitality, and mindful presence—a relational infrastructure.
The exhibit presents works by Gates and four esteemed Japanese potters—Shion Tabata, Taira Kuroki, Yuichi Hirano, Koichi Ohara—each representing diverse regional lineages and experimental ceramic methodologies. In the inner courtyard, a tea house is built through vernacular architecture, serving as an active sanctuary for traditional tea ceremonies led by a Japanese tea master.
Image credit: Prada
Apr 20, 2026
Issey Miyake probes material memory and metamorphosis with an exhibition of handcrafted furniture and sculptures made from paper byproducts of the house‘s pleated garments.
The Paper Log: Shell and Core
April 21 – May 5, 2026
Via Bagutta 12, Milan
As a physical archive of its previous life, the unmasking of layers and marks left by the origin invites cross-disciplinary conversations on immortalizing the ephemeral.
Its absorbent quality and receptivity to hardening agents led to material study treating paper almost like wood, stabilizing while altering its tactile character to craft stools, armchairs, chairs, tables, bench.
Image credit: Issey Miyake | Ensamble Studio
Apr 17, 2026
A spatial meditation exhibition unfolds in Seoul, born of multidisciplinary orchestration between creative practices, artists, designers, and sensory ritual brands.
Presented by Maison Navie in collaboration with Erased Studio, the journey is inherently designed to address the psychological dissonance and emotional drain within the overwhelming, relentless density of the modern urban fabric. Void, often perceived as a threatening absence or a residue of hollow effort, is recontextualized as a liberating threshold essential to sensory and emotional recovery.
With the entire venue reimagined as a unified, organically connected installation, the work unfolds vertically, as visitors move through a sequence of Density, Void / HEOSA, Harmony, and finally Return, where objects and tea rituals converge.
CONTRASTS
The Poetics of the In-Between
Apr 1 – Jun 28, 2026
at MAISON NAVIE pop-up
Marius Troy — Solo Presentation
“That Which Already Exists”
Apr 1 – Jun 28, 2026
at POINTTWOFIVE·SECOND SEONGSU HAUS
Image credit: Maison Navie | Marius Troy | CORE
Apr 16, 2026
Designed by Bjarke Ingels Group, Biosphere is a hotel room set among the trees at the Treehotel in Harads, Sweden, enveloped in a striking façade of 350 birdhouses.
Through a close partnership with ornithologist Ulf Öhman, the project embodies ‘hedonistic sustainability’—an architectural expression merging luxury eco-tourism with a commitment to combating local bird decline.
By restoring the natural habitats lost to intensive forestry, these nesting sites foster a thriving ecosystem where local fauna can flourish in harmony with the structure.
Image credit: Bjarke Ingels Group | Treehotel | Mats Engfors
Apr 14, 2026
Jaime Hayon, in collaboration with esteemed Italian design houses, will unveil a series of sculptural furniture collections and commemorative installations during Salone del Mobile 2026.
Harnessing creative heritage and the novel fusion of art and functional design, Hayon bridges the realms of industrial design, artful expression, and historical craftsmanship.
MARBLE MATTERS FOR MARSOTTO
FELICIDADES FOR BISAZZA
ARCHEO FOR MAGIS
TREBOLI FOR ARFLEX
Image credit: Jaime Hayon | HAYONSTUDIO
Apr 13, 2026
An interdisciplinary endeavor in Kyoto synergizes experiential intersections of time, memory, and emptiness through evocative olfactory and visual manifestations.
The tripartite initiative, bringing together the multidisciplinary design brand T.T, fragrance laboratory Arpa, and the Zen temple Ryosokuin, investigates flares of emptiness through an exhibition merging photography, scent, and installation within the historical architecture of Ryosokuin.
VACIO Senko no Ku
April 4 – 17, 2026
Ryosokuin Temple, Kyoto
The fragrance functions as a vessel for erased memories, where scent, like smoke or reflected light, appears only briefly, shifts in intensity, and dissolves into emptiness.
The work leads into ritual and hospitality through a tea ceremony at Ryosokuin led by Fukutaro Nakayama and accompanied by Japanese confections from Okashimaru, while a parallel installation, “Getsumen no Ko” unfolds at T.T Gion alongside additional tea and wagashi offerings inspired by the installation.
Image credit: Ryosokuin | Daisuke Shima | Arpa Studios | Barnabé Fillion | Tom de Peyret
Apr 11, 2026
Soho House unveiled its Tokyo outpost and partnered with Onitsuka Tiger for a bespoke uniform collection that expresses an equilibrium of aesthetics and resilience.
The core lies in premium Japanese denim, derived from Onitsuka Tiger’s DENIVITA™ series, a signature line with a historical foundation that continues to evolve.
By engaging authentically with indigenous craftsmanship, it reveals how hospitality attire can transcend utilitarian boundaries and become an elevated expression of contemporary fashion.
Image credit: Soho House | Onitsuka Tiger
Apr 10, 2026
Maison Margiela unveiled its first haute parfumerie line, The Scentsorium Collection, translating the brand's deconstructive language into six chapters of olfactory states that probe a specific psychological state of contrasted human emotions through an immaculately curated palette of ingredients.
Blaze | Stillness
Silent | Fury
Anguish | Awe
Tender | Defiance
Delight | Despair
Fit | Folly
The philosophy of the collection mirrors the deconstructive principles synonymous with the Maison’s Artisanal Atelier, with raw materials reimagined through a precise, stripped-back, and highly crafted approach.
This clinical artistry is distilled in a sculptural piece by glassmaker Pochet du Courval, contemplating the passage of time and the beauty of imperfection through a deliberate, dramatic fracture where the glass appears violently pierced by a splinter.
*Developed with L'Oréal Luxe over a span of three years.
Image credit: Maison Margiela Fragrances
Apr 8, 2026
London’s V&A East Museum, designed by O’Donnell + Tuomey, will open on April 18, 2026, staging global artistry and local multiculturalism on the city’s east waterfront.
The structure draws inspiration from the tailoring techniques of couturier Cristóbal Balenciaga, specifically the utilization of the Japanese spatial concept of "Ma" or the space in between, as captured in an x-ray of a 1954 Balenciaga silk taffeta evening dress. The sculptural void between garment and the human body informs the relationship between the outer shell and the circulation spaces, its façade resembling a folded dress that holds a shifting presence with each vantage point.
The museum's programmatic core is activated by two free permanent galleries titled Why We Make, creating unexpected continuities across time and discipline, accompanied by a culinary component realised with co-founders of Jikoni, embedded as an integral component of the institution rather than a secondary amenity.
The inaugural exhibition is a multisensory showcase partnered with BBC Music and supported by Sennheiser, tracing how Black British music has permeated British culture and sparked global reverberations.
"The Music Is Black: A British Story”
Sound experience supported by SENNHEISER
Image credit: V&A East | Nick Veasey | O’Donnell + Tuomey | Niall Hodson | Sam Nicklin | Adrian Boot, urbanimage.tv | Jikoni
Apr 7, 2026
Starbucks Coffee Japan inaugurated a novel hybrid cafe and art gallery in collaboration with architecture firm HAGISO and the art platform The Chain Museum.
Starbucks Cafe & Art Gallery
Yanaka Gotenzaka, Tokyo
Paying tribute to the history and visual fabric of a neighborhood known for its temples, small streets, and old town ambience, the two-story wooden structure designed by HAGISO incorporates curated zones that offer unique vantage points of both the artworks and the serene greenery of nearby temple grounds, allowing encounters with art to dynamically shift with seating.
The inaugural exhibition, running until June 28, 2026, presents three notable emerging artists — YU SORA, Karin Hosono, and Shotaro Sanada — working across abstract, figurative, and three-dimensional forms.
Image credit: Starbucks Cafe & Art Gallery Yanaka Gotenzaka | The Chain Museum
Apr 4, 2026
Jia CURATED, the annual Bali event dedicated to craft, design, and culture, presents a prelude to its main event in Tokyo, showcasing nine distinguished design studios.
Jia CURATED 2026, Bali,
August 13 – 17, 2026
Road to Jia CURATED - Tokyo Edition,
April 2 – 19, 2026 at (PLACE) by method, Shibuya
Actively bridging the Indonesian and Japanese design communities, the multifaceted curatorial framing of the exhibition creates a platform encouraging mutual inspiration, collaborative dialogue, and cross-border exchange.
Under the principle of Gotong Royong (mutual cooperation), a diverse array of works spans bespoke furniture, lighting, material studies, and craft-led experiments, with each studio lending a unique narrative that shows how iterative experimentation and rich knowledge of natural materials inform both form and function.
The opening weekend (April 4) presents a special edition of Jia CURATED's 360° Design Dialogues talk program, which explores modern design challenges, nuanced regional perspectives, and the importance of collaborative efforts in shaping the future trajectory of Asian design.
Image credit: Jia CURATED
Apr 3, 2026
Spotify unveiled an intimate, 30-seat Listening Lounge in London, giving tangible form to the brand’s lossless audio proposition by crafting a controlled physical setting that hosts high-fidelity listening events for artists and their dedicated listeners.
With spatial design by CAKE Architecture, the room is framed as a functional instrument, its architectural aesthetics calibrated against the rigorous sonic parameters the experience demands.
Built around a bespoke sound system by Friendly Pressure, the arrangement of the lounge functions as an architectural altar dedicated to the absolute purity of sound, ensuring that architecture, acoustics, and programming perfectly align for musical appreciation.
Image credit: Spotify
Mar 29, 2026
Capella Kyoto has opened as the brand’s first in Japan, set in the historic geisha district on a former elementary school site, where it reimagines traditional machiya to reflect Kyoto’s distinctive spatial character while bridging the city’s artisan and geisha communities with historical memory.
Architect Kengo Kuma placed tranquility as a defining trait with a low-rise structure that respects the restrained scale of the area, echoing the spatial rhythm of Kyoto through layered thresholds, intimate reveals, and moments of discovery, while Brewin Design Office drew on a modern reading of Kyoto’s restrained spirit, translating the invisible qualities of stillness, rhythm, and material intelligence into design.
SoNoMa by SingleThread, the signature dining in partnership with the three Michelin-starred restaurant SingleThread from California, traces seasonal agriculture of Kyoto and California through the lens of local farmers and artisans.
Image credit: Capella Kyoto | SoNoMa by SingleThread
Mar 26, 2026
Maison Krug and composer Max Richter embarked on a unique multidisciplinary collaboration, exploring the profound parallels between oenology and musical composition.
Richter translated three Krug cuvées built around the 2008 harvest into three original compositions to express the shared precision, experimentation, patience, and emotional architecture of champagne and music.
Image credit: Krug Champagne
Mar 25, 2026
Antoni Gaudí’s furniture and objects originally created for Casa Batlló and Casa Calvet are reissued by BD Barcelona, marking the centenary of the architect’s passing.
By illuminating how Gaudí conceptualized furniture as a seamless extension of architecture, movement, and the human body—a philosophy deeply rooted in posture, contour, and physical contact—the reissue lends profound cultural weight to his expansive design language, affirming that his vision endures intimately through craft, tactile engagement, and the daily utility of domestic space.
Image credit: BD Barcelona
Mar 24, 2026
A cinematic winery concept places the language of science fiction in dialogue with architectural storytelling, imagining a celestial future ruin unearthed from the vineyard.
Metamorphosis Winery | Greece
by 314 Architecture Studio
Over millennia, the terrestrial ecosystem absorbed the UFO-like relic from antiquity into its soil and native vegetation, blurring the boundaries between anthropogenic design and natural topography. Continuously reshaped by the elemental forces of light, earth, and air, the vessel draws a parallel between the patient fermentation of wine and the allegorical themes of transformation famously explored in Franz Kafka's literary masterpieces.
Image credit: 314 Architecture Studio
Mar 20, 2026
Koganeyu, the long-established bath and sauna brand, opens its second site "Koganeyu Shinjuku" in May 2026, extending bathing into a shared social and cultural experience attuned to modern needs.
Fusing bath culture with architecture, design, ecological intent, and social layers such as beer and music, the renewal of a 50-year-old bathhouse preserves memory and interprets accumulated time and overlapping eras by superimposing modernity on aged fragments, reanimating heritage into a more resonant public ritual.
Image credit: Koganeyu Shinjuku
Mar 19, 2026
Aman founder Adrian Zecha's place-rooted luxury is reimagined in a retreat that drifts further from classic opulence and finds even more elemental vitality, the farm life.
AZUMA FARM Koiwai, opening on April 23, 2026, signals a new language of high-end travel in which luxury is redefined through agrarian authenticity as the very substance of the stay, moving from extractive tourism to regenerative travel and one that places hospitality to act as a custodian of the land, where exclusivity lies in proximity to the land.
Image credit: AZUMA FARM Koiwai
Mar 18, 2026
Sant Roch, a new wellness destination in Paris, brings together recovery and social ritual in an intriguingly art-directed environment orchestrated through the visual intelligence of fashion and the sequencing logic of luxury hospitality.
Devoted to contrast therapy and home to France’s largest sauna, it reinterprets ancient bathing rituals through a sensory theatre shaped by light, sound, scent, texture, and atmosphere, realised in collaboration with architectural firm Futurestudio and artistic director Olivier Léone.
Image credit: Sant Roch
Mar 15, 2026
OMA, in collaboration with Fundación Casa Wabi and local artisans, unveiled a pavilion at the intersection of architecture, mushroom cultivation, and cultural exchange.
"Mushroom Pavilion"
Casa Wabi, Oaxaca, Mexico
Lead architect - Shohei Shigematsu
Set within Casa Wabi’s broader architectural and cultural campus, home to a flagship building by Tadao Ando, the structure reframes architecture as an interface between ecology and culture, revealing how food, land, knowledge, and community can converge through a single spatial gesture.
Image credit: OMA | Fundación Casa Wabi | Rafael Gamo
Mar 11, 2026
Diptyque has transformed its Paris and London boutiques into ephemeral listening stations inspired by the Orphéon jazz club, translating the fragrance’s origins into a multisensory experience of scent, vinyl, and design.
London | New Bond Street
until 20 April 2026
Paris | 7 rue Duphot
until 30 March 2026
Image credit: Diptyque | COLORSxSTUDIOS
Mar 10, 2026
MATTER and SHAPE, a design salon bringing together designers, brands, and galleries, returns to Paris from March 6–9, 2026, staged in the Jardin des Tuileries during Paris Fashion Week.
This year's overarching theme, Scale, examines design beyond physical size through a lens on provenance, traceability, scarcity, and the human labor behind it.
The multidisciplinary convergence of creative fields unites architecture, design, culinary arts, literature, perfumery, and sound, transforming a traditional design fair into a singular, cohesive cultural ecosystem.
Image credit: MATTER and SHAPE
Mar 5, 2026
Kengo Kuma’s spiral-shaped library won the competition to design a new cultural landmark in Rzeszów, Poland, where reading is structured as a continuous journey
"New Library, Vortex of Word"
The route becomes the architecture, meant to be moved through, gathered within, and revisited, stitching knowledge and movement into one uninterrupted experience that deliberately erases the rigid boundaries between the indoor repository of knowledge and the outdoor ecological environment.
It reimagines typical library typology, evolving into a cultural hub merging reading, musical performance, and gathering into an accessible engine of civic landscape.
Image credit: KKAA | KIN Creatives | VIBSU
Mar 1, 2026
London's Tate Modern reimagines its Frida Kahlo exhibition as a gastronomic experience with chef Santiago Lastra, the acclaimed Michelin-starred chef behind KOL.
June 25 - August 31, 2026
at Level 6, Tate Modern
Born in the same city as Kahlo, chef Lastra’s personal connection turns memory into taste in a heartfelt tribute to a figure of strength and captivating complexity in Mexican culture, translating the profound emotions, vivid hues, and resilient spirit found in her works into bold flavors on the plate.
Image credit: Tate | Santiago Lastra | Wikimedia Commons
Feb 27, 2026
Aman Group, with developer H&H, unveiled Janu Dubai, conceived by Pritzker Prize-winning architectural firm Herzog & de Meuron as their UAE debut.
The mixed-use pair of sculptural, porous towers draws inspiration from the region’s climate-appropriate vernacular architecture and early modernist structures. The vast complex combines Janu Hotel, Janu Residences, offices, retail, and F&B spaces, creating a lifestyle ecosystem of connectivity, community and wellness.
Image credit: Aman | Herzog & de Meuron | Xaos
Feb 26, 2026
MUJI, together with local artisans and the historic Ogawa Coffee, is opening MUJI BASE KYOTO kiyomizu, an experiential hotel in Kyoto that embodies a model of symbiotic community engagement, opening May 20, 2026.
Presented as "a place to reconsider the beauty of the ordinary", the project facilitates genuine neighborhood interactions and mindful appreciation of daily routines, integrating itself into the socio-cultural fabric of the region.
Image credit: MUJI
Feb 25, 2026
Aesop, in collaboration with multiple disciplines, presents a scenographic experience "Seven Rooms" at SKAC, a multi-layered complex in Tokyo where art, design, and daily life intersect.
Feb 20 - Mar 1, 2026
SKWAT KAMEARI ART CENTRE (SKAC)
Inspired by Yasujiro Ozu’s 1959 film "Good Morning", the project recontextualizes the fabric of domesticity through aesthetics and architecture, with programs extending to talk sessions, tea workshops, video screenings, zen meditation, a book exchange, and a café collaboration.
Image credit: Aesop | SKWAT
Feb 24, 2026
Dries Van Noten has collaborated with ceramic artist Bouke de Vries, transforming shattered porcelain into objects of art that encase the “Soie Malaquais” fragrance.
Exposing the intrinsic tension between fragility and resilience through the art of Kintsugi, which honours cracks and imperfections rather than concealing them, the work questions notions of pristine luxury and locates beauty in vitality and reconstruction, expressing a shared affinity for unexpected juxtapositions and a devotion to historic craft.
Suspended in the moment of fracture, the object is drawn into being through collapse and return, where intuition guides each fragment into a rarer, singular form, transforming rupture into presence and chance into sculptural destiny.
Image credit: Dries Van Noten
Feb 21, 2026
Tadao Ando and Bonte Museum at Jeju Island have unveiled Bonstar, a new wing and a meditative vessel where the architect's "emptiness as fulfillment" is realized through spatial narrative.
Pre-opening exhibition from Feb 14, 2026
"Tadao Ando: Sea – Jeju Island and Naoshima"
Bonstar frames "time of contemplation" revealed through movement, designed as a passage that guides visitors from the depths of the earth to the vastness of the sky, with vertical ascent along the triangular stair drawing the gaze upward as light from ceiling apertures sculpts shifting shadows, culminating at the rooftop where architecture meets the terrain and mythic horizon of the island.
Artworks by Yayoi Kusama, Joo So-won, and Park Seon-ghi are integrated into the architecture, interlaced as a single contemplative sequence that unifies the dialogue between art, space, and environment.
Image credit: Bonte Museum
Feb 19, 2026
Mondrian Seoul Itaewon, in collaboration with Maison Margiela, has launched an exclusive experience, curating a journey with the label’s scents and gourmet elements.
"Mondrian Edit: Maison Margiela"
February 6 - April 11, 2026
Limited to 50 rooms, the hyper-local curation unfolds an olfactory dimension through the REPLICA fragrance kit and a gustatory pause with coffee and cake from the Maison’s café, extending the stay into a styled city route that activates the full sensory layer beyond the confines of the hotel setting.
Image credit: Mondrian Seoul Itaewon | Maison Margiela | BONANZA COFFEE ROASTERS
Feb 18, 2026
Crystal heritage brand Baccarat and leading architect Sou Fujimoto present a prestigious residence at a museum cluster and shoreline, developed by Aldar Properties.
"Baccarat Residences Saadiyat"
Abu Dhabi's Saadiyat Cultural District
Interpreting the coastline’s rhythm into an undulating, sculptural profile, Sou Fujimoto’s avant garde design reflects the natural ebbs and flows of Saadiyat Island, where two curving volumes mirror the vista as a cohesive gesture to the horizon, while a neoclassical interior blends Baccarat’s essence in craft and materiality.
The residence rests between Frank Gehry's Guggenheim Abu Dhabi and the Louvre Abu Dhabi, with unparalleled proximity to landmark institutions of art and uninterrupted views of the Arabian Sea.
Image credit: Aldar
Feb 16, 2026
Audio designer Devon Turnbull (OJAS) collaborated with Karimoku Furniture to present a spatial and sonic exhibition as part of KARIMOKU RESEARCH's survey program.
"Between Space & Sound"
Survey 03 "FORM FOLLOWS FEELINGS"
February 21 - June 5, 2026
KARIMOKU RESEARCH CENTER, Tokyo
Under Survey 03 framed by the guiding question "What is function, and how does it make us feel?", the concept explores the spatial and temporal experience of sound through the Japanese aesthetic of "Ma", the negative space or interval that defines form and time.
Framing audio units as active sculpture or emotional furniture, it leads listening to an architectural act that defines how silence, interval, material, and resonance interact.
Image credit: KARIMOKU RESEARCH | Isa Saalabi
Feb 14, 2026
Hugh Allen, the three-hat Australian chef, formerly of Noma, in collaboration with architect John Wardle, has unveiled Yiaga within Melbourne’s historic Fitzroy Gardens.
With Yiaga meaning "seek and find", the journey through gardens before entering the pavilion is part of the experience, a deliberate sequence of prelusive discovery.
In a calm, grounded atmosphere, visual continuity flows across garden, seats, and kitchen, with architecture conceived as experience, revealed through space, light, and movement.
Image credit: Yiaga | Wardle | Jason Loucas
Feb 10, 2026
MIRORlab, a multidisciplinary team of creatives across architecture, landscape, and design, crafts lighting that reconnects human emotion, time perception, and inner calm, transforming domestic spaces into environments that nurture mindfulness in a fast paced world.
The light behaves in rhythms found in nature, mirroring solar cycles and shifting hues at dawn, desert, cosmic, and dusk, and the way light filters through clouds, sand, mist, and land. The one minute rotation in a slow, wave motion marks the passage of time and follows the natural breathing cycle that leads to a meditative state of pause and reflection.
Image credit: MIRORlab
Feb 7, 2026
Martin Margiela is set to reimagine a 1927 historic residence as a stage for his sustained inquiry into repurposing, disaggregation, and transformation.
"MARTIN MARGIELA AT KUDAN HOUSE"
April 11 – 29, 2026, Tokyo
Kudan House, a registered tangible cultural property embodying continuity where time flows between the ordinary and the extraordinary, forms the conceptual ground of the exhibition, in which the choice of an old house becomes central to the intent, its contrasting scenography mediating privacy, proximity, and a room-to-room intimacy as the defining mode of encounter.
This marks Margiela’s first large-scale solo exhibition in Japan, with scenography and curation carried out by the artist.
Image credit: kudan house | rin art association | Martin Margiela
Feb 6, 2026
Giudecca Island, long whispered to be Michelangelo’s mysterious hideaway, will host a hotel poised at the rare confluence of history, architecture, and culinary ambition.
Airelles Palladio, Venezia
Opening in April 2026
Set within nearly a hectare of gardens, the estate unites the Palladio, designed by renowned Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio in 1561, Villa Frollo, an aristocratic academy turned romantic boarding house that has inspired generations of artists and welcomed key figures, and the Conventino, with the Church of Santa Maria della Presentazione at its heart.
A quartet of world renowned chefs will lead the hotel's culinary program: Nobu Matsuhisa, Jean-Georges Vongerichten, Norbert Niederkofler, and Cédric Grolet.
Image credit: Airelles Palladio
Feb 4, 2026
Artist Daniel Arsham opened "Daniel's Room" in Dubai Mall, representing his first permanent hospitality concept realized as an experiential café and restaurant that integrates art, design and culinary culture.
Arsham’s practice, rooted in archaeological imaginaries and alternate histories, guides both the aesthetic and experiential sequencing of Daniel’s Room, over which he exercised complete creative control, designing every architectural and ornamental element from furnishings to lighting and diningware.
The space also serves as a curated retail site for exclusive collectibles, including limited edition works, books, sculptural objects and functional art pieces.
Image credit: Daniel’s Room | Daniel Arsham
Jan 29, 2026
Artist James Turrell has completed his largest-ever museum Skyspace, framing light, sky, and perception through an architectural encounter inviting contemplation
“As Seen Below — The Dome, a Skyspace”
ARoS Aarhus Art Museum, Denmark
Opening on June 19, 2026
Conceived as a shared, semi-subterranean Skyspace, the grass-covered dome (16 m high, 40 m across) leads through a corridor into a central oculus opening to the sky, where sunlight and transient atmospheres emerge as a perceptible phenomenon shaped by architecture and light, calibrated through the sky and an integrated lighting system that washes and modulates color and space.
Image credit: ARoS | Schmidt Hammer Lassen | Beauty and the Bit | James Turrell
Jan 28, 2026
A café carries forward a continuum of creative sequence, acting as a droplet of the expressive language that defines the primary art space collaboratively conceived by Pritzker Prize architect Ryue Nishizawa and artist Rei Naito.
Functioning as a decompression chamber, the Ryue Nishizawa–designed café manifests a secondary volume that absorbs, softens, and re-grounds the perceptual state induced by the main work "Matrix", which unfolds a profound experience that intersects architecture, art, and natural elements, mediating a passage from immersion to rest within a sculpted enclosure that places light as the primary permitted architectural material.
'Teshima Art Museum Café'
on Teshima Island in Japan’s Seto Inland Sea
Image credit: Hideaki Hamada | Benesse Art Site Naoshima | Teshima Art Museum Café | Ken'ichi Suzuki
Jan 25, 2026
Artists and designers built functional objects crafted out of woods salvaged from the 2025 LA wildfires, giving form to the devastating event's memory, loss and renewal.
"From the Upper Valley in the Foothills"
January 10-31, 2026
Marta gallery, Los Angeles
Drawing on wood sourced from fire-affected Altadena, where a cross-section of local species was transformed by twenty-two artists and designers into utilitarian forms, the exhibition frames these works as a collective response to trauma—treating material as a co-author shaped by time, climate, and fire—while, through a non-didactic, forest-like staging, positioning the project as both a monument to the past and a proposal for future regeneration across land and people.
Image credit: Marta
Jan 23, 2026
Louis Vuitton has partnered with Bar Leone, the 2025 World’s Best Bar, to unveil a limited time bar at Lee Garden One in Causeway Bay, Hong Kong, through March 15, 2026, celebrating a store opening and paying homage to the historic Yum Sing Bar, a revered and historically significant venue that was part of the former Lee Gardens Hotel from the 1970s to the 1990s.
The bar’s design channels the retro mood of 1970s Hong Kong, while Bar Leone’s philosophy of cocktail popolari is carried through an exclusive menu curated by co-founder Lorenzo Antinori, drawing from Yum Sing Bar’s original offerings and reimagined in contemporary craft.
Image credit: Louis Vuitton | Bar Leone
Jan 21, 2026
Harry Nuriev, Designer of the Year for Maison&Objet 2026, presents his creative manifesto "Transformism", framing the fair’s theme "Past Reveals Future".
January 15-19, 2026
Hall 3 of the Paris Nord Villepinte
Acting as a radical commentary on the world of saturated objects and data, the narrative liberates objects from conventional labels and hierarchies—between past and future, art and design, heritage and innovation, the everyday and the emblematic. The narrative advocates for reinterpreting and transforming what already exists, reframing how design can serve as a living continuum.
Image credit: Crosby Studios | Maison&Objet | Anne-Emmanuelle Thion | Daniel Roché
Jan 18, 2026
PAÑPURI has collaborated with artist Kazu Saito, a contemporary master of Nihonga, to capture the essence of first light and the beauty of a quiet beginning through Quiet Illumination, the Holiday 2026 collection, which presents his artwork Luminous as the central expression where the olfactory art of scent and the visual art of painting intersect.
As a poetic meditation on light before dawn, Saito's work frames light as a slow, deliberate force that transforms darkness into day as he draws a parallel in how scent begins with air and painting begins with light, grounding both in invisible elements.
Image credit: PAÑPURI
Jan 17, 2026
Shoptalk Luxe, a premier global forum convening the world’s most influential voices in luxury, retail, and tech, will be held in Abu Dhabi as the inaugural Middle East edition in collaboration with Abu Dhabi Retail.
January 27–29, 2026
Emirates Palace
Built on real conversations and impact, designed with the industry, not for it, the event fosters unfiltered, future-focused dialogue where culture meets commerce, bringing together over 2,000 top executives and 170+ global speakers in luxury, fashion, and hospitality to explore how digital acceleration, brand reinvention, and evolving luxury values are redefining consumer engagement where retail meets technology.
Shoptalk Luxe reflects Abu Dhabi’s unique positioning — a place where creativity, capital and culture intersect, and where luxury is both global and contextual.
Image credit: Abu Dhabi Retail | Shoptalk Luxe
Jan 16, 2026
In the Danish town of Lillerød, home to Fritz Hansen, stands Denmark’s most beautiful badminton hall, Lillerød Badminton Club, an enduring venue whose architectural and design longevity has fostered a strong community and shaped a celebrated history in the sport.
Exposed wooden buttresses flow from floor to ceiling, forming rhythmic visual lines and shifting light throughout the day, while on one side, spectator seating is composed of modular blocks fitted with 232 of Fritz Hansen's iconic Series 7™ chairs, many of which are originals from 1973.
Image credit: Fritz Hansen | Ditte Mørkholt
Jan 15, 2026
In 1966, designer Ben Swildens joined Max Ingrand and a team of architects to create a cantilevered desk and seat for Peugeot in Paris. Conceived as installations and serving as reception desks, the pieces expressed visual purity and the futuristic, optimistic spirit of 60s Space-Age design.
Crafted in brushed stainless steel, with an integrated work surface, base, and seat in one continuous line, its reflective metal amplifies the contrast between graceful curves and sharper edges, producing a sculptural, gravity-defying appearance.
Image credit: Ben Swildens | Peugeot | Christie's | Drouot | Bonhams
Jan 13, 2026
Anne-Sophie Pic, the world's most Michelin starred female chef, will open a new restaurant and a bar in Paris at the Jean Nouvel designed Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain in autumn 2026.
As a cornerstone of the Fondation’s ambitious new chapter, the initiative exists beyond the traditional museum café, embodying a deeper synthesis of gastronomy as a legitimate artistic discipline within a contemporary art space.
It is envisioned as a living space—a breathing component of the Fondation—where traces and reflections of the exhibitions permeate through sensory experience, as Chef Pic presents creations shaped by her philosophy of Imprégnation, a sensitive approach in which flavors are built in layers, braiding memory and emotion.
Image credit: Anne-Sophie Pic | Fondation Cartier | Jean Nouvel | Martin Argyroglo | Danica O Kus
Jan 10, 2026
Trader HiFi is a listening café bridging acoustic rigor, disciplined design, and hospitality, founded by a German model and cultural entrepreneur, Vincent von Thien, located in Hamburg’s Ottensen district.
Advocating a slower, more intentional approach to cultural consumption, the space is conceived as a built instrument where architecture and audio concurrently ensure total sensory cohesion throughout, from sonic systems and wooden craftsmanship to acoustic materiality and the orchestration of seating.
Image credit: Trader HiFi | Clemens Poloczek
Jan 8, 2026
RECESS, a communal bathhouse founded by experts in tech, design, health, and culture, bridges wellbeing and human connection in Griffintown, Montréal. The space is enhanced by a partnership with Aesop, with ritual and scent shaping an immersive experience from ritual to retail.
Integrating Nordic and Scandinavian thermotherapy into an urban context, the space distils an elemental, modern spatial language where brutalist, industrial materiality and modulated light coalesce into a language of clinical purity, guiding immersion and fluid circulation throughout.
Aesop is embedded as functional elements of the ritual, structuring a sequence of bodily reset and sensory depth that heightens both aesthetic and experiential coherence.
Image credit: RECESS | Félix Michaud
Jan 6, 2026
SANAA, an architectural firm led by Pritzker Prize winner Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, completed the Taichung Green Museumbrary in Taichung Central Park, Taiwan, merging an art museum with a public library.
Conceived as a cross-pollination of art and literature, the design articulates spatial porosity through translucent facades and pilotis at grade, allowing the park and site to flow seamlessly while reinforcing the space’s continuity with nature.
Image credit: SANAA | TcAM | YHLAA – Yi Hsien Lee
Jan 4, 2026
A 19th-century Neo-Gothic pharmacy continues its soul from medicine to coffee, reframed from a place of pharmaceutical practice into a contemporary laboratory for specialty coffee experimentation.
Laboratorium
Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Holding the spirit of scientific curiosity and precision that has occupied the site since 1893, the project applies modern inserts to reactivate architectural memory in balance with heritage, treating the space as an evolving interior rather than a static artifact, and restoring the past as a mindset that finds expression today.
The laboratory process foregrounds coffee as an experimental ritual, with steel cups evoking epistemic continuity and handwritten notes documenting provenance.
Image credit: Laboratorium | Ștefi Hopîrtean
Jan 3, 2026
HAK Studio applies gastrophysics and neuroscience to alter taste perception, addressing a global issue of taste impairment caused by aging and post-viral conditions.
Based on Charles Spence's research showing how taste is configured in the brain before food reaches the mouth through color, texture, and form, the UMA project crafts tableware design that influences taste perception and leverages neural triggers to reduce the need for high sugar and salt intake without weakening the subjective flavor experience.
Image credit: HAK Studio
Dec 31, 2025
Bar Far, a site-specific installation and a working bar, is created through the ongoing collaboration of two artists—Clementine Keith-Roach and Christopher Page—forming a metaphysical space that embraces contradiction.
Runs until March 14, 2026
at Villa Lontana’s new space in Trastevere, Rome
Treating 'illusion as a meeting point' and inspired by historical art-bars, the space unfolds as a total work of art that condenses paradoxical layers, holding inverse states at once through trompe l’oeil and mirroring the confusion and dreamlike state of contemporary life.
church and tomb
prophecy and ruin
heaven and hell
Image credit: Jasper Fry | Villa Lontana
Dec 30, 2025
SIWA, led by Yamanashi-based washi paper manufacturer Onao, alongside designer Naoto Fukasawa, unveiled a portable lamp shaped like a ream of A4 paper.
The lamp uses Naoron, a washi-based material made from a blend of wood pulp and synthetic fibers that retains the softness and warmth of washi paper while offering modern durability.
By elevating a mundane office supply to an artisanal lamp, the piece captures the 'Life’s Tools' ethos, making essential items attuned to the rhythms of daily existence.
Image credit: Xavi Bou
Dec 28, 2025
Volvo, in collaboration with the renowned type design studio Dalton Maag, has developed a new typeface engineered for interface safety where real-time decision-making is critical.
Driven by Volvo’s safety-first philosophy, the new typeface, Volvo Centum, is designed for instant readability and optimized cognitive ergonomics, using precise control of proportion, weight, spacing, and minimalist form to reduce mental effort, guide eye movements, and support calm, focused driving under real-world conditions.
Image credit: Xavi Bou
Dec 26, 2025
Xavi Bou is a photographer and visual artist whose long-running body of work reveals the hidden realities—the invisible flight paths of birds—as sculptural images.
He asks a simple question: if footprints reveal movement on land, what trace do birds leave in the air? To pursue that question, he records bird flight and layers frames into one composite image, creating calligraphic forms that read like drawings made by living bodies.
Bou's work articulates an underlying conservation message, with language that positions attention to birds and habitats as culturally and ecologically consequential.
Image credit: Xavi Bou
Dec 22, 2025
Designer Dries Van Noten and Patrick Vangheluwe unveiled Fondazione Dries Van Noten, a non-profit cultural institution in Venice dedicated to craftsmanship and "the art of making" across disciplines, opening in April 2026.
It is envisioned as a pulsing venue that gives craft visibility and dissolves boundaries between disciplines, fostering cross-pollination of ideas and skills across fashion, art, food, and architecture.
Housed in a 15th-century Gothic palace undergoing a conservation-led renovation by Venetian architect Alberto Torsello, the foundation will present year-round exhibitions, collaborative projects, residencies, and educational initiatives to support both established masters and the next generation of talent.
Image credit: Fondazione Dries Van Noten
Dec 20, 2025
As the world processes Frank Gehry’s passing, a major exhibition is unveiled—one that enters into a dialogue between his architecture and the work of Alexander Calder.
"Calder. Rêver en Équilibre"
April 15 — August 16, 2026
Fondation Louis Vuitton
Fondation Louis Vuitton, the structure in which Gehry imagined Calder's work while designing it, will finally give realized form to this long-held foundational vision, articulating their interplay of motion, balance, void, air, suspension and time, while activating the entire space and, for the first time, extending into the adjacent lawn.
The retrospective will be extensive, presenting nearly 300 works spanning roughly the 1920s through the 1970s, offering a broad chronological arc of Calder’s practice.
*Organized with the Calder Foundation.
Image credit: Fondation Louis Vuitton | Gehry Partners, LLP and Frank O. Gehry | 2025 Calder Foundation, New York / ADAGP, Paris | André Kertész | Herbert Matter
Dec 19, 2025
NOT A HOTEL launches its first public hotel brands, HERITAGE and vertex, extending its architecture-led home anywhere hospitality concept beyond private ownership.
HERITAGE represents history carried forward through modern renewal, with its first project transforming a former temple lodging within the precinct of Kyoto’s UNESCO World Heritage–listed Tō-ji into a hotel in response to the growing loss of Japan’s valuable architectural assets caused by maintenance challenges.
vertex represents a future-facing vision driven by innovation in design and technology, with its first project led by Zaha Hadid Architects in Okinawa—the firm’s first in Japan—integrating coastal topography with a reinterpretation of Okinawan architecture through explorations of geomorphic formations found in nature.
Image credit: NOT A HOTEL | Negativ
Dec 18, 2025
Artist Leandro Erlich, in collaboration with REEFLINE, has created an underwater sculpture park, Concrete Coral, at a depth of 20 feet off the coast of Miami Beach to function as an artificial reef that fosters marine life and raises awareness about climate change.
The installation of 22 life-sized concrete cars frozen in a traffic jam transforms a symbol of pollution and carbon emissions into a vessel for environmental regeneration, as its pH-neutral surfaces support coral growth, its sculptural forms shelter marine life, and the expanding reef gradually restores ecosystems.
Image credit: Leandro Erlich | ReefLine | Brittany Weber | Nola Schoder | Veronica Ruiz | Spencer Roberts
Dec 16, 2025
Dior has inaugurated its new flagship, the House of Dior Beijing, a five-story architectural landmark merging various forms of art de vivre, including gastronomy and art.
Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Christian de Portzamparc, the building's facade — a striking sculpture of 14 sweeping petals — is inspired by the fluidity of Dior's draped fabrics and the sculpted figures of ancient Greek architecture.
Monsieur Dior by Anne-Sophie Pic, the China debut of the world’s most Michelin-starred female chef, unveils a Beijing menu aligning her culinary language with the maison’s codes, reinterpreting her signature dishes using local ingredients, with a tea program developed with tea master Shuying Liu mirroring the structure of perfumery through sequential flavor pairings.
Image credit: Dior | Anne-Sophie Pic | Laora Queyras | Jedi Zhou
Dec 13, 2025
A BATHING APE®, the cult streetwear label BAPE, launched its first-ever all-white concept store at Hong Kong's historic 1881 Heritage building, and has collaborated with soufflé pancake specialist FLIPPER'S to open BAPE CAFE!?®.
Image credit: BAPE | FLIPPER'S
Dec 12, 2025
Volcan de mi Tierra, the tequila brand from LVMH and the Gallardo family, partnered with master stonemasons ARCA to launch a sculptural marble vessel.
"Colección La Gavilana I"
Unveiled at Art Basel in Miami
Signifying a sophisticated evolution in the physical artistry of spirits casing, each Bianco Carrara marble vessel with its engraved silhouette of Volcan’s iconic bottle treats stone as an interpretive medium rather than a shell, framing the liquid—Volcan’s very first Añejo expression—as part of a broader shift toward collectible artifactry.
Image credit: Volcán De Mi Tierra
Dec 11, 2025
An exhibition illuminates architect Frank Lloyd Wright’s furniture designs, specifically chairs, revealing their formative role across the arc of his influential career.
”Frank Lloyd Wright: Modern Chair Design“
Museum of Wisconsin Art, until Jan 25, 2026
*In partnership with the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation and Taliesin Institute.
As the first of its kind to focus on Wright‘s chairs, the exhibit seeks to offer a more complete and nuanced insight into his legacy in advancing the ”total work of art“, overturning the long-held belief that his furniture was an afterthought and showing that it was an essential and integrated part of his architectural concept from the very beginning, based on new research by architectural historian Eric Vogel.
Many pieces presented in the exhibit have never been publicly seen before, including newly fabricated chairs that were never produced in Wright’s lifetime, with original sketches, archival photos, and animated renderings revealing the approach.
Image credit: Museum of Wisconsin Art | Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation Collections, 3301.2061 | Collection of Frank Lloyd Wright Trust, Oak Park, Illinois | Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation, Scottsdale, AZ | Steve Sikora and Lynette Erickson-Sikora, Minneapolis | S. C. Johnson & Son, Inc., Racine, Wisconsin
Dec 10, 2025
Six determined bidders drove Jane Birkin’s Birkin to six times its estimate, selling for $2.9 million at Sotheby’s auction in Abu Dhabi after an intense 10-minute bidding battle.
The bidding battles and new auction records at Abu Dhabi Collectors’ Week, presented with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office, culminated in the second most valuable handbag ever sold at auction, contributing to the five Sotheby’s auctions that generated $133.4 million in total and offered exceptional pieces across jewellery, watches, handbags, high-performance bicycles, cars, and real estate.
Image credit: Abu Dhabi Retail
Dec 9, 2025
Chrome Hearts, the fashion house known for its gothic-rock aesthetic and cult following, acquired the iconic Surfrider Hotel, Malibu, for about $37.5 million.
With the acquisition translating to a per-room cost of nearly $1.9 million and marking it as a landmark transaction in California’s hotel market, the brand has signaled its intention to integrate its unique DNA into the hotel’s design and ambiance.
Image credit: Chrome Hearts | The Surfrider Hotel, Malibu
Dec 8, 2025
Artist JR will transform Paris’s oldest stone bridge, Pont Neuf, into a grand art installation, paying homage to Christo and Jeanne-Claude's 1985 work at the bridge.
"La Caverne du Pont Neuf"
June 6 — 28, 2026
Instead of repeating a fabric wrapping, JR’s concept is to turn the bridge back into a colossal, stone-like cavern, using large printed rock formations that refer to the Lutetian limestone quarries that supplied the stones for Pont Neuf and many Paris buildings.
Varied vantage points and public access to the site over its three-week run will remain part of the artwork, echoing the way original wrapping invited people to traverse a familiar place in an unfamiliar form.
Image credit: JR | Atelier JR | Wolfgang Volz | Christo and Jeanne-Claude Foundation | Marc Azoulay | JR-art.net | Jean-Baptiste Gurliat | Mairie de Paris
Dec 6, 2025
World Pastry Champion Étienne Leroy has stepped in as the pastry chef for Café de la Rose Lancôme, where he is shaping a fresh direction, succeeding Nina Métayer.
"Café de la Rose Lancôme x Lenôtre"
52 avenue des Champs-Élysées ,Paris
Portrayed as delicate as a petal and subtly scented, Chef Leroy’s pâtisserie — informed by expertise from Café Pouchkine to the Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc and now at Lenôtre — translates Lancôme’s iconic identity of rose, femininity, and empowerment into an exquisite, sensory haute pâtisserie experience.
Image credit: Lancôme | Lenôtre | Etienne Leroy
Dec 5, 2025
Artist Es Devlin created "Library of Us", a monumental rotating beachfront library in Miami, envisioning a collective reading environment that celebrates Faena Art’s tenth anniversary at Faena Beach from 2–7 December 2025.
As a sculpture, a public library and a gathering space, the work’s location becomes a poignant meditation on the fragility of knowledge, culture, and the environment in the face of rising sea levels. The radiant structure slowly revolves like a chrome compass needle, forming a meditative and shifting encounter that implies art can hold and connect perspectives.
Image credit: Faena Art | Sunn Studio | Oriol Tarridas
Dec 4, 2025
LOOPS, a day-to-night coffee–bar & lounge at NEWoMan Takanawa in Takanawa Gateway City, proposes a novel urban commons that reinterprets the Japanese kissaten and bar culture in a format attuned to modern lifestyles.
Designed by DAIKEI MILLS, the firm behind SKWAT led by Keisuke Nakamura, the cylindrical atrium acts as a circulation spine — a third place that invites connections, with the speaker as the symbolic core inspired by Japan’s disaster-prevention and civic broadcast systems that echo everyday rituals of public togetherness.
The coffee program uses beans from FUGLEN COFFEE ROASTERS TOKYO, crafted by Soran Nomura, who won numerous awards at FUGLEN TOKYO. Soran Nomura brings modern blends of classic cocktails through new edits, while chef Kyohei Nishi of Neki and songbook develops a food menu on a kissaten theme.
Image credit: LOOPS | DAIKEI MILLS
Dec 2, 2025
Louis Vuitton launches LV The Place Seoul, a multifaceted cultural and retail destination in Seoul at the crossroads of fashion, gastronomy, and art, and unveils the 'Louis Vuitton Visionary Journeys Seoul', an immersive narrative devoted to the House’s heritage of travel, craftsmanship, and innovation.
The new landmark is a profound ode to the city, harnessing Seoul's dynamism and contemporary spirit as the wellspring of dialogue that the maison articulates in travel and culture — with the journey’s scenography crafted in collaboration with Shohei Shigematsu-OMA, and a gastronomic arc that unites the House’s culinary world from café to chocolate to fine dining as a singular taste experience expressing Korean nuance.
The anticipated Korean debut of two-Michelin-starred chef Junghyun Park comes to life through JP at Louis Vuitton.
Image credit: Louis Vuitton
Nov 29, 2025
IKEA, partnered with multidisciplinary designer Tekla Evelina Severin (Teklan), unveiled a line of audio and lighting objects as expressive design pieces for the home.
Pivoting away from the austere aesthetic of traditional tech, the collection uses nostalgic palettes and geometric forms to imbue gadgets with emotional quality, blending sculptural silhouettes and extending two-dimensional graphic treatments across the devices to create optical rhythms that suggest vibrant movement.
Image credit: IKEA | Tekla Evelina Severin
Nov 28, 2025
Chanel, in partnership with Power Station of Art (PSA), unveiled "Espace Gabrielle Chanel", a public library and multifunctional space in Shanghai that stands as China’s first public library fully dedicated to contemporary art and culture.
A major transformation by architect Kazunari Sakamoto emphasizes continuity and movement within the former industrial shell, where a minimalist aesthetic merges humanistic reflection with dynamic cultural leisure.
Central to the design is a unique 'valley of books' concept, which forms a fluid, labyrinthine structure designed to evoke the rhythmic energy of the nearby Huangpu River.
Image credit: Chanel | Power Station of Art | Chen Hao
Nov 26, 2025
The AnZa R2 Concrete from AnZa Coffee is an espresso machine characterized by a Brutalist architectural influence, expressed through a monolithic silhouette that prioritizes materiality over generic ornamentation.
Originating from the design studio Montaag, the piece reimagines a modern kitchen tool as sculptural countertop architecture, its hand-cast concrete body acting as living matter that ages with its space, shaping a design language that embraces texture, porosity, weight and imperfection.
Image credit: AnZa Coffee
Nov 25, 2025
Sotheby’s, in collaboration with Abu Dhabi Retail, unveils over $1 billion of luxury and fine art in Abu Dhabi, revealing an unprecedented scale and rarity at Abu Dhabi Collectors’ Week, held 2–5 December 2025 at The St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort.
The week presents the Middle East’s first luxury auction series, bringing together $150 million highly coveted collector pieces across five sales on December 5, alongside an exceptional private sale valued at over $100 million and a major fine art exhibition.
It highlights extraordinary debuts ranging from McLaren next F1 concept, Jane Birkin’s most personal bag, largest flawless diamond in the word, and the first complete Patek Philippe Star Caliber 2000 set to rare Colnago bicycles and a Zaha Hadid property.
A major fine art exhibition will showcase masterpieces that have passed through Sotheby’s, including works by Rembrandt, Klimt, Banksy, Dalí, and Mondrian, and the week includes a series of talks and panel discussions for the public.
Image credit: Abu Dhabi Retail
Nov 25, 2025
Langosteria, in collaboration with the Fendi Architecture Department, has unveiled a multi-level gastronomic destination within Palazzo Fendi Milano
Situated within a historic Rationalist building designed by Emilio Lancia in the 1930s, Palazzo Fendi Milano merges the brand’s Roman identity with Milan’s Rationalist lineage, emerging as a 'total work of art' that dissolves the boundaries between fashion, architecture, fine art, gastronomy, and artisanal craftsmanship.
Langosteria Montenapoleone's food program unites signature Langosteria dishes with refined plates, raw-bar selections, and a tasting menu that bridges Milanese roots with cosmopolitan flair.
Image credit: Fendi | Langosteria
Nov 22, 2025
Kengo Kuma's design for the Busan Lotte Tower in Korea forms a vertical landscape that carries the memory of movement the city has kept in the lingering ripples of its harbor.
Inspired by the bow waves left by ships moving through the port, the façade translates these wake patterns into flowing bands that ripple across the tower’s skin, a gesture that rejects the stance of a monolithic monument and instead responds to the maritime trade that underpins the city, embracing a context-aware architecture that sustains an unbroken continuity with the fabric of coastal life.
Image credit: KKAA
Nov 20, 2025
A classic Italian moka pot is reimagined for modern, sustainable living through expertise rooted in nuclear and aerospace industries, harnessing aircraft turbine geometry within its design and extending beyond an aesthetic poise that evokes the flowing motion of a dress turning in air.
Its helical spiral base applies the principles of fluid dynamics and thermodynamics, enabling faster extraction and higher thermal efficiency, brewing coffee in roughly half the time of a traditional moka pot and reducing energy or gas use by around 50% while preserving its familiar flavor.
"Turbo Moka", designed by Matteo Frontini.
Image credit: TURBO MOKA
Nov 18, 2025
Visual artist Boris Acket and Fred again.. have joined in a unique experience, inviting audiences into a dialogue between sonic architecture and spatial expression.
"USB002" live show series
10 week run of 10 shows in 10 cities
The piece takes the form of a vast, suspended sheet of fabric hovering above like a 'breathing roof', drifting over the crowd as if the ceiling itself were alive. It alters the perception of space, forming shifting "micro-architectures" in the air, moving in ways that mimic natural phenomena like storms and water surfaces.
Image credit: Fred again.. | Boris Acket
Nov 16, 2025
Reuben Wu is a multidisciplinary artist known for his pioneering work in landscape photography, where he uses drones and artificial light to craft otherworldly images.
Using drones with LED or laser light to map precise paths in the sky, he applies concepts of time and space to craft new visual narratives about the planet, with these illuminated trajectories—described as aeroglyphs—acting as aerial styluses that sketch geometric shapes such as halos and squares directly inscribed over land, water, and sky.
Image credit: Reuben Wu
Nov 15, 2025
Fondation d’entreprise Hermès stages 'Metal' as an embodiment of cultural symbolism through the lens of contemporary art expressed in form, sound, and imagery.
Oct 30, 2025 — Jan 31, 2026
Ginza Maison Hermès Le Forum, Tokyo
The central theme is the 'ambivalence' of metal—its duality as raw material and refined craft, mediating between ancient alchemy and modern industrial rationality.
It brings together three artists — Chu Enoki, Maiko Endo, Élodie Lesourd — working across sculpture, film, and painting, each exploring metal’s cultural and material dimensions through contemporary work. Together, they trace three mystical dynamics of metal, revealing its axis between darkness and light, its vast sonic possibilities, and its ties to social hierarchies.
Image credit: Fondation d'entreprise Hermès | Nacása & Partners Inc. | Chu Enoki | Maiko Endo | Élodie Lesourd | 3 EYES FILMS
Nov 13, 2025
Apple and ISSEY MIYAKE have collaborated to launch the iPhone Pocket, a versatile 3D-knitted accessory designed to carry an iPhone and small essentials.
Drawn from Issey Miyake’s "A Piece of Cloth" concept and pleated textile language, and imbued with symbolic resonance through its historic link to Steve Jobs, the collaboration presents a singular 3D-knitted sleeve that fuses a sculptural aesthetic with versatile functionality.
Image credit: Apple | ISSEY MIYAKE | Ben Stanfield / CC BY-SA 2.0
Nov 12, 2025
The gallery space at The Waterfall building, an eminent modernist structure in Vancouver designed by the late architect Arthur Erickson, is revived as Ellipsis, a dual-concept coffee and cocktail bar led by restaurateur Ming Yang and designed by SML Studio Architecture
A triangular concrete portal off the curtain of water reveals an interior shaped by restraint, honoring the integrity of the original structure—where rejuvenation flows from spatial design to dining, from the interplay of light and shadow to the alchemy of cocktails that articulate a quietly intricate link.
Image credit: Ellipsis | James Han
Nov 11, 2025
Maison Margiela, in partnership with Alta Real Estate Development, unveiled the Maison’s first-ever branded residences on Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah.
Through its interiors and architecture, the project reinterprets Margiela’s defining codes as a nuanced spatial language — deconstruction, trompe-l’œil, and décortiqué — with 25 bespoke residences serving as a medium for creative expression and a transposition of Maison’s enigmatic allure into habitable art.
The architecture is by Bernardo Fort Brescia of Arquitectonica, and interiors by A++ Studio with Carlo Colombo.
Image credit: Alta Real Estate Development
Nov 8, 2025
Acclaimed film studio A24 opened a restaurant and supper club 'Wild Cherry' in West Village, New York, crafting a theatrical setting where cinematic scenography and nostalgic retro dining merge in spatial context.
Synchronizing with programming at the Cherry Lane Theatre to create a symbiotic relationship between the stage, the screen, and the supper club, the concept extends A24’s universe into hospitality, with design led by Zeb Stewart and the culinary program directed by renowned chefs Lee Hanson and Riad Nasr, behind Frenchette, Le Rock, and Minetta Tavern.
Image credit: Wild Cherry
Nov 7, 2025
Piaget, in collaboration with Abu Dhabi Retail, presented a high-jewelry event "Shapes of Extraleganza", exploring geometry, movement, and timeless cultural heritage.
The celebration unveiled the Abu Dhabi Exclusive "Desert Pearl" — a bespoke swinging necklace that draws from the region's pearl-diving heritage through iridescent mother-of-pearl and fluid design.
Set within ERTH’s soaring architecture, the showcase reflected the city’s cultural glow, echoing Piaget’s visual language of curves, motion, and modernist geometry.
Image credit: Piaget | Abu Dhabi Retail
Nov 6, 2025
Renowned perfumer Francis Kurkdjian elevates perfume as a museum-scale artistic medium through immersive, multi-sensory installations, marking 30 years of creative exploration.
"Perfume, Sculpture of the Invisible"
Palais de Tokyo, Paris
October 29 — November 23, 2025
*Curated by Jérôme Neutres
Offering a glimpse into the future of perfumery, the exhibition reconsiders the role of fragrance in our perception of artistry by merging it with visual art, sound, and even taste, making scent perceptible as an ephemeral medium that threads through space, converses with light, and evolves through time as both spatial and emotional presence.
Image credit: Maison Francis Kurkdjian
Nov 5, 2025
Capsule, a Milan-based design platform, launches its first international spin-off event "Capsule Plaza Tokyo", held across six venues in Tokyo from October 30 to November 9, 2025, and unified by the theme "Radical design for today", proposing a forward looking reading of modern design that stimulates cross-disciplinary exchanges.
Unfolding through intersecting creative fields spanning interiors, architecture, beauty, technology, innovation, and craft, the event presents installations by prominent contemporary designers and artists, a program of talks, a pop-up café, a gift shop, and a chef-driven dining activation.
Image credit: Capsule | StandBy | SKWAT Kameari Art Centre | Karimoku Commons Tokyo | T-HOUSE New Balance | TOKYO BURNSIDE
Nov 1, 2025
Issey Miyake, in collaboration with Moleskine, unveiled NOTE-A-NOTE, a refined fusion of notebook and business card holder designed to reimagine and elevate the immediacy of idea capture during moments of exchange, revisiting the irreplaceable value of tangible, human-to-human connection through a utilitarian medium imbued with aesthetic and structural intent.
Reinterpreting Issey Miyake’s signature pleated garments, the notebook’s expandable accordion style pages draw from emakimono scrolls that unroll horizontally to reveal their contents, with the structure unfolding laterally into a single, continuous landscape of pages for writing and reflection.
Image credit: MOLESKINE | ISSEY MIYAKE
Oct 30, 2025
Architect Tadao Ando unveiled plans for the Dubai Museum of Art above the waters of Dubai Creek, a 'floating' cultural landmark designed as both a repository for art and an active ecosystem for creativity, education, and exchange.
Creating a serene dialogue between structure, water, and nature, Ando's concept honors the city's maritime heritage, evoking the sea and the pearl as core symbols.
*Unveiled by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and developed by the Al-Futtaim Group.
Image credit: Al-Futtaim Group
Oct 29, 2025
Vitra Campus has unveiled Doshi Retreat, a space for contemplation envisioned by the late Pritzker laureate architect Balkrishna Doshi — a sanctuary of stillness and introspection, and his first work outside India as well as his last before passing.
Not merely a structure to be observed but an experience to be undertaken, its design — from the winding, sunken pathways to the integration of sound and natural elements — guides visitors on a sensory journey from the external world to an inner state of tranquility and reflection.
Mediating a synthesis of spirituality and modernism, the project merges ancient Indian spiritual concepts with material discipline, honoring Doshi’s humanistic ethos.
Image credit: Vitra | Studio SANGATH | Julien Lanoo | Iwan Baan | Daisuke Hirabayashi | Marek Iwicki | ArcelorMittal
Oct 28, 2025
Roger Vivier, in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office, presents the Abu Dhabi Exclusive Efflorescence Jewel Bags — four masterfully crafted creations that draw their very design from the grace and vitality of the Emirati capital, offered exclusively at the Maison’s Abu Dhabi boutique.
Each piece in the capsule is directly inspired by a defining element of the city’s beauty — from its lush mangroves and pearl-diving heritage to the sun-washed coastal serenity and the iconic strength and elegance of its native wildlife.
The Maison hosted a curated in-store launch event in Abu Dhabi, a city that has already marked two key milestones this year with the global debut of Jardin à la Vivier and the first Ramadan capsule.
Image credit: Roger Vivier | Abu Dhabi Retail
Oct 28, 2025
A supermarket, an everyday typology, is reframed into a choreographed architectural dramaturgy, merging minimalist brutalism with circular design principles — a project conceived as Plastic Box "Supermarket Akelarre" by Minimal Studio in Mallorca.
Interpreting an urban retail space as a site of aesthetic and material inquiry, the project reimagines its potential by repurposing industrial components into long-life systems that advance circularity and recast mass-market language as a sober critique of consumerism.
*Winner of the 2025 Gold Award at IDPA Japan.
Image credit: Minimal Studio | Leonardo Cóndor
Oct 26, 2025
Sotheby’s, in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), will auction Jane Birkin’s one and only personally inscribed black Hermès Birkin, Le Birkin Voyageur, in Abu Dhabi on December 5, 2025, during Abu Dhabi Collectors’ Week.
This rare black Birkin, gifted by Hermès and one of only four used by Jane Birkin after selling her original prototype, was her everyday bag from 2003 to 2007.
This auction is positioned as part of the inaugural Abu Dhabi Collectors’ Week, an exclusive new programme of auctions spanning high jewellery, rare timepieces, world-leading collector cars, and museum-quality art exhibitions, presented alongside panel discussions and masterclasses, taking place from 2–5 December 2025 at the St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort in Abu Dhabi.
Image credit: Sotheby’s | Abu Dhabi Retail | The St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort
Oct 21, 2025
Pharrell Williams’s platform JOOPITER launches a tattoo auction with sixteen leading figures from art, design, and fashion, framing tattooing as a viable medium of collectible art.
"Inked: Tattoos by Contemporary Artists"
Oct 22–31, 2025. Curated by Sharon Coplan.
The initiative rearticulates ownership by positioning the body as canvas, proposing inhabitable works that expand the market’s conventional confines beyond walls and vitrines.
Contributing artists are:
Lawrence Weiner
Joel Mesler
Marilyn Minter
Adam Pendleton
Mickalene Thomas
Titus Kaphar
Derrick Adams
Thom Browne
Gabriela Hearst
Peter Marino
Jeffrey Gibson
Tavares Strachan
Stephen Jones
Sarah Andelman
Dr. Woo
Haroshi
Image credit: JOOPITER | Lawrence Weiner Estate | Joel Mesler | Titus Kaphar | Thom Browne | Gabriela Hearst | Peter Marino | Jeffrey Gibson | Dr. Woo | Haroshi
Oct 20, 2025
Jennie of BLACKPINK and her creative label ODDATELIER, in collaboration with Meta, released a new typeface globally, expressing cross-cultural creative identity through a writing medium as the first in the entertainment industry to offer a free public font.
'ZEN SERIF’ typeface
Korean and Latin Extended
The font, capturing Jennie’s creative identity, was designed with Dohee Lee, a prominent type designer. ZEN SERIF is a modern reinterpretation of classic Western Blackletter, balanced with the inherent visual density of Hangeul, minimizing excessive ornamentation through soft, fluid curves to achieve a refined yet approachable and modern aesthetic that maintains legibility and elegance.
ZEN SERIF is integrated into Instagram’s 'Edits' app and available for free download via the ODDATELIER official site.
Image credit: ODDATELIER | Doyeon Yang
Oct 17, 2025
The Westlake Opera House in Hanoi, "Isola della Musica (Island of Music)", an ambitious cultural landmark project designed by architect Renzo Piano and his firm RPBW, has officially broken ground.
The structure’s design, appearing to emerge gently from the lake, draws on the natural forms of mother-of-pearl and the freshwater oysters once harvested in the area, its outer shell expressing the interior program through a pixelated, pearlescent skin that reflects the changing light and colors of the lake throughout the day.
Conceived as a deep study of mathematic models existing in nature, the project marks the first application of thin-shell technology that Renzo Piano has researched for over 40 years, making it a significant milestone in his career.
Image credit: Renzo Piano Building Workshop | Sun Group
Oct 16, 2025
Carsten Höller, renowned for creating participatory artworks, has installed "Stockholm Slides", a set of large-scale spiraling slides on the façade of Moderna Museet in Stockholm, blurring the lines between scientific experiment, environment, and sensory play.
Described as "influential environments", the work elicits states of exhilaration, disorientation, doubt, joy, and fear—riding a controlled fall that Höller calls a state of "voluptuous panic upon an otherwise lucid mind".
Image credit: Moderna Museet | My Matson | Carsten Höller
Oct 15, 2025
W Singapore – Sentosa Cove debuts the brand's global live music series, W PRESENTS, through a three-day celebration of music, wellness, and gastronomy from 24 to 26 October 2025 in its newly transformed resort.
Headlined by internationally acclaimed DJ and producer Pippi Ciez on Saturday, 25 October, the multi-day celebration of music, movement, and flavor unveils Sound & Scene activations, introduces transformative wellness rituals, and showcases gastronomy collaborations throughout the weekend.
Image credit: W Singapore – Sentosa Cove
Oct 13, 2025
Architectural firm Snøhetta, with a multidisciplinary team of experts, designed 113 Spring, an evolving experiential wellness and retail concept in SoHo, New York.
Departing from transactional retail, this prototype of a hybrid space hosts a rotating series of themes inspired by nature’s cycles, functioning as a 'living lab' with key principles of ephemerality, fluidity, and flexibility.
Image credit: 113 Spring | Snøhetta | Hanna Grankvist
Oct 11, 2025
Golden Goose has unveiled the 'Golden Goose Arena', a nine-court padel facility in Milan’s CityLife district that merges sport, community, architecture, and lifestyle into a physical manifestation of the brand's world.
Designed by architect and designer Fabio Novembre, the arena’s dramatic cantilever creates an impression of lightness—a floating gesture that defies its scale and continues inside, where lounge areas, a wellness café, an outdoor bar, and dedicated “Ritual Spaces” extend the experience beyond the court.
Image credit: Golden Goose | Fabio Novembre
Oct 10, 2025
Rosewood unveils the beginning of a new era where discovery takes center stage, rooted in the belief that every journey is a moment of authentic connection—between people, places, and unexpected stories.
Through collaborations with renowned creatives across the world, the new identity curates discovery through a kaleidoscopic dimension—integrating refreshed design, films, a book, and cultural pop-ups into a singular, connected narrative.
Image credit: Rosewood
Oct 9, 2025
A modernist masterpiece originally designed by architect Junzo Sakakura, a protégé of Le Corbusier, is transformed into a boutique hotel and cultural complex
Hakusen (hotel) and public library
at the former Ueno City Hall, Iga, Japan
The revitalization follows years of preservation work to avoid demolition of the historic landmark — a collaborative effort between the local government, a citizens’ movement, and the private sector.
The hotel's concept, "floating on a sea of words", embodies a dual ambition, creating a soft boundary between physical repose and an intellectual, literary experience.
Image credit: Hakusen | MARU.architecture | Hiroaki Tanooka
Oct 8, 2025
The Café by Aman, the brand’s first-ever café, is set within the 3,600 m² Otemachi Forest, an urban woodland cultivated for over three years with 56,000 selected plants.
The serene pocket of nature in the heart of Tokyo, meticulously crafted with native trees from the mountains of the Kanto region, is home to a café of understated elegance, its design intentionally restrained to ensure that the diner's primary experience is the feeling of being immersed in nature.
Image credit: AMAN
Oct 4, 2025
Iceland's first cascading waterfall lagoon is set to open combined with farm-to-table gastronomy, offering geothermal wellness integrated with natural iconography.
Laugarás Lagoon
Village of Laugarás, Golden Circle
Set along the Hvítá River and a strategic reach from Reykjavík, the lagoon's 6.6m cascading waterfall connects its geothermal pools and opens vistas of mountains, woodland, and the Northern Lights in winter.
A significant element is the on-site restaurant Ylja, led by acclaimed Icelandic chef Gísli Matt, known for Slippurinn, with a hyper-local, farm-to-table menu that draws from farms, fisheries, and geothermal greenhouses.
Image credit: Laugarás Lagoon
Sep 28, 2025
A long-awaited hanok hotel, modeled after the grandeur of a royal UNESCO World Heritage site and winner of prestigious architecture awards, has opened its doors.
The Hanok Heritage Hotel
Yeongwol, Korea
Set amid mountains and river, the hotel translates a thousand years of hanok tradition into a modern sanctuary that graces the landscape and serves as a cultural stage that unfolds the pinnacle and purest expression of Korea’s aesthetics, craftsmanship, and philosophy.
Image credit: The Hanok Heritage Hotel
Sep 27, 2025
French pastry chef Cedric Grolet has collaborated with Gisou, the premium beauty brand by Negin Mirsalehi whose family has a six-generation beekeeping heritage.
The partnership presents three unique honey-infused pastries, inspired by Gisou’s new shades of Honey Infused Lip Oils, with the pastries to be exclusively available at Cédric Grolet Opéra, Paris, on October 4 — 5, 2025.
Image credit: Cedric Grolet | Gisou
Sep 23, 2025
Architect Shohei Shigematsu of OMA has designed the new Harajuku Quest, a complex serving as a cultural landmark and commercial hub that architecturally bridges two distinct areas: Omotesando and Oku-Harajuku.
The core design concept 'duality' reflects two personalities of the neighborhoods — a monolithic sculptural façade to Omotesando on one side and a more human-scale appearance of stepped terraces to Oku-Harajuku on the other — bridging the high-end, wide boulevard with intimate, culture-rich backstreets.
Image credit: Ko Tsuchiya | Harajuku Quest | OMA
Sep 22, 2025
Airbnb, in partnership with Netflix's Emmy winning series Chef's Table, launches exclusive "Airbnb Originals" culinary experiences hosted by world renowned chefs
By inviting consumers to 'step into the story', this bookable bridge between screen and kitchen carries the series' intimate storytelling into a real world experience.
London — Jamie Oliver
Los Angeles — Chris Bianco
Mexico City — Elena Reygadas
Paris — Atsushi Tanaka
Seoul — Justin Lee
Image credit: Airbnb | Chef’s Table
Sep 21, 2025
Gentle Monster’s HAUS NOWHERE unveils work by artist Max Siedentopf, marking the opening of the new Seoul outpost in a provocative display of surreal hyperrealism that presents a sharp commentary on modern consumerism and the psychology of accumulation.
"More Is More"
Exhibits at HAUS NOWHERE
Seoul | Dosan | Shanghai | Shenzhen
HAUS NOWHERE’s new site in Seoul, a landmark embodying the theme 'The Future Returned', frames itself as a space that exists nowhere, breaking away from the formulaic perception of traditional retail toward an art-driven vision.
Beyond the art space, the building unfolds as a multidimensional hub for IICOMBINED’s brands, from a reimagined culinary concept to the debut of a new label.
GENTLE MONSTER
TAMBURINS
NUDAKE TEAHOUSE
ATiiSSU
Nuflaat
Image credit: HAUS NOWHERE | GENTLE MONSTER
Sep 5, 2025
Kith Ivy, a private members’ wellness & padel club and luxury lifestyle brand, is unveiled by Kith in New York City’s West Village, crafting a new arena where sport, wellness, and hospitality come together.
Emerging as a physical manifestation of the modern consumer’s priorities, where exclusivity is defined by experiences woven into a single, curated ecosystem, the club brings together named partners:
Tonic bar | Erewhon
Spa | Giorgio Armani
Dining | Café Mogador
Padel | Wilson
Image credit: KITH
Sep 4, 2025
Sotheby’s, in partnership with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO), unveiled its inaugural marquee auction series in Abu Dhabi, presenting a programme of auctions, masterclasses, panel discussions, and exhibitions.
Presenting a series of auctions spanning high jewellery, rare timepieces, world-leading collector cars, and museum-quality art exhibition, the programme begins in October and builds toward its December finale at The St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort, coinciding with the F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
Auctions taking place:
October 2025
The NBA Abu Dhabi Games 2025 presented by ADQ
2–5 December 2025
Collectors’ Week Abu Dhabi
Image credit: ADIO | Sotheby’s | The St. Regis Saadiyat Island Resort
Sep 3, 2025
Chromasonic Field is an experiential art installation that invites visitors to NeuroArts driven connections, deepening sensory awareness and mindful presence.
677 Imperial St.
Los Angeles Arts District
Using synchronized light and sound waves to lead sense, the multi-sensory environment explores the intersection of art and science to expand human perception.
It applies Chromasonic Refrequencing, a proprietary technology engineered to translate light waves into sound and sound into light in real time, enabling perception of 'hearing color and seeing sound'.
Image credit: Chromasonic
Sep 2, 2025
Caffè Nazionale, a palimpsest that revives the 19th century palazzo in Arzignano by architect Antonio Caregaro Negrin, is reborn through a layered restoration led by architecture studio AMAA.
In a 'delicate intervention' juxtaposing history and modernity, the design choreographs a sequence of thresholds and stages that courts the café with Piazza Libertà.
By dissolving boundaries through a delicate play of light and transparency, the theatrical journey crafts visual continuity, illusory effects, and unexpected glimpses.
Image credit: Caffè Nazionale
Sep 1, 2025
Maison Margiela unveils Line 2 in its numerical system, assigning it as a dedicated platform of intangible products centered on art and cultural partnerships.
The initiative transcends commerce, designed instead to forge connection, cultivate a discerning collective, and enrich the house's artistic discourse with its audience.
The initiative's first stage coincides with the global art fair Frieze Seoul, unveiling its showcase at Maison Margiela's Seoul flagship store on September 3,2025.
The opening act presents a blend of visual and sonic experimentation, an installation co-created by visual artist Heemin Chung and sound designer Joyul.
Image credit: Maison Margiela | Heemin Chung | Joyul
Aug 30, 2025
Architect Tadao Ando broke ground on his first major project in Central Asia, a landmark envisioned as both a civic hub and a global gateway for artistic dialogue.
"The National Museum of Uzbekistan"
Commissioned by the Uzbekistan Art and Culture Development Foundation
Grounding Ando's minimalist formalism with spatial composition drawn from Uzbekistan's architectural heritage, the design interconnects three pure geometric volumes:
a square
a triangle
a circle
Image credit: Tadao Ando | The National Museum of Uzbekistan
Aug 28, 2025
YU Momoeda Architects designed CYCL, a sauna centered on a dialogue with Mount Fuji, bridging its spatial logic to the elemental rhythm of the landscape.
Framing the mountain, the structure derives its inspiration directly from the lenticular clouds (kasa gumo) that form above Mount Fuji, reflected in its floating roof design.
Imagined as a spaceship, the design found symbolic clarity in cloud forms, with a floating roof resting atop a polyhedral mountain-like structure rising from the earth.
Image credit: CYCL | YU Momoeda Architects
Aug 28, 2025
YÉOL foundation and Chanel, through their annual initiative that honors and supports craftsmanship, have selected the 2025 honorees and are exhibiting their works.
Nature, As It Is
Aug 21 — Oct 11, 2025
Yeol Bukchonga, Seoul
The two honorees, a master artisan and a young craftsperson, embody the commitment to safeguard and recontextualize the enduring legacy of Korean craftsmanship.
Gap Soon Park
Master of jiho, traditional Korean papier-mâché, as Artisan of the Year
Yoon Jeong Lee
Metal artist, as Young Craftsperson of the Year
Image credit: YÉOL | Chanel | Gap Soon Park | Yoon Jeong Lee
Aug 23, 2025
Noisy Oyster, a new seafood bistro in Shoreditch, London, designed by artist and designer Harry Nuriev, reimagines a dining experience as a "living installation".
Nuriev employed a work-in-progress design, creating a sense of constant evolution and unfinished beauty—-a concept rooted in the philosophy of what he frames as:
Modern romanticism
Transformism
A sculptural tension of brutalist forms and soft gestures feels like industrial theatre. With columns wrapped in dense wires symbolizing literal and physical connection.
Image credit: Noisy Oyster | Harry Nuriev | Crosby Studios
Aug 25, 2025
Haus Da Lat, designed by Kengo Kuma, is Vietnam's first ESG driven complex, orchestrating architecture, nature, and cultural heritage on the city's last prime lakefront site.
The 5 hectare mixed-use development upholding environmental stewardship is located in the heart of Da Lat overlooking the storied Xuan Huong Lake and houses:
InterContinental Hotels & Resorts
68 Sky Villas & Sky Mansions
Wellness Centre
Private members Club
Retail and commercial center
Image credit: Haus Da Lat
Aug 20, 2025
Artist Tomáš Libertíny creates sculptural works by collaborating with living bee colonies, letting nature construct what human hands only guide.
By staging pollinators and a material from fragile ecosystems, his work is a subtle ecological prompt—a reminder that human culture depends on nonhuman labor.
Time as the core medium
Nature as co-author
Process over product
Image credit: Tomáš Libertíny
Aug 18, 2025
Greenpeace activists, in collaboration with artist Anish Kapoor, installed a large-scale artwork titled BUTCHERED on Shell's active gas platform in the North Sea to call out the fossil fuel industry's role in the climate crisis.
BUTCHERED transforms the unseen violence of fossil fuel extraction into a visible wound, urging governments to tax oil profits to aid climate-impacted communities.
Image credit: Anish Kapoor | Greenpeace
Aug 16, 2025
Osulloc, a leading tea brand from the beauty conglomerate Amorepacific, has opened Matcha Noodle Bar with Michelin star chef Doyun Kim at the Jeju Tea Museum.
With the concept of "Reimagining the Tea Experience", the recipes express harmony between technical finesse, local terroir, and the resonance of natural landscape.
Image credit: Osulloc | Doyun Kim
Aug 15, 2025
Design art duo Batten and Kamp, in collaboration with digital artist and pianist Henry Chu, have unveiled the limited edition Steel and Stone Piano V2.
With a concept of articulating between functional and sculptural states, the piano oscillates between two modes — a horizontal 'playing mode' and a vertical 'monolith mode' — and retains the studio's emphasis on raw materiality and elemental design language.
Image credit: Batten and Kamp
Aug 11, 2025
Tiffany & Co., in collaboration with chef Natsuko Shoji, opened Japan’s first Blue Box Café at its new Ginza flagship, fusing Japanese ingredients with New York influence.
Chef Natsuko Shoji, of the prominent French restaurant été in Tokyo, brings her acclaimed culinary artistry to the café as the first Japanese woman to be named Asia’s Best Female Chef (2022) and Asia’s Best Pastry Chef (2020).
Image credit: Tiffany & Co. | Natsuko Shoji
Aug 10, 2025
In a world of excess, the radical act is not to consume less, but to reimagine what we have, turning curation into creation, healing into making, and ecology into currency.
WASTED by Potato Head, the design arm of the hospitality and lifestyle brand that transforms waste from its own hotel, beach club, and surrounding Bali community, has launched Collection 001 in collaboration with designer Max Lamb.
Guided by Potato Head’s "Good Times, Do Good" ethos, eight waste streams turn into handmade homeware that upholds durable, recyclable or biodegradable materials with reverence for the origins of each resource.
Image credit: Potato Head | Wasted
Aug 9, 2025
Christian Louboutin, in collaboration with architect Tarek Shamma, opened La Salvada in Melides, Portugal, one of the two new villas that serve as an extension of his art-filled stay, the Vermelho Hotel.
Rooted in Louboutin’s deeply personal aesthetic, the villa infuses Portuguese artisanship with spatial narrative drawn from Moroccan and Indian architectural references.
The blush-pink body, with a culturally layered tension of stepped geometries, rooftop terraces, and sculptural concrete forms, reimagines the vernacular codes of:
Jantar Mantar observatories of Jaipur
Ancient Stepwells of Rajasthan
Nabataean architecture of Petra
Image credit: La Salvada | Clement Vayssieres
Aug 8, 2025
Starbucks Japan has partnered with Hiroshi Fujiwara’s fragment design at the intersection of street culture and beverage, blending lifestyle, taste, and identity into a hybrid coffee and tea drink, the Reusable Cup FRGMT MYST, and a paired music playlist designed to elevate the experience.
Exclusive to Starbucks Miyashita Park, BBTEA by FRAGMENT was guided by Hiroshi Fujiwara’s idea to craft a drink that even non-coffee drinkers could enjoy, combining black tea and espresso and drawing inspiration from Enoucha—a traditional Hong Kong beverage also known as Yuenyeung or Mandarin Duck Tea.
Image credit: Starbucks Japan | fragment design | Miyashita Park
Aug 7, 2025
Soho Farmhouse Ibiza has opened, with wellness and art rooted at the spine of the retreat, rewiring luxury into the slow rhythms of land, season, and connection.
Withdrawing from seasonal nightlife crowds, the holistic wellness estate integrates a restored finca and art collection within a nine-acre olive grove, cultivating a gathering ground for artists, creatives, and locals.
Image credit: Soho Farmhouse Ibiza
Aug 4, 2025
Miu Miu has partnered with artist Helen Marten, the youngest Turner Prize winner, to present her first live performance work, 30 Blizzards, at Palais d’Iéna, Paris, as part of Art Basel’s Public Program, running from October 22 to 26, 2025.
The live performance merges sculpture, libretto, video, and choreography, and with the title suggesting fracture and layering, the work traces human identity, time, language, structure, transformation, and the retranslation of lived experience.
Image credit: Helen Marten | Miu Miu | Palais d’Iéna | Art Basel
Aug 3, 2025
Designer Sebastián Ángeles presents Frequency 2.0, a sculptural furniture collection that translates healing sound frequencies into physical, functional objects to promote wellbeing and invite meditative engagement.
Using sound visualizers to convert waveforms into graphic patterns that informed each piece’s design and geometry, the collection is attuned to specific healing frequencies tied to emotional or meditative states — each form intentionally tactile and capable of emitting faint vibrations when touched.
432Hz — Harmony & elevation
741Hz — Clarity & stability
396Hz — Release & grounding
528Hz — Love & renewal
Image credit: Sebastián Ángeles
Jul 30, 2025
Harry Nuriev of Crosby Studios—an artist, architect, and designer who blends art and function with bold chromatic minimalism—brings a radical aesthetic to Paris, designing the fifth address for Café Nuances in the Marais.
Referencing new realism, the space renders the brand's language through reflection, texture, and light, where sculptural and symbolic forms bind a unified materiality. Nuriev’s philosophy of "transformism" reimagines everyday materials as expressive art forms, turning surfaces into dynamic reinterpretations of familiar objects.
Image credit: Café Nuances | Harry Nuriev | Richie Talboy
Jul 28, 2025
Max Richter, a defining figure in contemporary classical music, brings his musical language into the orchestral composition of scent 'Max Richter 01' in collaboration with COMME des GARÇONS parfums.
Conceived as a "sensory memory trace" reflecting Richter’s sonic universe, the scent is described as "parallel play”, working independently but in dialogue, with each note drawing from objects in Richter’s creative life.
The packaging carries artwork by Yulia Mahr, whose creative dialogue with Richter helped shape the project, with her exhibition on view in the courtyard of Dover Street Market Paris.
The Church of Our Becoming
July 24 — August 24, 2025
Image credit: Yulia Mahr | COMME des GARÇONS parfums | Max Richter
Jul 25, 2025
As the slowness and stillness we once exiled from the city to gain time and efficiency return to us, we begin to realize time was never truly gained, only displaced.
An ephemeral public bathhouse, Round About Baths by Leopold Banchini Architects, is installed in a traffic roundabout built on an existing fountain in Logroño, Spain, reclaiming an urban void by turning it into a communal space.
What had become a symbol of how automobile systems colonized civic space and imagination is now reimagined as a site of pause, intimacy, and collective return—framing a new take on city life and commerce, where overlooked spaces can become sensorial, social, and meaningful through minimal architecture.
Image credit: Leopold Banchini Architects | Gregori Civera | Josema Cutillas
Jul 23, 2025
When design accepts imperfection and senses recalibrate, value begins to ignite where deliberate friction is placed—becoming the stage for renewed wonder.
Rejecting human-centered design, DAICHI embraces absence, believing that luxury today lies in ingenuity, sensory awakening, and communion with nature.
Architect Makoto Tanijiri and partners at DAICHI built the world’s first treehouse sauna at DAICHI Silent River, a forest retreat near Tokyo where nature and architecture evolve in dialogue—designing it around living trees, integrating their natural forms into the structure, and opening it to spaces cut by time, light, and air, awakening primal sensation.
Image credit: DAICHI | KΛKERU | atsutomohino | rili_no_shashin
Jul 21, 2025
Jia CURATED, a five-day immersive event celebrating craft, design, and culture through community collaboration and cross-cultural exchange, takes place from August 14 to 18, 2025, at Bali Festival Park in Sanur.
With the theme Evolving Perspectives, Jia CURATED explores how shifting viewpoints reshape curiosity, resilience, adaptability, and inclusivity within contemporary design practice—showcasing 150 exhibitors across 10,000 m².
Image credit: Jia CURATED
Jul 19, 2025
When ownership of space fragments, the architecture of meaning changes, authorship becomes plural, and space serves as a reflective container of aligned identities.
NOT A HOTEL, a next generation hospitality brand redefining cultural ownership, has opened a new space in Tokyo—a single, multi-purpose environment that serves as the physical embodiment of the brand’s philosophy, encompassing:
The NIGO lounge
Jean Prouvé House
Workspaces
Dining / Event Spaces
The NIGO lounge—designed by NIGO® and limited to one group per day—invites THE NIGO HOUSE owners to inhabit the brand’s cultural architecture within a hyper-curated setting for dining and gatherings.
Image credit: NOT A HOTEL
Jul 11, 2025
Ktima Aidipsos is an architectural proposal for a 1,500 m² underground winery carved into the vineyards of northern Evia, Greece, developed by architect Fotis Zapantiotis.
Speaking through geometry, the architectural concept embeds the winery underground, reducing its presence to a single line and a sunken circle—concealing production, preserving the land, and relying on the earth’s natural coolness and humidity to eliminate mechanical systems and support wine maturation through functional, ecological logic over formal expression.
Image credit: Studio Taf | FOTIS ZAPANTIOTIS associated architects
Jul 9, 2025
When the body is expected to heal on command, and nature is enlisted as visual therapy, architecture can step in as a new logic—by becoming a passive bridge.
An experimental sauna installation proposes a new form of space functioning as a device, triggering transformation in state of mind through sequences engineered to create flow.
The architectural form, composed of tetrahedral membrane units that reach toward the sun when inflated, evokes a living organism—one in constant rhythm with light, wind, steam, and heat.
TAIYO TSUBOMI (Sun bud)
April 13 — October 13, 2025
Osaka EXPO
90-min sessions | Limited to 100 visitors per day
Image credit: TAIYO TSUBOMI | 橋本龍二
Jul 6, 2025
Set in the Fari Islands, Patina Maldives and The Ritz-Carlton Maldives will co-host the inaugural Fari Islands Festival, a four-day cultural event taking place from 19 to 22 September 2025.
With Fari Marina Village serving as the communal heart of the festival, it unites music, art, cuisine, wellness, and nature in a high-caliber, multidisciplinary program, presenting a stellar lineup of internationally recognized speakers, artists, scientists, chefs, and mixologists.
Image credit: Fari Islands Festival | Patina Maldives | The Ritz-Carlton Maldives, Fari Islands
Jul 5, 2025
In a market saturated with novelty, attention to meaning is the new currency of influence, the act of choosing to stand beside substance, not in front of it.
With a mission to enrich contemporary thought and community life through literature, Miu Miu hosts its Summer Reads 2025 event in lush urban gardens and a library across five cities, offering free books and ensembles to the public.
Two pioneering writers take focus: Simone de Beauvoir from France and Fumiko Enchi from Japan, both known for exploring gendered identity and subjectivity.
Image credit: Miu Miu
Jun 27, 2025
No winners, just pure play.
When irregularity enters a reality built on rules, order, and purpose, it invites us to question how imperfection begins to free us and leads us back to a sense of joy.
Artist MRKA created a life-sized, hand-drawn tennis court at Casa Axis during his residency, reimagining sport as a meeting point of play and art through expressive imperfection that reveals crooked lines, asymmetry, and a nonconformist aesthetic that turns seriousness into bold creativity.
'Hard Court'
by Lucas MRKA Benarroch
at Casa Axis, Valencia, Spain
Image credit: MRKA | Casa Axis
Jun 25, 2025
As destinations become coordinates of identity projection, wellness steps into an aspirational framework, a designed system lived across digital, physical, and spatial layers.
Alo, the premium lifestyle label rooted in mind-body wellness, unveiled its boutique and seasonal beach club on the Aegean shores at Mandarin Oriental, Bodrum—running through September and encompassing a beach club, a curated series of wellness activations, and in-room digital access to wellness content.
Image credit: Alo | Mandarin Oriental, Bodrum
Jun 23, 2025
As the digital world accelerates and mediates perception, we drift from our physical center—yet the body remains the most truthful instrument of attunement.
Tadao Ando and Antony Gormley, two titans of architecture and sculpture, collaborated to create a permanent space where site-specific art is woven into the very fabric of its form. A dome of light, concrete, and glimpses of nature serves as a central oculus and a medium that activates transformation of observation into participation, and of space into experience.
'GROUND'
Museum SAN, Korea
Image credit: Museum SAN | Antony Gormley | John O'Rourke
Jun 21, 2025
At a time when experience is packaged for virality, a brand turns inward, inviting us to laugh for an hour for escapism, where memory is staged and mystery is felt.
The invitation opens into a free, interactive installation by Hermès, as theater, design, and gamified discovery converge through surreal and imaginative storytelling.
Mystery at the Grooms’
Pier 36, New York City
June 19 — 29, 2025
Image credit: Hermès | Liu Shuwei | Sui Sicong
Jun 20, 2025
Wolfgang Tillmans, a defining artist of our time, unveils a major exhibition as Centre Pompidou’s final show before its five-year closure, activating 6,000 m² of library space (Bpi) in a curatorial experiment of transmission and visual tension.
As a main partner of the exhibition, CELINE debuts Accès Libre, an open invitation to all, granting 4 days of free entry, reaffirming the house's dedication to collective access to art and knowledge.
Nothing Could Have Prepared Us
Everything Could Have Prepared Us
June 13 — September 22, 2025
Bibliothèque publique d'information (Bpi)
Free public admission on:
June 13
July 3
August 28
September 22
Image credit: Wolfgang Tillmans | Centre Pompidou
Jun 18, 2025
In a world where design follows our necessity, we do more but feel less—yet it holds the power to speak to our senses and remind us what it means to be human.
Muuto, partnered with Kinda Studios, presents a sensory installation rooted in neuroaesthetics, centered on Lise Vester's Dream View Bench—curved to cradle the body and lift the gaze to the sky, inviting the senses to rewrite the mind with pause, connection, and reflection.
Grounded in Nature
June 18–19, 2025
3daysofdesign, Copenhagen
Image credit: Muuto | Lise Vester | Mayuko Takyu
Jun 16, 2025
Burberry has unveiled a summertime collaboration with The Newt in Somerset, reimagining the 2,000 acre luxury estate as a seasonal canvas of British summer heritage, available until August 18, 2025.
The dialogue unfolds across design, landscape, and leisure experiences, crafting a form of identity exchange where seasonal hospitality meets cultural fabric.
Image credit: Burberry | The Newt in Somerset
Jun 16, 2025
Coffee is in trouble, as climate change alters the soil, sun, and seasons—threatening the very beans we've cherished for decades, which may soon vanish entirely.
In response, Blue Bottle Coffee asks you to rethink what coffee can be through a tasting journey that traces flavor beyond the familiar, resilience beyond yield, and farms grounded in heart and hope over fame—embracing coffee for what it dares to become.
The Future of Coffee
90 minute, 9 course experience
Blue Bottle Studio Seoul
June 14 — July 20, 2025
Image credit: Blue Bottle Coffee | Lana Park
Jun 14, 2025
PAÑPURI, Thailand’s niche fragrance and holistic wellness lifestyle brand, crafts scent that carries a drift to the Andaman Sea—its most beloved and defining creation, ANDAMAN SAILS, tracing a fragrant trail of the ocean’s essence, where the sea becomes metaphor, memory, and meaning. The scent arrives in a tactile form that invites intimate expression—slow by nature and made to linger, settling into the skin and deepening with time and touch.
Image credit: PAÑPURI
Jun 12, 2025
Pedestal, a Nordic design brand, in partnership with ceramic artist Willem van Hooff, crafted a collection of sculptural power devices, transforming power units into design objects.
"Ceramic Power Gems"
Navigating a synthesis of artisanal craft and industrial forms, the pieces express power devices as a spatial presence rather than the conventional norm of hiding, interweaving tactility, imperfection, and a human presence into the engineered domain.
Set for release in September 2025 as a limited edition drop.
Image credit: Pedestal | Willem van Hooff
Jun 9, 2025
Tamburins, the olfactory brand from the creators of Gentle Monster, invites Sun & Sea, a Golden Lion–winning opera that reflects on climate crisis and modern life through an entirely new format of opera.
June 20 — 24, 2025
Seongsu, Seoul
Set on a hyper-realistic indoor beach, the surface appears idyllic, yet the juxtaposition of song and scene adds unsettling tension, revealing deeper commentary on the fragility of a world beneath the calm.
Image credit: TAMBURINS | Sun & Sea
Jun 7, 2025
RIMOWA and Vitra have partnered for the first time to craft a limited edition series, merging their shared design expertise in mobility, functionality, and material innovation.
The collaboration reimagines everyday objects with movement and material integrity, resulting in two refined pieces that merge industrial precision with domestic ease.
Aluminium stool
Aluminium Toolbox
Image credit: RIMOWA | Vitra
Jun 6, 2025
Hotel Cipriani, A Belmond Hotel in Venice, is undergoing a multi-phase revitalization led by Peter Marino, the visionary architect and creative force behind the flagship identities of Chanel, Louis Vuitton, and Dior.
The renewal centers on honoring the hotel's storied legacy while reimagining its artistic and architectural expression, with the concept bridging three artistic eras: the grandeur of old Venice, the spirited mid-century Dolce Vita, and the vibrancy of contemporary art and design.
The first phase was unveiled on May 27, 2025.
Image credit: Hotel Cipriani
Jun 3, 2025
Holistic natural beauty brand THREE, in collaboration with Japan's leading mindfulness platform Upmind, is hosting a sauna wellness event titled "Retreat In Scents" at Shibuya SAUNAS from May 30 to June 30, 2025.
Set within the SOUND SAUNA room, with an enveloping audio system and Upmind’s guided meditation layered with THREE’s essential oil "Purification" loyly, the retreat orchestrates deep relaxation through all five senses, leading into a mindful escape.
THREE will also launch a hotel collaboration series in July, offering stay packages at Azumi Setoda, Hitotsu Notojima, and Miwa Yugawara, where rooms are equipped with the full Essential Scents Scalp & Hair lineup.
Image credit: THREE | 渋谷SAUNAS | Upmind
Jun 2, 2025
Osip, a Michelin star restaurant with a field to plate philosophy near Bruton, Somerset, is opening four guest bedrooms above the restaurant, forming a full circle journey where the land and its rhythms are felt.
Situated in a 17th century coaching inn, the new accommodation ties Osip’s sustainable beliefs into mindful stays, marking the next steps in chef Merlin Labron-Johnson’s vision of holistic hospitality that embodies a commitment to openness, locality, and connection to nature in practice.
Image credit: Osip | David Oldham | Jason Lowe
May 31, 2025
Snarkitecture, a New York based design practice founded by artist Daniel Arsham and architect Alex Mustonen, has collaborated with 'One Burger' to craft a sculptural dining space.
One Burger
Athens, Greece
Reimagining familiar forms into unexpected experiences, the project reshapes an abandoned lot in the historic triangle of central Athens to reframe fast food as communal dining and slow encounters—where form, rhythm, and material converge to create a spatial platform that uses design as a social connector.
Image credit: One Burger | Snarkitecture
May 26, 2025
Glass House, Tadao Ando's seminal landmark on Jeju Island, has been reprogrammed as a bakery café offering a sensory blend of spatial journey and terroir.
Cafe Floyeast
at Phoenix Island
Framing the UNESCO listed 'Sunrise Peak' with an architectural opening Ando calls the 'gate of wind', the structure unfolds with a dramatic spatial sequence, creating a cinematic expression of place that reveals a gradual sensation of floating above the ocean.
Image credit: Phoenix Hotel & Resort
May 24, 2025
Thomas Heatherwick’s design and architecture firm, Heatherwick Studio, together with the Aurelia Institute, unveiled Space Garden—an orbiting greenhouse that tests autonomous space farming to improve life on Earth.
Reimagining space architecture as a pathway to planetary wellbeing, the project invites a new public imagination of extraterrestrial environments.
A scale model crafted by Millimetre is on exhibit at La Biennale di Venezia, May 10 – Nov 23, 2025.
Image credit: Aurelia Institute | Heatherwick Studio | Nils Koenning | Marco Zorzanello
May 23, 2025
Missing Room, an open-air pavilion designed by Carroccera Collective—a multidisciplinary group of architects, artists, and scientists—reimagines human habitation in harmony with primal landscapes and natural systems.
Dematerialized by intent, the pavilion dissolves architectural boundaries and embeds sustainable systems, rethinking how we dwell, interact, and coexist with land by letting nature be the dominant inhabitant and visitors mere respectful guests.
Image credit: Carroccera Collective | Alessandro Nanni | Genevieve Lutkin | Juan Benavides
May 21, 2025
SKAC (SKWAT KAMEARI ART CENTRE) reimagines a forgotten stretch of Tokyo as a dynamic cultural laboratory, where design, books, art, music, coffee, and community merge in a space built to evolve.
As an initiative by SKWAT, a collective of artists and thinkers that aims to bring people together by challenging the spatial and cultural boundaries, the site embraces its raw, unfinished state to stay endlessly adaptable, a living embodiment of belief in perpetual reinvention.
Image credit: SKWAT | VDS | Daisuke Shima
May 18, 2025
Sulwhasoo, in partnership with Sofitel Singapore City Centre, launched a limited time wellness café merging K-beauty philosophies with French dining, running from 17 May to 13 July 2025.
The concept, rooted in Sulwhasoo’s holistic approach to beauty, draws from a refined intersection of nourishing cuisine and skincare ingredients chosen for their restorative or healing traits, blending classic Korean medicine with modern science to aid harmony among skin, body, and mind.
Image credit: Sulwhasoo | Sofitel Singapore City Centre
May 17, 2025
MSCHF and Mercedes-AMG unveiled a conceptual furniture exhibition, repurposing AMG car parts into sculptural objects as a tribute to 1960s Radical Design
"Not for Automotive Use"
May 14 — 17, 2025
62 Bayard St in Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Presented exclusively during NYCxDesign 2025, the project reimagines high-performance AMG car parts through MSCHF’s subversive approach — not as literal recycling, but as contextual misplacement that draws on the tension between speed and stillness, utility and sculpture.
Image credit: MSCHF | Mercedes-AMG | Kyle Berger
May 16, 2025
Valentino, led by Alessandro Michele in collaboration with Terraforma, has opened a listening room, L’Atelier Sonore, at its Madison Avenue boutique in New York.
Architect Francesco Lupia has contributed to shaping the layout, and sound designer Giorgio Di Salvo has built the custom sonic setting.
Conceived as a multisensory space intersecting sound, architecture, and emotional resonance, the space will dynamically evolve through summer 2025 with curated soundscapes and a series of artist led listening sessions.
Image credit: Valentino | Ruggero Pietromarchi
May 14, 2025
Diller Scofidio + Renfro unveiled Canal Café, a striking experimental espresso bar that brews coffee using water drawn and purified right from Venice's canals.
A literal and symbolic way to 'drink Venice', the café reframes the act of drinking coffee as a sensory and ecological reflection on the city's environmental reality.
Canal Café was awarded the Golden Lion at the 19th Venice Architecture Biennale.
Image credit: Diller Scofidio + Renfro | Iwan Baan | Marco Zorzanello
May 12, 2025
Alexander Wang partnered with bubble tea brand Heytea to launch a limited pop-up café at its SoHo flagship store in New York, blending fashion and tea culture.
The outcome blends a curated space that invites pause and presence, offering limited edition drinks and merchandise that reflect the brands’ shared sensibility.
"Unconventional Blends"
May 2 — 31, 2025
Image credit: Alexander Wang | Heytea
May 10, 2025
Nasu Mukunone, an auberge carved into a 35,000 m² site specific work of environmental choreography, is a fusion of precision, restraint, and ecological respect.
Among the first to receive a Michelin Key in Asia, the forest retreat with a water garden designed by architect Junya Ishigami creates a manmade formation of organic complexity that defies conventional landscaping, orchestrating a cultivated naturalism where calculated disarray, seasonal transformation, and architectural clarity coexist in serene tension.
Image credit: Nasu Mukunone
May 9, 2025
MACAM, a contemporary art museum and five star hotel set in a restored 18th century palace in Lisbon, opened in March 2025, merging history, architecture, and hospitality.
Foremost a museum supported by a hotel, the 13,000m² space includes galleries with over 600 works by Portuguese and international artists, gardens, a Baroque frescoed chapel turned performance venue and bar, a library with over 5,000 books, a restaurant, a pool, and more.
MACAM (Museu de Arte Contemporânea Armando Martins)
Image credit: MACAM | Fernando Guerra | FG+SG
May 6, 2025
Bentley Motors, in collaboration with Marnie Rays and Otter Surfboards, unveils a handcrafted surfboard embodying a spirit of craftsmanship and intention.
Rooted in minimal design and shaped using wood and techniques drawn from Bentley’s own craft, the project becomes a philanthropic and narrative gesture to support inclusive surf experiences for individuals with disabilities, injuries, or learning differences.
Image credit: Bentley Motors | Marnie Rays | Otter Surfboards | George Harper | Greg Dennis | Sense Films
May 5, 2025
Brabus, a leading luxury mobility brand, unveiled Brabus Island, a 100,000m² real estate project in Abu Dhabi, extending its design philosophy into modern architecture and living.
Defined by a bold, progressive design language, the architecture and interiors embody the design codes of Brabus Masterpiece vehicles, translating their aesthetics into what the brand calls its "1-Second-Wow" — an immediate, powerful design impact.
Image credit: BRABUS
May 1, 2025
Triennale Milano presents Voce, a multifunctional, immersive sound environment exploring intersections between sound, film, design, and urban identity.
Rooted in architectural history yet forward looking in its technical ambition, Voce is a new listening institution and year round platform for sonic expression, performance, and site specific production that reshapes the role of listening in public culture.
Image credit: Triennale Milano | DSL Studio | Delfino Sisto Legnani | Luca Cipelletti
Apr 30, 2025
Byredo, in collaboration with French designer and light artist Benoit Lalloz, crafts a breathing sculpture where scent, light, and emotion flow in an intimate dialogue.
INFRA LUNA 2.0
The ethereal sculpture, capable of melting candles without touch, flame, or glare, casts a gentle halo of light and diffuses scent in silent motion, evoking the sensation of an invisible soul inhabiting the space.
Image credit: Byredo | Benoit Lalloz | Angele Moraiz + Paul Mougeot
Apr 27, 2025
MVRDV will convert a 100 year old church in the Netherlands into a public swimming pool, preserving its legacy while repurposing its beauty into a new life.
Through a bold reimagining of sacred space with adjustable forms, luminous interventions, and artist collaborations, the project transforms memory into an evolving, shared future of openness, presence, and purpose.
HOLY WATER
St. Francis of Assisi Church, Heerlen
Opening by the end of 2027.
In collaboration with Zecc Architecten.
Image credit: MVRDV
Apr 26, 2025
Jacquemus opened its first permanent boutique in LA with a temporary pop-up market offering flower bouquets, banana ice cream, and more.
The boutique, designed as a rustic collector’s home, reflects Simon’s personal taste through curated vintage pieces, while the market offers surprise vouchers tied to the brand’s yellow theme, highlighting the debut of the "La Bateau" Timberland collaboration.
Image credit: Jacquemus | yoann et marco
Apr 25, 2025
The Frankie Shop, in collaboration with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office, launched its first Middle East retail space in Abu Dhabi, unveiling an exclusive collection through an immersive two-week pop-up that captures the spirit of the city.
April 18 — May 1, 2025
Mina Zayed Port (MiZa)
The pop-up extends to merge fashion, art, culture, and community through design collaborations, the Collagen 48 Café at The Frankie Coffee Shop, and a lineup of curated talks and styling sessions hosted by Gaëlle Drevet, Founder of The Frankie Shop, and accompanied by iconic fashion influencers and stylists.
Image credit: Abu Dhabi Retail | The Frankie Shop
Apr 22, 2025
Louis Vuitton unveils two Osaka-focused publications coinciding with the World Expo 2025, alongside an exhibition created in collaboration with architect Shohei Shigematsu of OMA.
City Guide Osaka
Fashion Eye Osaka
The City Guide Osaka offers a multifaceted cultural exploration of the city, including contributions by Verdy and his mentor Tadao Ando, while Fashion Eye Osaka presents Jean-Vincent Simonet’s dreamlike photographic vision of the city in a psychedelic, retro-futuristic sprawl filled with hallucinatory, layered views.
Image credit: Louis Vuitton | Jean-Vincent Simonet
Apr 20, 2025
Cho Gi-Seok, a multidisciplinary artist renowned for his surreal, ironic, and emotionally charged visual language, extends his artistic expression through scent.
Following global recognition for his work with leading artists and his LVMH Prize nominated fashion brand KUSIKOHC, Cho begins another chapter—translating his long-held symbolic language into olfactory compositions, COEXISTENCE, that embody rebirth, transformation, and emotional contrast.
Image credit: Cho Gi-Seok | CGS
Apr 19, 2025
Rick Owens renders Palais Galliera into a temple of creative defiance through a monumental retrospective marking the 30th anniversary of his label.
Temple of Love
Palais Galliera, Paris
June 28, 2025 — January 4, 2026
Beyond the bounds of fashion, it navigates the spiritual, political, and aesthetic underpinnings of Owens’ practice through constructs of rebellion and identity, staging raw matter shaped into sculpted forms in desaturated hues, while reimagining the museum’s architecture with sequined drapery, cement sculptures, and plant life rooted in his inspirations.
Image credit: Rick Owens | Palais Galliera
Apr 15, 2025
Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) reimagines architecture as an extension of the forest, rising from the landscape to vanish into nature, culture, and living topography.
"Hungarian Natural History Museum"
Development by 2030
The subterranean concept unfolds as three overlapping ribbons merging into Debrecen’s historic Great Forest, forming a 360° manmade continuity of nature.
Image credit: BIG - Bjarke Ingels Group
Apr 13, 2025
Pierre Renart, a designer renowned for his sculptural, fluid expression of a single unbroken line, has collaborated with Longchamp to present the brand's first furniture collection, extending from their earlier design conceived in the spirit of a Parisian apartment.
In his first use of leather, Renart distilled his ethos of minimal intervention, veiled in hues drawn from Longchamp’s Spring palette.
Banquette Wave Cuir
Chaise Ruban Cuir
are on view at the Milan flagship from April 7 to May 13, 2025, with the Chaise Ruban Cuir available for purchase.
Image credit: Longchamp | Pierre Renart | Federico Avanzini
Apr 12, 2025
Louis Vuitton reopens its Milan flagship after a three year transformation led by Peter Marino, unveiling its first Italian restaurant and café with the three Michelin starred Cerea family.
Housed in the historic Palazzo Taverna, built in 1835 by Ferdinando Albertolli, the concept brings together Italian craftsmanship, contemporary design, and a two-part culinary offering.
Da Vittorio Café Louis Vuitton
DaV by Da Vittorio Louis Vuitton
Image credit: Louis Vuitton
Apr 11, 2025
Amen is a vegan candle brand from Paris founded by designer Rodrigo Garcia Alvarez. In collaboration with sculptor Katharina Kaminski, Amen crafted a clay candle series exploring the shape of light, space, time, and presence.
Serving as a platform for aesthetic activism, combining scent, sculpture, and sustainability through plastic-free designs, Amen continues to expand its message globally through exhibitions and collaborations that challenge conventions.
Image credit: AMEN
Apr 8, 2025
Milan Design Week 2025 activates the entire city through Salone del Mobile and Fuorisalone, with a multitude of layered intersections across creative disciplines, from April 7 to 13, 2025.
Among this year's intersecting experiences are:
Aesop – The Second Skin
Audi / DRIFT – Drift Us
Prada Frames – In Transit
Saint Laurent – Charlotte Perriand
Image credit: Aesop | Audi | DRIFT | Prada | Saint Laurent
Apr 6, 2025
W Hotels has announced the launch of its first ‘W PRESENTS: Retreat’—a curated experience intersecting music, culture, and wellness—set to take place at W Koh Samui in May 2025.
Curated by LP Giobbi, the retreat brings together acclaimed artists including Bonobo and Sofia Kourtesis, cultural activities, and restorative wellness experiences such as yoga, guided mindfulness, and sound baths.
Image credit: W Hotels | Bonobo | LP Giobbi | Sarah Northrop
Apr 5, 2025
Art intersects with sound through a decade-long collaborative project between Patti Smith and Soundwalk Collective, making its debut in Asia.
Through sonic memory, poetic narration, and rare archival visuals, the project presents an immersive exhibition and performance series that reorders media structure through sound-led compositions and visuals, examining the intricate relationships between humans, nature, the environment, and artistic entanglements.
April 19, 2025 — July 20, 2025
Exhibition | piknic, Seoul
April 26, 2025 — June 29, 2025
Exhibition | Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo
April 29, 2025
Performance | ROHM Theatre Kyoto
May 2—3, 2025
Performance | New National Theatre Opera Palace, Tokyo
Image credit: Patti Smith | Soundwalk Collective | MODE
Apr 1, 2025
Philippe Starck has designed a surrealist hotel in Metz, France, built to embody the fictional tale The Meticulous Life of Manfred Heler, created by Starck.
Every part of the hotel, from the architecture to the rooms, is crafted as a physical expression of the literary story centered on the character Manfred Heler, culminating in a surreal 9-story monolith topped by a 19th-century Lorraine house—minimalism and romanticism juxtaposed as a living novel.
Maison Heler
Curio Collection by Hilton
Opening March 2025
Image credit: Maison Heler | Philippe Starck | Julius Hirtzberger
Mar 30, 2025
Kengo Kuma has designed a café in Fukuoka, an ethereal mesh-wrapped structure filled with a collection of charms that begin with the letter C, such as Cloud, Communication, and Chill.
Cs Somme Café
by Kengo Kuma and Associates
Drifting like a mirage in the city, the café’s spectral silhouette preserves visual lightness, while beneath the veil, its interlocking steel structure ensures earthquake resistance, expressing both symbolic and physical comfort through the language of architecture.
Image credit: Cs Somme Café | Kengo Kuma and Associates
Mar 29, 2025
Issey Miyake, in collaboration with Swiss design studio Atelier Oï, presents new possibilities of combining cloth and wire in cross-disciplinary design.
*Developed through A-POC ABLE ISSEY MIYAKE.
The exhibition, a dual vision of crafting simple material into poetic yet active objects, traces a shared creative process that reimagines material use and results in two sculptural lighting series that blur the boundaries between art, utility, and space.
TYPE-XIII Atelier Oï
April 8—13, 2025, Milan Design Week
Issey Miyake Milan flagship store
Image credit: Issey Miyake
Mar 28, 2025
The Louis Vuitton Carrousel is installed, inviting visitors to enjoy a whimsical ride at the Jardin d'Acclimatation, Paris’s beloved and oldest amusement park.
The layering of history and modernity transforms travel into a collective sensory encounter, elevating motion into narrative that feels theatrical yet composed.
Image credit: Louis Vuitton | Jardin d'Acclimatation
Mar 25, 2025
Jacquemus has partnered with Neiman Marcus to unveil a fully operational bowling alley, spotlighting the exclusive “Le Petit Turismo” bowling bag.
Open through April 2 at NorthPark Center in Dallas, the immersive installation invites customers to engage in actual gameplay, with attendants on hand to assist throughout the experience.
Image credit: Jacquemus | Neiman Marcus
Mar 23, 2025
Three design studios reimagined Herzog & de Meuron’s architecture through open-ended vignettes that dialogue with material, space, and perception.
Installed within the historically layered Am Tacheles complex, each vignette proposes domesticity through a unique architectural reading, opting for “unfinished” spaces that invite imagination and revealing how refined living spaces can be reframed as stages for conceptual storytelling and material inquiry rather than emblems of affluence.
"ROOMS of AM Tacheles"
Am Tacheles, Berlin
Image credit: Robert Rieger | Herzog & de Meuron
Mar 23, 2025
Lemaire, in collaboration with artist Carlos Peñafiel, hosts an exhibition intersecting art and utility through sculptural leather pieces that challenge traditional craftsmanship.
Rooted in the idea of objects as extensions of the human body, Peñafiel’s exploration of space, emotion, and tactile depth converges in an exhibition that reshapes the boutique into a flat tint-stage, where anthropomorphic forms appear as part of a continuous visual experience.
"Wearable Sculptures"
Lemaire flagship, Marais
Until March 23, 2025
Image credit: Lemaire | Guillem Cruells | Clement Vayssieres
Mar 20, 2025
Prada, in collaboration with influential filmmaker Wong Kar Wai, is opening its first standalone restaurant in Asia, Mi Shang, a dining experience with cinematic framing that takes cues from Wong’s films, playing with spatial tension and nostalgic settings.
Located in Rong Zhai, a 1918 cultural landmark in Shanghai restored by Prada over six years, Mi Shang will focus on Italian fine dining with Chinese influences, crafting flavors from both cultures in an all-day gastronomic experience and café.
Image credit: Prada | Wong Kar Wai | Wing Shya
Mar 18, 2025
Four Seasons, in partnership with Giorgio Armani, launches The Road to The Giorgio Armani Tennis Classic across four prestigious resorts, offering an exclusive doubles tournament series from March to June 2025.
Tennis legends, including Juan Martín del Potro and Venus Williams, will mentor Four Seasons guests enrolled as players, with winners advancing to the finals at London’s elite Hurlingham Club, where The Giorgio Armani Tennis Classic serves as the grand backdrop.
Image credit: Four Seasons | Giorgio Armani Tennis Classic
Mar 16, 2025
The Guggenheim Museum Bilbao presents Refik Anadol's innovative exhibition at the intersection of art, architecture, and machine learning, as the first 'in situ' series.
Living Architecture: Gehry
March 7 — October 19, 2025
The installation reinterprets Frank Gehry’s architectural language through AI-generated landscapes, processing 35 million images with 50-channel projectors and incorporating multiple sensory elements. The work is powered by Google Cloud’s sustainable computing and integrates an immersive soundscape by composer Kerim Karaoglu.
Image credit: Refik Anadol | Museo Guggenheim Bilbao
Mar 14, 2025
Noma, the globally acclaimed dining innovator, unveiled Noma Kaffe, an experience driven coffee subscription that stays true to Noma's unwavering ethos.
The ingredient led approach follows Noma's ideals in fermentation, distillation, and preservation, prioritizing precision, seasonality, and sensory depth to offer more than just coffee—providing tasting notes, brewing guides, and rich stories of the farmers and their growing practices.
Image credit: Noma Projects
Mar 13, 2025
Estée Lauder and Ladurée have partnered, intersecting beauty and culinary beyond their domains by translating flavors into hues and textures into cosmetics.
This limited collection transforms Ladurée’s signature confections into wearable beauty—spanning makeup, skincare, and fragrance—illustrating how a brand's essence, whether in food or beauty, can be reinterpreted through form, shade, and scent.
Image credit: Estée Lauder | Ladurée
Mar 9, 2025
MATTER and SHAPE, a multidisciplinary design salon, returns to the Jardin des Tuileries in Paris during Paris Fashion Week, bringing together over 50 exhibitors across design, fashion, architecture, craftsmanship, and culinary arts.
With spatial design by Willo Perron, the event frames an intersection of form, function, and materiality, showcasing works including FLOS, Vitra, Kiko Kostadinov, and Byredo, alongside a restaurant by sacai and a culinary pop-up led by We Are Ona and chef Imogen Kwok, transforming dining into a choreographed performance.
March 7–10, 2025
Free admission
Image credit: MATTER and SHAPE | Zara Home | PROFIRST | Ark Kollekt | Tavares | Flos | UNTITLED 19 | We Are Ona
Mar 8, 2025
Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, % ΔRΔBICΔ opens in The Henderson, Hong Kong, seamlessly integrating into the structure as a natural extension of the lobby.
The café’s design by ZHA is conceptualized to match the sinuous, avant-garde sophistication of the landmark building they designed, harmonizing with its organic form, inspired by the buds of the Hong Kong orchid, and sculptural fluidity.
Image credit: % ΔRΔBICΔ | The Henderson | ko______b
Mar 5, 2025
Artist Do Ho Suh presents a major survey exhibition at Tate Modern, London, showcasing three decades of his work exploring home, identity, and memory.
The exhibition highlights his renowned fabric architectures, sculptures, and installations, forming a labyrinth of translucent structures and architectural imprints that trace themes of belonging, displacement, and the psychological dimensions of space.
The Genesis Exhibition: Do Ho Suh: Walk the House
May 1 — October 19, 2025
Image credit: Do Ho Suh | Tate | Genesis | Jeon Taeg Su
Mar 3, 2025
Baronne Restaurant, housed in the historic Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild, merges historic Parisian aristocracy with contemporary dining and nightlife.
The 19th century mansion, once the residence of Baroness Adèle von Rothschild, a member of the Rothschild banking family, has been revitalized by Paris Society Group, infusing it with modern refinement through the discerning design of Corinne Sachot.
Baronne
11 rue Berryer, Paris 8e arr.
Image credit: Baronne | Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild
Mar 1, 2025
Helmut Lang presents his first solo institutional exhibition in LA, showcasing sculptures made from repurposed materials that explore memory, form, and transformation.
Set within Rudolph Schindler's proto-minimalist architecture, the exhibit draws parallels between Lang’s reductivist approach and the renowned building’s architectural philosophy, dissolving boundaries of space, time, and identity through evolving artifacts that bridge personal and collective histories.
'What remains behind'
Feb 19 — May 4, 2025
MAK Center at the Schindler House
Image credit: Helmut Lang | MAK Center for Art and Architecture | Daniel Trese
Feb 27, 2025
Architecture firm Kalbod Design Studio's concept reimagines Ernan Castle in Mehriz, Iran, as a boutique hotel where architectural composition creates a sequential sensory journey.
The experience follows a rotational itinerary through four themed sections—Earth, Fire, Water, and Air—deepening sensory contrasts, dynamic circulation, and a juxtaposition of old and new.
Image credit: Kalbod Design Studio | Ziba Baghban
Feb 26, 2025
Burning Man, the annual celebration of creativity, community, and self-expression, gathers in the Nevada desert to construct the ephemeral Black Rock City.
At its heart stands the Temple, with the 2025 creation, Temple of the Deep, by architect Miguel Arraiz, serving as a sanctified space for reflection, communal healing, and personal connection.
The design draws from Arraiz's personal passage through loss and renewal, and its fractured shell reflects the Japanese art of kintsugi, where broken objects are repaired with gold to honor history rather than conceal imperfections.
Image credit: Burning Man | Miguel Arraiz | Danee Hazama | Duncan Rawlinson
Feb 23, 2025
Médongaule, a garden of revelation, unfolds an unspoken narrative where landscape and architecture compose a silent dialogue with Korea's story through nature.
Culminating 13 years of planning and creation, the 200,000m² estate in Yangpyeong brings together global architects and designers to create a humanities driven experience for contemplation and emotional healing, reviving the forgotten legacy of Korean landscaping after more than 100 years.
Image credit: Médongaule
Feb 22, 2025
Leeum Museum of Art in Seoul hosts Pierre Huyghe's solo exhibit, Liminal, in collaboration with the Pinault Collection's Punta della Dogana and in partnership with Bottega Veneta.
Exploring the evolving interaction between humans and non-humans through real-time data, biotechnology, and AI, the exhibit presents a constantly shifting environment where fiction and reality merge, challenging traditional narratives and hierarchies between humans, machines, and nature.
February 27 — July 6, 2025
Image credit: Leeum | Pinault Collection | Punta della Dogana | Pierre Huyghe
Feb 20, 2025
Saint Laurent, in partnership with chef Peter Park, brings Sushi Park to Paris—an exclusive omakase experience from LA revered by Hollywood's tastemakers.
Opens February 21, 2025
at Saint Laurent Rive Droite
Marking its first outpost beyond LA, Sushi Park upholds its commitment to elevated omakase centered on pure, seasonal ingredients in an intimate space that balances natural elements with brutalist influences.
Image credit: Saint Laurent | Sushi Park
Feb 19, 2025
Saint Laurent continues to spearhead its cultural footprint, harnessing the multidimensional context of its Paris venues as spaces of creative convergence.
At Saint Laurent Rive Droite, the newly opened boutique is reimagined with Donald Judd’s minimalist designs, alongside omakase dining destination Sushi Park in its basement.
At Saint Laurent Babylone, a cultural space for books, vinyls, and art, Alessandro Furchino Capria’s debut solo exhibition explores the interplay of time, place, and perception, focusing on the fleeting beauty of urban life.
Image credit: Saint Laurent | Donald Judd Furniture | Alessandro Furchino Capria
Feb 18, 2025
Chef Dominique Crenn, the first female chef in the US to earn three Michelin stars, has partnered with Dior to open Café Dior in Dallas, unveiling an elevated fine dining concept inspired by the maison’s archival designs.
Rooted in sustainability with ingredients sourced from local farmers, the menu intertwines the splendors of nature with haute cuisine, reflecting Dior's primary sources of inspiration—the delicate beauty of gardens and flowers.
Image credit: Dior | Andrea Brizzi
Feb 15, 2025
Architect Kengo Kuma explores the language of sound in the fabric of architecture, showcasing how spatial form, materials, and sound interact in a multisensory dialogue.
Onomatopoeia Architecturez
Jan 24 — Mar 15
Former Public Tobacco Factory, Athens
The exhibition presents intricate models of his works, introduces the concept of onomatopoeia—the formation of words that mimic natural sounds—and emphasizes his philosophy that materials tell the story of a place, reconnecting humans with nature and fluidity in architecture.
Image credit: the Architect Show Athens
Feb 14, 2025
Opera, the Norwegian browser maker, introduces Opera Air, the first web browser centered on mindfulness to enhance users' wellbeing while they browse.
With science backed mindfulness tools built in, the minimalist Scandinavian UI embeds solutions such as breathing exercises, meditation, and binaural beats to reduce stress, improve focus, and maintain emotional clarity during online activities.
Image credit: Opera
Feb 10, 2025
Therme Group announced the launch of Therme Dubai – Islands in the Sky, the world's tallest wellness resort, expected to be completed by 2028 at Zabeel Park.
Designed by renowned architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R), the ambitious urban oasis, with sustainability at its core, will rise 100 meters high, housing cascading platforms of botanical gardens, pools, and terraces.
Approved by Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and in partnership with Dubai Municipality, the project aligns with Dubai's Quality of Life Strategy 2033.
Image credit: Therme Group | DS+R
Feb 9, 2025
Belmond, part of LVMH, launched Long Shots, a series of ambient slow TV films promoting mindful living, capturing the sights and sounds of iconic destinations through prolonged, meditative escape.
Embracing 'Slow Luxury', the series gives mental health benefits with calming visuals and ambient sounds that enable a digital detox from fast paced modern life, inviting us to slow down, savor experiences, and envision future journeys within the serene allure of captivating destinations.
Image credit: Belmond
Feb 8, 2025
ICHION CONTEMPORARY gallery, an architectural marvel designed by Tadao Ando, opened in Osaka to foster cultural exchange, bridging architecture and creativity by transforming a narrow 3 meter site into a landmark.
The inaugural exhibition highlights the avant-garde Gutai Art movement with key works by renowned artists, creating a dynamic dialogue between art, sound, and architecture.
"GUTAI: An Enduring Spirit"
Jan 13 — Mar 29, 2025
Image credit: ICHION CONTEMPORARY
Feb 4, 2025
Casa Profumoir, in Florence’s historic San Niccolò district, is an immersive accommodation project by the fragrance brand Profumoir, founded by Daniele Cavalli, son of designer Roberto Cavalli, and Master Perfumer Sileno Cheloni.
Blending the art of perfumery, alchemy, and artisanal design, an intimate stay at the olfactory house offers personalized perfume creation, sensory rituals, and curated experiences, guided by expert craftsmanship and Florence’s rich olfactory heritage.
Image credit: Casa Profumoir
Feb 2, 2025
Abu Dhabi exclusively hosts Casablanca’s first regional tennis club by the sea.
Casablanca Tennis Club at Ilios Beach Club on Al Hudayriyat Island, Abu Dhabi from February 1 to 7, 2025.
The rare occasion intertwines sport, fashion, and gourmet indulgence with curated tennis experiences, workshops, and a pop-up store showcasing Casablanca’s SS25 collection and a limited edition kids’ capsule.
Image credit: Casablanca | ADIO | Ilios
Feb 1, 2025
Designer Joel Seigle introduces a subwoofer dining table, "Table Bass", addressing spatial efficiency in urban living without compromising sound integrity.
Rather than concealing, the speaker takes center stage, reimagining ordinary furnishings into a bespoke creation of refined acoustics and sculptural poise.
Image credit: Joel Seigle
Jan 29, 2025
Khao Yai Art Forest, a visionary project by Marisa Chearavanont, transforms 85 serene hectares into a living canvas that fosters dialogue between art, nature, and biodiversity in a symphony of reciprocal healing, where nature heals people, people heal nature, and art bridges the two.
Conceptualized as 'Art on Earth 2.0', the forest’s artworks by renowned artists illustrate sustainability through material use and spatial integration, with the initiative bridging Marisa's passions for art, food, and education to ignite a journey of reflection and renewal.
Image credit: Khao Yai Art Forest | Stefano Rabolli Pansera | Andrea Rossetti
Jan 28, 2025
Alaïa unveiled its largest new Paris flagship, with a Sant Ambroeus café and curated spaces merging fashion, art, and architecture into an ethereal ambiance.
Designed by renowned architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa of SANAA, in collaboration with Alaïa's Creative Director Pieter Mulier, the store draws inspiration from Alaïa's "second skin" aesthetic, reflecting soft, sculptural forms in its architecture and interiors, and accented with art pieces by Ron Arad, Philippe Malouin, and Diamond Stingily.
Image credit: ALAÏA | Sant Ambroeus | Katja Rahlwes
Jan 26, 2025
The Peninsula partnered with the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) to launch contemporary art installations, advancing access to creativity through its 'Art in Resonance' program, which aids emerging and mid-career artists.
Art Basel Hong Kong 2025 will mark the debut of this partnership with newly commissioned works that integrate art into the fabric of hospitality, fostering dialogue and supporting the growth of forward-thinking artists.
Image credit: The Peninsula | Art Basel
Jan 25, 2025
James Turrell exhibits a chronicle of his journey and a prelude to his monumental Land Art for Wadi AlFann, the Valley of the Arts, in AlUla's desert canyons.
The exhibit surveys his legacy as a master of Light and Space through iconic works while rendering a striking preview of the land art 'cosmic observatories', which will carve a planetary diagram into the desert, bridging celestial and terrestrial experiences through the interplay of the sun's path and shadow.
January 16 — April 19, 2025
as part of AlUla Arts Festival
Image credit: ArtsAlUla | Experience AlUla
Jan 23, 2025
Visionary chef Jean Imbert and luxury kitchen utensil brand Mauviel 1830 have partnered to open Le Logis Sainte Catherine, a restaurant at the foot of Mont-Saint-Michel, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In the culmination of two decades of partnership, Mauviel 1830’s first restaurant, with a design nodding to the brand’s core material, creates a harmonious balance of sacred and maritime inspirations.
Image credit: Le Logis Sainte Catherine | Mauviel 1830 | Jean Imbert | lecmn | Mont-Saint-Michel | BOBY | Carla Gilbert
Jan 22, 2025
Calder Gardens, a cultural destination honoring the art of Alexander Calder, will open in September 2025 in Philadelphia, with architecture by Herzog & de Meuron and gardens by landscape designer Piet Oudolf.
Designed to inspire introspection and community connection, the gardens of art, architecture, and nature will foster interdisciplinary collaboration and experimentation, with programs curated by Juana Berrío to cross-pollinate artistic and non-artistic practices.
Image credit: Calder Gardens | Calder Foundation | Herzog & de Meuron
Jan 21, 2025
Southeast Asia’s first Prada Caffè opens at the brand's newly designed two-level boutique at ION Orchard in Singapore, currently in its soft launch phase.
Overlooking Orchard Road through its curved glass facade, with designs that nod to Prada's Milan heritage, the café offers a selection of pastries, desserts, and savory dishes, complemented by artisanal coffees and chocolates crafted by Marchesi 1824.
Image credit: Prada
Jan 17, 2025
Lightfall, a multisensory installation by Studio Lemercier in collaboration with electronic musician Murcof, explores the interplay of light, air, mist, and sound at Superblue Miami, crafting a surreal fourth-dimensional parallel that traverses time and space.
The installation, a dynamic yet serene experience, heightens sensory perceptions through subtle motions, textures, and temperature shifts, layering atmospheric phenomena evoked by mist curtains of near-invisible atomized water particles merged with Murcof's cinematic soundscape.
Image credit: Superblue | Mind The Film | Studio Lemercier | Murcof
Jan 16, 2025
Maison Perrier-Jouët and design studio Formafantasma partnered on a multi-year ecological and artistic initiative, Cohabitare, in the Champagne region, demonstrating how design can serve as a medium for ecological improvement.
Their first initiative, Biodiversity Island, installed 74 ceramic pillars designed to foster ecological balance and provide habitats for insects, birds, and bats integral to vitality, an effort that counteracts monoculture's challenges by reintroducing diverse flora and fauna to enrich soil health and vineyard resilience.
Image credit: Perrier-Jouët | Formafantasma
Jan 13, 2025
Audemars Piguet launches its first-ever AP Café and a new AP House at the historic Raffles Hotel Singapore, merging the worlds of horology, gastronomy, and lifestyle experiences.
Housed in the storied Bar & Billiard Room with a timeless yet modern design, the café reimagines Swiss classic dishes through a Singaporean lens, crafting a fusion of flavors that reflect the artistry and craftsmanship of watchmaking.
Image credit: Audemars Piguet | Raffles Hotel Singapore
Jan 11, 2025
Rick Owens, with Michèle Lamy, presents BACKSTAGE, an exhibition showcasing their avant-garde furniture designs that merge brutalism, modernism, and archaism.
The collection reveals artisanal creations inspired by natural forms, crafted with rare earth materials, and showcases the Tech Glade, a modular structure designed with Travis Scott for his CIRCUS MAXIMUS tour.
Jan 10 — Feb 15, 2025
Salon 94 Design, New York
Image credit: Rick Owens | Michele Lamy | Salon 94 Design
Jan 10, 2025
Yukai Engineering unveiled Nékojita FuFu, a portable robot designed to cool hot food and drinks, at CES 2025, addressing the challenge of sensitivity to heat during consumption.
Inspired by a father who felt breathless cooling his son's hot baby food, the robot is equipped with a proprietary algorithm and versatile modes, replicating human cooling patterns and making it a playful yet practical tool well-suited for seniors and parents.
Image credit: Yukai Engineering
Jan 9, 2025
The Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo hosts the first large-scale exhibition in Japan dedicated to Ryuichi Sakamoto’s artistic legacy, highlighting his multidisciplinary approach to bridging music, technology, and visual art.
Ryuichi Sakamoto: seeing sound, hearing time
Dec 21, 2024—Mar 30, 2025
Spanning indoor and outdoor spaces, the exhibit delves into his passion for three-dimensional sound, nature, and time, with immersive works and collaborations with renowned artists.
The museum restaurant '100 Spoons' invites a sensory connection to Sakamoto's life and work, offering a menu inspired by his favorite foods.
Image credit: Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo | Ryuichi Sakamoto | 100 Spoons
Jan 8, 2025
Louis Vuitton and artist Takashi Murakami present their re-edition collection, reimagining the seminal partnership that shaped the industry’s approach to collaboration 20 years ago, with over 200 updated designs and a global pop-up rollout across seven major cities—London, Milan, New York City, Tokyo, Seoul, Shanghai, and Singapore.
The pop-up, a prism of Murakami's whimsical artistry with a dynamic blend of retail, cultural narratives, and nostalgic allure, is structured into four zones: retail, care station, cinema, and café.
Image credit: Louis Vuitton | Takashi Murakami | Cafe Zingaro
Jan 4, 2025
Pharrell Williams has partnered with Launchpad Hospitality Group to open two Japanese temaki restaurants, Nami Nori and Matsuyoi, in Miami's Design District, specializing in open style sushi rolls that allow direct savoring of textures and flavors.
Founded by the trio who met under Chef Masa Takayama, the only 3 star Michelin sushi chef in the country, Nami Nori offers a light, beach inspired atmosphere on the ground floor, while Matsuyoi, with a design inspired by the influential artist Kawase Hasui, provides a more intimate setting upstairs.
Image credit: Nami Nori | Matsuyoi | Jihan Lee
Jan 2, 2025
Tom Dixon and A31 Architecture have designed the AIMASIA Residence, a villa at the crossroads of ancient and modern, nestled by Elia beach in Mykonos.
An existing ancient dry stone wall acts as the 'spine' of the structure, and the architecture gracefully flows around it, subtly carving into the hilly ground to minimize visual disruption of the natural landscape.
Image credit: Mike Kelley | A31 Architecture | Tom Dixon | Orizon Development
Dec 31, 2024
Jardin Majorelle in Marrakech, the mystical garden built by Jacques Majorelle and later restored by Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé, celebrates a century of art, nature, and culture in 2024, standing as one of the region's most treasured sites.
Yves Saint Laurent's muse came to life among the serene pathways and vibrant hues of the garden, where his ashes were scattered to rest, immortalizing his creative spirit in its sublime serenity.
Image credit: Jardin Majorelle
Dec 30, 2024
Patina Osaka, set to open in April 2025 by Capella Hotel Group, is an urban hotel that envisions a new paradigm of luxury hospitality, embodying sustainability and conscious living through creative expressions that intersect art, music, fashion, and gastronomy.
Through a creative partnership with artist and cultural icon Verdy, whose Osaka rooted presence serves as a cultural catalyst, Patina Osaka sets out to add a new dimension to transformative urban hospitality.
Image credit: Patina Osaka
Dec 28, 2024
Auberge TOKITO in Tokyo integrates the concept of artisanal cuisine and a traditional Japanese ryokan experience, enveloped in serene architectural design.
The Artisan Cuisine, centered on a collaborative ethos, is led by Chef Yoshinori Ishii, the UK's Michelin star pioneer of ikejime and a ceramic artist, while the design and architecture, by visionary Shinichiro Ogata, modernize traditional ryokan with warm timber, copper, and bronze to evoke serenity.
Image credit: Auberge TOKITO
Dec 27, 2024
The Icebreaker by Serene Industries is a mechanical keyboard designed by filmmaker and designer Denis Agarkov, drawing inspiration from New York's Flatiron Building.
The unorthodox brutalist design, which also nods to filmmaking gear, emerges as a sculptural yet functional and ergonomic piece, embodying a 'no compromise' vision.
Image credit: Serene Industries
Dec 26, 2024
CopenHill, designed by architects Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), is a waste-to-energy plant in Copenhagen that also serves as a recreational space with a ski slope, hiking trail, and climbing wall.
Illustrating 'hedonistic sustainability', the 41,000 m² space, which processes 440,000 tons of waste annually to power 150,000 homes and provide district heating, offers 9,000 m² of year round ski terrain made from artificial membrane, an 85 m climbing wall—the world's tallest—and more activity facilities.
Image credit: CopenHill | Hufton + Crow | Peter Rajkai | Amélie Louys | Ehrhornhummerston
Dec 24, 2024
Rimowa introduces Mahjong Attaché to its collection of gaming sets alongside Poker Attaché and Chess Attaché, crafting utilitarian companions as refined design artifacts to elevate travel and leisure.
Image credit: RIMOWA
Dec 22, 2024
Nomura Group has released 'noon', a speaker fabricated from unconventional materials—denim scraps, construction waste, ocean plastic, food waste, and rocket fuel tanks—giving new life to what would typically be industrial discard, under the ethos "material = earth's resources".
noon intersects contemporary architectural ideals with modular construction and acoustic engineering that manifests modernist spatial ingenuity, delivering a multisensory design experience where sound, touch, fragrance, and visuals intertwine with sustainability and creative transformation.
Image credit: Nomura Co., Ltd.
Dec 21, 2024
Rose McAdoo is a visual artist and former pastry chef who uses cakes as a medium to communicate science and environmental issues, particularly climate change.
Her edible art transforms complex scientific concepts into digestible visuals, addressing topics such as glacier retreat, species interdependence, and human activity's impact on the environment, while using ingredient substitutions like glacier water and algae to highlight biodiversity and extinction.
Image credit: Rose McAdoo | Rachel Heckerman | Tim Wenzel | Arctic Circle | Tyler Watson | Laura Cass
Dec 20, 2024
ICEHOTEL, a transient structure rebuilt annually in Sweden from river ice, launches its 35th edition with designs by 26 artists from 13 countries, integrating art, architecture, and nature into eco-friendly excursions.
This edition presents 12 unique art suites and 20 ice rooms, alongside Arctic gastronomy accentuating regional flavors and a suite of wilderness experiences that span from natural phenomena to cultural heritage.
Image credit: ICEHOTEL | Asaf Kliger
Dec 18, 2024
Simose, a one of a kind art resort and museum in Hiroshima crafted by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Shigeru Ban, earned the 2024 Prix Versailles as the world’s most beautiful museum.
Eight movable art galleries float in a garden of architecture that connects the sea, sky, and greenery, while the Simose Art Garden Villa, offering stays in Forest Villas and Waterfront Villas, includes recreations of Shigeru Ban's iconic designs.
Image credit: Simose Art Museum | Simose Art Garden Villa
Dec 17, 2024
Assouline, a luxury publishing house, opened its flagship boutique with a restaurant and piano bar at Bujairi Terrace in Diriyah, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Blending Mediterranean cuisine with the maison's celebrated collections in intimate settings, the flagship, in tune with the desert landscape and color palettes of Saudi architecture, merges tradition and modernity for a cultural fusion.
Image credit: Assouline | Bujairi Terrace | Diriyah
Dec 15, 2024
Alaïa has opened a bookstore and café in its London flagship through collaborations with Claire de Rouen, a prominent figure in the literary scene, and Violet Cakes by Claire Ptak, widely recognized for crafting the wedding cake for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
The space, embracing a modernist design language that bridges transparency, lightness, and art, continues the tradition of intimate salons hosted by founder Azzedine Alaïa.
Image credit: ALAÏA | Violet Cakes by Claire Ptak
Dec 14, 2024
Nike has collaborated with British makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench, placing beauty and sport as non-opposing forces that jointly elevate confidence and performance, pushing the envelope by asserting cosmetics as a functional medium integral to boosting psychological readiness.
The partnership adapts principles of makeup to the palette of Air Max Dn, interplaying textures, contours, and depth to add multi-textural and tactile dimensions often seen in makeup.
Image credit: Nike | Isamaya Ffrench
Dec 12, 2024
Architects Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), in collaboration with Nokken, unveiled 'Softshell', a two story modular tent designed for sustainable glamping experiences.
The adaptable structure, with a timber frame and weather resistant, recyclable canvas fabric, is designed to integrate into natural settings, and its lightweight, modular design ensures easy transport and assembly, making it suitable for remote locations and reducing environmental impact.
Image credit: Bjarke Ingels Group | Nokken
Dec 10, 2024
Dior opens a new concept space, 'Dior Gold House', in Bangkok's Ploenchit district, blending local artistry with Michelin gourmet experiences within a house inspired by the iconic 30 Montaigne, set amidst a lush garden.
The site's diverse art collaborations orchestrate a resonant dialogue between Dior's French heritage and Thailand's traditional craftsmanship, brought to life by regional artists, designers, and architects.
Image credit: Dior | Pierre Mouton
Dec 8, 2024
The historic Reading Room at the British Museum in London has fully reopened to the public in July after its indefinite closure in 2013, revealing its illustrious architectural splendor, designed by architect Sydney Smirke in 1857 inspired by the Pantheon in Rome.
As an intellectual hub frequented by historical figures such as Karl Marx, Virginia Woolf, Lenin, Mahatma Gandhi, and Mark Twain, the dome, a cornerstone of cultural and scholarly history, has once again opened its doors, allowing general visitors to rediscover its architectural grandeur in its authentic role.
Image credit: Donald Macbeth | Bobulous | Diliff | Phil Armitage | Nordisk familjebok
Dec 5, 2024
Michèle Lamy, an emblematic figure in culture and fashion, partnered with House By, to create 'Object 001', an artistic interpretation of a candle that embraces unity around flame and her philosophy that art can be ephemeral yet hold deep meaning.
Drawing inspiration from Lamy's beloved piece of petrified wood, Object 001 is crafted from organic, unscented, long burning wax atop a hand painted brass stand with a bronze patina, and it burns for 400 hrs.
Limited to 700 pieces, each with a Certificate of Authenticity.
Image credit: Michèle Lamy | House By | Hugo Souchet
Nov 29, 2024
Gucci Giardino, the fashion house's second bar worldwide, has opened in Umeda, Osaka, fusing Italian and Japanese cultural elements in contemporary sensibility.
From its signature cocktails with a nuanced act of storytelling and exclusive aged sake to Michelin starred dining and Laboratory culinary experiences, Gucci Giardino offers an intersection of mixology, art, cuisine, and fashion.
The menu is created in collaboration with Gucci Osteria da Massimo Bottura Tokyo.
Image credit: Gucci | Sebastian Viguera
Nov 28, 2024
Transparent, the circular audio brand from Stockholm with striking designs, has released a speaker that embeds the bold, geometric forms of 1950s brutalist architecture, designed to stand as a 'monument of sound and design', harnessing a form that contributes to sound performance.
The towering structure encapsulates a vast acoustic volume, the geometric shape disperses sound waves uniformly, the dense material delivers optimal acoustic properties, and the elevated vantage points of tweeters at a 90° angle enrich broader dissemination of an immersive soundscape.
Image credit: Transparent
Nov 27, 2024
Bottega Veneta has partnered with the lighting design brand Flos to recreate Gino Sarfatti's Model 600 lamp from 1966, a design that influenced the spirit of experimentation in the 1960s.
The lamp retains its original reflector shield, which swivels to adjust the light's direction and spread, and its flexible base that allows tilting or tumbling without falling, while incorporating Bottega Veneta's signature Intrecciato and Intreccio Foulard leather weaving techniques for the base.
Image credit: Bottega Veneta | Flos | Gino Sarfatti
Nov 23, 2024
Audemars Piguet and KAWS unveiled a collaboration that combines horological precision with contemporary art, culminating in a limited edition Royal Oak Concept Tourbillon 'Companion' watch and a sculpture positioned atop the Musée Atelier Audemars Piguet in Switzerland.
The watch, with a new hand-wound movement designed specifically for this model, was developed over two years to merge art with the rigorous design demands, from horological precision to the strictest standards of materials.
Image credit: Audemars Piguet | KAWS
Nov 21, 2024
Jaime Hayon returns to the origins of his creative process with his solo exhibition 'Bestial' at Art Basel Miami, starting December 1, 2024, hosted at the Mindy Solomon Gallery.
The exhibition, which marks a quarter century of Hayon's journey, explores the intersection of nature and humanity, and the intrinsic connection between animalistic instincts and human emotions, continuing his odyssey of fragility, uncertainty, and self-discovery through hyperbolic creatures.
Image credit: Jaime Hayon | HAYONSTUDIO
Nov 20, 2024
Thomas Heatherwick unveils a limited edition hand-blown glassware collection that reflects the architectural ingenuity and biophilic vision behind his design of the Bombay Sapphire distillery at Laverstoke Mill, constructed a decade ago.
The collection presents gin and tonic glasses and decanters hand-blown by UK artisans, characterized by a pleated hourglass silhouette with a striking blue base.
Image credit: Heatherwick Studio | Bombay Sapphire
Nov 20, 2024
Maison Margiela has inaugurated its premiere flagship store in Seoul's Hannam district, revitalizing a 1970s residential structure with architectural elements that embrace the brand's unconventional 'appropriate use of the inappropriate' philosophy and décortiqué technique.
The space includes a garden and a café in partnership with Bonanza Coffee, and hosts an art project, 'Hacking: 5AC Bag', showcasing reinterpretations of its iconic 5AC bag by contemporary artists from Korea and Japan.
Image credit: Maison Margiela | Bonanza Coffee
Nov 19, 2024
Louis Vuitton has opened a five story experiential space in NYC that serves as a flagship during its Fifth Avenue renovation, blending its legacy with modern artistry through spatial designs by Shohei Shigematsu of the architecture firm OMA, as well as the US debut of Le Café Louis Vuitton, a library concept housing nearly 650 books, and Le Chocolat Maxime Frédéric.
Image credit: Louis Vuitton
Nov 17, 2024
Thom Browne has partnered with The Shilla Hotel in Seoul to launch the 'Thom Browne Experience', a first of its kind concept room that introduces Browne's new home collection, available throughout December 2024.
The room, exhibiting high standard craftsmanship and design from collaborations with esteemed brands—Baccarat, Christofle, Frette, and Haviland—is complemented by an exclusive package including a bottle of Thom Browne X Barons de Rothschild Champagne, executive lounge access, and more.
In conjunction with the experience, the hotel opens an ephemeral store for the Thom Browne Home collection.
Image credit: Thom Browne | The Shilla Seoul
Nov 16, 2024
Genki-ro, created by artist Takashi Kuribayashi, is an art installation set in a historic underground quarry that blends natural wellness with art, serving as an herbal steam sauna designed to stimulate all five senses.
The transporting experience, crafted to invigorate both spirit and body, is meant to evolve over time through visitor interaction, becoming a living piece of art.
Image credit: Genkiro No.06
Nov 13, 2024
Alessi, the renowned Italian design house, has launched its first café, Alessi Espresso, at Dosan Park in Seoul, blending coffee culture with its iconic design concept.
The space is designed by Michele de Lucchi, a luminary in Italian architecture and design, with coffee developed in collaboration with Jang Moonkyu, a distinguished finalist in the World Coffee Roasting Championship.
Image credit: Alessi
Nov 12, 2024
The Sun Tower, a multicultural venue designed by OPEN Architecture on the coast of the Yellow Sea in Yantai, serves as a giant sundial, with its alignment and openings precisely calibrated to follow the path of the sun.
The concave design amplifies the sounds absorbed from the ocean, funnels natural light, and optimizes airflow and tunnel cooling, transforming invisible energies into tangible experiences that connect urban life with nature's timeless rhythms.
It houses a library, an observatory, an outdoor theater, exhibition spaces, a café, and a bar, among others.
Image credit: OPEN Architecture | Jonathan Leijonhufvud
Nov 11, 2024
Lake Como’s air is contained in cans, enclosing 400ml of pure air purportedly collected from the lake.
The concept, aimed at providing a tangible memory to carry back home a piece of Lake Como's serene and elegant atmosphere, is intended as a souvenir that repurposes as pen holders, plant pots, or stationery containers once the air is dispensed.
Image credit: Lake Como Air
Nov 7, 2024
Designer and architect Philippe Starck has crafted LA Almazara in Ronda, Spain, a radical and transformative experiential space dedicated to olive oil and serving as a cultural center that encapsulates art, tradition, and gastronomy.
Image credit: LA Almazara | Philippe Starck
Nov 6, 2024
Ryosokuin, a historic temple in Kyoto known for its role in Zen and wellness practices, cultivates spiritual and cultural dimensions through Zen meditation, tea ceremonies, and yoga, as well as serving as a vital platform for contemporary art exhibitions.
The temple, with gardens and tea houses noted for their architectural and natural beauty, currently exhibits '黙: Speaking in Silence', exploring shared themes of nature and spirituality between artists Bosco Sodi and Izumi Kato.
Image credit: Ryosokuin
Nov 5, 2024
Arturel, a Danish design company dedicated to reducing unwanted noise and echoes to create healthy sound atmospheres conducive to relaxation, concentration, and mental wellbeing, specializes in crafting sound absorbing panels that effectively lower reverberation and improve room acoustics.
Through collaborations with Kvadrat, designers, and artists, Arturel integrates sustainable materials, cultural heritage, and artistic design to craft eco-friendly acoustic panels that merge art, heritage, and functionality.
Image credit: Arturel
Nov 4, 2024
Rick Owens has partnered with Moncler to create an off-grid mountain shelter inspired by architects Charlotte Perriand and Jean Prouvé, as well as a clothing line, merging his gothic, avant-garde design with Moncler's utilitarian vision.
The 'refuge', crafted with support from Hugh Broughton Architects for structural design that ensures resilience and efficiency in extreme environments, harnesses advanced technology to meet modern needs for mobility and ecological responsibility.
Image credit: Moncler | Rick Owens
Nov 2, 2024
Stone Island unveils "Stone Island Sound", a music initiative formalizing its longstanding connection to diverse music movements and community ties.
Embracing the mantra of 'sound as a form of research', which reflects the brand's experimental approach, the project is structured into three categories:
_STONE ISLAND SOUND_FACTORY
_STONE ISLAND SOUND_CURATED BY
_STONE ISLAND SOUND_LIVE
Available on Apple Music and Spotify.
Image credit: Stone Island
Nov 1, 2024
Martin Margiela, the elusive icon who stepped away from fashion into art, unveiled his first public sculpture, Blinds, in Antwerp—a surrealist overlay of art and revitalizing urban space.
The sculpture, dialoguing with the curiosity of passers-by, is a thought provoking piece that illuminates the concepts of visibility, privacy, and perception, conjuring the hidden aspects behind the visible world and the concepts of seeing and being seen.
Image credit: Middelheim Museum | Tom Cornille | Maison Margiela
Oct 29, 2024
Jean-Georges Vongerichten, a visionary chef of our times, steps beyond culinary, into creating a residential retreat where 'Taste is Everything'.
Partnering with Terra and Lion Development Group for completion in 2027, Jean-Georges' approach to living spaces influences everything from kitchen designs to culinary experiences that bridge culture and wellness, with the unique concepts brought to life by the acclaimed architects Arquitectonica and design studio Yabu Pushelberg.
Image credit: Jean-Georges Miami Tropic Residences | Jean-Georges
Oct 26, 2024
Naoshima, the revered island dedicated to art and architecture, welcomes a new space of artistic dialogues in 2025, designed by architect Tadao Ando, where his harnessing of natural light is captured in a structural flow, and natural elements are integrated to harmonize with the island's landscape.
The museum, directed by Miki Akiko, embraces a shift toward more dynamic perspectives, engaging with contemporary Asian art, with the inaugural exhibition showcasing 11 artists, including Takashi Murakami and Cai Guo-Qiang.
Image credit: Benesse Art Site Naoshima | Hamada Hideaki | Yoshihiro Asada | Mitsuo Matsuoka
Oct 24, 2024
Designer Giestas introduces "Baking Vegan Slippers", a DIY project that lets individuals craft personalized, biodegradable slippers at home using materials like cork, agar, and algae, which are then baked in an oven.
The freedom to stylize with a personal and creative touch encourages experimentation, signaling broader practical applications in the fashion industry.
Image credit: Giestas
Oct 21, 2024
Nujiang Grand Canyon Bookstore, designed by Trace Architecture Office (TAO) atop the Gaoligong Mountains overlooking the Nujiang River in China, is an architectural ode to the harmony between civilization and the natural world, symbolizing a spiritual bridge that connects the region's ethnic heritage with its spatial journey.
The architect's vision of a forward stretching volume forms a suspended platform enveloped by canyon views, giving readers the sensation of walking in the clouds. The space includes a café, a bookstore, and a theater.
Image credit: Trace Architecture Office | Hua Li | AOGVISION
Oct 17, 2024
Atelier Ace, in collaboration with French architecture firm Ciguë, has inaugurated 'Ace Hotel & Swim Club Athens', its first location in Greece and second under the Swim Club brand.
The hotel, retaining the Brutalist architecture of the former Fenix Hotel and merging Greek modernism with the vibe of a 1970s coastal resort, places art as the central element, anchored by an orchestral art program exhibiting works by 18 local artists across diverse mediums, curated in public areas and rooms.
Image credit: Ace Hotel & Swim Club Athens | DEPASQUALE+MAFFINI | Alex Antoniadis
Oct 16, 2024
Jaeger-LeCoultre has partnered with French scent artist Nicolas Bonneville to create three exclusive fragrances, dialoguing inherent parallels between watchmaking and perfumery.
Merged through precision, avant-garde synthesis, and rarity, the fragrances instill short formulas with fewer, noble ingredients for clearer olfactory profiles, refined by modern extraction and high concentrations for potent scents.
Image credit: Jaeger-LeCoultre
Oct 12, 2024
Finland's Kyrö Distillery has launched the world's first whisky born from sauna, and an ephemeral 'Sauna Bar' designed by the acclaimed Studio Puisto architects, merging whisky culture and sauna experiences.
The unique aging process in a sauna, powered by excess heat from distillation, expedites flavor maturation and 'sweats out' disharmony, giving a distinctive twist to traditional cask aging and enriching the whisky's complexity and flavor profile.
Image credit: Kyrö Distillery Company
Oct 11, 2024
Maison Ruinart, the oldest established Champagne house, collaborated with architect Sou Fujimoto, designer Gwenaël Nicolas, and landscape artist Christophe Gautrand to revitalize and open to the public its iconic address at 4 RUE DES CRAYÈRES.
The space unveils a multi-experiential pavilion amidst biodiversity-rich gardens hosting contemporary artworks by renowned artists and showcases a metamorphosis exhibit of artisan craftsmanship that transforms raw materials into architectural and design elements through a sensory scenographic experience.
Image credit: Ruinart
Oct 8, 2024
Louis Vuitton, in partnership with Michelin starred chef Cyril Lignac and architect Marc Fornes, opened Le Café and the adjoining new store at London Heathrow Airport's Terminal 2.
Marc Fornes' organic architectural identity renders a unique spatial structure, integrated with gastronomic offerings designed for the senses and the spirit of travel.
Image credit: Louis Vuitton | Cyril Lignac | Heathrow Airport
Oct 7, 2024
KAI Yufuin, a modern hot spring ryokan designed by architect Kengo Kuma, is an organic extension of Yufuin's surrounding landscape, a subtle vanish into the natural topography.
The resort, set across cascading rice terraces resembling pebbles rippling a pond, elevates farm-like material into an art experience, with atmospheric baths magnifying the serene onsen escape.
Image credit: KAI Yufuin
Oct 4, 2024
Perrotin Gallery is opening a new space in early 2025 within London's Claridge's Hotel, reputed as the 'annex to Buckingham Palace', marking a full circle in Emmanuel Perrotin's career by reconnecting his deep ties to the UK art scene.
The new gallery will stand adjacent to the hotel's Claridge's ArtSpace Café, designed by renowned architect John Pawson.
Image credit: Perrotin Gallery | Claridge's
Oct 2, 2024
Vitra has partnered with Zurich based natural skincare brand Soeder to create its first self-care product, encapsulating the unique botanical scents and atmosphere of 'Oudolf Garten' at the Vitra Campus, designed by renowned landscape artist Piet Oudolf.
Integral to the VitraHaus experience, the 'Ever Green' liquid soap embodies connections between architecture, design, and nature, designed to transform any space into the sophisticated tranquility of the garden.
Image credit: Vitra | Soeder | Vitra Design Museum | Clemens Poloczek | Tom Licht | Dejan Jovanovic
Sep 28, 2024
L'Abysse Monte Carlo, led by Michelin-starred chef Yannick Alléno and sushi master Yasunari Okazaki, has opened in Monaco’s Hôtel Hermitage, offering an omakase experience that combines French and Japanese culinary artistry.
The space, enveloped in art and craftsmanship at its core, accentuates tactile exploration and movement with artworks and designs by notable creatives, where natural forms and Japanese architectural influences marry form with substance.
Image credit: L'Abysse Monte Carlo | Clémence Sahuc
Sep 25, 2024
teamLab is turning nature into art by transforming the storied rice terraces of Izura, Japan, into a digital landscape, paired with a natural hot spring and glamping experience.
The exhibit, opening on September 30, 2024, blends wellness, art, and nature, probing the co-existence of nature's long continuity and human activity.
Image credit: teamLab | Izura Hot Spring
Sep 24, 2024
Aesop enters into design objects, unveiling a table light with the glow of a candle in partnership with a multidisciplinary design house, Bocci, recreating Aesop's amber hue in handcrafted form.
Reborn from Bocci's first product, a pendant light designed by founder Omer Arbel in 2005, the 14p is rechargeable, wireless, and encased by two hemispheres of molten glass crafted with imprecise edges and air bubbles that give the glass lights a kaleidoscopic effect, resembling flickering candles from afar.
Image credit: Aesop | Bocci
Sep 21, 2024
The Venice Simplon-Orient Express, a Belmond Train, unveils L'Observatoire, a sleeper carriage designed by artist JR, the visionary 'photograffeur' known for his monumental public artwork.
The suite, inspired by astronomical observatories and Renaissance Europe's cabinets of curiosity, flows through several micro-environments filled with art, bespoke craftsmanship, and hidden surprises at every turn, evoking wonder and mystery curated through JR's vision.
Image credit: Belmond | JR
Sep 20, 2024
Alain Ducasse has collaborated with crystal brand Baccarat to open a new restaurant and bar, 'Ducasse Baccarat', at the historic Baccarat Mansion in Paris, bringing together haute cuisine and crystal artistry in a setting where art and craftsmanship intersect in thematic coherence, creating a grand yet inviting art gallery atmosphere.
Image credit: Ducasse Baccarat | Alain Ducasse | Baccarat | Prototype Studio | Anna Leonte Loron
Sep 19, 2024
HUMAN MADE, led by NIGO in partnership with Blue Bottle Coffee, has launched an offline store with a café in Seoul's cultural district, Seongsu-dong, presenting unique coffee blends and exclusive items that draw from HUMAN MADE’s "The Future Is In The Past" motif, and a collaborative showcase with artists KAWS and VERDY.
Image credit: HUMAN MADE | Blue Bottle Coffee
Sep 18, 2024
Sansiri, a leader in premier real estate in Thailand, introduces 'BuGaan Pattanakarn', a rare luxury residence in Bangkok styled by the world renowned designer Edward Tuttle, known for his legacy designs with Aman Resorts and Park Hyatt Vendome/Milan.
The project, envisioned as Asia's finest masterpiece, is born to merge the essence of living with experience and designed to mirror heritage with modern interpretation.
Valued at 1.45 billion baht with units ranging from 65 to 180 million baht, the project is fully completed and available for viewing by appointment.
Image credit: Sansiri
Sep 14, 2024
Folly Mojave, an off-grid wilderness retreat located at the intersection of the Mojave National Preserve and Joshua Tree National Park, is designed by architect Malek Alqadi to blend seamlessly with the desert, vanishing into the landscape during daylight.
The architecture, in desert hues and textures, incorporates elements of sacred geometry, sustainable practices, and facilities that encourage wellness and connection with nature.
Image credit: Folly Mojave
Jul 31, 2024
The Palazzo dello Strozzino in Florence, built in 1457 and transformed into a cinema in 1922, has been reenvisioned as 'Giunti Odeon', a fusion of cinema and bookshop managed by Giunti, a prominent Florentine publishing house, offering a uniquely intertwined cultural experience with book presentations, films, art exhibitions, concerts, and a restaurant.
The evolution symbolizes a new chapter for the historic space, a testament to cultural resilience, preserving its essence while embracing new horizons.
Image credit: Giunti Odeon | Cafè Odeon
Jul 27, 2024
NOT A HOTEL, a timeshare concept hospitality brand, has announced a collaborative project with NIGO, an influential figure in the fashion and cultural scene.
Envisioned by NIGO, NOT A HOTEL TOKYO will be located in Futtsu City, Chiba.
Image credit: NOT A HOTEL Co., Ltd.
Jul 25, 2024
Le Sirenuse, a historic art boutique hotel in Positano, collaborated with artist Nicolas Party to transform its swimming pool into a mosaic art installation that encapsulates the Amalfi Coast’s landscape through abstract forms and vibrant colors, enriching the hotel's legacy of museum worthy, site specific artworks by international artists through their art program.
A mosaic of blues and greens captures the Amalfi Coast's nature, crowned by a golden sun disc as the centerpiece inviting bathers to 'dive into the sky'.
Image credit: Le Sirenuse | brechenmacher & baumann | Roberto Salomone
Jul 23, 2024
Ananda in the Himalayas, an exceptional wellness retreat in the spiritual foothills of the Himalayas, introduced a Fertility Enhancement Program to improve reproductive health through natural methods, combining Ayurvedic wisdom, Yoga, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Emotional Healing.
The program, designed for individuals and couples dealing with fertility issues, includes Panchakarma detoxification, Shamana restoration, physiotherapy, and a customized Ayurvedic meal plan, tailored through pre-arrival consultations.
Image credit: Ananda in the Himalayas
Jul 18, 2024
Ladbroke Hall, the new flagship of Carpenters Workshop Gallery in Notting Hill, London, embodies 'Gesamtkunstwerk', a total work of art, by integrating art, design, music, and culinary experiences.
The space, with contributions from notable figures, is highlighted by a Jean Prouvé-designed pavilion in the garden landscaped by Luciano Giubbilei, and a restaurant led by award winning chef Emanuele Pollini, blending fine dining in the artistic setting crafted by architect Vincenzo De Cotiis and extended to the garden.
Image credit: Ladbroke Hall
Jul 14, 2024
POUYUENJI, a brand devoted to finely curated teas, has opened POUYUENJI KYOTO, showcasing a deep respect for tea culture and craftsmanship in a reborn Kyoto townhouse designed by Tony Chi.
The boutique houses a tea room for tea ceremonies, a garden designed by landscape architect Yasuo Kitayama, and a library dedicated to tea, art, architecture, and Kyoto culture, all aimed at connecting the spiritual value of tea culture with modern life.
Image credit: POUYUENJI KYOTO
Jul 11, 2024
Mona Athens, a boutique hotel set in 1950s architecture, serves as an art & design showroom conceptualized by photographer Eftihia Stefanidi and entrepreneur Shai Antebi, representing a creation of the Athens based design studio, House of Shila.
This multidisciplinary space, designed for mindfulness and slow living, catalyzes collaborations across diverse fields, hosting soirées, art exhibits, supper clubs, and music sessions.
Image credit: Mona
Jul 10, 2024
Assouline, a premier luxury publisher devoted to elevating cultural appreciation, has opened a new boutique with a café at 696 Madison Avenue, New York, designed to render a full Assouline experience, fusing the art of fine publishing with sensory refinement.
Image credit: Assouline
Jul 5, 2024
Van Cleef & Arpels has inaugurated a new L'ÉCOLE School of Jewelry Arts campus at the historic Hôtel de Mercy-Argenteau in Paris, offering public access to museum quality exhibition spaces, classrooms, a special library, and the first bookstore, 'L’Escarboucle', dedicated to the jewelry arts.
The site, respecting the building's architectural heritage with designs led by Constance Guisset, hosts its inaugural exhibition 'Stage Jewels of the Comédie-Française', curated by Agathe Sanjuan, presenting over 120 historical jewelry pieces used in theater.
Image credit: L'ÉCOLE
Jul 3, 2024
% Arabica, in collaboration with Spanish design studio SelgasCano, unveiled its café in Midtown Manhattan next to MoMA, creating a unique design that integrates the building's original spatial characteristics and imperfections into a harmonious space that magnifies visual contrast and natural light.
Image credit: % Arabica
Jul 1, 2024
Once the residence of the Hermès family, Hôtel Particulier Montmartre is a hidden glimpse into Parisian history, tucked away in a secluded passageway.
With only 5 suites uniquely designed with Pierre Lacroix and set in a serene wild garden crafted by landscape architect Louis Benech, the hotel offers a mystical escape while emphasizing biodiversity, creating a unique blend of history, luxury, and ecological consciousness.
Image credit: Hôtel Particulier Montmartre | Yannick Labrousse | Sophie Gaubert | Isabela Mayer | Alexandrena Parker
Jun 25, 2024
Lancôme has collaborated with Nina Métayer, acclaimed as the world's top pastry chef for 2023 and 2024, to open Café de la Rose at the flagship Champs-Elysées location in Paris, presenting pastries that draw inspiration from the rose, Lancôme's emblematic symbol, as well as reflections of her signature ability to infuse classic French pâtisserie with innovative twists.
Image credit: Lancôme | Nina Métayer | Louise Marinig
Jun 24, 2024
Daniel Arsham has collaborated with Kohler on a design project, the 'Landshapes collection', along with a luxury cabin available for rent starting June 24 at Destination Kohler resort, integrating the collection and artistic furnishings with functional designs.
Arsham's installations are showcased throughout the Kohler property, including six large-scale sculptures placed around the golf course, while he has also collaborated with the golf apparel brand Malbon to create a line of gear that echoes the aesthetic themes of his sculptures.
Image credit: Kohler
Jun 22, 2024
Celine, led by Hedi Slimane, has unveiled a Pilates collection, an everyday workout essentials rendered in materials and designs rarely seen in fitness instruments.
The collection, launching in October, includes a Triomphe reformer, kettlebells, dumbbells, a yoga mat & block, weighted bracelets, and an array of activewear.
Image credit: Celine
Jun 20, 2024
Dior launches "Miss Dior Exhibition: Stories of a Miss", designed by architect Shohei Shigematsu of OMA, taking place at the Roppongi Museum in Tokyo from June 16 to July 15, 2024.
The exhibit celebrates the new Parfum through transformative architectural spaces that capture the sensorial essence of fragrance, showcasing scent’s history and its profound influence. The experience includes a Miss Dior Cafe serving floral desserts by Pierre Hermé, and contributions from various artists and designers sharing their views.
Image credit: Dior | Shohei Shigematsu | OMA
Jun 19, 2024
'Library of the Earth' at Kurkku Fields in Chiba, Japan, designed by Hiroshi Nakamura & NAP, is a library submerged into the earth, avoiding disruption of the cultivated soil layer and coexisting with nature.
The broader site, Kurkku Fields, envisioned by musician Takeshi Kobayashi, is a sustainable farm and park that merges agriculture, food, art, and accommodations, combined with the principle of self-sufficiency and renewable energy practices.
Art installations include works by Yayoi Kusama, David Hockney, and Anish Kapoor, and the site hosts various community events that celebrate seasonal changes.
Image credit: Hiroshi Nakamura & NAP | Koji Fujii / TOREAL | Kurkku Fields | Kohei Omachi | Yuka Yanazume | Shinkenchiku-sha
Jun 17, 2024
Kitsuné, the multi-faceted 'Paris meets Tokyo' brand, has unveiled 'Desa Kitsunè', a new concept of luxury hospitality located in Canggu, Bali, offering a unique village-like experience that merges relaxation, culinary experiences, cultural & musical events, and social interaction.
The expansive 5,000 square meters venue houses Café Kitsuné, a Maison Kitsuné boutique, a pool, and the Mediterranean-Latin fusion restaurant Ina Ré, set within an architecture that honors local Balinese and Japanese aesthetics.
Image credit: Kitsuné
Jun 13, 2024
B1 Rooftop Bistro, located atop the Helvetia Campus in Basel, designed by acclaimed architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron, bathes in the illumination of artist James Turrell's captivating light artistry.
As evening arrives, Turrell's lightworks transform the ordinary into a spectacle, inviting a contemplative engagement with light and spatial perception through his work.
The campus, preserving the mid-century architecture with modern elements, hosts public events and art exhibitions, with areas including an Art Foyer, auditorium, and a park by Vogt Landscape Architects.
Image credit: B1 Rooftop Bistro | Herzog & de Meuron | Häusler Contemporary
Jun 11, 2024
Snow Peak, the camping gear and apparel brand, launched 'Yakei Suite Aburayama Fukuoka', a unique accommodation that blurs the lines between indoor and outdoor living, designed by architect Makoto Tanijiri.
Supported by sustainable practices and local economic enhancements, the retreat offers a culinary experience, 'okamochi', that blends French cuisine with outdoor guest engagement in cooking, led by Michelin star chef Hiroki Yoshitake.
Image credit: Snow Peak YAKEI SUITE
Jun 6, 2024
Audeum, a museum of sound and art designed by architect Kengo Kuma, opens on June 5, 2024, in Seoul, where sound engages with full sensory in a design crafted as a symphony of a forest, with 20,000 aluminum pipes that emulate sunlight filtering through trees, and wood enriching acoustics.
Audeum's curated journey traces the chronicles of sonic evolution, presenting a broad array of significant pieces, and the inaugural exhibition, "Jung Eum (正音): In Search of Sound," explores what constitutes "good sound" through the lens of Hi-Fi.
Image credit: Audeum Audio Museum
Jun 4, 2024
Heatherwick Studio, led by designer Thomas Heatherwick, has been selected to transform Nodeul Island in Seoul into 'Soundscape', a cultural space designed as a multi-layered urban retreat for music and art.
Drawn by the flow and variability of soundwaves, Soundscape interacts with the natural rhythms of tides and seasons, unifying nature with the dramatic aerial contours of floating islets that form a 1.2km skywalk, providing vantage points over the city and events below.
Image credit: Heatherwick Studio | Mir
Jun 3, 2024
OGATA Paris, set within a 17th century hôtel particulier in the Marais, embodies the concept of Sahō, the art of living, as a cultural embassy where the sensory arts of Japanese tea, cuisine, and craft are explored and celebrated.
Created by Shinichiro Ogata, a visionary of design and hospitality, this pivotal destination in Paris bridges East and West, providing a seamless journey through intricately curated environments that engage, educate, and inspire through beauty and thoughtful design.
Image credit: OGATA
May 25, 2024
Zenbo Seinei, perched on Awaji Island in Japan, is a unique meditation/yoga retreat for the mind and body, designed by the illustrious Pritzker Prize architect Shigeru Ban.
The retreat, a 100-meter span of timber suspended over the lush canopy, offers an unbroken bond with the verdant environment, seamlessly integrating architecture with the tranquil practices of meditation, yoga, and plant-based nourishment.
Image credit: Zenbo Seinei | Shigeru Ban - Architects
May 17, 2024
Aesop unveiled its first signature store in Beijing, 'Aesop WF CENTRAL House 19', and concurrently launched 'Aesop Home: A Sensory Voyage', a temporary extension to the space running until June 10, 2024.
Set within a historical mansion area, this introspective sanctuary of senses honors traditional courtyard home architecture from a residence once owned by a cousin of the Qing dynasty's last emperor, preserving the original structure while blending modern elements that reflect a deep respect for craftsmanship and materials including large teak structures inspired by classic step-beds and a summer temporary pavilion featuring a retractable structure draped in waterproof canvas and crimson xiangyunsha tea silk.
At Aesop Home, a realm unfolds in the second courtyard where the senses guide the narrative. From the intimate corners of private courtyards to the communal warmth of each house, every area invites reflection and connection, resonating with the art of living that defines the Aesop experience.
Image credit: Aesop
May 16, 2024
Central Embassy is celebrating its 10th anniversary with Daniel Arsham's first exhibit in Thailand, 'BANGKOK 3024'. This exhibit transforms the space into an archaeological site, merging past with future, and presents cultural icons as decaying relics that challenge and evoke perceptions of time and culture.
Located in Bangkok's most vibrant district, Central Embassy has served as a nexus for luxury retail and culture since 2014, cementing its reputation over the years as a premier art and fashion destination. In celebration of this milestone, SELENPARC conducted an exclusive interview with Daniel Arsham and Barom Bhicharnchitr, the Managing Director of Central Embassy.
Image credit: Daniel Arsham | Central Embassy
May 15, 2024
Piaule Catskill, a modernist wellness retreat in the Catskill Mountains, New York, has collaborated with Fritz Hansen, integrating the outdoor collection 'Skagerak' into the property, emphasizing minimal ecological impact and natural aging processes.
Skagerak, crafted from sustainably sourced wood, includes 43 product series and encompasses pieces designed by notable architects and designers, including a collaboration with the architectural firm Bjarke Ingels Group. Outdoor pieces at Piaule are designed by:
Anders & Lars Hegelund
Aurélien Barbry
Niels Hvass
Povl B. Eskildsen
Stine Weigelt
Image credit: Fritz Hansen | Piaule Catskill | seandavidson
May 14, 2024
Fabula, the much anticipated summer terrace restaurant at the picturesque Carnavalet Museum in Paris, has returned this year for its third season.
This season, the venue has welcomed Chef Thomas Chisholm, a 12th season 'Top Chef' known for his cross-cultural culinary philosophy at Chocho, and Mixologist Vincent Diener, winner of the Bartenders Challenge 2023, who crafts cocktails inspired by the museum's gardens and incorporates botanical elements.
Image credit: Fabula | Maki Manoukian | Cedric Randriamalala
May 10, 2024
Architect Kengo Kuma is designing 'Kempinski Saigon River,' the hotel's first property in Vietnam on the outskirts of Ho Chi Minh City.
Inspired by the vernacular architecture of rural Vietnam and emphasizing natural beauty as the central component of the experience, the design features a lush ratio of 170 trees per person. The project is slated for completion by 2026.
Image credit: Kempinski | Ecovillage Saigon River
May 8, 2024
Cité Radieuse, visionary architect Le Corbusier's post-war masterpiece in Marseille, stands as seminal modernist architecture that influenced the global Brutalist movement, serving today as both a living area and a center of culture that houses an art gallery, hotel, and restaurant.
Chanel unveiled its Cruise 2024-25 collection at the rooftop MAMO art center, underscoring Le Corbusier's enduring architectural relevance in modern culture.
Image credit: Fondation Le Corbusier | Hôtel Le Corbusier | Chanel | Jamie Hawkesworth | Fabien Dendiével
May 3, 2024
The Gardens of Kerdalo, a remarkable botanical garden with over 40 years of history and acquired by fashion designer Christian Louboutin, have been revitalized with a new tea room 'Cherree on the Cake' set in an Anglo-Breton atmosphere, and a boutique for gardening enthusiasts.
The garden, home to over 5,000 plants in English and Italian styles, is renowned for its artistic landscaping and the natural topography of a hilly farm by the Jaudy river, reflecting Christian Louboutin’s vision as a guardian dedicated to unimpeded growth and beauty in a contemplative space.
Image credit: The Gardens of Kerdalo | Florent Tanet | Enora G.
Apr 30, 2024
Toraya, a historic Japanese confectioner, has transformed its Ginza Building with architect Hiroshi Naito, creating a revitalized space that houses the new Balenciaga flagship store, an esteemed ceramic art gallery, an exclusive gastronomy restaurant, and a bar, both led by Chef Kei Kobayashi, the first Asian in France to receive 3 Michelin stars.
Visit www.maisonkei.jp for restaurant reopening details.
Image credit: Toraya | Balenciaga | Ginza Kuroda Toen | Maison KEI
Apr 29, 2024
180 The Strand, a Brutalist landmark in London transformed into a vibrant cultural hub, houses diverse spaces that support and showcase art, hospitality, and businesses, including 180 Studios, Soho House, the Michelin-starred Ikoyi, along with galleries, studios, and a wellness facility.
The Vinyl Factory, a key component of the 180 The Strand ecosystem, hosts a vast multimedia exhibition, REVERB, exploring the intersection of art and sound with over 100 artists from 22 May to 28 September 2024.
Image credit: 180 Studios | The Vinyl Factory | Soho House | Ikoyi
Apr 22, 2024
AMAHARE, a purveyor of fine crafts and art in Japan, has opened a serene space for a gallery and Sweets & Tea Salon in a restored 130 year old house in Kyoto, where historical integrity meets contemplative space that integrates gardens and a courtyard, interplaying with natural light and shifting seasons.
Shouya Grigg, a renowned photo artist and hospitality innovator deeply connected with nature, is currently holding his exhibition at KYO AMAHARE, running until May 12, 2024.
Image credit: AMAHARE | Satoshi Asakawa | Eri Masuda | Yuka Yanazume | Ayumi Sakuragi | Ayumi Okamoto | Shouya Grigg
Apr 20, 2024
Anderson C, a prominent brand specializing in vintage furniture in Korea, has expanded into Seongsu with a new venue that combines a restaurant and café within a space that blends modern and 1960s architecture, serving as both a showroom and cultural hub.
The location is hosting the "I Remember You" photo exhibit by Apple on April 12-13, showcasing international artists' works captured on iPhone, exploring themes of nostalgia and memory.
Image credit: Anderson C | Karl Hab | Vivien Liu | Khan Jae Hun | Mika Ninagawa
Apr 12, 2024
Jacquemus has announced the opening of a new restaurant, beach, and boutique experience in Saint Tropez, marking a return to gastronomic ventures. 'Jacquemus La Renaissance' revamps the interior of a Riviera café & brasserie, emphasizing a light and refined aesthetic inspired by Southern French ambiance.
Image credit: JACQUEMUS | JACQUEMUS LA RENAISSANCE
Apr 10, 2024
MUJI has launched 'MUJI BASE TESHIMA,' a new Airbnb stay on the art-rich island of Teshima, revitalizing a 90-year-old house with a minimalist aesthetic, vintage Japanese furniture, and artworks/crafts by Setouchi artists.
Image credit: MUJI | Airbnb
Apr 9, 2024
Awon, set against the clouds of Jongnam Mountain and bamboo forest in Korea, is a collective space of 250-year-old 'hanok (Traditional Korean house) hotel' with an art gallery and museum, embracing the architectural philosophy of 'borrowing from nature' for structural balance and the beauty of emptiness and form.
The gallery exhibits renowned ceramic artist Ree Soo Jong until May 26, 2024, showcasing his lifelong mastery of moon jars that reflect the beauty of traditional Korean ceramics and embrace natural imperfections.
Image credit: Awon Museum & Hotel
Apr 2, 2024
The Bourse de Commerce, once a Commodities Exchange, restored and redesigned by Tadao Ando over a decade, stands as a temple of art in Paris, blending modern art with historical architecture, inviting emotional connection and reflection through Ando's minimalist designs.
The current installation by Kimsooja reimagines the dome with an invitation to reflection and levitation, and the hidden restaurant, La Halle aux Grains, led by Michelin-starred chefs Michel and Sébastien Bras, offers gastronomy nodding to the historic origin, with a view of the dome and the city.
Image credit: Bourse de Commerce | Kimsooja | La Halle aux Grains | Delphine Constantini
Mar 27, 2024
LE LABO's new flagship & café in Kyoto, set in a former sake brewery built in 1879, blends its original architectural elements with sustainable aesthetics, offering a sensory domain that includes Japan's first café and a Craftsmanship Room that showcases rotating artisan exhibits.
The inaugural exhibit showcases Manabu Kamo's calligraphy on Kuroya Washi paper, capturing the essence of the Satoyama landscape and daily life complexities, with customers able to personalize their product labels with his work at select sessions.
Image credit: LE LABO | Manabu Kamo | Koujudo Oda
Mar 21, 2024
Nikolaj Kunsthal, the former St. Nicholas Church in Copenhagen, repurposed as an art space, is notable for its blend of medieval architecture and modern art exhibitions.
The redesigned café & shop led by architect Morten Emil Engel seamlessly unites historical and contemporary elements, earning praise from architecture and design media.
The venue also hosts unique gourmet events like the 'Red Dinner' amidst an exhibition of art & fashion and offers a wine tasting experience high above the city.
Image credit: Nikolaj Kunsthal | Paolo Galgani
Mar 16, 2024
'Donkou / Kissa Fang' in Kyoto, envisioned by book director Yoshitaka Haba and designed by architect Yasushi Horibe, blends a library and café amidst a cypress forest, embodying a desire for serene, slow-paced urban retreats with its unique blend of traditional craftsmanship and modern design.
The 3,000-book collection showcases Haba's 20-year journey in literature, while the café 'Kissa Fang' offers an introspective coffee experience, specializing in dark roasted coffee made with in-house roasted beans and a flannel drip method.
Image credit: Donkou / Kissa Fang
Mar 14, 2024
Jaime Hayon has transformed the ninth floor of The Hyundai Daegu into 'The Forum', a fusion of culture, café, and garden, drawing inspiration from ancient civilizations, notably the Roman Colosseum and Egyptian and Greek art to craft a dream-like, kaleidoscopic world.
Image credit: Jaime Hayon | The Hyundai
Mar 7, 2024
Halo Paris, in a historical building from 1748, offers a unique blend of fashion and dining, where a concept store/gallery showcases emerging designers and a hidden restaurant led by Chef Victor Blanchet from 3 star L'Arpège and Top Chef 2023 serves Basque and Mediterranean-inspired cuisine.
The space, designed by architect Lucie Rosenblatt of the Mur Mur Architects, exhibits a minimalist interior with a high glass roof from the Eiffel era, transitioning from a naturally lit ambiance to a subdued, candlelit atmosphere in the evenings.
Image credit: Halo Paris | Lauren Spitznagel | Yvan Moreau | ilyafoodstories | Clelia Stevenard | PROJECT 213A
Mar 6, 2024
Shishi-Iwa House, set in the serene landscape of Karuizawa, Japan, is a collection of retreats designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architects Shigeru Ban and Ryue Nishizawa, emphasizing mental and physical well-being and a harmonious dialogue between indoor and outdoor spaces through its architecture.
The retreat offers a Japanese-French restaurant deeply rooted in the passing seasons, a library, lounge, hinoki-scented bathhouse, and a world-class collection of art and furniture.
Image credit: Shishi-Iwa House | Iwan Baan | Jonathan Leijonhufvud | Kazumasa Harada | Hamada Hideaki
Feb 29, 2024
Portrait Milano, by Ferragamo's Lungarno Collection, set in an ancient seminary, is a luxury hotel in Milan's Piazza del Quadrilatero, the city's newest courtyard for hospitality, wellness, culture, and entertainment, enriched with art.
Design restoration led by legendary architect Michele De Lucchi and interiors by Michele Bönan, mirrors classic Italian elegance and the grandeur of Milan's stately mansions.
Image credit: Portrait Milano
Feb 22, 2024
Louis Vuitton partners with world renowned Chef Gaggan Anand to launch "Gaggan at Louis Vuitton" in Bangkok, marking its first Southeast Asian restaurant venture.
Celebrated for deeply influencing Indian cuisine, Gaggan brings his storytelling and innovative dining approach to this collaboration, continuing his legacy of transforming dining norms.
Image credit: Gaggan Anand | Louis Vuitton | Gaysorn | Albert Ramirez | Jongkol T. Palarit
Feb 17, 2024
Designed by architect Kengo Kuma, AEAJ Green Terrace in Tokyo's Harajuku is an architectural marvel acting as an immense aroma diffuser, crafted from cypress wood and integrating nature with design to promote environmental stewardship and energy efficiency.
This holistic aroma wellbeing facility features an aroma laboratory with 300 essential oils, a library of 1,400 books, a relaxing botanical tea lounge, and a biodiversity-rich aroma corridor, aiming to educate on aroma craft and enhance mental and physical health through sensory experiences.
Image credit: AEAJ | KKAA
Feb 16, 2024
The Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, renowned for its extensive art collections including the world's largest Bruegel collection and masterpieces by Raphael and Rembrandt, also offers a unique culinary experience in its Café-Restaurant situated in the majestic Cupola Hall, where white marble panels and gold decor complement the ornate dome overhead.
The venue offers a culinary experience rooted in Viennese tradition, presenting a broad range of specialties and a weekend breakfast menu, and transforms every Thursday into an intimate dinner setting with a 5-course fine dining and exclusive after-hours museum tour.
Image credit: Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien
Feb 14, 2024
Saint Laurent Babylone, now open at 9 Rue de Grenelle in the historic Sèvres-Babylone neighborhood of Paris, is Anthony Vaccarello's vision of a cultural space, offering a curated collection of rare books, out-of-print records, and exclusive art alongside collaborations with artists and unique YSL merchandise.
More than a bookstore, it resembles a contemporary art gallery and office, hosting events with artists, DJs, and authors to celebrate the interconnectedness of art, books, and music.
Image credit: Saint Laurent
Feb 13, 2024
A&A, an initiative that pairs artists and architects to create hotels in Okayama, envisions art as living pieces, questioning the relationship between form, function, and urban spaces, while opening a dialogue on the role of cross-disciplinary approaches for the environment and local identity.
'Jonathan | Hasegawa' explores the interplay of light and shadow to capture transient beauty of time, space and human perception.
'Liam | Fuji' integrates climate science into architecture, challenging norms and promoting environmental reflection.
Image credit: A&A
Feb 5, 2024
Bibliotheque, a rare merge of a bookstore, art, café, and wine bar, has opened in SoHo, New York, by renowned plastic surgeon Dr. Andrew Jacono and his writer son A.J., aiming to be a cultural hub for artists and cultural communities.
The venue offers a diverse collection of over 10,000 books, food and pastries from Épicerie Boulud by acclaimed chef Daniel Boulud, coffee from Lavazza, brewed using a La Marzocco machine, a curated wine selection, and is filled with artworks from renowned artists.
Image credit: Bibliotheque | Épicerie Boulud
Jan 30, 2024
SANAYI313, a multidisciplinary collective in Istanbul led by interior architect Enis Karavil and his brother Amir, operates a space that combines a design studio, gastronomy, and a curated store.
Located in a repurposed auto repair shop in Istanbul, SANAYI313 has transformed the space into a creative hub, presenting a design studio with maximalist-minimalist elements, a Four Pearls-rated restaurant blending Turkish-European cuisine, and a store offering a mix of vintage, rare collectibles and contemporary items.
Image credit: SANAYI313
Jan 22, 2024
Taiga Takahashi, the late artist and fashion designer who reinterpreted traditional aesthetics with modern influences in his brand T.T, created 'SABI', a pavilion for tea omakase above his boutique/gallery in Gion, Kyoto.
In 'SABI', a serene pavilion reflecting 'Wabi-Sabi' and Taiga's philosophy, two-hour artful tea ceremonies are held, where tea-based drinks are paired with seasonal sweets, offering a multisensory journey beyond conventional tea culture, a concept also reflected in his fashion brand.
Image credit: Tea room SABI | Shuhei Tsukiyama | Tomoko Sauvage
Jan 16, 2024
Bathhouse, a wellness destination originating from Brooklyn known for utilizing heat generated from Bitcoin mining to heat its pools and hammams, has expanded to Flatiron, Manhattan for its second location, offering an array of amenities including thermal pools, saunas, treatment rooms, and a nutritious all-day dining experience.
This innovative approach, initiated in 2019 to counter high energy costs, involves using computers designed for Bitcoin mining (ASICs) to efficiently heat the pools, with the mined Bitcoin being retained as a long-term investment for the company.
Image credit: Bathhouse
Jan 15, 2024
Philharmonie de Paris, an architectural music/exhibition venue designed by architect Jean Nouvel, is set to welcome a new restaurant, L'Envol, by Michelin-starred chef Thibaut Spiwack, a rising star in sustainable gourmet cuisine, opening in late January.
Jean Nouvel's architecture, with its mineral-like structure and versatile design, supports diverse musical genres and audience layouts, houses exceptional musical venues created with acoustic innovators, and includes the Belvedere, a rooftop space offering panoramic views of Paris.
Image credit: Philharmonie de Paris | Jean Nouvel | Thibaut Spiwack | W. Beaucardet | G. Lefauconnier
Jan 9, 2024
Selman Marrakech, a family estate at the foot of the Atlas Mountains, is known for its Arab-Moorish palace design by architect/designer Jacques Garcia and its privately bred Arabian horses, providing a majestic Moroccan experience.
The estate, blending traditional Moroccan décor with modern comforts, has announced the enrichment of its culinary offerings in spring 2024 under the guidance of Michelin-starred chef Jean-François Piège.
Image credit: Selman Marrakech
Jan 5, 2024
Architect Kengo Kuma, in collaboration with Uchino Sheet Metal and Okaniwa Construction, designed the Wakuni Shoten café in Higashimurayama City, Tokyo, set to open on January 19, 2024.
Set in a rejuvenated 52-year-old building in the Aoba Shopping District, the café's exterior uses 700 patinated bronze plates from the roof of Hayatani Shrine, interior brass work and furniture by local craftsmen, specialty coffee from Kinoshita Shoten, and chairs designed by Kuma made from repurposed seats of the former National Stadium.
Image credit: Wakuni Shoten café | Uchino Sheet Metal | Okaniwa Construction
Dec 30, 2023
Arc is an innovative experiential sauna system for home, created in partnership between Whipsaw, a renowned design firm, Ancient Ritual, a wellness specialist, and Matthew Schreiber, lighting specialist for artist James Turrell.
The AI driven sauna offers personalized wellness experiences using biometric data, and features natural materials, ergonomic design, and immersive Liquid Chromotherapy™ lighting for enhanced mental and physical well-being.
Image credit: Whipsaw | Ancient Ritual
Dec 28, 2023
Luna Luna, the world's first art amusement park, designed by notable artists including Jean-Michel Basquiat, Salvador Dalí, David Hockney, and Keith Haring, has been brought back to life for the first time since 1987.
Originally opened in Hamburg in 1987 and attracting 300K visitors in 7 weeks, the park, once dismantled and forgotten in a warehouse, has been revived in a museum-like setting in LA by Drake and partners with a $100 million investment, with plans to continue its global tour.
Image credit: Luna Luna | Sabina Sarnitz | JWPictures, Inc.| Keith Haring Foundation | Diego Andrade | Igor Furtado | Lauren Kim | Ariel Fisher
Dec 21, 2023
Arctic Bath, a river floating hotel & spa under the Northern Lights in Swedish Lapland, is a wellness focused architectural marvel transitioning in nature through seasons.
Designed by architects Bertil Harström and Johan Kauppi with an eco-conscious approach, Arctic Bath offers a dynamic range of seasonal experiences, from aurora borealis excursions to dog-sledding, and its spa, rooted in the Nordic tradition of hot-cold therapy, provides an authentic Scandinavian spa & wellness experience.
Image credit: Arctic Bath
Dec 20, 2023
Sou Fujimoto's architecture & nature retreat in Okinawa debuts on 'NOT A HOTEL', a unique hospitality brand known for collaborating with renowned architects and offering fractional ownership.
"NOT A HOTEL ISHIGAKI EARTH," is a 10-guest holiday home with a distinctive green roof and cave-inspired architecture blending seamlessly with its natural surroundings, and includes an infinity pool, sauna, and open-air-bath.
Image credit: NOT A HOTEL
Dec 19, 2023
Kith, furthering its presence in the women's line, opened its first Women flagship store in SoHo, NY, a space integrated with café and bespoke floristry in collaboration with PlantShed.
Nestled in the historic Manhattan Savings Institute Bank building and the site of Kith's first Manhattan flagship, the modern elegant space offers gourmet refreshments and personalized floral services with PlantShed.
Image credit: Kith
Dec 18, 2023
Panasonic has unveiled 'Technics café KYOTO' in Kyoto, a new space dedicated to their high-end audio brand, Technics, designed to 'Rediscover Music' and blend advanced sound technology with cultural experiences.
Architect Yusuke Seki's minimalist design, influenced by his passion for Technics turntables and a focus on space's function & context, accentuates the café's role as a hub for music and DJ events, with curated playlists by artists and a transformation into a bar style restaurant in the evenings.
Image credit: Technics
Dec 16, 2023
House of Light, created by artist James Turrell, is a work of art designed as a meditation house that offers beyond daytime encounters, with the full experience of 'light' extending to an overnight stay.
Located in Japan's Niigata Prefecture, it merges traditional Japanese architecture with Turrell's light & space, blending Eastern & Western to create a communal space that captures the 'beauty of shadows'. The theme of light intersection continues in the bathing experience, where an intricate interplay of light is woven within the bath.
Image credit: House of Light | Echigo-Tsumari Art Field | Yamada Tsutomu | Ishizuka Gentaro | Anzai
Dec 15, 2023
Piscine Molitor, a historic Parisian swimming pool known for its avant-garde atmosphere and Art Deco, was once the epicenter of Parisian glamour and fashion, the birthplace of the bikini, and later a canvas for graffiti artists.
Today, Molitor is transformed into a boutique hotel, preserving its heritage while adapting to modern luxury with Art Deco elements and Jean Philippe Nuel-designed rooms.
The hotel, managed by MGallery Collection, features two iconic pools, former changing rooms functioning as an art gallery, French culinary delights, and Clarins Spa.
Image credit: Molitor | Soo Burnell
Dec 14, 2023
SHIGUCHI, a unique 'Gallery Stay' nestled in Niseko's natural beauty and created by fine art photographer and collector Shouya Grigg, revitalizes 150-year-old traditional houses into an art and nature accommodation. It blends Grigg's minimalist and contemplative art with the tranquil cultural heritage of the environment.
The retreat, featuring villas named after the five universal elements and complemented by SOMOZA, an artfully restored traditional Japanese farmhouse serving as both a restaurant and art center, offers a harmonious blend of nature, art, and eco-friendly luxury.
Image credit: SHIGUCHI
Dec 4, 2023
Maison Assouline, a concept space dedicated to culture by the esteemed book publishing house Assouline, is a destination where literature, art, culinary, and travel coexist in a single, innovative setting.
Located in a historic Grade II listed building in London's Piccadilly, designed by the influential architect Sir Edwin Lutyens in 1922, this cultural refuge combines a curated selection of books and art de vivre, exclusive interior furniture, and the Swans Bar's sensory journey through culinary experiences inspired by travel.
Image credit: Assouline
Nov 18, 2023
Le Labo, the cult French fragrance brand overseen by Estée Lauder, designs labs that mirror each city's essence, with their Shanghai location presented with a unique vegan café and library.
Housed in a historic Shikumen building, once a Museum, this two-story flagship blends vintage wabi-sabi aesthetics with many original details still intact. The second floor houses a vegan café, one of only two in the world, and a reading area with books that inspired Le Labo's aesthetic.
Image credit: LE LABO Fragrances
Nov 17, 2023
La Muralla Roja(The Red Wall), located in Calpe, Spain, is a postmodern architectural masterpiece by Ricardo Bofill, inspired by North African design, now home to prominent airbnb spots and cultural icon, notably referenced in Netflix's "Squid Game."
Ricardo Bofill's postmodern, futuristic vision materializes in this complex, all benefiting from natural light that plays off a dynamic color scheme, with amenities like rooftop pools and saunas, and available for rent across various platforms including airbnb.
Image credit: RBTA | Gregori Civera | Daniel Rueda | Jeanette Hagglund | Nacho Alegre | Fred Guillaud
Nov 10, 2023
Casa Maria Luigia, an 18th century property in Modena turned into a hotel by the world-renowned chef Massimo Bottura and his wife Lara Gilmore, is praised as a culinary sanctuary with two restaurants and gourmet breakfasts that channel Bottura's familial traditions.
The property presents a unique confluence of art, music, and heritage that complements the culinary experience; a multisensory journey and a laboratory for culinary ideas.
Image credit: Casa Maria Luigia
Nov 3, 2023
Haruki Murakami, an icon of contemporary literature and a master of magical realism, sees his legacy honored in a library at Waseda University in Tokyo, where he graduated in 1975.
This convergence of cultural wonders, architecturally sculpted by the renowned Kengo Kuma, serves not only as a repository for his works but as a cultural hub for writers, readers, students, and musicians worldwide, offering literature, music experiences, and a café with a coffee blend preferred by Murakami.
Image credit: Waseda University | KKAA
Oct 31, 2023
Bauhaus Dessau, an iconic institution and landmark in modern architecture and design, offers immersive experiences through the Bauhaus Dessau Foundation and accommodates guests within its historic spaces, once inhabited by luminaries like Josef Albers and Marcel Breuer.
With rates starting from €55 for a single room, each guest room captures the Bauhaus era's essence, furnished with designs reminiscent of the period, while the main building hosts various activities.
Image credit: Bauhaus Dessau Foundation
Oct 26, 2023
Kengo Kuma masterfully transformed a nursing home by Lake Toya in Hokkaido into the WE Hotel Toya, blending modern aesthetics with natural beauty, and incorporating locally-sourced materials and innovative fabric designs to create tranquil, organic spaces.
The hotel's design, featuring cave-like common areas and panoramic views of the lake, emphasizes meticulous attention to detail and the harmonization of indoor and outdoor environments.
Image credit: WE Hotel Toya | KKAA
Oct 12, 2023
Raffles Hotels & Resorts has debuted in the UK with "Raffles London at the OWO", housed in the restored historic Old War Office (OWO) building in Whitehall, opening to the public for the first time since 1906.
The OWO, a historic space that once served as offices for figures like Sir Winston Churchill, boasts nine restaurants, three of which are helmed by the renowned Chef Mauro Colagreco. It presents a courtyard pavilion housing Café Laperousé, designed by Daewha Kang to evoke walking into a Georgia O’Keeffe painting, with interiors by Dior's Cordelia de Castellane, and offers indulgences such as the expansive four-story Guerlain Spa.
Image credit: The OWO | Raffles London at The OWO | Café Lapérouse
Sep 30, 2023
Bar Calico at the Freehand Hotel in New York, inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe and named after her 1931 painting, resides in a historic setting that once housed renowned figures in literature and art.
The ambiance mirrors O’Keeffe's Southwestern essence, and its cocktails narrate aspects of her life and artistry.
Image credit: Bar Calico | Freehand Hotels
Sep 28, 2023
Maison Gainsbourg, a former residence of French pop legend Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin transformed into a museum, café/piano bar, and boutique, was brought to life by Gainsbourg-Birkin's daughter, Charlotte, in partnership with Saint Laurent.
Both designed by renowned architect and designer Jacques Garcia, the museum, housing over 25,000 artifacts, offers both permanent and temporary exhibits, while the café/piano bar serves gourmet dishes created by Paris Society.
Image credit: Maison Gainsbourg | Charlotte Gainsbourg | Alexis Raimbault | Christian Simonpiétri / Sygma via Getty Image
Sep 26, 2023
Setouchi Aonagi in Matsuyama, designed by Tadao Ando, began as a museum and has been transformed into a small luxury hotel, melding Ando's signature minimal aesthetics with nature. It is highlighted by amenities such as an iconic 30m-long infinity pool and exclusive art pieces.
Set against the backdrop of the Seto Inland Sea, guests experience profound silence in suites, interrupted only by the sound of a waterfall designed by Ando, savor gourmet seafood, and enjoy private access to a prestigious golf course.
Image credit: Setouchi Aonagi
Sep 25, 2023
Azabudai Hills, a visionary urban village in Tokyo by Mori Building, spans a significant 24,000m² of green space, and is fully powered by renewable energy, showcasing architectural brilliance by Thomas Heatherwick.
The people-focused, nature-enriched enclave encompasses Aman residences, the Janu Tokyo hotel by Aman Resorts, teamLab museum, Pace Tokyo Gallery designed by Sou Fujimoto, and a selection of Japan's premier dining spots.
Image credit: DBOX for Mori Building Co., Ltd | HILLS LIFE DAILY
Sep 16, 2023
Marqués de Riscal, one of the oldest and most reputable wineries in the Rioja region, combines innovative wine with an architectural landmark & hotel designed by architect Frank Gehry, Michelin dining, a pioneering Vinothérapie® SPA Caudalie, and beyond.
Image credit: Marqués de Riscal
Sep 5, 2023
Fondazione Prada, a paramount institution for contemporary art and culture, further accentuates its offerings with artistic culinary experiences - with Restaurant Torre, Bar Luce.
Restaurant Torre, designed by Rem Koolhaas and with a gastronomic menu conceived by Chef Lorenzo Lunghi. Bar Luce, designed by renowned film director Wes Anderson, captures the nostalgic essence of 1950s and 60s Milan.
Image credit: Fondazione Prada
Aug 26, 2023
La Colombe d'Or, a historic hotel & restaurant nestled in the village of Saint-Paul de Vence, has intertwined with the lives of several 20th century art icons, including Picasso, Matisse, Chagall, Leger, Braque, Miro, and Calder.
Some of these icons exchanged and left their masterpieces to settle their bills for rooms and meals. Here, art isn't merely decor—it's a testament to the unique relationships that transformed the hotel into a living canvas.
Image credit: La Colombe d'Or | La Colombe d’Or Lovers Account | Tourist Office Saint-Paul de Vence
Aug 24, 2023
The Venice Venice Hotel, a redefining concept of an art hotel by the founders of Golden Goose sneakers, emerges as a groundbreaking blend of historical heritage and avant-garde creativity.
Situated in Palazzo Ca’ da Mosto, one of Venice's oldest structures, the hotel restores to recapture 13th century grandeur and defies the typical 'art hotel,' where art is not only displayed but becomes an integral part, born with the room. 25 rooms, 25 different immersions, and more ahead.
Image credit: The Venice Venice Hotel
Aug 19, 2023
La Maison Champs Elysées, situated in Paris' Golden Triangle, is a former mansion of the Duchess of Essling transformed into a unique hotel designed by Martin Margiela in 2011.
The design collaboration led to theatrical and unconventional interiors, capturing attention upon entry with immersive decor and surprises that whisper an intertwining journey of contemporary and unobtrusive luxury.
Image credit: La Maison Champs Elysées
Aug 15, 2023
Sanctuary Potato Head Bali offers a wellness experience that blends science, art, and spirituality at Desa Potato Head, the Beach Club with versatile space transitioning from serene days to lively nights.
Located in Potato Head Suites, the Sanctuary provides a unique blend of alternative wellness practices, including Light Sound Vibration (LSV) for sound healing, breathwork, and Breathwork + Ice sessions, all supported by innovative technology.
Image credit: Potato Head | Sanctuary at Potato Head | Joanna Martel
Aug 11, 2023
Fondation Azzedine Alaïa, located at 18 rue de la Verrerie in Paris, is a multifaceted cultural destination preserving the legendary fashion designer's legacy through exhibitions, and also offers a unique experience with its bookstore and Café Restaurant adorned with art - "Le Sein" sculpture by César, concrete lights by Le Corbusier, chairs by Harry Bertoia, and the bookshop's interiors by Jean Prouvé.
Image credit: Fondation Azzedine Alaïa | Alaïa
Aug 7, 2023
Salmon Eye, a free-floating architectural pavilion that commits to ocean sustainability in Norway's Hardangerfjord, sends a message to better feed the planet and presents an immersive culinary journey through its restaurant, Iris. The "expedition dining" offers a multisensory underwater experience and a 6-hour, 18-course tasting journey led by Chef Anika Madsen.
Image credit: Salmon Eye | Iris
Aug 5, 2023
Shinpuhkan, the historical space in Kyoto that has transformed into a lifestyle complex with fashion, retail, culinary, and the first Ace Hotel in Japan, blends the old and new, led by architect Kengo Kuma. Notable brand spaces include Café Kitsuné, Le Labo, Beams, and Bonjour records.
Ace Hotel's main dining room is finally opening on August 10th, three years after the hotel's opening, led by Chef Katie Cole of "Locale" in Tokyo.
Image credit: Shinpuhkan | KKAA | Ace Hotel Kyoto | KŌSA
Aug 2, 2023
Hamilton Princess is a historic art hotel in Bermuda, known as the "Pink Palace," boasting a remarkable collection featuring Andy Warhol, Banksy, David Hockney, KAWS, Yayoi Kusama and more. This Fairmont-managed resort offers modern amenities, waterfront views, and a private beach club, attracting elite travelers and receiving TripAdvisor's "Best of the Best" award.
Image credit: Hamilton Princess
Jul 29, 2023
Hôtel des Horlogers, the eco-conscious luxury hotel of watchmaker Audemars Piguet in Le Brassus, boasts striking architecture designed by Bjarke Ingels, seamlessly integrating into the surrounding landscape and complemented by nature.
With three restaurants overseen by three-Michelin-starred French Chef Emmanuel Renaut, the hotel provides various experiences that celebrate the watchmaking heritage and contribute to the development of travel in Vallée de Joux.
Image credit: Hôtel des Horlogers | Xavier DUVAUT
Jul 27, 2023
Aimé Leon Dore's NYC and London flagships merge fashion, café, and music into an urban ambiance, curating a unique brand experience that embraces culture and the art of living.
The Sound Room at both locations showcases the recently launched 'SOUND', a monthly content series featuring an hour-long DJ set, while Café Leon Dore celebrates Greek culture, offering Freddo Espresso, Cappuccino, Greek mountain tea, and Greek-inspired fare.
Image credit: Aimé Leon Dore
Jul 24, 2023
Villa Mabrouka, the former private residence of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé in Tangiers, Morocco, has been transformed into a luxurious boutique hotel by renowned British designer Jasper Conran, featuring mid-century modern-inspired design, lush gardens, and a unique blend of Moroccan and English aesthetics.
Image credit: Villa Mabrouka | Jasper Conran
Jul 21, 2023
Château La Coste, a Provence art sanctuary and winery, mesmerizes with its timeless beauty as art, culinary, and hospitality intertwine, whispering to the soul with an indescribable symphony.
The sprawling 500-acre estate showcases renowned artworks by Ando Tadao, Frank Gehry, Louise Bourgeois, Kengo Kuma and beyond, while Villa La Coste offers luxurious villa suites with private pools and panoramic views of the Luberon, complemented by exceptional dining experiences amidst the breathtaking vineyard backdrop.
Image credit: Château La Coste
Jul 16, 2023
SANA MANE, Naoshima's nature art glamping resort, enriches the art island with Kengo Kuma's spiral SAZAE sauna, crafted through biomimicry-inspired folds of laminated plywood. SANA MANE blends nature accommodations, breathtaking landscapes, outdoor dining, and a serene ambiance, offering guests a unique glamping experience in the Seto Inland Sea.
Image credit: SANA MANE | Kengo Kuma and Associates
Jul 7, 2023
Loulou Paris, the restaurant at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs and situated in Louvre Palace offering a terrace with Eiffel Tower and Tuileries Gardens views has reopened. Its interior is designed by renowned French architect Joseph Dirand and features Jean-Charles de Castelbajac's playful illustrations throughout the space, making it a go-to spot for the fashion industry, hosting events and collaborations.
Image credit: Loulou Paris | Matthieu Salvaing
Jul 5, 2023
le19M, a creative hub and exhibition space in Paris initiated by Chanel, dedicates to crafts, fashion, and artistic collaborations. It is designed by the award-winning architect Rudy Ricciotti and brings together 11 Maisons d'art, Maison ERES, le Galerie du 19M, and le Café du 19M.
Currently exhibiting textile works from Senegal and a haute couture residency, while the recently reopened Parisian bistro café offers a culinary experience that complements the exhibition themes, giving a plant-based twist to street food.
Image credit: le19M | Studio GGSV
Jul 2, 2023
Culture Station Seoul 284, once the nation's rail gateway to Europe and now transformed into a cultural hub, showcases the Heatherwick exhibition, hosts a lunch meditation program called 'Meet the real me,' and offers music tasting experiences, providing a diverse blend of art, mindfulness, and music for visitors to immerse in the spirit of culture and self-discovery.
Image credit: Culture Station Seoul 284 | Heatherwick Studio
Jul 1, 2023
Chanel, Alain Ducasse, and architect Peter Marino converge at the two Michelin star restaurant 'Beige Alain Ducasse Tokyo' and their recently remodeled rooftop garden terrace 'Le Jardin de Tweed,' with Kyoto's legendary bartender Minoru Nishida.
Image credit: Beige Alain Ducasse Tokyo | Le Jardin de Tweed | Peter Marino Architect
Jun 24, 2023
La Tourette, the visionary architect Le Corbusier's last masterpiece in Europe, is an influential UNESCO World Heritage Site and a monastery. Today, it also serves as a place for art exhibitions, a spiritual retreat, and a hotel, exemplifying modernist architecture with its play of light, shadow, and contemplative atmosphere, captivating architects like Ando Tadao.
Image credit: Fondation Le Corbusier | Couvent de La Tourette | Le Progrès newspaper | Elie Vautey | Alexandre Schabel | Jonas Klunemann | Laszlo Horvath | Guillaume de Laubier | Michel Verjux | Javier Callejas | Michael B Frank
Jun 19, 2023
HAUS DOSAN, an innovative retail concept by Gentle Monster in Seoul, redefines conventional retail, and evokes new emotions with striking installations yet minimalist design. It houses sensual artisan cosmetic brand Tamburins and fantasy inspired dessert brand Nudake that have become one-of-a-kind culinary journey in the city.
Image credit: Gentle Monster
Jun 18, 2023
Shiroiya Hotel in Maebashi, Japan, is a city rejuvenation project led by architect Sou Fujimoto. The 300 yrs old historic building is reborn as a work of art, architecture, culinary excellence, and wellness in collaboration with Jasper Morrison, Leandro Erlich, Michelin-starred chef Hiroyasu Kawate, Blue Bottle and others.
Image credit: Shiroiya Hotel
Jun 14, 2023
Nestled in the heart of Ubud, Bali, the Yoga Barn stands beyond the ordinary. With a rich history and unwavering dedication, it has remained at the pinnacle of yoga retreats. Beyond yoga led by accomplished instructors, it is a cultural hub, drawing spiritual seekers, artists, and those yearning for a profound connection.
The spa, a serene sanctuary inspired by ancient Vedic practices, offers transformative therapies, while the Garden Kafe and Juice Bar have earned their own reputation as go-to destinations, and accommodations offer a serene stay.
Image credit: The Yoga Barn
Jun 6, 2023
3110NZ by LDH Kitchen is a transformative space in Tokyo, born from a collaboration between NANZUKA art gallery, Michelin starred Sushi Saito, and renowned architect Daniel Arsham. It is an art gallery by day and turns into 'Saito Hideout', a revered Michelin sushi destination by night.
Image credit: 3110NZ | NANZUKA | SNARKITECTURE
May 28, 2023
Piknic, a retro building transformed into a vibrant space of art, culinary, nostalgia, and inspiration, rests at the heart of Seoul. Its design is inspired by Marcel Broodthaers and Dries Van Noten, featuring a restored legendary speaker, the #we16a, a Michelin restaurant practicing farm-to-table, and the entire building adapting to each art and design exhibition throughout the year.
Image credit: Piknic
May 26, 2023
Naoshima, a small island in Japan, is an unparalleled gem that seamlessly integrates art into its very essence. Ando Tadao has indelibly shaped the landscape of the island, which is adorned with works by Yayoi Kusama, Claude Monet, James Turrell, and more. The island offers an Ando Tadao-designed hotel, a blissful bathhouse, and innovative gastronomy.
Image credit: Benesse Art Site Naoshima
May 17, 2023
Koganeyu, a public bath or 'sento' in Tokyo founded in 1932, combines baths, pools, saunas, cafes, lounges, craft beer bars, and a DJ booth. The interior is designed by Jo Nagasaka, the architect of Blue Bottle Coffee shops worldwide. Koganeyu aims to redefine the public bath experience with a cultural twist, going beyond conventions.
Image credit: Koganeyu
May 12, 2023
LVMH's French cosmetics and goods brand, Officine Universelle Buly, has opened a new boutique that duals as a café in Kobe, Japan, featuring both sweets and fragrances. The architectural design of the space honors culture of Japan and the world of Officine Universelle Buly.
Image credit: LVMH | Officine Universelle Buly 1803
Apr 23, 2023
The ROMEO Collection is opening its second luxury hotel, ROMEO Roma, in Rome's city center in October 2023. The hotel is one of the last projects designed by Zaha Hadid and will offer a restaurant overseen by Alain Ducasse.
Image credit: The Romeo Collection | ducasse-paris.com | zaha-hadid.com
Apr 20, 2023
In partnership with AC Milan, the SIRO hotel in Dubai, set to open later this year, offers an immersive fitness & recovery experience with exclusive access to techniques used by the world's top athletes.
Image credit: Siro
Apr 19, 2023
Outdoor lifestyle brand, Snow Peak, has built a unique nature surrounding retreat and onsen spa in Niigata, Japan. Designed by the world renowned architect, Kengo Kuma, the estate includes camp sites, villas, restaurants, mobile homes and an onsen spa. April 2023 marks their 1st anniversary.
Image credit: Snow Peak
Apr 18, 2023
Casa Clarita is a luxury accommodation in Valencia fully designed by Jaime Hayon. History meets design creativity in this 10 apartments and 12 rooms guest house that holds Hayon's signature design.
Image credit: Casa Clarita
Apr 16, 2023
Christian Louboutin opened his first boutique hotel, Vermelho, in Portugals' beach town of Melides, on April 1st, 2023. Vermelho offers peaceful yet vibrant aesthetic, showcasing Louboutin's personally collected furniture, antiques, art and ceramics.
Image credit: Vermelho Melides
Apr 8, 2023
The COMO Group is opening a new hotel, COMO Le Montrachet, in the village of Puligny-Montrachet, Burgundy, on April 15, 2023. The hotel has elevated heritage buildings from 1842 and is surrounded by 5 Grand Cru vineyards.
Its sommelier takes guests on private wine tastings and visits to nearby wineries. This is the first COMO hotel to be located in France.
Image credit: COMO
Apr 5, 2023