We often think of technology and nature as separate things, but what happens when they come together? In this podcast, recorded live from the heart of Maison&Objet, host Oli Stratford discusses different approaches of combining technology and ecology with designers Simon Dupety, Suzanna Laskaridis and Felix Rasehorn. The episode digs into how new b…

How can design connect to nature? At January's 2024 edition of Maison&Objet, Disegno created a pair of podcasts, recorded live from the heart of the fair, to interrogate this question. The first episode sees the journal's editor-in-chief, Oli Stratford, speak with Mathieu Lehanneur about Outonomy, an installation Lehanneur created as the fair's Des…

“Creativity” has become a buzzword – a tagline that brands and individuals deploy to describe how they approach business. But what do we mean when we use this word so freely, and what role can designers play within a business climate that already professes to be “creative”? In this episode of Where Next? Conversations with Map Project Office, host …

The built environment is rarely designed with physical, cognitive or intellectual disabilities in mind, leaving our cities difficult to navigate, unwelcoming, and potentially dangerous for large parts of the population. So what can be done to make moving around more inclusive for everyone? In the final episode of season one of Re-routing the City, …

What does mobility mean in the 21st century? In this episode of Where Next? Conversations with Map Project Office, host Oli Stratford is joined by designers Will Verity, Dr. Jiayu Wu, Andy Wheel and Liam Young to discuss how autonomous and electric vehicles are softening the barriers between private cars and leisure spaces.With a rising interest in…

In the second episode of Re-routing the City host India Block is joined by Tim Fendley and Julia Thrift to discuss the ways in which different road users occupy public space. The conversation ranges from the positive impacts that well-designed roads can have on health, to the need for governments to take more holistic, long-term approaches to creat…

In this inaugural episode of Re-routing the City host India Block is joined by Tim Fendley and Kate Jeffery to discuss the science behind our sense of direction. From discussion as to whether rats and humans share a universal internal compass to the study of yellow as a naturally understood warning colour, the conversation moves in multiple directi…

In this Disegno podcast, Fien Muller and Hannes Van Severen of Belgian design studio Muller van Severen are interviewed about their Oasis installation for the upcoming Maison&Objet trade fair – a cocoon-like pavilion designed to offer visitors to the fair a moment of peace and respite. Oasis is conceived of as a total composition, not an exhibition…

This month, hosts Oli Stratford and India Block recap a trio of reports that examine Urban Heat Islands, reducing the carbon emissions of touring exhibitions, and building safer cities for birds. In products and projects they discuss the Bilboquet lamp by Philippe Malouin for Flos, football kits inspired by William Morris and conclude with an inter…

Following a discussion of the sudden flurry of product design in cinema, this episode of The Crit sees the co-hosts unpack the unsettling allegations made against top architect David Adjaye, give their first impressions of Meta's new social media platform Threads, and discuss the opening of Young V&A, a museum revamp that's been overshadowed by the…

In this episode of The Crit, hosts Oli Stratford and India Block celebrate their June birthdays and reflect on the month’s design goings-on. They discuss the merits and pitfalls of augmented reality headsets to exhibitions about email newsletters, to handy fold up sofas. Also featured is a teaser for the new issue of Design Reviewed, plus an exclus…

In this Disegno podcast the journal’s deputy editor India Block is joined by designers Marcel Wanders, Yves Béhar, Anahita Mekanik, Frederik Duerinck and Clark Scheffy to discuss how designers and brands can strike up purposeful partnerships with artificial intelligence. Speaking live from Milan Design Week 2023, the panel explores the implications…

In this fifth instalment of Where Next? Conversations with Map Project Office, host Oli Stratford is joined by Laura Lebeau, Soomi Park, Zoe Schladow, and Bas van de Poel to ask how technology can be more sensitively embedded into people’s homes and whether it should be. While many examples of ambient technology are austere and built around black s…

We take a journey to ethics town in this episode of The Crit, discussing the dubious developments around Adidas’s Yeezy range and the human rights abuses connected to mega-city Neom. In brighter news, we highlight some products and projects including Transformers by Konstantin Grcic, the Kyora balancing board by Studiomama, and the opening of the F…

In this edition of The Crit hosts Oli Stratford and India Block discuss notable moments during Milan Design Week 2023. This episode was recorded at Convene, 22 Bishopsgate. Thank you to everyone at Convene for their kind support. If you’d like to find out more about Convene’s workplaces in London and further afield simply visit convene.com. Hosted …

To kick off season two of Where Next? Conversations with Map Project Office, host Oli Stratford is joined by Rosalie McMillan, Peter Griffith, Seetal Solanki and Richard Stevens to unpick the complexities, biases and attitudes surrounding the use of plastics. While our heavy reliance on plastic, especially single-use plastic, is an undeniable probl…

A new year, a new episode of The Crit. This episode, the hosts discuss the amusing, confusing and inspiring tech products from Las Vegas’ consumer Electronics show; the rise of the pet apparel market and Front’s forward thinking design practice. Also included is a discussion of a Virtual Power Plant Partnership project, a nostalgic reflection on So…

In this third instalment of Where Next? Conversations with Map Project Office, host Oli Stratford is joined by Natsai Audrey Chieza, Afaina de Jong, Nick Rolls and George Garner to discuss the shifting roles of designers, and to ask whether the discipline is done with stuff. With a rise in digital products and services, new social and commercial mo…

It’s December, which means the annual round-up episode of The Crit is out, looking back on design stories of note in 2022. In honour of the launch of Disegno’s new publication – Design Reviewed – we have updated the format of this year’s annual review. Design Reviewed is organised around 10 categories, each of which correspond to a different design…

This episode of The Crit looks back on design news in October, including sad happenings around The Line in Neom; the opening of Battersea Power station; the Kakao outage in South Korea; and Coperni’s spray-on dress. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this second instalment of Where Next? Conversations with Map Project Office, host India Block is joined by Dr. Destiny Thomas, Dan Hill, Emilie Robinson and Andrea Rosati for a panel discussing the future of mobility. Electric vehicles hold huge potential as society aims to cut its reliance on fossil fuels, but this is not the only issue facing …

To celebrate the upcoming launch of Disegno’s September issue, The Crit’s co-hosts give a behind-the-scenes view of some of the most topical pieces from the new issue, with sections exploring the Tolix Chaise A, a contested masterplan in Auroville, the unionisation movement in architecture, and much more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for …

In this Disegno podcast, the journal’s editor-in-chief Oli Stratford speaks with architect Cristina Celestino about the ideas infusing her Palais Exotique installation for the upcoming Maison&Objet. The pavilion has been erected at the heart of the fair and will provide a space dedicated to decoration and colour, traits traditionally prized within …

July was marked by somber news from the design world, with reports of a final spilt between Jony Ive and Apple, the frightening data fall out from the overturning of Roe vs Wade, and the death of Dezeen founder Marcus Fairs. Also included in this episode is a look at the Stirling prize building nominees in the UK, a new game shaped by the feline pe…

In this inaugural episode of Where Next? Conversations with Map Project Office the panel ask questions about the fetishisation of newness in design. Host Oli Stratford is joined by guests Richard Stevens, Mads Kogsgaard Hansen, Priya Khanchandani and Hella Jongerius as they discuss how the industry might adopt a different approach, in which product…

Returning in full force after Disegno’s editorial team ventured out to the Salone De Mobile, this month’s Crit explores what a two-year hiatus has done to the design fair behemoth; reflects on the publication and ramifications of the Bartlett report; debates the sentience of an AI chatbot and its effect on the public imagination; and examines a ser…

A special episode sees The Crit travel to the Eden Project in Cornwall to meet artist Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg, whose Pollinator Pathmaker project explores interspecies design and questions whether creative practice can make things better, and for whom? [Featuring sound design from Nick Ryan] Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informat…

Looking back over March, Disegno’s editorial team discuss diversity and Marsha Ramroop’s exit from RIBA; Diébédo Francis Kéré and his selection as the 2022 Pritzker Prize laureate; Frida Escobedo’s appointment to design the new Met extension; and Santiago’s newly appointed heat officer. Also included in the episode are projects and products includi…

This February, The Crit covers changes to Google's cookie policy; MRDV on the record about the Marble Arch Mound; furniture designed around fermentation by The Decorators; Danielle Dean's latest show at Tate Britain; a new director for the Cooper Hewitt museum; electric anti-poaching bikes and project and products from Barber and Osgerby, Sony, VG&…

Imagining what the offices of the future may look like has become a ubiquitous topic within design given the disruption of the past two years. Yet when Maison&Objet put this question to the architect Franklin Azzi for its spring 2022 edition, Azzi felt that he wanted to take inspiration from the history of the office in formulating his response. In…

Happy Lunar New Year! The Crit is back for 2022 – and the Year of the Tiger – with a full first month of design news. This episode includes the continued rise of NFTs; Salone del Mobile rescheduled; the craze for Wordle; a pig-to-human heart transplant; ostentatious branding; the launch of the Framework laptop; a dustpan and brush by Studio Irvine …

As 2021 draws to a close, The Crit invites you to settle down, relax and plug in to our design review of the past year. Join the team as they run through the architecture and design projects, trends, and heroes and villains who made 2021 what it was. Happy holiday listening! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

November brings a bumper edition of architectural scandals to The Crit, courtesy of the final instalment of The Tulip saga, and the reviled Munger dormitory. It also sees our hosts discuss Apple's new self-repair scheme; a sneak peek of Disegno #31 through the lens of bacteria-related plastics and the opening of Hong Kong's long-awaited M+ museum; …

It’s October and the editorial team behind Disegno pick apart this month’s stories including Dubai’s delayed Expo 2020; an unusual Balenciaga fashion show with cartoon guests; an Eames cameo in the guise of the Club C Reebok shoe; Stefan Diez’s AYNO collection for Midgard; a visit to Somerset’s East Quay arts centre; and a very pleasant architectur…

This month on the Crit, Disegno's deputy editor India Block and editor-in-chief Oli Stratford discuss David Adjaye's hospitals for Ghana; OnlyFans’s banking woes; Sou Fujimoto’s pollution-funnelling Thousand Trees project; the uncertain future facing California’s gig economy workers as Proposition 22 is struck down; and a whole host of recent produ…

Disegno's editor-in-chief Oli Stratford catches up with Maison&Objet’s managing director, Philippe Brocart, to talk about the return of the trade fair to Paris this September, the reopening of the French capital, and how over a year of disruption has helped Maison adapt and create new approaches to programming for the design industry. Hosted on Aca…

Join show hosts Oli Stratford and Johanna Agerman Ross as they explore the design elements behind the opening ceremony of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics; Phyllida Barlow’s new sculpture for Highgate Cemetery; Samuel Ross’s 2021 Black British and POC artist grants; the second edition of the Where Are the Black Designers? annual conference; Virgil Abloh’s p…

In June’s episode of The Crit we are joined by Johanna Agerman Ross to discuss this month’s museum openings; the commercialisation of space flight; the new Serpentine Pavilion; the risk to Liverpool’s UNESCO world heritage status; and some nefarious app design. The episode also features an extended interview with architect Alan Maskin of Olson Kund…

Some updates from the team behind The Crit. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The 10th episode of The Crit heralds reflections on David Rockwell's Oscars set; Herman Miller's merger with Knoll; fond memories of Alber Elbaz; two Brit awards from Yinka Ilori and Es Devlin; as well as projects and products from the Design Museum, Moooi, Pearson Llyod and Svenskt Tenn. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

This week our hosts dive into the problems of mourning in greyscale; Aric Chen's new appointment; the winners of this year's Antepavillion competition in Hoxton; an update on the V&A; a "Nuanced" acquisition to the Microsoft empire and some architecturally inspired book covers by Michele De Lucchi. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more in…

Welcome to the forest is the first episode of Words on Wood, a new podcast from AHEC made in collaboration with Disegno. Offering a deep dive into some of the big issues surrounding forests and how these affect design and architecture, you can listen to the whole series by subscribing to Words on Wood, available on all major podcast platforms. Host…

Our hosts discuss the 2021 edition of the Salone del Mobile; a name change at the Serpentine Galleries; Alan Turing on the UK's £50 polymer banknote; the design legacy of Zeev Aram; MSCHF's satanic Nikes with Lil Nas X; and a host of new products from Normann Copenhagen, Moooi, Tala, Tarkett, and Boston Dynamics. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priv…

Our seventh episode discusses the winners of this year’s Pritzker Prize; internet inequality; a pavilion proposal for opera revellers; the legislation of dark patterns; a spat about forests; new eco-leathers from Hermès and Allbirds; Neri and Hu’s Petit dining chair; and a look to upcoming exhibitions at the Vitra Design Museum, Maxxi, and the Desi…

This week our hosts discuss major institutional restructuring at the V&A; the life and times of atmospheric chemist Paul Crutzen; the Amazon app logo snafu; Andrés Reisinger’s digital furniture at auction; and the rise of #Multiform. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Crit team discuss gaming furniture from IKEA; a much-maligned job advert; new plans for the National Gallery’s Sainsbury Wing; and Fenty’s discontinuation of its ready-to-wear line. We also explore some of our favourite stories from the latest issue of Disegno – out now! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

This week our hosts discuss the Design Museum’s Designs of the Year; the changing future of Amazon; protest tunnels; USM’s planters; Nike’s hands-free shoes; and a new exhibition by Marcin Rusak. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In our first episode of 2021, the team look at big tech's response to the Capitol insurrection; a raft of new logos; the retirement of Adobe Flash Player; Pantone's colours of 2021; and a new toilet from Laufen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this shorter bonus episode our hosts are joined by Disegno's founder Johanna Agerman Ross. The trio reflects on 2020, and some of the design stories that have shaped it. This episode was edited by Kristina Rapacki and produced by Evi Hall. Our theme music is composed by Yuri Suzuki, with Team Suzuki at Pentagram. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/p…

In episode two, we chat about B&B Italia’s new artistic leadership; the world’s first approved lab-grown meat; the departures of ZHA and Foster + Partners from climate alliance Architects Declare; the logistics of vaccination; a videogame from Balenciaga; as well as products and projects from Ensemble, Systems Studio, and Nerdabe. Hosted on Acast. …