Hiroyuki Morita established Studio Rope in 2017, while studying for his Master’s Degree at ECAL Switzerland. “Design connects many relationships in our own life, in the same way as rope makes a knot,” he says, explaining the studio’s core philosophy. He believes that design is as much about forming strong bonds and flexible partnerships with clients, craftsmen, makers and users as it is about creating objects. His Stone Pottery collection is just one example of this. By working in close collaboration with stone factories, he was able to turn their waste dust into a unique glaze that provides thermo-insulating and tactile properties to a porcelain coffee set.

Tell me a little bit about your childhood, education and background in terms of how you first became interested in creativity, design and sustainability.

I was born in Shizuoka, Japan. My hometown was rich in nature and I spent a lot of time … Read the rest

With so many working from home and vacations out of reach for the time being, our residences are becoming a place we spend much of our time and because of that, our relationship with our spaces is evolving and requiring more flexibility and creativity. With that in mind, K.O.T Architects designed this apartment in Tel Aviv to be the “perfect home-base for the new urban lifestyle.”

The firm’s architect and interior designer, Kfir Galatia Azulay, chose to create a hotel-like apartment that perfectly balances “public and private, illuminated and shaded, transparent and concealed.” Inspired by poet Rupi Kaur’s quote, “I am not a hotel room. I am home”, Galatia Azulay designed the apartment, which is located in the Florentine neighborhood in a modernist residential building, to feel like a never-ending vacation for the young bachelor owner.

The original layout offered minimal natural light thanks to a series of enclosed rooms. … Read the rest

With a practice centered around developing engaging community platforms, cultural researcher and designer Alice Grandoit works at the intersections of community engagement, education and urbanism. Over the past 12 years, she’s worked with organizations to build awareness through strategic community partnerships, then reinforced these relationships through the creation and execution of memorable, physical touchpoints that serve as sites of mutual inspiration and exchange. Alice is the co-founder of Room for Magic, a collaborative design studio that works to bridge brands and communities, and Deem Journal, a new bi-annual print publication focused on design as a social practice.

Room for Magic is a collaborative design studio that works to bridge brands and communities to ensure the needs of all parties are prioritized, while conceptualizing and developing brand strategy, marketing and programming. It’s through this work that Deem Journal was created as a publication that uses dialogue as a tool … Read the rest

There are lots of design books on the market that are great for serving up inspiration for creating beautiful, modern spaces in your own home but sometimes, they’re not very realistic, attainable, or even relatable. Finding the perfect antique dresser or just the right shade of white paint can be important but style and aesthetics alone won’t bring happiness into your home. Instead, it’ll be the behind-the-scenes elements that really matter, like the flow of a room, organization and storage, optimal lighting and incorporating smart technology. Thankfully a new book is coming to town that addresses all the above and more. Written by author Jamie Gold, a professional kitchen and bath designer and Mayo Clinic-certified wellness coach, Wellness By Design: A Room-By-Room Guide To Optimizing Your Home For Health, Fitness and Happiness will help you change how you feel in and about your home with functional, implementable tips that go … Read the rest