Studio Visit: Jólan van der Wiel

The experimental Amsterdam designer shows the strengths of using gravity as a medium

With its large weighted wooden frame, pulleys and ropes aplenty, Jólan van der Wiel‘s experiments into gravity as a natural design force is a perfect example of The Netherlands’ process-driven design ethos. An extension of the work by those rogues at Droog and the provocative Marcel Wanders, his work is driven by a transparent creative streak, and progressive use of materials and production methods. The …

Thomas de Lussac’s Louis XVI is Back

The French designer teams up with Perchebois to re-imagine the infamous king's iconic chair

Despite its significant history, the new furniture piece by French designer Thomas de Lussac in association with Perchebois—called “Louis XVI is Back“—is a most contemporary and daring armchair. The connection between de Lussac’s approach, which is a wooden skeleton more reminiscent of framework for a house, and Louis XVI’s 18th century velvet-covered seats is not immediate. But through meticulous execution, his re-working of this classic …

Box-Sized Death (Metal)

Viral urban legends, David O'Reilly's Mountain Game, the moon's two faces and more in our weekly look at the web

Every Wednesday through Friday, from now until 1 August 2014, death metal band Unfathomable Ruination will perform in an air-tight cube outside of London’s Gherkin until all the oxygen runs out. The cube also happens to be soundproof, so the real performance is the physical, near-death feat by the five-piece band. Onlookers can spy on the musicians’ entrances and exits, as well as the sound …