Fashion, Art, Design, Lifestyle

Vesper · October 30

"Mid-century homes are a labour of love" say conservation experts

https://www.dezeen.com/2024/10/23/mid-century-modern-home-preservation-conservation/

The challenges of preserving and upkeeping mid-century modern homes mean many are at risk of demolition, conservation experts tell Dezeen as part of our mid-century modern series.

Open-plan layouts, large windows and aesthetically on-trend fitted furniture are among the attributes found in many mid-century modern houses built from the mid-1940s to the early 1970s that make them sought-after today.

However, experts say that difficulties in maintaining the original building fabric and the challenges of fittings that aren't compatible with modern technology mean mid-century modern homes are especially vulnerable to demolition.

Many mid-century modern homes are at risk of demolition. Above and top: photos of High Sunderland by Dapple Photography courtesy of Loader Monteith

"Mid-century homes are a labour of love," said Liz Waytkus, director of conservation group Docomomo US. "Most people who own them put most of their time into them."

"Mid-century modernism was when we came up with the idea of open concept between the kitchen, the living room and dining room, so they're absolutely what people still want," she told Dezeen.

"Maybe the bathrooms and closets were smaller, but maybe we can learn something about our consumerism and our spending habits."

Mid-century modern houses "underbuilt for the land"

Although many mid-century modern homes have qualities that people today consider desirable, in some cases, they are torn down to make way for larger developments.

A number of notable mid-century modern homes have been razed recently. These include Marcel Breuer's Geller I house in Long Island, demolished to make way for a tennis court, and Craig Ellwood's Zimmerman House in Los Angeles, which was torn down by actor Chris Pratt to build a mansion.

"There are realtors in all 50 US states who specialise in mid-century because there is such a demand," said Waytkus. "It gets trickier when you have a house in a desirable area – the mid-century homes are then considered underbuilt for the land."

Experts say mid-century homes and interiors are desirable today. Photo of Farnsworth House by William Zbaren

Waytkus aims to offer guidance to homeowners navigating the challenges of maintaining mid-century modern homes in the hopes that more of the homes will be well preserved. One of the ways she does this is by connecting them with contractors who have experience working with mid-century materials.

"The earlier examples of modern homes were often made of wood, and wood will last you longer than any of the plastic garbage that you get on the market now," she said. "With a little bit of TLC, that wood could be restored."

"Later, in the 60s and 70s, the materials were more experimental and it takes more time to find the right contractor who understands mid-century homes. Having a knowledgable community is really important to point people in the right direction."

Jon Wright, who is the 20th-century heritage lead at architecture studio Purcell, agreed with Waytkus that mid-century modern interiors are popular are highly sought after today.

"Mid-century modern is really quite desirable now, and it fits very well into modern lifestyles," he said. "The key thing for that is the open-plan nature of it."

"If we were having this conversation 20 years ago, nobody would have been interested in G plan furniture, fitted teak sideboards, open plan living, or anything from the 50s or 60s," he continued.

Lack of mid-century modern conservation reference material

However, he argued that fixtures and fittings from the period are a challenging aspect of home preservation and that there are not enough previous examples for people to reference.

"The fixtures and fittings are not compatible with new technology and new ways of living, particularly in the kitchen," Wright said. "That includes completely new pieces of utility that would not been there before, like dishwashers."

"There's also an issue of knowing how to look after it," he continued. "If one were dealing with the fixtures and fittings of a Victorian or Georgian house, there is a long track record of textbook cases that you could go to – you know what to do because it's been done in another 100 places."

"But there isn't that track record for post-war building conservation. Very often, you're doing things for the first time."

Purcell worked on the conservation of the 1961 Ahm House in Hertfordshire. Photo by James O Davies

Wright emphasised the importance of distinguishing between original features and later alterations when conserving a building.

For mid-century homes, he argues that the most significant features are the building materials, the arrangement of internal spaces and how the project relates to the surrounding landscape.

"Making changes is what conservation is really about – what can I do to this building without messing up what's truly important about it?" he said.

Balance between preservation and future suitability is necessary

UK conservation group Twentieth Century Society director Catherine Croft believes that some alterations are necessary to make mid-century modern homes liveable and long-lasting.

She explained that in some cases, homeowners are told by authorities to preserve impractical home fittings that are sometimes later additions to the house.

"With housing more than anything else, we're sometimes asked to intervene on behalf of owners who feel that they're being given too hard a time by local authority planners and conservation officers – particularly about retention of kitchen fittings that aren't necessarily original," she said.

"It's the sort of cases where we end up saying, maybe back off a little bit. Let's get a balance between preserving the historic fabric and making sure these buildings have a future."

Hassrick House is a mid-century home maintained by Thomas Jefferson University. Photo by Hussain Aljoher

Suzanne Singletary – director of The Center for the Preservation of Modernism and architecture professor at Thomas Jefferson University – hopes to spread awareness of the significant design aspects of mid-century modern homes by using Hassrick House as an example.

Designed by modernist architect Richard Neutra in 1958, the Philadelphia home was sold to Thomas Jefferson University to be used for educational purposes.

Singletary has analysed Hassrick House with her students, documenting how the building's condition declines without proper maintenance.

"The reason why many buildings from this period are being demolished is because it's easier to get rid of it and start all over with newer materials, even though the notion that the greenest building is one already built is true," said Singletary.

"Within the five years since we've purchased Hassrick House, we can see already how quickly the building deteriorates," she continued. "They used novel materials that are often hard to replace and hard to get to a state of equilibrium where they're not decaying any further."

Croft argued that allowing buildings to be listed before they are at risk of being torn down would help protect more mid-century modern houses and would mean they are purchased by people with a desire to maintain them.

"Buildings are only being added to the list if they are threatened with demolition, but it would be infinitely better if a broader upgrading of the listing system was happening on a regular basis," she said.

"It's not really fair that people might buy a property and then subsequently have restrictions placed on it that they weren't anticipating."

There is more of an interest in preserving these types of homes now than ever before, according to experts.

"There's more of an outcry when something from this period is threatened than there ever has been before," added Wright. "That's entirely due to listing and organisations like the 20th Century Society putting their head above the parapet, saying, actually, this stuff is really great."

Vesper · October 30

Eames Shell chair aims to get "the best to the greatest number of people for the least"

https://www.dezeen.com/2024/10/11/eames-fiberglass-chair-mid-century-modern-series/

Continuing our series on mid-century modern design, we spotlight the Eames Shell chair, which features a seat that was moulded to the contours of the human body.

Created by design duo Charles and Ray Eames in the summer of 1949, the Eames chair became hugely influential in a period of mass production across the United States.

Produced by furniture company Herman Miller from 1950, the fibreglass chair presented an innovative furniture typology and has become one of the best-known furniture designs of the twentieth century.

Charles and Ray Eames created the first industrially manufactured plastic chair. Photo courtesy of Vitra

The chair is defined by its organically shaped shell made from glass fibre-reinforced polyester resin, a type of plastic that the couple started working with after it was developed by the US military.

Its seat was moulded to embrace the contours of its user and is raised on a network of steel or wooden legs.

The smooth form of the one-piece seat dips towards the rear, before rising up to form its backrest, which tilts backwards and tapers inwards to cradle the user.

The Shell chair was the latest in a line of chairs designed by Ray and Charles Eames, who met at the Cranbrook Academy of Art before marrying in 1941 and moving to Los Angeles where they established the design studio Eames Office.

The chairs feature shell seats moulded to the contours of a human body. Photo by James Brittain

The duo's first chair was the plywood Lounge Chair Wood, created in 1945, which showcased new ways of working with plywood.

Continuing their material experiments, in 1948, they created the first prototype for the Shell chair, which won second place in the Low-Cost Furniture Design competition organised by the Museum of Modern Art.

Following the win, the designers conducted experiments in search of a cheaper and more practical material for mass-produced furniture, which ultimately led to their use of fibreglass.

"The point was not fiberglass, the point was the 'need,'" Eames Office director Eames Demetrios told Dezeen.

"It was a belief that if you could harness the cost – for example: no upholstery cost –, comfort and elegance efficiencies of making the seat and back one, you would fulfill a need people may not have even realized they had."

The fibreglass armchair curves upwards at its sides to form an armrest. Photo courtesy of Vitra

Integral to the success of the Eames Shell chairs was their ability to be mass-produced, which reflects the duo's goal of "getting the most of the best to the greatest number of people for the least", as Charles Eames said in a LIFE magazine interview in 1950.

A number of variations of the original Eames chairs, which become known as the Plastic Group, enhanced their adaptability and multifunctional qualities and have contributed to their endured success.

Among the first iterations to be launched was the Shell armchair. Also made from moulded fibreglass, the Shell armchair features an ergonomic seat that curves upwards at its sides to form an armrest.

The designers also created a side chair for the collection, which became the first mass-produced plastic chair in the history of furniture.

The chairs were later available in a range of different colours. Photo courtesy of Herman Miller Archives

The original fibreglass seats were designed to be combined with a variety of bases – including a four-legged base made from steel and a rocker – to enable various seating positions.

"The role of the designer is that of a very good, thoughtful host anticipating the needs of his guests," Charles Eames said.

The rocker was used to create the Rocking Armchair Rod (RAR), developed in 1950, which features a swaying seat sat on a network of steel rods connected to birch rockers.

The Rocking Armchair was developed in 1950. Photo courtesy of Vitra

The colour range of the Shell chairs was also expanded from the original three colours of elephant-grey, greige and parchment to up to 30 colours.

Due to its environmental impact, the use of fibreglass for the shell chairs was discontinued first by Herman Miller in 1989 and later by Vitra, which is the partner to the Eames Office for Europe and the Middle East, in 1993.

Both companies began to instead use polypropylene as an alternative for their production.

A Herman Miller x Hay collaboration aims to create "designs for a new generation". Photo courtesy of Herman Miller

Working through the 1950s and 60s, the Eameses moved into other furniture typologies. Among these is the Model 671 ottoman chair, made from rosewood plywood, aluminium and leather upholstery in 1956, which has become another classic.

Their design expertise later expanded to architecture, with the creation of the two-storey Case Study House #8, known as Eames House, which became one of the most influential mid-century modern houses.

Since the passing of Charles in 1978 and Ray in 1988, the shell chairs remain in production through a collaboration between the Eames Office and its product partners Herman Miller and Vitra.

Continued demand and popularity of the Eames chairs have led to their evolution over the years.

"It lasts today, because the Eameses focussed on the need, not a pre-selected solution," Demetrios concluded. "This allowed them and now us at the Eames Office today to thoughtfully improve the chair with more eco-friendly plastics."

"And even now, we have made the chair with post-consumer recycled plastic. All the same chair that they envisioned decades ago."

In January of this year, Vitra launched the Eames Plastic Chair RE range, which sees a shift to recycled plastic for the manufacturing of the chairs' shells.

The chair also lives on in collaborations, such as the recent Herman Miller x Hay range. This encompasses eight Eames chairs that were reimagined by Danish design brand Hay to create "Eames designs for a new generation".

The photography is courtesy of Eames Office unless otherwise stated.

Vesper · October 30

Charlotte Perriand's Bibliothèques countered the "quite elitist" furniture she created for Le Corbusier

https://www.dezeen.com/2024/10/21/charlotte-perriands-bibliotheques-tunisie-mexique/

The latest story in our mid-century modern series explores how designer Charlotte Perriand stepped out of the shadow of her mentor Le Corbusier in the 1950s and created a pioneering modular storage system.

Originally developed on a small budget for even smaller rooms in two new student halls at the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris, the storage system featured a flat-pack wooden frame with modular compartments made of folded aluminium.

The standardised, industrially produced metal components could be lacquered in different colours and assembled in different configurations, creating storage with unprecedented adaptability.

At Steph Simon Gallery in Paris, where the public could purchase the bookcases or Bibliothèques from 1956, Perriand even sold these compartments individually, alongside other modular "hardware" like shelves, trays and sliding panels.

The designer briefly lived in Japan. Photo Jacques Martin/AChP courtesy of Scheidegger & Spiess

These could be used to customise the shelving system – and other furniture like desks and wardrobes – to the needs of the owner.

"Although revolutionary, this concept of kit furniture adaptable by the customer did not achieve the expected success," explained the catalogue of a 2005 exhibition on the designer's work at the Centre Pompidou.

"Undoubtedly too far ahead of her time, Charlotte Perriand did not realize that the public was not yet ready for so much freedom."

It wasn't until the 1990s, when they started showing up on auction blocks in Paris and New York, that the Bibliothèques would become a "cult piece of design furniture", according to Jacques Barsac, who oversees the Archives Charlotte Perriand alongside the designer's daughter.

Today, the original shelving units sell for upwards of €100,000 at auction houses like Christie's and Sotheby's, with some fetching over €500,000.

But when Perriand originally created the shelving in 1952 for the new Jean Sebag-designed Maison de la Tunisie student halls in Paris, the budget covering all the furniture for the rooms including a bed, desk, chair and wardrobe was a mere 150,000 francs.

Perriand adapted the idea for the Maison du Mexique. Image courtesy of Phillips

Crucial to the relative affordability of her storage units were their prefabricated aluminium modules, mass-produced in the metal workshop of architect Jean Prouvé in Nancy.

These metal compartments weren't just decorative but actually supported the shelves and braced the whole furniture piece, reducing the need for more expensive, hand-crafted wooden components.

The Bibliothèques were a marked departure from the tubular steel seating Perriand had created for architect Le Corbusier's studio in the 1920s. These include the iconic 4 chaise longue, previously known as the LC4 Chaise Longue, which proved too expensive to produce in large numbers.

"It was quite elitist because only a very small volume of pieces could be made," said Dominic Lutyens, author of Design Monograph: Perriand. "They were very expensive and so had a very limited audience."

"But there was a point at which Perriand felt that design should be a lot more democratic," he told Dezeen. "And one way in which that could happen for her was through the use of prefabrication."

Fondation Louis Vuitton recreated a Maison de la Tunisie bedroom. Photo by Marc Domage courtesy of the Fondation Louis Vuitton

In light of the post-war housing crisis, space-saving shelving became a primary concern for many mid-century designers. And Perriand was among the most prolific, leading French newspaper Le Monde to dub her the "high priestess of storage".

"Storage is a priority," Perriand said at the time. "It must be resolutely industrialised."

Perriand designed her Bibliothèques to make the most of the compact bedrooms in the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris student halls, measuring only 15 square metres.

"She enumerated what was necessary for a student’s daily life: shoes, clothing, bed covers, files, books, et cetera, whose dimensions she took down so as to be as exact as possible in the storage volumes," Barsac wrote in Charlotte Perriand: Complete Works.

Like many of her pieces, the Bibliothèque Maison de la Tunisie was designed to fulfil multiple functions at the same time, with one of its shelves extending to form a bench seat.

Similarly, the adapted storage unit that Perriand created for Jorge Medellin's Maison du Mexique, which followed a few months later, functioned as a freestanding partition between the bedroom and bathroom.

Accessible from both directions, it provided storage for toiletries on one side and books on the other, either proudly displayed or hidden away behind sliding doors.

"She really pioneered open-plan spaces," Lutyens said. "One of Perriand's room sets for fairs in the 1920s used storage cabinets as room dividers so conceptually, she was quite ahead of her time in this respect."

Perriand created many variations of the Nuage bookcase including one with a built-in radio and bar. Courtesy of AChP via Scheidegger & Spiess

The individual components for the shelving were flat-packed and ultimately assembled on-site by cabinetmaker Jean Chetaillecuts, who also created their wooden structure.

Perriand went on to create myriad variations of the design under the title Nuage, meaning cloud in French, produced and sold by Galerie Steph Simon until 1970.

The name is a nod to the original inspiration behind the design, which she found in the Sukiya-style cabinets of Kyoto's 17th-century imperial villas.

"I noticed some shelves arranged on the walls in the form of a cloud," said the designer, who went to Tokyo in 1940 as war was breaking out in Europe to consult on a Ministry for Commerce programme focused on modernising Japanese crafts for export.

"This is where my cloud-shaped bookshelves came from with aluminium connecting elements, a free form that gives rhythm to space and enhances the objects it supports," she wrote in her autobiography. "Starting from these elements, I could freely create entire walls or reduced combinations, or even furniture."

The Nuage bookcase was originally sold by Galerie Steph Simon. Photo by Marie Clérin via Galerie Downtown-François Laffanour and Scheidegger & Spiess

Like so many works by women in the European modern movement – including Perriand's designs for Le Corbusier – her family says Nuage was later falsely credited in part to Jean Prouvé and was embroiled in a lengthy legal dispute before being reissued by Italian furniture brand Cassina in 2012.

"Charlotte gave her whole life for her copyright to be recognized," her daughter Pernette Perriand told Domus at the time of the launch.

"The money from the Cassina reissues allowed Charlotte to live and write books, to organize exhibits and keep the memory of her work alive, maintaining the archives."

Today, Perriand is considered one of the most influential designers of the 20th century, with several high-profile exhibitions at London's Design Museum and the Fondation Louis Vuitton reappraising her work in recent years.

The show in Paris featured a full-scale recreation of a Maison de la Tunisie bedroom and marked the first time the whole Frank Gehry-designed gallery was given over to the work of a single artist.

Unless otherwise stated, all imagery is from volumes two and three of Charlotte Perriand: Complete Works by Jacques Barsac, courtesy of Scheidegger & Spiess.

Vesper · October 30

Mid-century designers and engineers "envisioned the future" at GM's Tech Center

https://www.dezeen.com/2024/10/30/gms-tech-center-mid-century-saarinen/

The Warren Technical Center in Michigan, the first solo project by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen, showcased the unity of mid-century architecture, design and engineering in the United States.

Completed in 1956 in a small town outside of Detroit, the headquarters comprises a number of administrative, testing and design facilities for General Motors (GM).

Driven by GM head of design Harley Earl, the campus was meant to create an environment for innovation, with every aspect reflecting the company's high standard of design.

The Warren Technical Center is a hub for General Motor's research divisions

"[Earl] created the first automotive design department that would be able to apply aesthetic considerations to a mass-produced, industrial product," GM curator and archivist Natalie Morath told Dezeen.

"This approach to design consideration continued with the Tech Center project and the architecture that would support the organization, from the large scale of the entire campus, down to the smallest detail – like the chairs that designers sat in – and was very much a shared priority of Eero Saarinen," she added.

The centre was built in the context of the post-war economic boom in the country, which coincided with many European architects and mass-produced consumer items exploding in popularity.

Eero Saarinen created a masterplan for the campus in the 1950s

Many of the more than 30 buildings designed by Saarinen were rendered in the International Style, with some aesthetic flourishes such as the silver-coloured Design Dome and Auditorium.

Saarinen was tasked by Earl to design the campus to reflect the future-looking ethos of the company at the time and to facilitate the industrial design and engineering taking place there.

The Design Center and other administrative buildings were built in the International Style

"The campus needed to immediately communicate to visitors the significance of GM as an American company, and it needed to reinforce its vital role in the future," said Morath.

"As incredibly practical as it may be, the campus also must function as a bit of a dream world, where designers and engineers are inspired to envision the future."

Many mid-century furniture designers created pieces for the headquarters

The buildings themselves feature clean lines and industrial detailing on the outside, with colourful spaces and a mix of natural and industrial materials spread throughout the interiors.

Many have sculptural staircases at the centre that highlight the openness of the space.

Saarinen and Earl also collaborated with some of the leading names in mid-century furniture design at the time, such as the Eamses, Harry Bertoia, and Florence Knoll, modulating their popular designs to fit the needs of the campus.

Earl commissioned Danish designer Finn Juhl to design a chair for his personal office.

According to Morath, the campus functions more like a small town than a traditional business centre, with roads and other facilities for the staff.

Saarinen worked with American landscape architect Thomas Dolliver Church to carry out the vision, including plantings as well as reflecting pools.

"It was the type of project where one architect was providing a vision for a really large space, a holistic vision, where all the buildings and all the landscaping – everything would work together," said Morath.

It was a demonstration of mid-century design on a large scale

The scheme included the integration of large-scale works of art, such as a water fountain by American sculptor Alexander Calder, which was recently restored in line with efforts to revamp the historical aspects of the campus alongside new builds.

This integration of functional and artistic elements in aspects of the campus can also be seen in the futuristic, aluminium-clad water tower on the site.

Today, Saarinen's structures are a reminder of the mid-century roots of the campus

The Tech Center was where many of the concept cars and experimentations in post-war automobile technology were designed for GM.

During this time, the design team at GM developed the first three futuristic Firebird concept cars, and the building was often used as a prop to underline GM's focus on modern design.

"Photoshoots were staged on campus, using the Eero Saarinen-designed buildings as backdrops, further driving home the message that the architecture of the campus was as future-oriented as the concept vehicles," said Morath.

Since its construction, the campus has also undergone significant expansions, which, according to Morath, was part of the original brief.

GM still references the mid-century architecture in its new buildings

"Eero Saarinen's original design was a highly functional and highly specialized industrial campus that was intended to meet GM's needs at the time, and accommodate its needs in the future, whatever those might be," she said.

The campus showcased what it meant for mid-century design concepts, such as organic shapes and flexible design, to be applied at a massive scale.

It also incorporated the Bauhaus principles from earlier in the century, combining a future-looking vision with creating human-oriented spaces for work.

"The campus needed to be large, enclosed and private to protect GM's confidential product development activities, and it needed to inspire its residents to focus on innovating for the future," said Morath.

Saarinen would go on to design a number of other iconic structures in the United States that took on the industrial materials of the age.

Many of the mid-century interiors still look very much like they did more than 60 years ago

The Warren Technical Center has since become an icon in the context of American mid-century architecture and design, integrating as it did Saarinen and Earl's grand visions for an integrated industrial facility.

It has expanded over the years to accommodate the growing facilities, and Morath said that the new buildings are always designed with deference to the original scheme.

In 2014, it was designated as a National Historic Landmark in the United States.

The photography is courtesy of General Motors.

Vesper · October 30

Arne Jacobsen "dared to work with modern materials" for Egg chair

https://www.dezeen.com/2024/10/18/arne-jacobsen-egg-chair-fritz-hansen-mid-century-modern/

Continuing our mid-century modernism series, we take a look at the iconic Egg chair, which was designed by Danish architect Arne Jacobsen in 1958 for the former SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen.

Characterised by an oval, upholstered main body supported by a steel insert and a four-pronged aluminium tilt and swivel base, the Egg has been manufactured by Danish furniture brand Fritz Hansen since its inception.

Jacobsen first sculpted the Egg out of hard polyurethane foam instead of shaping it around a traditional wooden or steel frame – an unconventional furniture manufacturing process for its time, positioning the chair as a historic achievement. It was subsequently upholstered in textile and leather variants.

Arne Jacobsen designed the Egg chair in 1958. Top and above: photos courtesy of Fritz Hansen

Jacobsen was the first designer to realise its full potential, according to Arne Jacobsen Design I/S – an organisation founded to preserve the architect's legacy – with Fritz Hansen securing the rights for the foam-based method in the mid-1950s.

The distinctively cocooning chair is considered one of the defining product designs by Jacobsen, who practised as an architect and designer until he died in 1971.

The architect conceived the original Egg in his garage, experimenting with wire, plaster and clay to devise the chair's recognisable scooped shape. It is often said that Jacobsen's inspiration was the 1948 Womb chair, designed by his contemporary, architect Eero Saarinen.

It was created for Copenhagen's former SAS Royal Hotel. Photo courtesy of Fritz Hansen

Christian Andresen, design director at Fritz Hansen, reflected on the significance of the Egg, which highlights a post-war trend in the international design scene when European and American architects began to favour organic shapes crafted from novel materials.

"Jacobsen dared to work with modern materials and was curious about technology and industrial manufacturing, unlike some of his peers who were still focussed on the traditional way of making furniture," he told Dezeen.

"A key characteristic of Jacobsen was his ability to convert his artistic belief in furniture into all of his designs," added the design director.

Jacobsen designed every component of the hotel. Photo courtesy of Radisson Collection Royal Hotel

Born in Copenhagen in 1902, Jacobsen is remembered as a pioneer of Danish modernism, with a particular focus on projects that combined his architecture and design.

Among these is Copenhagen's SAS Royal Hotel – today, the recently listed Radisson Royal Collection Hotel – constructed as a hotel-cum-airport terminal for Scandinavian Airlines in 1960. Jacobsen meticulously designed every component of the building, from its rectilinear aluminium and glass facade to the restaurant's stainless steel cutlery and porcelain blue ashtrays.

One of these designs was the Egg, first created for the hotel lobby in 1958 alongside its sister chair the Swan. The generous curves of the furniture were designed in direct contrast to the hotel's strict geometric architecture.

The Egg is known for its enveloping body. Photo courtesy of Radisson Collection Royal Hotel

"Jacobsen had a clear and uncompromising style when designing architecture and a very emotional and organic approach to interiors and the furniture in his projects," considered Andresen. "This was probably uncommon in the 1940s and 50s, making him unique."

"The Egg created an intimate, almost enclosed space, while simultaneously allowing its occupants to swivel around and follow the buzz of the hotel reception," he added.

"Jacobsen often put two to three chairs in a circle to create a bouquet of chairs in an often rigid and structured space, creating an oasis in the room."

It has been made of foam since its inception. Photo courtesy of Fritz Hansen

Dominic Bradbury, author of the 2022 book Mid-Century Modern Furniture, agrees. "The Egg famously provides an enveloping and secure space within a space," he wrote.

In 1958, both the Egg and the Swan were met with positive reviews, highlighting the instant popularity of Jacobsen's modern design approach.

"There was a major do at Fritz Hansen's furniture factory yesterday – almost like a catwalk show with spotlights, flash photography and VIP guests," reported Danish newspaper Politiken shortly after the furniture launched.

The hotel's room 606 has been preserved with its original interiors. Photo courtesy of Radisson Collection Royal Hotel

While the interior of the Radisson Royal Collection Hotel was redesigned, a singular room – number 606 – has been preserved with its original interiors, showcasing the Egg as Jacobsen first intended.

Since its creation, the Egg has remained a design classic, not only in luxury environments. The chair's more unusual settings have ranged from the diary room of the first UK series of reality TV show Big Brother in 2000 to European branches of fast food chain McDonald's.

Despite its consistent appearance, the Egg's manufacturing process has undergone four main changes over the years, and "loads of small constructive updates", said Andresen.

"We are constantly looking for new ways of fine-tuning," he explained.

In the 1960s, Fritz Hansen switched from hard to moulded foam and reinforced the chair with fibreglass. However, fibreglass was phased out in the 1980s, when Fritz Hansen switched to a different type of foam, according to the design director.

"Fibreglass is not very sustainable because it creates a composite construction that cannot be recycled," considered Andresen. "Today, we manufacture the chair in a unique construction of moulded hard and soft foam surrounding the steel inner structure."

The Egg has "an iconic sculptural shape". Photo courtesy of Fritz Hansen

"This ensures a very high level of durability and firm stability. The chair also now has no glue or composites, enabling disassembly and recycling," he added.

Despite these shifts in manufacturing, the Egg has retained its foam body, steel insert and upholstery since 1958.

"We still sew the textile and leather variants by hand so the final finishing has not changed since the beginning," added Andresen. "This also means that the chair can be reupholstered if the surface gets damaged or worn out."

"The Egg chair was, and still is, an iconic sculptural shape and a unique design," concluded the design director. "I think the organic, simple and elegant shape is like a sculpture in a room. It can stand by itself and create a space around it, appearing beautiful from all sides."

The photography is courtesy of Fritz Hansen unless stated otherwise.

Vesper · October 30

THE MENSWEAR COLLAB

Sunspel X Nigel Cabourn

Sunspel has teamed up with renowned British designer Nigel Cabourn for a second time. The collection is inspired by brands’ rich archives and consists of a range of pieces in heritage fabrics. Ventile, a waterproof fabric invented in the 1930s, is used for the mesh-lined jacket which reimagines a 1981 army sports jacket from Cabourn’s archive. There’s a Balmacaan wool-cashmere coat crafted from British-woven wool, plus a wide-neck jumper made from soft merino wool. The capsule is completed by a long-sleeve striped roll-neck and t-shirt, with everything made in Sunspel’s Long Eaton factory.

Visit Sunspel.com

Vesper · October 30

Olive Centre Stripe Wool Knitted Rugby Shirt

https://www.drakes.com/products/olive-centre-stripe-wool-knitted-rugby-shirt

Vesper · October 31

100 Thieves x adidas Palos Hills 'Red'

https://100thieves.com/products/adidas-originals-palos-hills-shoe-red

2 November 2024

Style Code: JI4306

Vesper · October 31

Clòimh: the new Scottish wool brand that sold out in ten hours

Hollie Mercedes Peters, the influencer who has 200,000 followers and has featured in Vogue, on her new sustainable knitwear label

https://www.thetimes.com/uk/scotland/article/fashion-influencer-builds-her-brand-on-back-of-social-media-fame-j3ctp5vms

This hat by Hollie Mercedes Peters and other examples of her clothing are sourced and made in Scotland but draw on her time in the Netherlands

CLOIMH

It is hard to imagine a connection between the banks of Loch Leven and the canal-lined streets of Amsterdam. But Clòimh, the brainchild of Hollie Mercedes Peters, an influencer turned fashion entrepreneur, has created just that.

The new knitwear label is a merger between Peters’ rich Scottish heritage and a modern aesthetic synonymous with the Dutch city.

Clòimh — which means wool in Gaelic — launched this month after Peters and her co-founder spent two years building the brand.

Long scarves are a signature piece in Clòimh’s collections

CLOIMH

Twelve items from their inaugural winter collection, called Essence of Scotland, sold out within ten hours. Their red collection and the Aran vest proved particularly popular.

The wool is sourced from Todd & Duncan, a company with 150 years of expertise that is based at the Lochleven mill in Kinross, central Scotland. The mill uses the soft local water to open up the cashmere fibres, and the yarn is spun on modern mules. It claims to be the only Scottish spinner that offers cashmere yarn to fashion houses and manufacturers worldwide.

Grounding the brand even further in Scotland, Peters’ products are made in Irvine, North Ayrshire. “It’s a lot easier to manufacture for a lower price when you leave the UK and Europe but this would not be true to the values of our brand,” she says.

The Scottish wool and textiles industry has been in decline since the 1950s, largely due to the rise of fast fashion and synthetic fibres. Estimates suggest that about 60 per cent of fast fashion items are produced with plastic-based fabrics.

Wool prices hit an all-time low in 2021, with sheep farmers receiving between 5p and £3 per kilo.

Clòimh aims to honour Scotland’s textile history by offering high-quality, sustainable products.

Social media has been important in Peters’ journey as an influencer and in creating Clòimh. “My platform motivated me and made me realise that my dreams of having a fashion brand could come to life,” she says.

After a four-year stint at Tommy Hilfiger in Amsterdam, after a degree in product design at Glasgow Caledonian University, she committed to influencing full-time in 2021 and her platform gained huge popularity. She has more than 200,000 followers, has featured in Vogue magazine and has secured partnerships with global brands including Ganni, Pandora and Burberry.

Peters’ own style — a mix of colour, oversized shapes, and classic timeless pieces — is reflected in Clòimh’s premium wool accessories, including hats, scarves, and gloves.

Prices start from £59, which Peters says reflects the quality of the materials and how the clothes are made. Each item in the first collection is also made from a mono-material, making it a more sustainable choice.

Peters and her co-founder, who wishes to remain anonymous, plan to expand Clòimh’s offerings to include a summer collection with “skinny scarves”. There will also be an entry into the homeware market.

Vesper · November 2

Halloween Nike Dunk Low and Air Force 1

https://www.sneakerfreaker.com/releases/nike-dunk-low-air-force-1-halloween-price-buy-release-date/

Vesper · November 2

Ruh-Roh! Scooby-Doo Teams up with the PUMA MB.04

https://www.sneakerfreaker.com/performance/releases/scooby-doo-puma-mb-04-310776-01-price-buy-release-date

It’s spooky season and there’s plenty of spine-chilling sneakers for the occasion in 2024. From the Kobe 5 Protro ‘X-Ray’ to the Air Jordan 1 ‘Black Cat’, it’s been a monstrously good year for ghoulish grails. LaMelo Ball is also joining the festivities – not surprising given that the Charlotte Hornet with the fiendish handles boasts some of the most creative colourways in the business. We’ve already glimpsed the 'Jack-o'-Lantern' MB.03 ‘Halloween’, and now it looks like we’re getting a belated Halloween edition of the MB.04 slated for November.

A collaboration with the beloved Scooby Doo franchise, the MB.04 pays homage to the classic mystery-solving cartoon with a pastel palette reminiscent of the Mystery Machine van. 1960s style flower power imbues the uppers with hippy energy, while Scooby-Doo, the venerated Great Dane himself, dribbles a basketball over on the heels. In terms of the engine, the MB.04 utilises PUMA NITRO – the Big Cat's advanced nitrogen-injected foam.

As part of the collection, PUMA are also launching a collection of shorts, tees and hoodies. The entire Scooby-Doo x PUMA collection is scheduled to land on November 27. For more spooky sneakers, make sure to check out the Nike SB Dunk collection that still haunts our dreams!

Vesper · November 5

LLDS Architects tops self-designed home in Melbourne with curved plywood roof

https://www.dezeen.com/2024/11/04/northcote-house-llds-architects-melbourne/

A curved roof and textured concrete walls characterise Northcote House in Melbourne, designed by local studio LLDS Architects for its founder partners.

Slotted into the site of a former car park measuring 4.6 metres in width and 22 metres in length, the project by LLDS Architects aims to showcase how narrow urban plots can be developed into compact houses.

"At an urban level, we see the project as a renewed terrace typology that can be used to infill underdeveloped land in inner city Melbourne," said studio founders Paul Loh and David Leggett.

"The key design goal is to create a house that supports compact, urban living while still addressing the laneway characteristic," they told Dezeen.

Computer numerically controlled (CNC) manufacturing and robotics were used to create bespoke elements in Northcote House, including the irregularly shaped plywood roof structure, bent trellis facade and internal concrete wall surfaces.

Over 70 per cent of the bespoke features were manufactured by LLDS Architects' sister company, Power to Make, which is located just five kilometres from the site.

"In Northcote House, we wanted to experiment with standard construction techniques using advanced digital fabrication techniques to create a more sustainable construction practice," said Loh and Leggett.

"The outcomes are familiar and yet highly unusual textures and finishes."

An external staircase at the front of Northcote House leads to a raised entrance area, sheltered by the plywood roof that curves between two concrete-block boundary walls.

Glazed doors lead to an open-plan kitchen and dining room on the upper floor, where the arched roof structure is left exposed.

A sculptural curved plywood staircase in the middle of Northcote House descends to the lower floor. Tucked under the stairs is a snug, which creates separation between two bedrooms at either end of the home.

Dark green velvet curtains are used in place of doors in the bedrooms to allow the owner's dog to move more freely.

Interior walls are finished with textured concrete, designed to improve the home's thermal and acoustic performance. The concrete formwork liner, which was used to make its textured surface, was reused as insulation in the roof.

"We used CNC and robotic technologies in this house to create the highly textured concrete internal wall that provides thermal mass and improves the dining room's acoustics by reducing the flutter echo effect caused by the parallel boundary walls," Loh and Leggett explained.

Steel tubes shroud the rear facade and form a balustrade at the front of the home, which doubles as a trellis for climbing plants. The tubes are bent at different angles, creating a three-dimensional effect.

"The 385 steel tubes forming the front and rear facade are hand-bent using augmented reality and form a giant trellis to support vertical greenery and articulate the house's privacy," said Loh and Leggett.

Loh and Leggett added outdoor spaces to the home in the form of a rear courtyard and roof terrace. Next to the terrace is a brown roof, designed to encourage biodiversity on the former brownfield site.

"We wanted to introduce more greenery to the gritty laneway to better support the local ecology," said Loh and Leggett. "The brown roof reduces the urban heat island effect and provides new space to support local ecology in an urban context."

Loh and Legget founded LLDS Architects in Melbourne in 2012. Their self-designed home is among the shortlisted projects in the House (urban) category of this year's Dezeen Awards.

Other houses recently completed in Melbourne include a multi-generational home wrapped in pale bricks and a renovated 1970s bungalow where the architects aimed to preserve the original character.

Vesper · November 5

Shay Cleary Architects completes "first low-rise, high-density residential development in Ireland"

https://www.dezeen.com/2024/11/03/shay-cleary-architects-residences-sandford-lodge-ireland/

Architecture studio Shay Cleary Architects has completed a residential complex comprising a series of low-rise apartments and duplexes organised around a triangular courtyard in Dublin.

Drawing on its research into sustainable urban housing typologies, The Residences at Sanford Lodge development by Shay Cleary Architects forms the "first completed low-rise, high-density residential development in Ireland", according to the studio.

The project has also been shortlisted in the housing category for this year's Dezeen Awards.

"Building upon our long term research projects into high-quality, low-rise, high-density residential design, the scheme provides high amenity residential units of generous size, with ample private open terraces and gardens and superb access to sunlight and daylight with double aspect units throughout," studio director John Dobbin told Dezeen.

"This form of housing provides densities comparable to apartment development, but does so through own-door homes, garden courtyards, and generous terraces, deliverable in a more economical, viable format."

The 36 residences are arranged into two rows of terraces either side of the central courtyard – with each unit composed of two one-bedroom ground floor apartments topped with a two-bedroom duplex.

Built from brick to match the neighbouring buildings, each of the units are defined by blocky forms with structural cutouts designed to host external terraces.

At ground level, paved walkways provide circulation across the site. Fronting each of the units are two doors framed with bronze aluminium that provide access to the ground-floor apartments.

Inside, the apartments are fronted with bedroom spaces where openings overlook the shared courtyard, while its rear hosts an open-plan living, kitchen and dining room where sliding doors lead out to a private garden.

An external staircase accessed from the building front provides a route up to the first-floor duplex, where an outdoor terrace serves as an entrance point to the home.

Sliding doors wrap around the terrace and open up to the open-plan kitchen and dining room and adjacent living space.

Both an external staircase leading up from the first-floor terrace and an internal staircase provide access to the home's upper floor, where two en-suite bedrooms share access to an upper-level terrace.

Simple white walls and wooden flooring are repeated throughout the apartments.

As well as integrating its research into sustainable low-rise housing typologies into the design, Shay Cleary Architects also included low-energy strategies that enable a minimum of 20 per cent of the building's primary energy to be delivered by renewable energy sources.

"We have embedded sustainability in the concept, as this form of housing provides densities comparable to apartment development, but does so through the medium of house building, resulting in better land usage, less energy and carbon-intensive construction methods, and is deliverable in a more economical, sustainable format," Dobbin said.

Shay Cleary Architects is an architecture studio established in 1987, with offices in London and Dublin.

Other housing developments recently featured on Dezeen include a residential complex that combines three housing typologies in Leuven, Belgium, and a series of apartment buildings in London that draw on Scandinavian principles.

Edited November 5 by Vesper

Vesper · November 5

First Drive: The 2024 Ferrari 296 GTS Is One of the Most Spectacular Cars I’ve Ever Driven

Rainy days in SoCal aren't enough to slow down the Ferrari 296 GTS, a simply stunning supercar with mind-bending performance.

https://www.mensjournal.com/gear/first-drive-ferrari-296-gts

Southern California might just be the best possible place to own a Ferrari, packed full of beautiful people enjoying clement weather (the opposite of inclement, look it up), and incredible driving roads—provided you know where to go to avoid rush-hour traffic. But this past winter, torrential downpours hit SoCal with frightening regularity, a serious state of affairs especially for the automotive enthusiasts who lost a number of the greatest canyon thoroughfares to mudslides.

A storm hit almost every weekend for months straight, including my window of four days to enjoy a loaner Ferrari 296 GTS. And yet, even if I only laid the GTS’s roof back for about a half-hour total, the weather actually provided quite a revelation: This plug-in-hybrid supercar, one of the quickest rear-wheel-drive vehicles out there, is still a blast (and easy!) to drive in the rain.

The GTS adds a retractable hardtop to the 296 GTB chassis that debuted late in 2022. Yet, if anything, the Spider version only enhances this ‘Rarri’s incredible design, which purposefully hearkens back to the original Dino of the 1960s and ’70s. That’s because, technically speaking, the 296 is the first series production Ferrari ever to employ a V6 (just don’t ask old Enzo’s son Dino—who designed the eponymous engine that would power the original road-going Dino—that his father then refused to sell wearing the badge of the prancing pony).

A lowly V6, skeptical minds might rightfully wonder, in a Ferrari? Surely not. And yet, in this case, Ferrari lived up to the surname by combining a potent 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged V6 with an electric motor that combine to produce a gobsmacking 819 horsepower, all of which routes to the rear wheels only. By eschewing the de rigueur AWD layout that so many other manufacturers deem absolutely necessary to responsibly sell such eminently powerful supercars to the masses, Ferrari might well have ruined the potential for safe rainy day drives in the 296, right?

Guess again. Despite so much power, and a 0-60 time tested as low as 2.3 seconds, the 296 handles foul weather with a steadiness that belies the stats on paper. And the GTS adds only 70 kilograms to the GTB’s overall curb weight, a rather large number now, at just under 3,400 pounds—but a number that real-world performance renders largely irrelevant.

In contrast, the 1971 Dino that I drove a couple of years ago would have weighed nearly 1,000 pounds less. Of course, the 2.0-liter quad-cam Dino engine mounted amidships also pumped out far fewer horsepower—only 192 ponies when new. Keep in mind that, for the time, a narrow-angle V6 in such a lightweight sports car with the nimble dynamics of a mid-engine chassis proved more than capable of living up to the Ferrari name—even if Enzo disagreed.

Lighter than light, moderately quick even by today’s standards, and just absolutely teensy, that Dino demanded my utmost attention on a dreamy (sunny) afternoon drive—and not just because it shared an engine with my favorite car of all time, the Lancia Stratos. But with 20/20 hindsight from the modern era, I can also acknowledge the Dino’s terrible ergonomics, the gated shifter that clunked around aimlessly, and the brakes that struggled to slow the car down.

Impressive Ferrari Tech in a Cockpit Where Less Is More

The interior of the Ferrari 296 GTS is a leather-filled, serene space with seats that both bolster and snug the driver and passenger into place.

Michael Teo Van Runkle

The 296 GTS, meanwhile, sits at the top of the class of supercars that I’ve driven. Among all the Lambos, Aston Martins, Maseratis, and Porsches, the 296 GTS simply strives to achieve a higher concept than the rest. Only a Bugatti Chiron Super Sport might compare—but that’s not quite fair, given that even this half-million-dollar Ferrari costs 1/10th as much.

Slipping into the 296’s cockpit reveals a level of detail that other supercars simply lack. Smooth and serene, leather flows across the dash and all the way down to the Alcantara footwells. The seats both bolster and snug driver and passenger into place, with perfect lumbar support and enough fore-aft adjustability to suit body types up to around 6’4” with ease. On the steering wheel, small haptic surfaces control various drive modes and settings.

Only after a few minutes fiddling with buttons and dials do I realize why the 296 interior looks so much better—other than the obvious lack of piano-black plastics infecting the entire automotive industry these days. There’s no center console! Of course, rear-wheel drive mated to a mid-mounted engine means no transmission tunnel, either—but, more importantly, no massive touchscreen dominates the user experience.

Instead, the gauge cluster serves as infotainment, navigation, and both the ICE and EV powertrain readouts—all controlled by the F1-inspired steering wheel complete with a “Manettino” dial for drive modes. At first, I choose Wet in deference to the rain, but throttle response noticeably dials back—and, hey, that’s no fun in a Ferrari. Time to play with Sport mode on slippery surfaces. Pushing in on the Manettino dial also allows for the selection of softer damper settings, which helps on the Pacific Coast Highway as I head out to find some canyons ASAP.

The 296 GTS Makes Going Fast Almost Too Easy

Great cars make 90 mph feel like 60. The Ferrari 296 GTS makes 120 feel like 60.

Michael Teo Van Runkle

With miserable weather on the forecast, I try to beat the storms and blast up the 405 freeway toward Santa Clarita instead. Raindrops only get bigger and heavier as the 296 eats up miles comfortably. I’m keeping an eye on the hybrid system’s charging status, curious how much the internal-combustion engine can top up the battery. The figure seems to hover around eight miles or so, even as I pick up the pace when traffic starts to clear out.

The storm seemingly follows my route up into the curves of Bouquet Canyon. At no point do the rear tires squiggle or squirm out on me. I feel planted, almost not even needing windshield wipers, thanks to the roofline’s low rake. And the steering, on display from the first few blocks, simply boggles my mind. It must be electrically assisted, in order to function in full-EV mode, but I would deny it thrice if I didn’t know better. Even firming up the shock dampers still allows for hints of body roll that communicate the perfect amount of weight transfer, as the nose whips flawlessly through razor-sharp corners, again and again. All the typical aphorisms for superb handling fail to do the 296 justice. Knowing better, I still struggle to believe that the hybrid system contributes to that curb weight of 3,395 pounds.

The gauge cluster in the Ferrari 296 GTS serves as infotainment, navigation, and both the ICE and EV powertrain readouts, all controlled by the F1-inspired steering wheel.

Despite the confidence that such stellar chassis tuning and Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires allow, I try to keep my wits about me and keep my speeds at least in a reasonable (read: low-triple-digit) range. That's no small task. Two days later, I finally get lucky with about 45 minutes of clear, dry roads in Topanga Canyon. Time to dial up Race mode.

All of a sudden, nannies at bay, I can truly crank out every last bit of oomph from the combined hybrid powertrain. The Michelins, which served so well in the cold and wet, now heat up quickly and start to actually perform up to, and past, the limits of traction. I even put the top back to allow in a whole new soundtrack as accompaniment.

Similar to Maserati with the MC20, Ferrari appears to have toned down the 296’s exhaust system to ramp up the auditory experience of forced induction. Intake wails and wastegate whooshes satisfy far better than just a barking or tremulous exhaust note—at least, in my humble opinion. Ripping right up to the 8,500 rpm redline before banging to the next gear on the carbon-fiber paddles, I frequently chirp the rear tires in a straight line before hammering the prodigious brakes into the next corner.

Then I realize how far beyond the pale the 296’s performance brings us. The greatest cars make 90 miles an hour feel like 60. This beast makes 120 feel like 60. I swear, I can even begin to feel the first sensation of aero providing downforce as I once more start to spy rainclouds looming to spoil my fun. At least I got a good, albeit brief, clue as to how rapaciously the 296 GTS eats up roadway.

The Electric Drivetrain Won't Get You Far

The real-world range of the hybrid Ferrari 296 GTS on battery power only is a mere handful of miles.

Michael Teo Van Runkle

On the drive home, spitting and splattering raindrops imitating hail, I decide to try out the full EV mode for range. Though Ferrari claims up to 15 miles of all-electric range, and the onboard computer reads eight miles, even normal driving in traffic below 50 miles per hour consumes electrons at an alarming rate. Soon enough, I pop back into hybrid mode so the internal-combustion engine can contribute to battery charging.

The 296’s all-electric mode probably serves best at keeping the neighbors happy on cold mornings—or, as Ferrari claims, to satisfy urban Europe’s zero-emission driving zones. But the real-world range of the 7.5-kWh battery probably comes in more accurately at a mere handful of miles, if that. For context, a plug-in Prius Prime uses a 13.8-kWh battery to run a legit 44 miles of range. We’re not in Prius land here, obviously, but the techy side of the 296 probably leaves the most to be desired.

All the buttons on the steering wheel, rather than a center touchscreen, take awhile decipher. No joke, I needed the full four days to figure out how to turn up the sound system’s volume other than via the passenger’s small touchscreen. And no car has ever beeped at me more, for leaving my seatbelt unbuckled or the front axle lift system activated or the convertible top open or, at times, for reasons known only to Ferrari engineers.

Final Verdict: 2024 Ferrari 296 GTS

The Ferrari 296 GTS is one of the most spectacular cars we’ve ever driven—even in the rain.

Especially in GTS form, the 296 sets a high conceptual bar—but such is the challenge that Ferrari clearly and purposefully sets for itself. At $500,538 as tested, buyers will no doubt appreciate every little detail that makes driving a Ferrari special, from the unbelievable performance to eminently satisfying turn signal buttons and, with zero hyperbole, the single greatest car key ever made.

I’m not a convertible guy, but I give back the 296 GTS with zero doubt that I’m bidding adieu to one of the most spectacular cars I’ve ever driven—or will ever drive—one that far surpasses my abilities as a responsible driver on public roads. And yet, as a weekend in the wet proved beyond a doubt, this plug-in hybrid supercar is still accessible enough for anyone to just get in and drive.

Specs: 2024 Ferrari 296 GTS

Engine: Twin-turbocharged and intercooled 3.0L DOHC 24-valve V-6/AC motor with 4.9-kWh lithium-ion battery pack
Horsepower/Torque: 819 hp/546 lb-ft
0-60: 2.4 seconds
Top Speed: 205 mph
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
MPG: 16 city / 21 highway
Price: From $372,000

Vesper · November 7

Concepts x ASICS GEL-KAYANO 14 'Out of Office'

https://cncpts.com/blogs/news/introducing-cncpts-x-asics-gel-kayano-ooo

CNCPTS and Asics introduce the Gel-Kayano 14 OOO, our interpretation of what it it means to recharge, both mentally and creatively.

The colorway inspires the idea of a tropical vacation and a getaway from the routine of daily life. Playing off the common feeling of wanting to make an escape from your day job and take a moment to be out in nature our campaign takes a playful approach to these idea blending the the two juxtaposing scenes. Playing with the concept of surrealism, we’ve created a world where escaping from reality is as easy as envisioning a new place to be.

The CNCPTS x ASICS Gel-Kayano 14 is crafted with textured leather overlays to add depth and a premium finish. The 2000s inspired design language features GEL technology cushioning to give excellent shock absorption, while a TRUSSTIC support system provides stability. Reinterpreting the shoe's performance capabilities with updated materials and componentry, this version became the first iteration in the sneaker's lineage to be designed by someone other than Toshikazu Kayano.

The CNCPTS x Asics Gel Kayano 14 ‘OOO’ releases 11 AM EST Friday, November 8th in-store via drawing pickup, and for purchase online at https://cncpts.com/.

Vesper · November 9

ASICS | HAL STUDIOS® GEL-KAYANO™ 20 "BONE"

Documented by Kev Bouquet
Design / Direction by John Bouquet

https://www.halstudios.net/asics-gel-kayano-20-bone-by-hal-studios

Vesper · November 9

Lil Yachty x Nike Air Force 1 'Concrete Boys'

https://www.sneakerfreaker.com/news/lil-yachty-nike-air-force-1-price-buy-release-date/

Lil Yachty took to SNKRS live to give fans an in-hand look at the Concrete Boys x Nike Air Force 1 Low. The American rapper wore tumble leather bee keeper-like gloves while handling the silhouette, given its rarity and OG PE leather upper. Elsewhere, Yachty also showcased the 'Terror Squad' AF-1 from Fat Joe, the Diamond Supply x Coca Cola 'Coke White' AF-1, and Drake's chromed-out AF-1 Highs.

The Concrete Boys x Nike Air Force 1 Low are currently a Friends and Family release. Stay tuned while we wait for details about a public drop.

Vesper · November 9

You Can’t Miss the Reunion of adidas SPZL and C.P. Company

https://www.sneakerfreaker.com/releases/adidas-spzl-cp-company-collection-price-buy-release-date/

Back in 2021, the Gary Aspden-led adidas SPZL line helped the legendary tech brand C.P. Company celebrate their 50th anniversary, crafting the Italia CP SPZL. Three years later and the roles have reversed, with the Italians helping the Germans celebrate 10 epic years of SPZL.

Usually a ten year anniversary gift is tin or aluminium, but who doesn’t love a six-shoe collection with a sprinkling of apparel that’s modelled on GOATs like Goldie and Stephen Graham?

Kicking off the collection is the CP Wimberly SPZL, which pulls its inspiration from a Canadian version of the Universal, a rare perforated gem. Two different colourways and material builds have been created for the Wimberly and are inspired by the 80s. Next up is the CP Helvellyn SPZL, which has been beefed up for winter and hosts gunmetal D-ring eyelets. The CP SL83 SPZL is one of the more approachable models in the catalogue, pulling design details from its SL82 predecessor with an added t-toe construction. Rounding out the footwear are two legends of the SPZL line – the CP Manchester SPZL and CP Italia SPZL.

The C.P. Company x adidas SPZL line will launch on November 12 at select stockists and through Confirmed.