Design Considered #21 - The Edit
Masterful Finnish design, a tasteful Danish Queen and a global round-up of good industry news.
#01 - Opening Thought
Something of a Scandinavian special to kick off Design Considered’s newest newsletter, starting with the masterful renovation of Finlandia Hall in Helsinki. The sprawling 1971 events venue by modernist maestro Alvar Aalto underwent an overhaul via Architects NRT (the same local talent behind the city’s sensitive Olympic Stadium refurb and extension in 2020).
Stepping into Finlandia Hall’s key public spaces—bistro, café, and shop—the interior architecture was reimagined by Helsinki firm Fyra, known for some of the city’s cosiest and cleverest retail and hospitality spaces (Bouchon Carêm is particularly worth a visit).
Fyra’s design subtly embraces Aalto’s principles, seamlessly integrating new elements like custom-made furnishings with restored features such as original lighting. Warm oak and Carrara marble nod to Aalto’s fondness for natural, high-quality materials. The result is a renovation that feels entirely in tune with Aalto’s design ethos—considered, contextually appropriate, and true to what the master himself envisioned.
#02 - For Your Consideration
1. WHAT TO BUY
A big beauty of a tome landed with a thud on my desk last week, a title that shows there’s plenty of longevity in the printed page, particularly pages inspiring an affluent and influential audience. Maison Ë’s ‘Founders Issue’ is available to buy online - in print. It’s a handsomely designed high-end title, with a discerning approach to storytelling. I was fortunate to contribute some design articles, speaking to industry legends like Fabrizio Casiraghi and Thommy Bindefeld, Creative Director of Svenskt Tenn.
2. WHAT TO READ
Canary Wharf is a close as you get to Singapore in the UK, and unlike many Londoners - who say it’s devoid of charm - I love the place. For me, safety, cleanliness, a good underground mall and public spaces (and many excellent Asian restaurants) make it easy to see past its lack of old-world allure. Sadly though, this smart piece of 1990s urbanism has been hobbled since office workers deserted its myriad towers during the pandemic and haven’t all returned. Covered in the Financial Times and the Guardian, Citigroup’s £1bn revamp of its Canary Wharf tower signals a sense of confidence from big corporates in improving design to bring back staff to physical workplaces.
3. WHAT TO SEE
Christmas lights have come down, but Hamburg’s Hindenburghaus (pictured) remains handsomely lit until January 31, 2025 via Illuminating Spaces, a collaboration between Danish lighting brand Louis Poulsen and The Embassies. Louis Poulsen, known for classics by designers like Poul Henningsen and Verner Panton, has worked with the Swiss concept hospitality brand to light up the building’s lovely historic windows via 70 of Panton’s Panthella 320 lamps. The project precedes The Embassies’ move into the 1909 building, a former grand hotel. The organisation is rethinking ‘retirement’ living with properties across the globe that offer tasteful mixed-use spaces and well-appointed apartments for people to age gracefully within.
#03 - Design Selection
Royalty and good design rarely mix. King Charles famously decried modernism, once describing a proposed extension to London’s National Gallery as “a monstrous carbuncle on the face of a much-loved and elegant friend” (to be fair that particular design was pretty ugly). But trust the Danes to have a consistently tasteful monarch - 84-year-old Queen Margrethe II, whose illustrations grace the Anniversary Mug from Royal Copenhagen. The limited edition piece was launched this month to celebrate the brand’s 250th anniversary, and is tastefully decorated with her Majesty’s freehand drawings of two charming fish. Alongside celebratory product launches, the home wares brand is marking a quarter millennium of craft via beautiful storytelling, which makes fine use of the brand’s archive, follow along here.