A humorous tribute to Matteo Thun, one of Italy’s most distinguished designers and architects, and his work. In the summer of 2009, Swiss artist Walter Pfeiffer made an extensive trip from Zurich to the Italian island of Capri, taking shots of some fifty of Thun’s design objects en route. Yet, rather than doing a mere documentation of these items, Pfeiffer created highly lively “tableaux vivants.” The artist was accompanied on his journey by Thun’s two then teenage sons, who thus form the main visual narrative of the book and appear in many pictures together with their father’s creations. A brief introduction by Matteo Thun’s wife Susanne and an index of the depicted design gems round out this extraordinary and entertaining visual travelogue. Buy

How to Design a Post-Fossil World with the Sun?⁠ ⁠ Polluting energy systems based on finite fossil resources are destroying our planet and threatening its inhabitants. We all know that by now. And at the same time, there is this infinite (at least in human terms) energy of the sun pouring down on us. ⁠ ⁠ This book is about what we know about solar energy, what we can already do and what we hope to be able to do in the near future. And so it is divided into exactly these three parts: the first explains how we have designed with the sun in the past, providing a visual timeline of the historical development of solar power. The second part looks at the present: Where are we now and what is solar design? It provides examples of innovative solar design in architecture, fashion, mobility and product design. Finally, the last part looks to the future and asks how we can ensure that solar energy does not become the asbestos of the 21st century.⁠ Buy

The Dictionary of Color Combinations is probably one of the most beautiful books we ever held in our hands! After it has been sold out for a year, we finally have it back in stock and are mesmerized as before.⁠..⁠ ⁠ The pocket size jewel offers 348 incredible color combinations by Japanese painter Sanzo Wada. The compositions of two, three, and four tones could not be more intriguing and with its index registering the CMYK code of every shade used it is an indispensable tool for every designer.⁠ Buy

The world today faces overwhelming environmental and social problems. To combat, change and overcome these challenges, collective action is necessary and inevitable. This has led to new forms of collective art and design practices: Artists collaborate with non-artists, make products for their local environment and take on multiple identities such as researcher, community activist, computer hacker or business consultant.⁠ ⁠ The book "Making Matters" by the fantastic publisher Onomatopee looks at art practices on all continents where the boundaries between art, design, research and activism are blurring or dissolving. ⁠ Buy

Plates like paintings, teapots in primitive style and sculptures with abstract forms and bold colours that defy any purpose or function - the ceramic works of Shun Kadohashi seem to combine prehistoric forms with abstract modernist painting. His works are the first to be featured in the Unearth book series, which explores the practice and processes of artists working with ceramics.⁠⁠ Buy

Photographer Fien Muller and sculptor Hannes Van Severen only made their debut as a design duo in 2011. But already their first collection of furniture met with a great response. It was the simple materials and an incredible sense for shapes and colour combinations that made them stand out and still do today.⁠ ⁠ Over the last decade they created an influential body of work – elementary forms shape functional sculptures that grow into vibrant spaces. With both Fien Muller and Hannes Van Severen being artists, it’s- natural that their collections sit somewhere between design and art. This book unveils the origins, the complexity, and the references embedded in the DNA of Muller Van Severen’s work.⁠ Buy

Charlotte Perriand was one of the great designers of the twentieth century. But she has been pushed into the shadows of iconic male designers because, well, let's face it, she's a woman. The cover of this publication is one of the most poignant testaments to that. Charlotte Perriand designed the famous chaise longue LC4 with Le Corbusier, but instead of being known as the creator of this design classic, she was for a long time just an ornament. Passively placed on it for a photo.⁠ ⁠ However, this publication sets things straight and highlights the impact she has had on the field of design. But Perriand was even more than a furniture designer of timeless classics. For her, architecture and furniture had to be considered in union to create the modern interior. She called her holistic approach "the art of living". This extensive and beautifully illustrated book traces her long career from the 1920s to the end of the century. It captures a modernist pioneer and hugely influential designer but also reveals Perriand the person: dynamic, sporting, socially minded and collaborative.⁠ Buy

Enjoy a hint of colour and fluidity thanks to the collection of drawings by renowned designer Ronan Bouroullec! Each publication of his drawings shows transformations in style and concentration of details while remaining all very unique Ronan Bouroullec.⁠ Ronan Bouroullec is probably best known for his furniture design practice alongside his brother - but he's also a painter. His works on paper follow the idea of so-called intuitive drawing. This technique allows him to develop new images and reach the subconscious layers of the mind. Even though these are abstract, they give the impression of fabrics, folds, upholstered furniture or wavy glass. The balance of form and color within a few simple lines is astonishing and reassuring.⁠ Buy

From Google reviews to YouTube tutorials, and from online service desks to real-life ‘may I speak to the manager’ requests–we are all critics of our designed environments. It seems strange, argues publisher Onomatopee, that design criticism is a practice considered to be only for ‘experts’. Design belongs to all of us and, therefore, its criticism as well.⁠ ⁠ Through an open call they collected short texts that criticises, discusses, analyses or reflects upon an everyday design object, system, environment, or construct - written by non-design professionals. The chosen essays are displayed in this book, alongside commissioned contributions by renowned critics. With this book, Onomatopee wishes to break down the often closed circuit of design criticism and establish a grounding for a ‘design criticism for all’.⁠ Buy

For a long time, sustainable products had the reputation of being unsexy, aesthetically somewhere between a tie-dyed T-shirt and a haystack. But these times are fortunately over. Sustainability, longevity and circularity are not only in demand as properties, but also their visibility within the material.⁠ At ECAL students of product design, established materials specialists, manufacturers and researchers came together with the aim of exploring and defining the aesthetic potential of a new generation of sustainable materials. The result of this research-through-design project is a series of fourteen case studies involving the development of materials made from textile waste, recycled paper, rubber granulate or vegetable fibers such as algae, rice husks, hemp, flax and wood. The resulting new materials can be shaped, pressed, woven or welded and offer future designers a range of practical tools and applied knowledge about the methods of analyzing and processing seminal materials, utilizing their advantageous qualities and developing functional, yet aesthetically intriguing objects.⁠ Buy

Best known for his furniture design practice side by side with his brother, not many know that Ronan Bouroullec is also a painter. His works on paper follow the idea of what he calls intuitive drawing. This technique allows him to develop new images and reach the subconscious layers of the mind. Experimenting with shapes and lines "Crayon Pinceau" is a pure black and white series, this time focusing on shades and fades instead of color. The harmony of shapes within a few simple lines is striking.Although abstract, these drawings give the impression of fabrics, folds and upholstery, showing us yet another way into the visual mind of a designer. Buy

Eileen Gray is today one of the most celebrated designers and architects. But that was not always the case. Throughout her career, she struggled for acceptance as a woman in male-dominated professions. In Paris, she opened a gallery under the name Jean Désert that sold furniture and rugs. The gallery also served as an exhibition space for modern art, making Gray, albeit working under a male pseudonym, one of the first women gallerists.⁠ ⁠ She is best known, however, for her furniture, lighting, rugs, architecture, and especially for her signature Japanese lacquer technique, which she learned from Seizo Sugawara. ⁠ ⁠ Accompanying the exhibition at the Bard Graduate Center Gallery, organized by the Centre Pompidou, this richly illustrated catalog focuses on the diversity of Gray's design practices and explores the range of her architectural projects. It is divided into three sections: "Beginnings", which focuses on Gray's early life and education; "Being a Designer", which explores her career as a designer of furniture, rugs, and interiors; and "Being an Architect", which answers the prevailing question of whether Eileen Gray was an architect with a resounding yes.⁠ Buy