Notpla and H&M recycling machine scoop top Cannes Lions design prizes
The week-long annual awards for creativity has announced its design awards, with top prizes going to sustainable projects.
Product
News, views and analysis on the latest product and industrial design stories, covering transport, tech products and homewares.
Charlotte Perriand’s life in design: “She refused to confine women to a closed kitchen”
We take a look at the life and work of 20th century French designer Charlotte Perriand, whose modernist career is the subject of a blockbuster new Design Museum exhibition.
Virgil Abloh designs “rethought” home water dispenser for Evian
(Re)new supposedly requires 60% less packaging than the equivalent amount of water in bottled form, thanks to its five litre “bubble” concept.
James Dyson Foundation launches teacher’s guide to educate kids on air pollution
Engineering Solutions: Air Pollution is informed by the company’s work in the sector, and is intended to complement existing science, design and technology curriculums.
Six student projects that tackle “real-world issues”
The Royal Society of Arts has unveiled the winners of its 97th annual Student Design Awards, and these are the projects we think you should know about.
Design Week Awards 2021 – the shortlist in full
We’re excited to announce the full Awards shortlist below. Stay tuned later in the month for our Winners Showcase, which will be revealed on the site as part of a
Modular design system Nowdio tackles expensive and slow studio fit outs
The IKEA-style solution aims to make the fit-out process easier and cheaper, while also getting designers back into unoccupied commercial space.
Design Ventura winning team develops flower seed cannon
The winners of the annual Design Museum schools challenge hope the design will help support bee populations with a new pollen source.
Women’s urinal takes aim at “normalised inequality” of long waiting lines
The Peequal is a flatpack solution for outdoor events, where the queue for women’s toilets can be up to 34 time longer than men’s.
DfT seeks designers to make EV charge-points as iconic as telephone boxes
The Department for Transport’s Office of Zero Emission Vehicles says the designs could have potential to become “a piece of iconic British street furniture”.
Ending planned obsolescence is a “brilliant opportunity” for designers
New regulation offers brand, product and retail designers a chance to innovate, argues Landor & Fitch industrial design lead Jack Holloway.
Uncommon designs cookbook cover that can be planted and eaten
The studio has designed the cover for plant-based food brand Merchant Gourmet, and hopes the project will help change consumer food habits.
This advertising column is designed to clean polluted city air
The Pluvo Column has the footprint equivalent to half that of a phone booth, but is able to clean one cubic metre of air per second.
This portable solar distiller aims to provide safe drinking water around the world
Designed by Henry Glogau, the winner of the 2021 Lexus Design Award can be “hacked and adapted” for different environments.
This smart device connects wheelchairs to elevators
The project looks to enable wheelchair users to navigate modern buildings more easily, and was inspired by care home residents moving around their facility.
Japanese textile designer Sudō Reiko’s innovative materials subject of new exhibition
Sudō reflects on her career, sustainability and being inspired by “little everyday moments” ahead of an upcoming exhibition at Japan House in London.
Design inspiration: the best projects from April
From swimming tigers, to “more-than-human” forests, these projects from the likes of Matt Willey, Kate Moross, Superflux and Mucho are our favourites of the month.
Unilever reveals “world’s first adaptive deodorant” for people with disabilities
Degree Inclusive is a collaboration between disabled designer Christina Mallon and product design studio Sour.
Design Age Institute launches suite of new initiatives
The organisation has announced a Design Age Directory and a community for designers and “ageing humans” to challenge negative stereotypes.
Design Museum and Camille Walala open supermarket for redesigned essentials
Designers have been enlisted to rethink essential items such as bread bags, coffee jars and toilet roll for the pop-up shop.
Salt water lamp WaterLight set to power communities without electricity
The portable device takes inspiration from indigenous practices at the borders of Venezuela and Colombia.
Pearson Lloyd designs stairlift fit “for the 21st century”
Flow X is the result of 10 years of research, design and development according to the studio, and takes aim at the outdated offering currently on the market.
This non-invasive armband uses machine learning to screen for Covid
The Tiger Tech Covid Plus monitor aims to provide an indication about the presence of the virus within three to five minutes.
Designers in Residence explores mental health in black British communities
Other projects from this year’s all-female line-up looked at our relationship to microbes in cities and Nigerian textiles.