Liima’s design-led London residency hits all the high notes
Danish furniture brand Republic of Fritz Hansen transformed the basement space of Ian Schrager’s London Edition hotel into a musical design den last week, where new band Liima took up a weeklong residency, culminating in a rambunctious live showcase.
Comprising the core members of acclaimed Danish act Efterklang, and Finnish percussionist Tatu Rönkkö, Liima (the Finnish word for ‘glue’) recently put the finishing touches on its debut album. Entitled ii, it features songs recorded at similar residencies in Finland, Berlin, Istanbul and Madeira, with each location influencing the band’s sound, occasionally quite literally through field recording and sampling.
The band opened up its temporary studio and creative process to a select few guests, who were able to watch them craft, experiment and create its London tracks from scratch while lounging in Arne Jacobssen’s seminal ‘Egg’ and ‘Swan’ chairs.
On the final evening of the residency, the band took to the stage (shedding the bathrobes they had been wearing all week) to showcase the fruits of their labour and to preview songs from the forthcoming album. Danish audio stalwart Bang & Olufsen provided its technical prowess, and Patrón tequila flowed freely in the form of tropical slushies and punch.
Here, the recently formed band Liima took up a weeklong residency, crafting new tracks from scratch. Photography: Victor Frankowski
The band opened up its temporary studio and creative process to a select few guests, who watched Liima create and experiment while lounging in Arne Jacobssen's 'Swan' chairs. Photography: Victor Frankowski
From left: 'Egg Chair', by Arne Jacobssen; 'Little Friend', by Kasper Salto; 'Kaiser Idell' floor lamp, by Christian Dell, all for Republic of Fritz Hansen. Photography: Victor Frankowski
INFORMATION
Liima’s debut album ii will be released on 18 March. For more information visit 4AD’s website
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
The Bombardier Global 8000 flies faster and higher to make the most of your time in the airA wellness machine with wings: Bombardier’s new Global 8000 isn’t quite a spa in the sky, but the Canadian manufacturer reckons its flagship business jet will give your health a boost
-
A former fisherman’s cottage in Brittany is transformed by a new timber extensionParis-based architects A-platz have woven new elements into the stone fabric of this traditional Breton cottage
-
New York's members-only boom shows no sign of stopping – and it's about to get even more nicheFrom bathing clubs to listening bars, gatekeeping is back in a big way. Here's what's driving the wave of exclusivity
-
This designer’s Shoreditch apartment is ‘part grotto, part cabinet of curiosities’The apartment serves as Hubert Zandberg’s ‘home away from home’, as well as a creative laboratory for his design practice. The result is a layered, eclectic interior infused with his personality
-
Colour and texture elevate an interior designer’s London homeTo beautify her home without renovations, Charu Gandhi focused on key spaces and worked with inherited details
-
The Stuff That Surrounds You: Inside the home of designer Michael AnastassiadesIn The Stuff That Surrounds You, Wallpaper* explores a life through objects. In this episode, we step inside one of the most considered homes we've ever seen, where Anastassiades test drives his own creations
-
Francis Sultana and Roberto Ruspoli’s Greco-Roman-inspired furniture feels fresh and contemporaryA new collection, launching at David Gill Gallery in London, presents furniture and decorative pieces inspired by Mediterranean villas, French art and Etruscan engraving
-
The new office of the Italian embassy in London is a love letter to the country’s creativityWallpaper* takes a peek inside Casa Italia, the new Italian embassy in London, designed by our long-time collaborator Nick Vinson
-
Sophie Smallhorn’s plywood tables for Uncommon Projects are colourful and modularThese modular tables by the artist and the plywood specialist play with colour for function, fun and flexibility
-
American vision meets British craft in Billy Cotton’s new collaboration with Soane BritainYes, there’s rattan, but the lauded New York designer also brought in brass, oak and more. ‘There’s a sort of alchemy to these materials,’ he says
-
A new coffee table book proves that one designer’s trash is another’s treasureThe Rizzoli tome, launching today (16 September 2025), delves into the philosophy and process of Retrouvius, a design studio reclaiming salvaged materials in weird and wonderful ways