Rolf and Mette Hay have spent their lives immersed in the design industry. Long before founding their internationally successful design brand in Copenhagen, both were drawn to objects and the stories and memories they carry. In their home just outside the Danish capital – a modernist house overlooking an uninterrupted expanse of sea and sky, where Wallpaper* was given exclusive access to make our film – pieces collected over the years form the backdrop to everyday life.

‘I’m a bit of a collector of items. I have boxes and boxes of things that I have found,’ says Mette, holding a cartoonish mint-green device in her hands. ‘This piece is an Alessi calculator designed by George Sowden, and this one was standing on my father’s office desk. When I saw this first time, I didn’t know that one day I would also work with George Sowden. It’s a very nice memory and something I will treasure forever.’

Mette grew up in Herning, where her parents opened a contemporary design store when she was a teenager. After school, she would work in the shop, surrounded by design objects – an experience that cemented her love of the field. Rolf, meanwhile, entered the design industry in the early 1990s, where he came face to face with the legacy of Danish design. ‘I was very attracted to the aesthetic of Danish functionalism because it was different,’ he recalls. ‘It was simple. It was well made, but it was also very human, unlike other design movements in Europe at the time.’

These early experiences are reflected in the functional and friendly design language of Hay, the brand the couple founded in 2002 after meeting while working at Danish company Gubi. Hay became a home for their shared love of design. Over the past 24 years, it has grown into a globally recognised name, producing contemporary furniture, lighting and home accessories. Today, it operates more than 20 stores worldwide, including Hay House in Copenhagen, while its products are stocked by international retailers such as Selfridges in the UK, Le Bon Marché in Paris, La Rinascente in Milan, MoMA in New York and De Bijenkorf in Amsterdam.

‘It's still the same goal: to do great-quality design product with some of the best designers in the world, and to stay affordable in order to give as many people as possible the opportunity to buy one of our products,’ says Rolf. ‘That’s completely unchanged.’

Their belief that products should possess an honest, playful or human quality, rather than simply being functional, is reflected in the pieces they have collected over the years. Among them are numerous objects by Achille Castiglioni, including a ‘Sella’ stool that once stood in Mette’s parents’ office and was given to her by her father for her 18th birthday. Designed by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni as a telephone stool for unconventional postures and occasional sitting, ‘Sella’ was introduced in 1957. ‘It was one of the first design icons I discovered,’ says Mette. ‘I think I like all of Castiglioni’s products – there’s such an honesty to them, and a playfulness that I really like.’

Many of the pieces are by artists and designers, including George Sowden, with whom the Hays later went on to collaborate. A painting featuring folk-inspired motifs by American artist Emma Kohlmann hangs in a stairwell. Bought from V1 Gallery in Copenhagen, it was the first of Kohlmann’s works the couple acquired. Mette was so taken with it that she later commissioned the artist to create an entire tableware collection for Hay, launched in 2025. ‘It’s been really nice to live with her art pieces in the same period as we working with her,’ she says.

Charles and Ray Eames’ ‘LCW’ chair for Herman Miller is another personal piece. ‘It is, in many ways, the perfect chair,’ says Rolf of the 1946 design. The green version that sits in the house is the result of a collaboration between Hay and Herman Miller, which invited the couple in 2022 to update a selection of Eames classics in a new palette of colours and materials.

Mette describes her attraction to objects as instinctual – an excitement sparked by an idea, a detail or a colour palette. ‘I feel it in my body, it’s an emotional thing’. For Rolf, defining what makes a good product is ‘actually not that complex’: usefulness and aesthetic balance form the baseline.

It was this guiding principle that led him to pieces such as the ‘Rey’ chair, designed by Bruno Rey in 1971. Describing it as simple and robust, but also beautiful, Hay teamed up with manufacturer Dietiker to relaunch the chair as part of its collection in 2022.

Similarly, the ‘Amanta’ armchair, designed by Mario Bellini in 1966, was relaunched by Hay in 2025. At the time of its introduction, the design was innovative: modular seating units comprising foam cushions embedded in tough ABS shells on castors. It was Bellini’s attempt to industrialise upholstered furniture. ‘It’s very important to dare to do things from a new perspective or approach design products in a different way,’ says Rolf. The Bouroullec brothers’ ‘Palissade’ collection for Hay – pieces of which are peppered throughout the house’s outdoor spaces – offers a more recent example. More than two years in development, its elegant electro-galvanised, powder-coated steel frames combine visual simplicity with structural strength.

‘The stuff we have collected through the years is a reflection of our life. It’s a reflection of artists we met, people we admire, people whose work we have been studying,’ says Rolf. Each piece, they say, has been chosen on its individual merit, rather than according to an overarching aesthetic. ‘I think some people might say it’s a big mess, and maybe it is,’ laughs Rolf, ‘but we think it’s a nice mess.’

Video credits
Directed by: Sebastian Jordahn. Director of Photography: Jonas Kisielius. AC and focus puller: Sophus Tougaard Petersen. Sound recordist: Asger Midjord Rasmussen. Post production: DOMA Works. Editor: Daria Korsak. Colourist: Will Glass. Post producer: Cree Brown. Sound mix and design: Indústries Sòniques

Watch more episodes of the Wallpaper* video series, The Stuff That Surrounds You, where we're invited into the intriguing and idiosyncratic homes of creatives and makers, including Erwan Bouroullec, Michael Anastassiades, Veronica Ditting, Yasmin Sewell, and Glenn Sestig.

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Ninjago is a world where ancient temples exist alongside powerful dragons, mechanical giants and ninjas mastering elemental powers. Drawing on mythology, martial arts and East Asian influences, Lego’s long-running franchise (initially released in 2011) began as a toy line before expanding into television, film and video games. Yet beneath its battles, mystical powers and fantastical landscapes, the series has always been about how young people can unlock their potential.

To mark Ninjago’s 15th anniversary, Lego has partnered with New York-based artist Futura to create new artwork drawing on the fantasy series. It brings together two worlds connected by imagination, curiosity and a shared instinct for world-building.

Inside the Lego x Futura Ninjago collaboration

Born Leonard Hilton McGurr in New York, Futura adopted his moniker as a teenager when he emerged from the city’s graffiti and subway culture during the 1970s. From the beginning, anonymity became a space for invention. ‘I started off anonymous but wanted to create a mythology behind my work,’ he explains. That impulse would become central to a practice populated by recurring characters, symbols and forms that together feel like fragments of a larger universe.

Over the decades, Futura developed a distinctive graphical approach of fluid aerosol gestures, atmospheric colour and floating forms. Figures such as Pointman emerge from these compositions as different facets of an imagined future. Moving between painting, sculpture and product design, he has continually expanded that language without losing his youthful approach. This energy and playfulness drew Lego to Futura, whose visual language seemed naturally suited to the Ninjago series; he has now been named an official creative collaborator and artistic co-creator for the brand.

The collaboration began in Billund, Denmark, at Lego’s headquarters. There, Futura met the designers shaping Ninjago, delved into the company’s archives and witnessed how designs move from an initial sketch to a finished object. Walking through the factory and seeing the precision and care invested in every component shifted his sense of what the partnership might become. ‘My visit completely expanded my vision of what could be possible,’ he says. ‘After that experience, I truly understood the outcome would be fantastical.’

Back in New York, McGurr’s studio became a playground of scattered bricks and unfolding ideas. At the centre was the minifigure, one of Lego’s most important storytelling objects, first launched in its current form in 1978. This plastic figurine became the vessel for Futura to carry his visual language into the Ninjago universe. As a result, ‘the design process began with simple silhouettes, front, back and side views’.

A natural point of departure was Pointman, Futura’s elongated, futuristic figure that has appeared throughout his work for decades. With its sharp edges, stretched head and extended limbs, this alien-like symbol exists somewhere between human and machine. But the intention was never simply to reproduce this character as a minifigure. Instead, the Lego team worked closely with Futura to explore how elements of his creative style could be translated into the Ninjago world – the result was Ninja of the Futura, a 3D art piece. ‘We started by working up sketches of a mask, gear and body plates,’ says Futura.

Pointman’s influence is most clearly seen in this new artwork, its elongated form, pointed details, and sharp oval eyes echoing the silhouette of Futura’s iconic figure while fitting carefully within the Ninjago universe. In Lego’s fantasy series, this type of accessory conceals a person’s identity, but can also be a powerful magical artefact, giving the design both a visual and narrative role. Yet for the New York-based artist, appearance is only the starting point.

‘There are two parts to creating this character. What they look like and, more importantly, who they are,’ explains Futura. ‘There is so much room to tell a wonderful story, but we also have to respect the audience Ninjago has created and understand how young people grow with that world.’

Rather than creating a hero defined by strength alone, Futura has imagined a grounded figure who acts as a teacher to the young ninjas. ‘The character does not necessarily need to be the strongest or have the most spectacular powers. His strength could come from knowledge, experience and wisdom,’ states Futura. To reflect this, Ninja of the Futura’s rucksack is filled with tools rather than combat equipment. ‘The backpack has an assortment of selected items, not weapons, but necessary tools. These will be of great power to the character and the community,’ he explains.

Futura’s collaboration with Lego also includes original artworks that reimagine fan favourite characters from the fantasy series, Nya and Kai. ‘This project feels bigger than a single product. It brings together an entire world that can continue to grow.’

For Futura, collaborating with the Danish toymaker marks the fulfilment of a long-held ambition. A lifelong Lego collector, he had imagined what it might be like to work with the company for decades, long before the opportunity became a reality. ‘For years, I always thought it would be incredible to work with the brand, and now it is happening,’ he notes. ‘This is not a vanity project or simply about being able to say that I worked with Lego. What excites me is the possibility of becoming part of a story that can guide, empower and inspire young people.’

Ultimately, the collaboration goes beyond placing an established artist within a global franchise. Through Futura’s work, the Ninjago universe introduces a different idea of what power can look like in the series. Not greater strength or a more spectacular weapon, but knowledge, experience and the ability to pass both on.

In a fantasy world built around young ninjas learning to master extraordinary powers, Futura’s character feels especially fitting. He offers a reminder that growing stronger is not only about what you can do, but what you can share, teach and leave with others.

The new partnership will be experienced for the first time on Friday 18 September 2026 at the I Park Mall Yongsan, Seoul, as part of the Lego Ninjago: Legends DuskFall Fan Event

lego.com

The start of the 21st century brought Copenhagen dynamic bridges, cascading housing blocks and a ski-slope energy centre that all looked like the future. Yet today, in 2026, for many Danish architects, it's the past that’s guiding them into the rest of the century. There’s been a recent wave of restoration architecture projects in the city, showing the social and environmental value of preserving and transforming existing, period fabric rather than building anew.

Discover Copenhagen's new wave of restoration architecture

With the city’s rising tourist numbers set to climb by nearly a quarter over the next decade, there’s been a focus on heritage sites of all eras being polished up and reinforced. This October, the 1642 Rundetårn observatory tower with its copper dome, 1920s telescope and spiralling brick ramp will reopen after an extensive refresh; whilst last year, the 1886 Circus Building, a performance venue with a 1980s colour and light universe by Verner Panton, was revived by Lundgaard & Tranberg Architects.

Denmark’s most-visited heritage attraction, the 19th-century amusement park Tivoli in the heart of Copenhagen, receives approximately 4.3 million visitors each year, so its in-house team of painters, designers, carpenters and even a historian work daily to magically maintain its 183-year-old spirit, whilst balancing the reality of its footfall. For Susanne Mørch Koch, CEO, this work is a natural, fluid and shared ‘calibration’, grounded in time and care for their guests that ‘comes together as a dialogue.’

Originally created as a whirlwind of world cultures and rollercoasters, Tivoli this August celebrated its new Japanese-themed ‘Hikari’ district, supported by a landmark investment of hundreds of millions of Danish kroner. It’s a vibrant street of delights, layered with references from ukiyo-e to konbini, designed with specialists in Japanese culture – all whilst expressing Tivoli’s own playfully nostalgic language, with appearances by mascot Pierrot the pantomime clown.

‘It's a piece of Danish heritage that is really alive,’ says Mørch Koch of Tivoli, ‘it should not turn into a museum. It’s a place that unites a family across generations, and I think we should really try to hold onto those moments of togetherness.’ Whilst being the number one tourist destination in Copenhagen, 65 per cent of Tivoli’s visitors are locals, showing how investment in heritage, as Mørch Koch explained, is an investment in generations of local life.

Just beyond the city centre, in the neighbourhood of Frederiksberg, the local municipal swimming pool dating back to 1934 has just undergone a much-anticipated restoration by architects Cornelius Vöge, with improved facilities and an updated café. ‘The use of the old public baths of the city is probably more popular than ever,’ says Dan Cornelius, architect and founding partner.

The pool’s original colour scheme, informed by its monumental cubist mosaic by Vilhelm Lundstrøm, has been brought back to life as a total scenography, which Cornelius believes is ‘vital’ to its ‘storytelling’. He imagines himself as a ‘biographer, archaeologist and curator’ whilst working on restoration projects, which he believes have ‘always been the most sustainable process of working with architecture.'

At architecture practice Schmidt Hammer Lassen (SHL), renovation, restoration and transformation are the fastest-growing sectors of their business, importantly distinguished by showing the range of possible approaches to heritage, listed and unlisted, from conservation to adaptive reuse. It’s a shift that’s been underscored by the updated Danish National Architecture Policy of 2025, renewed after more than 10 years, which has a much tighter focus on re-use and measuring the whole life cycle of carbon, taking into account, for example, the emissions of material waste.

‘You really have to argue to tear down a building. The threshold for demolition was much lower just a few years ago,’ says Nicolai Overgaard, partner at SHL. He’s overall positive about the policy updates, but aware that connected legislation, such as around operational carbon or change of building use, needs more flexibility to better enable architects who do transform buildings. ‘We’ve started the journey, and it’s really important that we keep working on that path.’

Many of their restoration and transformation projects require a carefully balanced inquiry into the meaning of time, innovation, past and present. The team is currently working on site (for two years so far, scheduled to finish in 2027) at the iconic 1872 Palm House (Palmehuset) at the University Botanical Gardens. It requires nine areas of key specialisms from expert scaffolders, glass and metalworkers, as well as contemporary solutions such as heat-retaining curtains.

Meanwhile, at the 1861 Gothic-inspired brick and stone University Library in Fiolstræde (reopened in 2023), the challenge was to adapt it from an active student library to a public building, requiring considered additions such as secondary glazing and acoustic improvements, all whilst preserving its incredible atmosphere. The painted windows were restored to their original colours using linseed oil paint, rectifying the use of acrylic in the 1980s, thereby restoring a more sustainable and authentic effect.

The practice enjoys reflecting on the logic of every architectural era, weighing up how to respect, return, edit, or expand. ‘I think as architects, we look at old buildings not in a nostalgic way, but in how and why they were constructed. Everything had a function. It’s not about image, but the performance of buildings that becomes interesting,’ says Elif Tinaztepe, partner at SHL, who has led major heritage renovation and transformation work from Australia to Luxembourg.

She’s noticed how these projects have begun to be funded increasingly by corporate and philanthropic interests. ‘Ten years ago, it wasn’t the case. Now, being custodians of these older structures is a huge prestige, and I think it’s an honest wish to be a custodian for the next generations.’

This can be seen at several major projects in Copenhagen. At Arne Jacobsen's 1978 Nationalbank, where SHL is currently working on a radical restoration; at the renovation of the 1950s headquarters of Danish philanthropic organisation Realdania by Vilhelm Lauritzen Architects completed in 2025; as well as at the 1625 Borsen former stock exchange, victim of devastating fire in 2024, where the Danish Chamber of Commerce has opened a visitor’s centre on the construction site for curious locals to observe the revival of their treasured monument carried out by Praksis, VMB and Leif Hansen.

For Tinaztepe, re-use, restoration and renovation have truly ‘seeped into collective consciousness’ in Copenhagen – and, as well as because of a wider awareness of climate change, the second reason is: ‘our honest need to be anchored in something that exists. We want to situate ourselves in a bigger continuum of things,’ she says. ‘Maybe people are tired of chasing the future, and they want to feel grounded.’

ltarkitekter.dk

Between Copenhagen’s laid-back Nørrebro and elegant Fredriksberg neighbourhoods, Hotel Hans is the latest addition to the family-run Brøchner Hotels group known for its cool Nordic sensibility and authentic embrace of local life. Named after the patriarch of the Brøchner family, Hans, who co-founded the group’s first hotel in the 1980s, it’s set inside a historic red-brick building designed by 19th-century amusement park Tivoli Gardens architect Emil Blichfeldt, yet inside, a sleek, reflective and cool mood feeds off the urban energy of the city beyond.

Wallpaper* checks in at Hotel Hans, Copenhagen

What’s on your doorstep?

Perfect for exploring Copenhagen like a local, Hotel Hans is well-placed for tasting the best of Nørrebro: find the experimental plant-based menu at Baka d’ Busk, Michelin-star Jatak, and Pompette wine bar within minutes on foot. A pleasant stroll through the Assistens Cemetery, past the grave of Hans Christian Andersen, will take you towards Jægersborggade, a street lined with delis, independent shops and restaurants, and then on to pizza slices, beers and bakeries lining Nørrebro’s park. Venturing south to Frederiksberg, on the other hand, brings cosy brasseries, Italian restaurants and concept stores. The hotel’s neighbourhood location reflects its more affordable price point compared to Brøchner’s two city centre hotels.

Who is behind the design?

NORRØN made the bold decision to open up the long lobby facade to the street with huge windows, inspired by Edward Hopper’s painting ‘Nighthawks’, a seductive observation on the poetry of urban life. Upon grey terrazzo floors beneath bespoke metal lighting echoing Nørrebro’s streetlamps, a social choreography unfolds: sip cocktails on a glossy black lacquered oak conversation bench, or coffee from soft leather booths; pull up a smooth walnut chair (designed by Ari Prasetya to echo the silhouette of a black cat); or sink into a canary yellow Carl Hansen sofa for a game of chess.

The rhythm of city life and traffic becomes a meditative presence for watching the street style of Copenhagen’s bicycle commute, or the blur of headlights shape-shifting across sconced aluminium panels as the sun sets like a light installation. Graphic neon portraits of Hans illuminate the windows designed by his granddaughter and third-generation hotelier Laura Brøchner, and in the hotel’s courtyard and corridors, Danish designers Pettersen & Hein made sculptures out of materials found in his former workshop.

The room to book

Inspired by vintage apartments with dark green ceilings, sage-green walls and lacquered cabinets, the 91 rooms and suites are calm and elegant with organically patterned Ege Carpets. Poul Høilund, co-founder of NORRØN, describes the mood as Negroni-inducing. We stayed in one of the suites, with a mezzanine level and private roof terrace, which felt like its own little apartment in the city. Five rooms have their own balconies and two suites have roof terraces.

Staying for drinks?

The gentle, enticing atmosphere of the lobby from morning to night makes up for the simplicity of in-room services. Wake up to a generous Nordic breakfast buffet with barista coffee, green smoothies, and a glass of bubbles if you like. Guests are drawn down in the evenings for nightly rituals: a complimentary glass of house wine from 5-6 pm, and a complimentary cocktail (including that Negroni you were craving) from 9-10 pm.

The verdict

Hotel Hans feels both functional and special, raw and refined. The rooms are simple yet cosy and detail-oriented, whilst the open-ended pockets of the lobby are sleek and curated, with Nordic quality and comfort by the likes of Fredericia Furniture and Møbel Copenhagen. For solo travellers it’s prime for people-watching or striking up a conversation with a stranger. For friends and families it’s a spacious gathering place before an evening out, or winding down after a day of sightseeing.

Hotel Hans (Brøchner Hotels) is located at Åboulevard 29, 1960, Frederiksberg, Copenhagen

The Wallpaper* Architects Directory 2026 welcomes Hoyer Arkitektur, a young Danish practice joining our annual round-up of exciting emerging architecture studios.

Who: Hoyer Arkitektur

Danish architect Thomas Høyer founded his namesake studio in 2022. With a headquarters in Ebeltoft on the Jutland peninsula, Høyer Arkitektur works on a variety of projects that explore architecture’s relationship with nature. ‘In an age marked by accelerating pace and digital overstimulation, the studio sees it as a central responsibility to restore our connection to the physical world - not as an act of protest, but of care; not out of nostalgia, but out of necessity,’ Høyer explains.

The architect’s philosophy revolves around feeling and slowing down, as he argues that silence, reflection and emotion can play an important role in daily life and should therefore be seriously considered in design - just as importantly as function tends to be. It is this detail and admiration for the everyday that sets his emerging practice apart.

Høyer explains: ‘We pursue a restrained beauty rather than the spectacular - stripping away the unnecessary to let light, tactility, craftsmanship, and material honesty carry the architecture. We treat the building site as a place of responsible dialogue with nature, and we see our practice not as a universal formula but as a language of relationships between people, materials, and landscapes — one we believe can grow in significance, not just in scale.’

What: Ebeltoft

The practice’s Ebeltoft project is a key representative of its overall approach, exemplifying how gentle architectural construction and a preference for organic materials can offer a result that is friendly to its natural surroundings. ‘Our biggest influence is the encounter between body and surroundings — the conviction that understanding arises not through thought and logic alone, but through lived, sensory experience of place,’ Høyer says, and this is evident in his design of this modest timber house.

Placed gently on a high plateau formed of ancient glacial meltwater valleys and hills during the last ice age, Ebeltoft is defined by its prominent roof with its deep overhangs. Created using a modular building system and organised internally as a series of communal areas, interconnected and without corridors, the house features a central atrium that connects users with the tree canopy and sky above. Meanwhile, a colonnade of timber columns wraps around it, forming a terrace across the entire house, making this residential project at once introverted and extroverted, adapting easily to its residents' needs.

Why: Architects Directory 2026

When the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory was conceived in 2000, it was built as our bespoke international index of emerging architectural talent. Now in its 25th edition, our annual listing of promising practices from across the globe (now comprising over 500 alumni) champions the best and most promising young studios - a snapshot of talent showcasing inspiring work from all corners of the Earth with an emphasis on the residential realm.

This year’s anniversary survey includes 30 young studios (one for each of the 30 years of Wallpaper*), from Australia, Bahrain, Benin, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Denmark, Ecuador, Ghana, Greece, France, Ivory Coast, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Kuwait, India, Morocco, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, the UK, the USA, and Vietnam. Welcome to the promise, ideas and exciting architecture of the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2026.

hoyerarkitektur.com

Bankruptcy auctions are not sentimental affairs. A company is divided into its constituent parts, bidders compete for the pieces they want, and the court’s task is to extract as much value as possible for its stakeholders. When recipe and cookware company Food52 entered bankruptcy earlier this year, the fate of its three brands – its flagship digital media platform Food52, Portland-based homeware manufacturer Schoolhouse and heritage Scandinavian tabletop and homeware brand Dansk – was decided over the course of a day.

The most compelling component, Dansk, came last. 'It was the caboose in the auction,' recalls Mark Masiello, founder of Form Portfolios, a Rhode Island and Copenhagen-based company that owns, manages, and preserves the legacies of historic and contemporary designers and architects. ‘We didn’t really have a sense until the very, very end that we were going to be successful.'

For Masiello, however, the acquisition was personal. Form Portfolios had spent several years working with the family of Dansk’s co-founder and principal designer, Jens Quistgaard, to protect and elevate his legacy. 'From my very first meeting with Mark, I realised his vision for Form Portfolios transcended business,' says Quistgaard’s daughter, Henriette. 'It was a deeply personal calling to honour my father’s legacy. That initial conversation established a level of trust and a shared commitment to protecting my father’s work and the integrity of his designs.'

Building brands and safeguarding legacies

Running a design company is an unlikely second act for Masiello. After a 25‑year stint in private equity, he retired at 44 and set up Form Portfolios in 2017. He describes those first decades as working ‘on one side of [his] brain’, and the last ten years as activating the other: applying the tools and discipline of his previous life to the more intuitive business of design – something he has found ‘tremendously satisfying’. That outsider’s perspective, he believes, is precisely what allowed him to see how designers and their families needed help managing rights, building brands and safeguarding legacies.

Masiello had not told Henriette or her sister-in-law Therese that he intended to bid for Dansk; knowing how anxious they were about its future, he did not want to raise their hopes. The following Saturday, he called with the good news. 'They said, “Did you buy Dansk?” I said yes, and there were tears,' he remembers. 'There’s a business side to what we do, but even more important is the legacy of the designers we work with – and the human side.'

Dansk: a beloved design brand

What Form Portfolios had acquired was not simply a collection of cookware, tableware and intellectual property, but stewardship of a brand unusually heavy with emotion. Founded in 1954 by American entrepreneurs Ted and Martha Nierenberg with the young Quistgaard, Dansk helped introduce Scandinavian modernism to American homes. 'Dansk represents a pivotal chapter in modern American design by demonstrating that everyday objects can be both highly functional and beautifully designed,’ says Emmanuel Plat, director of merchandising, retail at MoMA. Its enduring influence, he adds, is reflected in its presence in the museum’s collection, 'where it stands alongside other works that have shaped the history of modern design'.

During the second half of the 20th century, Quistgaard’s objects for Dansk became embedded in everyday life: the brightly coloured casserole with its crossed handle, beautiful enough to be carried directly from stove to table; the sleek stainless-steel flatware with teak handles and cheeseboards with built-in knives. 'If your memory were a photograph,' says Masiello, 'in many memories, Dansk is in that photograph.'

In its heyday, Dansk was available in Europe and beloved in Japan, but North America was its stronghold, where it was available at every major retailer and had 45 dedicated stores across the country. ‘For many Americans, Dansk was their first introduction to Scandinavian design,’ says Masiello. ‘The idea that you could combine form, functionality, simplicity and intelligence in a single object was new.’

That emotional familiarity may help Dansk reach a new generation increasingly drawn to objects with a history. Masiello describes it as part of a broader return to the analogue: a renewed appetite for vinyl, vintage design and tactile things made to endure. Yet he is clear that Dansk cannot survive on nostalgia alone.

Sebastian Brauer, head of design at Crate & Barrel, sees its longevity as the product of a philosophy rather than an aesthetic moment. 'Dansk has endured because it has always understood that good design doesn’t chase trends – it becomes part of people’s everyday rituals,' he says. 'Its pieces are modern without feeling cold, functional without sacrificing beauty, and approachable enough to be used every day rather than just admired.'

Those qualities appear particularly relevant amid today's culture of fast furniture, disposable objects and hollow digital experiences. 'Today’s customer is increasingly looking for objects with authenticity, permanence and a clear point of view,' Brauer continues. 'Dansk stands out for its honest materials, thoughtful craftsmanship and timeless Scandinavian design language and heritage.'

Dansk returns to Copenhagen

Acutely aware of the emotional weight that this brand carries, Masiello's plan for Dansk is to restore its 'original formula'. In its early years, Dansk was an American company headquartered on the US East Coast, with its creative heart firmly rooted in Copenhagen. After Quistgaard retired, that balance shifted and creative control migrated to the US – a change Masiello believes weakened the brand, and one he is now determined to reverse. As part of Form Portfolios, Dansk's Copenhagen-centred creative model will be restored, relaunching beloved classics alongside archival and new designs. 'This is a designer who created 10,000 designs,' says Masiello. 'Four thousand of them were at Dansk. The brand played a huge role in changing how Americans live their lives – how they cook, how they entertain, how they dine.'

Unlike Form’s work on collections such as Eames Lighting – where it creates the collection and leaves partners like Cassina to tell the story – with Dansk the company is taking on a fully direct-to-consumer role, owning both the products and the storytelling. The relaunch includes building a dedicated team and direct-to-consumer channel at Dansk.com while re-establishing as many original manufacturing partnerships as possible and global retail partnerships – many have already reached out, Masiello confirms.

'That's exciting, and it's new for us,' he says of the direct-to-consumer dynamic. 'We are uniquely positioned to return to the original formula – we have a creative studio based here in Copenhagen, and relationships with 20 Scandinavian designers right now, and we hope a number of them will become part of Dansk as well.'

Beyond the archive

One such partnership is already underway to address 'a surprising hole' in the Dansk collection. Historically, the brand has focused on cookware and tabletop objects, but never ventured into textiles. Enter 86-year-old Danish textile designer Kim Naver, who will create a new collection of tabletop textiles for Dansk. A defining figure in Danish textile art, Naver has spent more than six decades creating everything from domestic fabrics and rugs to monumental architectural tapestries, combining structural clarity with a sensitivity to colour and material.

The collaboration was announced during 3 Days of Design 2026 with ‘Kim Naver: Dansk Moderne’, a retrospective staged at Form Portfolios’ Copenhagen studio. Bringing together textiles, drawings and archival material from across her career, the exhibition offered a reminder of Naver’s influence – and positioned her as the first contemporary designer to contribute to Dansk’s next chapter. 'The fact that she has agreed to design a collection for Dansk speaks to the power and heritage of the brand,' says Masiello.

Naver’s involvement offers an early indication of how Form intends to balance continuity with change. Her work is deeply rooted in the Danish craft tradition yet unmistakably her own – making the collaboration feel less like an exercise in nostalgia than a continuation of Dansk’s original purpose: bringing the best of Scandinavian design into everyday homes.

Spiked hair, torn fishnets, safety pins pushed through skin and clothing: punk has often announced itself through the body. It is a fitting point of departure for ‘Unruly – The Body in Punk’, now on view at ARoS in Aarhus, which reconsiders the movement not simply as a sound or a style, but as a physical language of protest, in which the body became a charged site of rebellion.

Bringing together more than 130 works – from photography and film to collage, installation and fashion ephemera – many of them shown in Scandinavia for the first time, the exhibition draws on curator Marie Arleth Skov’s three-year postdoctoral research project. Its focus is the emergence and evolution of punk across London, Berlin, Copenhagen and Aarhus in the 1970s and 1980s, tracing how dress, gesture and performance came to function as acts of refusal. ‘It can be difficult from today’s point of view to understand just how provocative, or even threatening, punks were perceived [to be],’ Skov says. ‘The reaction was one of absolute shock. That’s why I called the exhibition “Unruly”; there were many ways the punk revolt was incorporated, but they were all unruly.’

The exhibition opens with a quote from Vivienne Westwood printed on the wall – ‘If you want change, the best thing to do is attack sex’ (1976) – before moving to Sheila Rock’s photograph, Jordan in Doorway of SEX (1977). Jordan, the general manager of Westwood and Malcolm McLaren’s King’s Road boutique at the time, leans against the doorway in a black leotard and sheer tights, her blonde beehive and heavy eyeliner turning her body into a statement in itself. As one of the defining faces of British punk, she sets the tone for a show in which appearance becomes both performance and provocation. ‘Her fierce attitude and the way she dressed say a lot about how punks incorporated revolt,’ Skov notes.

That same spirit shapes the exhibition’s thematic structure. Rather than unfolding as a strict chronology, ‘Unruly’ moves through a series of ideas: the DIY ethos of London punk, where second-hand clothing, homemade fashion and fanzines collapsed the hierarchy between performer and audience; the East German underground, where punk existed under Stasi surveillance and dress, dance and performance became forms of dissent; and the body as a site of gender play, fetish and self-invention. Fishnets, latex, PVC and bondage references recur throughout, as punk style challenged beauty ideals, sexual norms and the commodification of the body.

The curation, in turn, channels that same sensibility. Skov and her team wanted to avoid a ‘clichéd punk aesthetic’ and instead stay true to punk’s ethos through DIY and recycled display elements, reusing rubber curtains and mirrors from earlier exhibitions. Black walls, open metal racks and visible screws lend the show a stripped-back industrialism, sidestepping the polished neutrality that still dominates so much exhibition design.

Among the standout works is Linder’s Limiting Accessories Ltd. (1977), a mock magazine spread in which Buzzcocks frontman Howard Devoto wears a series of lingerie masks designed by the artist, pouting and gasping somewhere between desire and helplessness. The inversion is sharp: where women have so often been cast as the wearers of constraining accessories, Linder redirects that apparatus onto a male body, making masculinity itself appear staged, vulnerable and faintly absurd.

The exhibition concludes with Nina Sten-Knudsen’s film Panic Eye (1979), projected in extreme close-up, the restless eye darting back and forth across the wall. Surreal, fragmented and faintly unnerving, it is an apt final image. For Skov, punk’s relevance lies precisely in that unease. Today, she sees a renewed ‘no future’ mood shaped by climate crisis, economic rupture and war, alongside a return of conservative thinking around gender roles, precisely the kind of order the punk body was built to resist.

‘Unruly – The Body in Punk’ is on view at ARoS in Aarhus, Denmark until 13 December 2026

After more than a decade since the initial idea for a James Turrell Skyspace at the Aros museum in Aarhus was hatched, Turrell’s one hundredth Skyspace, As Seen Below—The Dome, is now finally open.

It’s a massive feat of construction, carried out immaculately by Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects, who also built the Aros museum. Forty metres across and sixteen metres high, The Dome is one of the largest of Turrell’s Skyspaces. Here, as in much of the artist works, the architecture is not simply a placeholder for his art, but an integral part of it.

'The architecture holds the sky close, so you recognize that the act of looking is the work itself. Here, light isn’t description, it’s the substance you stand within,' Turrell explains.

Visitors approach the dome through a one-hundred-metre-long corridor below the museum and emerge into the massive space, resembling something from a science-fiction film set, void of any decoration. There is simply the dome, a gently sloping floor made of concrete tiles with a central circular “eye” made of Norwegian granite directly below the six metre wide aperture in the centre of the dome, and a circular bench around the perimeter set at a slightly smaller diameter than the dome itself.

The interior of the dome itself is constructed of individual petal-shaped fibreglass panels that have been smoothed with putty by one dedicated construction worker called Heinrich. 'He basically did the whole dome himself, as he wasn’t comfortable letting any other people work on this,' says Jette Birkeskov, Partner-in-Charge and Project Director at Schmidt Hammer Lassen, who, together with Morten Schmidt, has played a central role in the collaboration throughout the project’s development.

The dome is finished in three coats of matt white paint and 1,100 LED light sources around the perimeter light up the walls, contrasting with the sky as seen through the aperture. The magic happens when Turrell changes a seemingly grey Danish sky into bright blue, green, pink or purple. Our eyes deceive us, and we adjust the colour of the sky to contrast with the colour of the walls. So what at one moment looks like a bright blue sky (due to a white/yellow contrasting light on the dome’s walls) slowly turns green, then grey and pink as Turrell adjust the colour temperature of the LED light within the dome.

Turrell’s Skyspace requires time to fully appreciate. It is the subtle changes in light, wind, a sudden glimpse of a bird flying above the aperture or someone dropping a phone on the dome floor reverberating throughout the dome, that create a unique experience in time and space. No two visitors will have the exact same experience, and no two visits will feel the same. This is the power of Turrell’s art and it will provide a huge draw for visitors to Aros for decades to come.

aros.dk

Walking through a serene, abstract forest – complete with smells, sounds and shapes of logs, stumps and trunks, arranged across the room in all directions – is an inviting proposition. Yet this installation, taking pride of place in a large, high-ceilinged ground-floor area in the Material Matters show at 3 Days of Design 2026 in Copenhagen this week, is much more than a calming, grounding experience. Titled 'Wood for the Trees', led by the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC), designed by London studio Mitre & Mondays and made by specialist furniture maker Benchmark, the hardworking piece was conceived to celebrate timber as a design and building material; but also to express the richness and vulnerability of our forests as natural ecosystems.

Walk through AHEC's abstract forest

The project came to life after Mitre & Mondays met with AHEC at the latter's documentary film screening in London last year. Forested Future, directed by Petr Krejčí, explores tree ecosystems and forest environments – going beyond the wood as an end product and delving into its provenance and natural home. It also highlights how forests are living systems that can regenerate and support and give life to those around them, from fauna to human communities.

Suggesting they translate the film's vision into an immersive installation, Mitre & Mondays' three directors, Finn Thomson, Josef Shanley-Jackson and Freya Bolton, set off to create their new piece using American hardwoods. The result is now displayed at this year's 3 Days of Design in Copenhagen (10-12 June 2026).

The emerging London studio is fast making a name for itself for combining design and making through inspiring material explorations. The trio have a distinctly hands-on approach that allows them to deep dive into each material's properties, advantages and challenges, working with anything from timber to metal and stone.

'We've had this huge renaissance around food produce and understanding where our food comes from recently, for example,' Thompson says. 'As designers, we need to understand that [provenance of materials] as well, especially with really natural products, like timber. And we need to try and get closer to the natural forest to understand what we can use out of it instead of demanding what we want.'

Here, the Mitre & Mondays team blended wood structures with audio recordings of forest sounds and smells to recreate the experience of walking through nature. There are representations of 'fallen logs', which now serve as benches, 'stumps' that are seen here as stools, and 'live tree trunks' – columns of varying heights dotted across the room. The tree canopy becomes a series of delicate veneers hanging from the ceiling. Species are mixed, just as in the real forest scenario, and work together beautifully.

The team were mindful about how they use their raw material throughout, Thomson flags: 'We've kept the timber in plank form, so in future it can be used for other projects. All of this show could go back into a stack and become something else, which is really nice. We haven't affected it too much. The material retains its value.'

'Wood is nature's gift to the material world. We're surrounded by it,' says the European director for AHEC, David Venables. 'But we take the material for granted because we're in a world where there are so many materials. Nature's made it available to us; we need to respect it and value it. It is beautiful, varied and renewable.

'Wood is so unusual because you can use it in its raw form. The beautiful things we're sitting on, the objects that are part of this exhibition are all raw planks of wood. They've been cut with a fine knife, and they've been oiled with a natural oil. That is all.'

Part of the mission of AHEC and this abstract forest experience is to highlight the natural resource that forests can provide, one that we can cleverly use and must also protect. 'The power of the architect and designer to influence should never be underestimated. It starts and it ends with them,' Venables adds.

'Mitre & Mondays came back with this brilliant idea of creating an abstract forest. They were so inspired by the elements of the film, about the growth of the trees and the dynamism of nature, the selection, the planning and stewardship that foresters and communities and timber people put in place to look after their woods. This is the context that we're talking about.'

americanhardwood.org

mitreandmondays.co.uk

benchmarkfurniture.com

When the Cori Hornbæk Hotel opens its doors this summer, it will not only revive a Danish architecture classic, but also herald a new hospitality era for the north shores of Zealand island, one that taps into the area's early 20th-century incarnation as a seaside resort.

Step inside the Cori Hornbæk on the Danish Riviera

On a sandy beach, facing the blue waters of the Kattegat strait, the Cori's original building was designed by Ole Falkentorp in 1935, bridging early modernism with a Scandinavian functionalism in a streamlined style that makes its soft curves and white volumes gleam under the region's softly luminous skies. A much-loved badehotel (seaside hotel), it was famous in the region for its role in the nation's health and holiday habits, as well as for its prominent position in the resort town of Hornbæk, but fell into disrepair after the Second World War. Enter developer Copi, a group with a strong track record for revitalising historical buildings in its home city, Copenhagen, which acquired the building at an auction in 2022.

Copi founder Jesper Brunander says: ‘One of our greatest passions is the restoration and transformation of heritage properties. For us, Cori represents a rare and exciting opportunity to restore Ole Falkentorp's architecture to its original purpose and former glory. On a more personal level, we all have a special and personal connection to Hornbæk. We wish to see this building, which we have known our whole life, come back to life, open its doors to locals and new guests.' Copenhagen-based Jon Clausen, of NVMBR Architects, and Scandinavian studio AART were in charge of the building's refresh and architectural updates, while London practice Afroditi took on the creative lead and the task of transforming the space for the 21st century.

‘We looked at amazing archive imagery,' says Afroditi founder Afroditi Krassa. ‘The hotel was very glamorous when it first launched. It attracted an international, artistic crowd. We had a meal with the owner, and I remember distinctly he said, “I don't want baby blue stripes in this hotel”. It summarised everything that we were already thinking.' The design team's pairing of the Nordic region's legacy in warm minimalism with a more international, contemporary spirit has resulted in a space where both locals and tourists can feel at home, where design is ever-present but effortless.

The building, which cuts a distinct figure against the area's fairly low-rise context, was woven into its surroundings with the help of landscape architects Effekt. Meanwhile, inside, Gubi collaborated with Afroditi to work on the majority of the furniture and a bespoke line for the hotel, which offers 77 rooms and five townhouses. It also encompasses a bar, a restaurant headed up by chef Brian Mark Hansen (whose career includes 16 years at the Michelin-starred Søllerød Kro), and a spa, all accessible to guests and locals like. ‘We want the people of Hornbæk to come, for Cori to be part of their daily life,' notes Krassa.

This balance between Danish tradition, a sense of place and a touch of contemporary, gentle luxury defines Cori's identity. ‘The most important thing to me is that you should feel that you're in a resort environment that's very natural, earthy and luminous,' says Krassa. Tapping into Cori's original soul of escape and glamour, and weaving in 21st-century sensibilities with a quiet, welcoming warmth, this project revives a period landmark for the next 100 years.

corihotel.dk

afroditi.com

The deep-rooted connection between design cultures in Denmark and Japan is well documented. So much so that, in the last decade, it has given rise to the slightly wince-inducing catch-all term ‘Japandi’, a word invented to make a particular aesthetic of minimalism and honest materials more marketable. However, to reduce the connection between the two design cultures to moodboard-level aesthetics alone, Wallpaper’s Japan editor Jens H Jensen argues, is to miss the point entirely.

'When people think about Japanese design, they often only think about the simplicity of the design. I see it more as an honest and very pragmatic approach that resonates well with the Danish design tradition, where form always follows function,' he tells Wallpaper*. 'Japanese [and Danish] design isn’t simple to try to be minimalist. It’s simple because it’s often the most pragmatic way of making a certain product, resulting in honest, no-frills objects that require an extremely high level of craftsmanship to execute well.'

For Jensen, it is the close relationship between designers and manufacturers that distinguishes Japanese design objects from products that simply trade on a Japanese-inspired aesthetic.

'You might be able to get some nice photos for Instagram, but if you look at many of these Japanese-inspired products up close, the level of craftsmanship simply isn't there.'

‘Japanmade Vol.I’ at 3 Days of Design 2026

In ‘Japanmade Vol.1’, an exhibition being held next week (10-12 June) during 3 Days of Design 2026 in Copenhagen, Jensen – who has lived in Japan for more than 20 years – has teamed up with fellow Danes at OEO Studio – which has a project office in central Tokyo – to explore this connection. ‘My aim with “Japanmade” is to highlight contemporary design made by real craftspeople, objects that are built to last a lifetime. The quality of the materials and finishing touches is on a completely different level.’

Located in the same building as the city's harbourside exhibition space Pakhus 11, ‘Japanmade Vol.1’ occupies three connecting rooms accessed by a different entrance. Within these intimate spaces, visitors are presented with an edited selection of Japanese design as seen through Jensen's and OEO's Danish lens. The selection includes work from five brands working exclusively within Japan and across a broad range of materials – from washi (Japanese paper), solid brass, hinoki wood, soy wax and even plastic. Works are presented on staging made from cardboard pallets – a low-carbon solution that OEO and Jensen hope will make the experience feel more like visiting a gallery than a traditional interior design exhibition.

Thomas Lykke, who founded OEO Studio with Anne-Marie Buemann in 2003 and has maintained a presence in Japan for nearly 20 years, describes the exhibition as ‘a distilled and edited selection viewed through a holistic lens and approach’. While Japanese and Scandinavian design are often grouped together through shared qualities such as simplicity, craftsmanship and material honesty, he believes the relationship is more complex. ‘There are certainly links and shared values between Japanese and Scandinavian design,’ he says. ‘That said, the bond goes deeper than that.’

Jensen shares that view. ‘I think that Japanese design is highly respected and appreciated throughout much of the global design community for its simplicity and extraordinary attention to detail. However, there is a tendency to focus on very traditional crafts. I hope Japanmade can help to show the variety of materials and production methods.’

For example, Sekisaka, a 300-year-old Japanese manufacturer from the Kawada district of Sabae City, Fukui Prefecture, will present contemporary objects informed by traditional Urushi lacquerware, but realised in durable resin and ABS plastic that make them suitable for daily use in schools, hospitals and airlines.

MAS, a sub-brand of Karimoku Furniture, will showcase furniture rooted in Japanese woodworking expertise, including pieces made from hinoki – Japanese cypress – a durable, lightweight softwood more commonly associated with traditional architecture and construction than furniture making. Meanwhile, 300-year-old handmade paper workshop Naowashi by Gen Taniguchi, in Nao, Saga Prefecture, will show products made entirely from locally grown kajinoki paper mulberry rather than the more typical kozo variety. Kajinoki fibres are longer and intertwine more easily, producing paper that is both thin and strong.

Artisanal soybean candlemakers Sheep will display candles handmade at its workshop in Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, using high-quality soy wax, pure essential oils and cotton wicks, while New Light Pottery, a lighting studio based in Nara, the ancient former capital of Japan, will present lamps that celebrate the beauty of local materials such as Japanese washi paper, glass, ceramics, lacquer-finished brass and marble

'The strong bond, mutual respect and physical proximity between designer and manufacturer play a big role in the final product. This is something I believe is quite unique to Japan and is something to celebrate,' reflects Jensen. 'In Denmark, for instance, many of the famous furniture makers now produce outside of Denmark. I truly believe something essential gets lost when the distance between design and production increases.'

The exhibition's 'Vol.1' title suggests that ‘Japanmade’ may be the first in a series. 'Only the future can tell,' Lykke says. 'Having said that, we naturally hope “Japanmade” will evolve over time. We'll take it step by step and see where the journey leads.'

‘Japanmade Vol.1’ will open during 3 Days of Design from 10-12 June at Dampfærgevej 2, Nordhavn, Copenhagen

In the canon of design, one region stands apart – defined by a visual identity as distinctive as it is sought after: Scandinavia. Following the early 20th century, the Nordic countries became known for marrying modern industrial design with social-democratic ideals, producing objects that were simple, functional and affordable – and which continue to command an outsized place in the design conversation today.

Denmark remains a particular bastion of this tradition. The country industrialised later than many European counterparts, and traditional craftsmanship retained its influence even as modernism took hold, yielding a design sensibility that achieves something rare: minimalism with warmth. That influence has since permeated broader visual culture, felt in everything from Apple's product philosophy to the aesthetic of contemporary apartments, cafés and interiors worldwide.

The Danish design boom of the 1930s to 1960s gave rise to a remarkable generation of studios and manufacturers – many still deeply relevant today – responsible for some of the most classic objects of the last century. Ahead of 3 Days of Design 2026, running in Copenhagen from 10-12 June, we turn to the stalwarts of Danish design.

Carl Hansen & Søn 

Founded in 1908 in Odense, Denmark, Carl Hansen & Søn is perhaps best known for producing Hans Wegner's evergreen ‘Wishbone’ chair, which has remained in continuous production since 1950; other celebrated Wegner pieces include the ‘Shell’ chair and ‘CH25’ lounge chair. A champion of sustainably sourced wood and traditional craftsmanship, the brand's catalogue reads like a greatest hits of Danish modernism.

Fritz Hansen 

Established in Copenhagen in 1872, Fritz Hansen has achieved the feat of turning furniture into cultural artefacts – foremost among them, perhaps, are Arne Jacobsen's ‘Egg’ and ‘Series 7’ chairs. The brand collaborates with architects and designers to create icons found across the world – in airports, offices and living rooms – among the most recognisable objects of the 20th century. Piet Hein, Bruno Mathsson and Arne Jacobsen's ‘Superellipse’ table remains a masterclass in collaborative design, while Jaime Hayon's ‘Ro’ chair is a welcome addition to the roster.

Gubi

Gubi occupies a glamorous, slightly more maximalist corner of Danish design, making it a top choice for interiors that call for personality alongside elegance. Founded in 1967 by Gubi Olsen and Lisbeth Olsen, the Copenhagen-based brand helped revive the furniture of Mathieu Matégot, as well as produced the ‘Masculo’ chair by GamFratesi and the ‘Multi-Lite’ pendant by Louis Weisdorf. The catalogue has since grown to include the ‘Bestlite’ lighting collection by Robert Dudley Best and Matégot's ‘Tropique’ chair.

&Tradition 

Founded in Copenhagen in 2010, &Tradition stewards classics by the likes of Verner Panton, Viggo Boesen and Flemming Lassen while simultaneously championing emerging talent, harbouring a curatorial approach that respects heritage without being beholden to it. Panton’s ‘Flowerpot’ lamp is possibly among the most recognisable pieces in the collection, accompanied by classics like Arne Jacobsen’s ‘Bellevue’ lamp, Boesen’s ‘Little Petra’ chair and Anderssen & Voll’s ‘Inland’ sofa.

Louis Poulsen 

When it comes to Danish lighting, one name stands above the rest. Louis Poulsen has been shaping the meaning of light since 1874, but it was the brand's partnership with architect Poul Henningsen that sent it stratospheric – the resulting ‘PH’ series, engineered to minimise glare, remains one of the most sophisticated lighting systems ever devised. Verner Panton's ‘Panthella’ lamp and Arne Jacobsen's ‘AJ’ floor lamp round out an extraordinary archive. Based in Copenhagen, the brand continues to work with leading designers to produce luminaires that treat light as an architectural material.

Fredericia

Founded in 1911 in the Danish town of the same name, Fredericia is a furniture house with a roster that’s grounded, tactile and human – favouring longevity over trend-chasing. It includes Børge Mogensen's ‘Spanish’ chair, a rugged piece that has lost none of its authority since 1958, as well as key pieces from Hans Wegner and Nanna Ditzel. More recently, Space Copenhagen's ‘Palette’ and ‘Spine’ collections have added a compelling contemporary layer.

House of Finn Juhl 

The designer Finn Juhl arguably introduced Danish modernism to America, and this Copenhagen house exists to honour and preserve his body of work. Every piece – from the ‘Pelican’ chair to the ‘Chieftain’ – is produced with total adherence to Juhl's original vision, using the materials and techniques he specified. These are poetic objects, each as much sculpture as furniture, with upholstery floating free of the frame, as was Juhl's style.

Georg Jensen 

Since silversmith Georg Jensen opened his Copenhagen workshop in 1904, the brand has been synonymous with jewellery and homeware inspired by natural forms, which feel alive rather than geometric. The ‘Blossom’ pitcher, ‘Acorn’ cutlery, ‘Bernadotte’ serving collection and Henning Koppel pitcher are among its most beloved works, each underpinned by handcraft and material excellence.

When Børsen, Copenhagen's historical former stock exchange, caught fire in 2024, locals looked in despair as one of the city's oldest and most revered structures – dating from the 17th century – went up in flames, including its instantly recognisable dragon-shaped spire. Two years on, and Dansk Erhverv, the Danish Chamber of Commerce, is now offering a rare view into the construction site, where teams are hard at work repairing the much-loved city monument. A new visitor centre has just opened at the Børsen site, designed by local architecture studio JAC.

Explore the Børsen visitor centre in Copenhagen

The centre takes the form of a space made of 15 industrial containers, linked up together. The resulting interior contains an exhibition, telling the story of the Børsen, the works and findings, as well as the different crafts and skills involved in its restoration – while hinting at the project's future. The project engages with specialists on all the materials in the scheme's original palette, from brick and sandstone to copper and timber.

Indeed, 'Materiality plays a central role in the exhibition,' the architects explain. 'Steel cut from the stacked containers remains exposed and forms displays for architectural models and drawings. Bespoke furniture incorporates fragments recovered from the fire, alongside timber seating elements that reference the warm interiors of the building.

'Visitors encounter the building’s material history directly. Around 40 per cent of the original bricks from Børsen have been cleaned and prepared for reuse, while large quantities of iron fittings and architectural fragments are being carefully documented and restored for reintegration into the building. Many of the sandstone sculptures from the façade also survived the fire and will return to their original positions as part of the reconstruction.'

Importantly, large openings in the containers' sides reveal broad views of the building site surrounding the visitor centre. This way, guests can experience and directly compare old and new, conceptual and the real, day-to-day goings-on at a busy construction site.

Specialising in architecture, scenography and art, JAC studios was the perfect design partner to orchestrate this coexistence. The practice's past works include the Wadden Sea Centre exhibition in Denmark and the Royal Armory Museum at the Stockholm Royal Castle in Sweden.

jacstudios.dk

Copenhagen is indisputably a global design hub, so it should come as no surprise that aesthete travellers head to the Danish capital to feed their senses. Days (and weeks) can be spent swooning through design stores and art galleries, running your hands over tactile textiles, and filling your belly at some of the best bakeries in the world. Whether you’re taking on the city by bicycle or seeking out smørrebrød (or both!), there’s something for everyone and anyone who likes to eat well, shop sustainably, and draw a new source of sartorial inspiration.

With the city’s design DNA and reverence for beauty, it’s no surprise that Copenhagen lays claim to some of the architecturally most interesting and thoughtfully restored hotels in the world. To make the most of your time in the creative capital, make sure to rest your head in one of these considered and artful properties. That way, even your sweet dreams will be design-minded.

Where to stay in Copenhagen

Hotel d’Angleterre

First established in 1755, the 250-year-old Hotel d’Angleterre underwent an extensive refurbishment by C.F. Møller Architects in 2013 to restore the famed property to its former glory. Lovingly called ‘The White Lady on Kongens Nytorv,’ this truly opulent hotel is located in the city square in central Copenhagen and is home to the Michelin-starred restaurant Marchal, as well as a champagne bar, patisserie, and spa. With 55 out of the 92 rooms being suites and each room complete with a delightful mix of age-old antiques, ornate chandeliers, elaborate cornicings, and bathed in sumptuous velvets and brocades all in muted tones, there’s no way to stay here without feeling like royalty.

Hotel d’Angleterre is located at Kongens Nytorv 34, 1050

Hotel Bella Grande

From the hospitality team behind Coco Hotel came the 109-room, Venetian-inspired Hotel Bella Grande that opened in January 2025 – a true standout among the many more muted Scandinavian design hotels. Designed in a collaboration between Cofoco and Danish interior design studio Tonen, the inspiration for the property was an Italian Palazzo. The atrium and restaurant are bathed in pops of pink and rich reds and are an indulgent maximalist space, while the guest rooms are more pared back in palette and calming. ‘We started with a historic building and created a new and classic hotel with a touch of 1980s references thrown into the design,’ says Christian Lytje, founder of Cofoco. ‘Guests have an “Ahhh” moment when they step into the hotel’s soaring atrium, which is a lively and colourful place.’

Hotel Bella Grande is located at Vester Voldgade 23, 1552

Coco Hotel

According to owner Christian Lytje, Coco Hotel was created with the belief that great hospitality can be beautiful, affordable and sustainable ‘It’s like a small Parisian-style hotel with a Copenhagen sense of space and time – modern and classic, vintage and new,’ says Lytje, who opened the hotel in 2020. Located in the buzzy Vesterbro neighbourhood, the 88-room hotel’s lobby and cafe have been embraced by locals as a go-to hangout for both the day and night. The rooms are bright and contemporary with pops of colour, be it an emerald wall or patterned throw blanket, and the luckiest guests will have a room overlooking the luscious, leafy courtyard at the hotel’s heart.

Coco Hotel is located at Vesterbrogade 41, 1620

Hotel Hans

The first commercial hospitality interior project by Norrøn Architects, Hotel Hans may be one of the city’s most recent openings, but it is undoubtedly among its most design-led. Housed in a red-brick building from 1900 by architect Emil Blichfeldt, the hotel marries the aesthetic of two contrasting neighbourhoods: Nørrebro’s creativity and Frederiksberg’s serenity. An Alpi Verdi green terrazzo grid visually unifies the interior and exterior spaces, while floor-to-ceiling openings maximise daylight and views. Throughout, the hotel features bespoke furniture by Norrøn, alongside pieces from Fredericia Furniture, Carl Hansen & Søn and Møbel. A monumental courtyard sculpture anchors the outdoor space, courtesy of design duo Pettersen & Hein. Across the 91 rooms and suites, dark green ceilings, sage-toned walls and bespoke lacquered side tables, desks and cabinets reinterpret 19th-century craft traditions. The atmosphere extends into the warm tones of the Mediterranean-inspired in-house restaurant Bolo.

Hotel Hans is located at Åboulevard 29, 1960

Kanalhuset

Kanalhuset, the 260-year-old, canalside hotel in Christianshavn – owned by the founders of Flying Tiger – has had many past lives. First as an orphanage for young boys and then as the Royal Naval Hospice, all adding to the storied patina of the property’s current use as a colourful, community-driven apartment hotel. The building (which dates to 1754) was given a new lease of life by design studio EEN and opened in 2021 as a layered and cheerful space in keeping with classic Danish design from the 1930s-60s. Each room is unique – the result of EEN’s careful sourcing and scouring of flea markets – and adds to the property’s un-hotel-like feel, made even more homely by the lack of a reception desk and daily communal dinners welcome to locals and hotel guests alike.

Kanalhuset is located at Overgaden Oven Vandet 62A, 1415

Nimb Hotel

The 38-room Nimb Hotel stands in Tivoli Gardens, one of the world’s oldest amusement parks, built in 1843, and the sprawling 1,300 sq m roof terrace, complete with plunge pool, offers arguably the best views of the park possible (and ride passes for all hotel guests!). The original Moorish-inspired building by architect Knud Arne-Petersen harks back to 1909 and has undergone several notable renovations, one in 2007 by Italian architect Matteo Thun to restore the facade and another in 2017 by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners to add 21 new rooms. ‘Our ambition with Nimb was to design a hotel that defies time – a space so profoundly original and quality-driven it simply refuses to fade,’ says Nimb’s interior curator, René Jasper, of the interiors that combine antiques from Denmark, England, and Belgium with art from around the world. Make sure to leave time in your itinerary to spend a few hours in Nimb’s impressive spa, which is complete with a Moroccan hammam and steam area.

Nimb Hotel is located at Bernstorffsgade 5, 1577

Nobis Hotel

Located in the heart of the city centre, the 75-room Nobis Hotel is a stone’s throw from Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen Central Station, and the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek art museum. ‘When I first saw the 1903 property, I was struck by an immediate sense of awe,’ says Nobis owner, Alessandro Catenacci, of the former Royal Danish Conservatory of Music – originally designed by Martin Bloch – that contains marble staircases, lofty ceilings, intricate stucco work and graceful balustrades. All such details were preserved in the building’s thoughtful renovation by famed Swedish architect Gert Wingårdh in 2017. The project blended Danish classicism with Swedish sensibility to create the ultimate luxury city hotel with all of the latest amenities, including a fitness centre and spa with sauna and cold plunge.

Nobis Hotel is located at Niels Brocks Gade 1, 1574

Hotel Sanders

The 54-room Hotel Sanders is tucked away on an unassuming side street right off Kongens Nytorv, which makes walking into the hotel’s charming lobby all the more surprising. ‘Entering Sanders is like stepping into a theatre,’ says renowned ballet dancer-turned-hotelier, Alexander Kølpin, who opened the hotel in 2017. ‘Guests will always remain centre stage, but the carefully curated interiors will be the elegant and exquisite backdrop for their experience.’ Designed by British design firm Lind + Almond, the interiors weave the best of Dutch mid-century with British colonialism, infused with a touch of Paris. The result is a layered and characterful space best enjoyed in the glow of candlelight at the cocktail bar or perched in front of the lobby’s numerous fireplaces. Hotel Sanders is unpretentious, intimate, and a favourite among Copenhagen’s most style-minded visitors.

Hotel Sanders is located at Tordenskjoldsgade 15, 1055

Hotel SP34

In the heart of Copenhagen’s bohemian Latin Quarter, Hotel SP34 is a bijou bolthole balancing mid-century and contemporary Nordic design. Home to 118 rooms and suites, guests can choose from intimate single bedrooms to penthouse suites with private balconies or a rooftop terrace. Formerly known as Hotel Fox, Brøchner Hotels (the group behind city hotspots Hotel Danmark and Hotel Astoria) tapped Danish architect and designer Morten Hedegaard to dress the sumptuously snug interiors with local furnishings and finishes, including moulded wood and caramel leather headboards, bespoke ceiling lights by Rubn, and an adaptation of the Hans Wegner Rope Chair design. The hotel’s buzzy restaurants include Vækst, which focuses on Nordic flavours, the American diner Cocks and Cows, and Din Nye Ven, an authentic neighbourhood coffee house.

Hotel SP34 is located at Sankt Peders Stræde 34, 1453

Villa Copenhagen

The former Post Office building was thoughtfully brought back to life by Goddard Littlefair and Universal Design Studio in 2019 to create a space that was contemporary, uncluttered and calming. This property, which became the 390-room Villa Copenhagen, was originally built in 1912 in the Neo-Baroque style, which provides an interesting counterpoint to the pared-back contemporary Danish interiors meant to make guests feel like they’re at home. Guest rooms blend brushed chrome finishes with oak parquet floors, with special touches like customised Louis Poulsen desk lamps and Finn Juhl armchairs. For the colour palette, Universal Design Studio looked to the paintings by Wilhelm Hammershøi to infuse the space with ‘sludgy grey-green, dark brick-red, and ochre.’

Villa Copenhagen is located at Tietgensgade 35, 39, 1704

The Iconic Nordic House is a triumphant survey of some of the most spectacular houses built in the last century, taking the reader on a journey from Carl and Karin Larsson’s eccentrically colourful and warm Arts and Crafts domesticity through to the gravity-defying landscape artefacts that define the Scandinavian house in the modern era.

Explore ‘The Iconic Nordic House’

Written by indefatigable chronicler of contemporary architecture and Wallpaper* contributor Dominic Bradbury, with all-new photography by his regular collaborator Richard Powers, The Iconic Nordic House features 40 defining projects from Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland, as well as homes located on Iceland and the Faroe Islands.

Nordic design never really lost its inspirational power, and the assembled structures show why. From Carlsson and Josef Frank, through Gunnar Asplund, Eliel Saarinen, Arne Jacobsen, Alvar Aalto, Jørn Utzon, Sverre Fehn, Finn Juhl and more, the book includes some of the best-known examples of residential design by these influential 20th-century architects. Bradbury traces the origins of these key projects and interviews many of the contemporary architects.

Landscape plays just as much a creative role as the architects, with projects alternatively hunkering down and being absorbed by their surroundings or standing tall and contrasting with the wilderness. Both approaches can be found in the book, from Matti Suuronen’s pop icon, the Futuro House, to Studio Granda’s Hof House in Iceland, a low-lying assemblage of green roofs, weathered oak and dark volcanic stone.

It would take a heart of stone not to identify a single personal domestic dream space within these pages, testament to both the photographic craftsmanship of powers and the enduring quality of these forty examples of unique, idiosyncratic design.

'The Iconic Nordic House: Modern Masterworks since 1900,' Dominic Bradbury, with photographs by Richard Powers, £50/$65, ThamesandHudsonUSA.com

Dorte Mandrup’s Wadden Sea World Heritage Centre, the Danish architect’s second work within the Unesco-protected region, connects landscape, science and emotion in a spiral of movement on the Netherlands’ northern shores. It’s located in Lauwersoog, a little-known coastal community, just north of Groningen, with a palpable sense of rhythm. Between the brackish calm of the man-made Lauwersmeer lake and the tidal expanse of the Wadden Sea, the Dutch harbour village sits where land, water and sky blur into one another.

The recently completed project consists of a sculptural timber spiral rising from the water surface. Both a building and a landscape, it is a place of movement, observation and return, and forms part of a family of structures, including the Wadden Sea Centre in Ribe, Denmark (completed in 2017), and the soon-to-be-finished Wadden Sea World Heritage Visitor Centre in Wilhelmshaven, Germany. Together, they form a trilogy exploring humankind’s fragile relationship with this immense intertidal world – the largest of its kind on the planet, stretching across the coasts of Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands.

Explore Dorte Mandrup's second Wadden Sea centre

‘It’s fascinating,’ says Mandrup. ‘The Wadden Sea is one continuous system, yet it changes as you move from Denmark to Germany and the Netherlands. The landscape looks the same from above, but what lies beneath it – culturally, historically, emotionally – is always different.’ If the origami-like Ribe centre folds the flat Danish landscape upward, Lauwersoog brings the idea of a spiral or a twist, inspired by the rhythm of the tides and the turning of the harbour.

Unlike more conventional museums, it functions as both an exhibition and a field station. This is a place of cohabitation, where scientists, conservationists, volunteers and visitors share space and knowledge. Behind the walls, researchers can observe the Wadden Sea’s microscopic life; in adjacent tanks, rescued seals undergo treatment before returning to the water. The idea is to encourage empathy not through spectacle, but through proximity.

‘The architecture creates a physical and curatorial journey,’ says Mandrup. ‘Visitors move past laboratories and recovery areas, seeing the seals as they progress from treatment to being released back into the wild.’ The permeability between frontstage and backstage is intentional. ‘You can witness research and care as it happens,’ says the architect. ‘It makes the experience of the Wadden Sea more tangible. It’s about understanding that we are part of the same system.’

A sloping path leads visitors from the harbour to an open reception hall and the exhibition, laboratories and rehabilitation areas beyond. The journey culminates on a rooftop terrace with a 360-degree panorama where land, water and sky converge. Mandrup notes that the project, originally conceived as a raised structure on stilts, gradually settled onto the ground through years of local negotiations. Yet the idea of movement – of ‘rising and turning with the water’ – remained a constant. ‘It’s about movement on a physical and psychological level,’ she says. ‘A building that lets you understand the landscape by moving through it.’

Much of Mandrup’s recent work takes place in what she calls ‘the edges’; places where nature and culture overlap, where human intervention meets raw geography. From The Whale in Andenes, Norway, to the Ilulissat Icefjord Centre in Greenland, her architecture is a dialogue between shelter and exposure, intimacy and vastness. ‘The periphery is never static,’ she says. ‘There’s a constant negotiation between what is cultivated and what is wild. Architecture can’t control it – it can only make us aware of it.’

In Lauwersoog, that awareness is amplified by context. The centre sits at a literal and symbolic threshold: between the productive harbour with its fishing vessels, and the protected sea, home to organisms, animals and migratory birds that travel thousands of kilometres each year. From the roof terrace, one can trace the horizon through farmland and wetlands to the open sea – a continuous gradient of human and more-than-human worlds.

If the building’s movement evokes the tide, its material palette speaks of endurance. Timber, glass and steel are layered with restraint; the composition quiet, almost austere. ‘When a building works, its story is usually quite easy to grasp,’ Mandrup says. ‘That clarity allows complexity to unfold naturally. You sense both the human and the more-than-human. The building becomes a bridge – not an object in the landscape, but a way of seeing it.’

Inside, the atmosphere shifts from the grounded tones of the harbour to the light-infused upper spaces. As in all Mandrup’s projects, craftsmanship is inseparable from context: the detailing of joints, the rhythm of boards, the precise calibration of light. A façade of reclaimed and weatherproof basralocus wood, salvaged from a former military harbour in Kiel, bears the patina of salt, wind and time. More than 200 mooring posts were cleaned, cut and mounted to provide both solar shading and filtered glimpses of life inside. ‘The materials have lived a life before this one,’ says Mandrup. ‘They carry the story of the harbour and its culture. When you touch the façade, it’s like touching something that has travelled through decades of human use and exposure.’

As one reaches the end of the spiral, the view opens wide, with the Lauwersmeer behind and the Wadden Sea ahead. Standing there, one senses the building not as an object in the landscape, but as a lens through which to see it. ‘Architecture can’t create meaning from nothing,’ Mandrup reflects. ‘But it can point to the meeting of forces – where the human, the historical and the natural overlap.’

dortemandrup.dk

ontdekwec.nl

Creating a cluster of compact quasi- anthropomorphized devices seems to be a surefire way of attracting attention. Teenage Engineering’s Wallpaper* award-winning Choir is a case in point, as was the Little Signals concept project by Map Project Office and Google, and the robotic companion component in Layer’s Concept T suite for Deutsche Telekom.

Now Danish studio Swift Creatives is on the case, only this time there’s even more of an android element. Conjured up by the studio’s Innovation Lab, this trio of wooden bots – Beamer, Hover and Bot – combine richly crafted and turned Danish wood with subtle notification-activated motions.

These motions are intended to tug at our emotions, not alarm us with lights or vibration, with what the studio calls ‘Kinetic Tech’. Each of the three smart objects has its own motion, with tilting, twisting and nodding ‘heads’ that serve as a visual (and gentle audio) cue that something has happened – be it a message notification, a delivery or whatever you desire.

The three are compact (153mm for Beamer, 164 mm for Bot, and 170mm for Hover), designed to slot into shelves of ornaments or among desktop devices. With their soaped and smoked oak finish, Swift Creatives describe the bots as a blend of ‘Danish design tradition with embedded sensors and software’.

‘In Denmark, we’ve always had a strong tradition of craft and natural materials, thanks to the work of designers like Kay Bojesen,’ says lead designer Lars Lynggard, ‘These wooden bots extend that heritage into the connected age, making technology that children, parents, and even grandparents can welcome into their space.’

Swift Creatives incubated the project in the firm’s Innovation Lab, what it describes as an ‘internal playground for future thinking’. Every aspect of the designs, from initial concept designs to prototypes and the final beautifully crafted oak objects was done in house.

‘The Innovation Lab is all about staying curious, experimenting, and making ideas tangible,’ says Carsten Eriksen, the studio’s CEO Founder, ‘Beamer, Hover, and Bot are perfect examples of how a small concept can evolve into something that blends design, craft, and technology – and can also be warm, visible, and joyful at the same time.’

The Wooden Bots are concepts only. SwiftCreatives.com, @SwiftCreatives_story

Rains Amsterdam, the new flagship store of the Danish lifestyle brand, has just thrown open its doors in the Dutch city's trendy Canal district. The new space, created with Swedish multidisciplinary architecture studio Stamuli, is not only the company's biggest foray into the city and its first flagship, but also the debut of a new global concept for Rains – an interior that reimagines its retail expression and brings together the urban outerwear and accessories business's minimalist and utilitarian approach with a sense of contemporary playfulness.

Rains Amsterdam opens, with a joyful and unexpected interior

Just as with the company's main home, the Rains headquarters in Aarhus, Denmark, the retail concept is elegant, yet dynamic and full of potential. The space, which spans 123 sq m and two levels, including a generous, double-height shopfront main floor, was conceived as a place of experiences – taking the brand's architectural commercial expression to the next level.

In 'very simplistic terms, it is bigger and better', says Daniel Brix Hesselager, founder and CEO of Rains, who worked with Stamuli on stores in the past, but aligned with the practice this time to carve an entirely new take on space.

Emanuele Stamuli, CEO of Stamuli, explains that the new interior is composed of concrete, steel, glass, and textiles – all materials that are, in a sense, commonplace, as well as durable, clear and functional. They reflect the Rains products' ethos and the wider Scandinavian attitude carried within the brand. At the same time, through a fresh play between colour and pattern, the interior here becomes joyful and unexpected.

The Rains Amsterdam flagship is composed of continuous grids, bespoke furniture and an organic, yet industrial surface palette. Technology, such as LED installations on the ceiling depicting the feeling of an ever-changing sky, adds further dynamism to the whole, which is otherwise defined by a raw, almost brutalist feel, pleasantly disrupted by bold shapes and pops of colour.

'What really attracted us to Stamuli was that they have a more organic and more playful approach to retail design than we have had before,' says Brix Hesselager. 'We are rooted very much in strict, minimalistic Scandinavian aesthetics, which can, for some, appear “cold”.’ In this context, refreshing the Rains retail experience was much about balancing things – adding vibrancy to the space, without losing the brand's spirit.

At the same time, it is important to remember that these are 'boutiques', not just 'stores', stresses Stamuli. To achieve the distinction, the studio crafted three parts to the store to reflect the customer's retail journey. First comes the presentation of the collection (which is 'more about identity than lots of product', Stamuli explains). Then comes a deep dive into the collection, through browsing and engaging with it. Finally, the conclusion of the 'shopping ceremony' is the most intimate of all – trying the garments on. This procession helped create distinct areas in the interior.

'We wanted to create a natural flow and an environment that feels almost like an ancestral cave,' Stamuli adds. 'Something cocooning. We wanted straight lines and clean surfaces, but also more of a rough, organic environment, something that brings softness. This is the role of the furnishings and the circular openings. And then some visual elements, like the ceiling-mounted LED screens, can change the overall feel. It is important to us that we can renew and that the customer gets a new experience every time they enter.'

Rains Amsterdam will soon be followed by brand boutiques in Stockholm and Hamburg.

rains.com

In Copenhagen’s Refshaleøen neighbourhood, a simple 72 sq m greenhouse – previously the threshold guests crossed before entering Noma (René Redzepi’s three-Michelin-starred culinary sanctum) – has been transformed by OEO Studio into Noma Projects Flavor Shop.

The project presented a very contemporary challenge: how to translate flavour itself, and the laboratory mentality of one of the world’s most experimental kitchens, into physical form?

OEO Studio designs Noma Projects Flavor Shop

‘René was very specific about what he didn’t want,’ explains OEO Studio co-founder Thomas Lykke. ‘He didn’t want a traditional shop or café. He wanted something that captures the laboratory atmosphere, as well as the playfulness, the quirkiness, the nerdiness, and especially the energy of experimentation.’

The result is a study in contrasts, both material and conceptual. Where Noma the restaurant orchestrates a carefully timed sequential experience, the shop is more informal and invites browsing through the full pantry of Noma Projects and Noma Kaffe, to enjoy in the shop or to take home. In keeping with a particularly Danish sensibility that prizes substance over spectacle and practicality over decoration, there’s nothing performative here: OEO Studio has created a space that is simultaneously raw and refined, allowing the materials to speak without shouting.

Paradise granite from Bornholm anchors the material palette in three separate treatments: jet-burned, honed, and chiselled. ‘It’s the same stone, just treated differently,’ Lykke says. ‘You almost feel they are different stones. It’s a bit like how Noma treats raw ingredients to create flavour: depending on what you do with it, it has a distinct expression.’

The parallel between culinary and material transformation runs throughout: burnt bricks provide warmth, Douglas fir treated with linseed oil adds a subtle blue, and hairline stainless steel and brushed aluminium introduce a cooler, more technical and industrial touch.

Most striking, however, is the contradiction between high-tech circularity and traditional craft. Bespoke glass jars by Danish workshop Holmegaard Værk, designed with a laboratory finish but a hand-crafted feel, sit beneath Terra pendant lamps made from Matek, a sustainable material made of coffee shell and wood waste mixed with recycled e-waste.

‘We both have an obsession about the crafted feel in combination with technology,’ says Lykke, ‘and the contrast makes it interesting.’

The centrepiece is an extra-long display table, like a responsive scientific specimen presentation, softened thanks to OEO’s juxtaposition of warm, tactile materials against the cooler, more technical ones. A sculptural pendant with what Lykke describes as an atomic plant aesthetic adds an unexpectedly high-tech accent, its light creating an otherworldly glow.

However, the design’s most memorable aspect may be its newfound openness. The greenhouse reveals the garden, lake, and glimpses of Noma itself, marking a shift in how the restaurant engages with the city beyond its dining room. ‘It’s open to everybody. You can stroll by, go in, touch, go into the garden, have a coffee,’ Lykke says.

This accessibility represents a new chapter for Noma, one that reflects its continual evolution and inventive new coffee programme, which features six baristas and their own in-house roasting operation, as well as a fascinating selection of items from the Noma Projects pantry.

‘They’re taking coffee to the same level as their food,’ says Lykke.

Noma Projects Flavor Shop is open Tuesday-Sunday, 9 am to 6 pm, and until 7 pm on Fridays. It is located at Refshalevej 96, 1432 Indre By, Denmark.

Danish modernism, including the wealth of Danish modernist houses, represents a rich vein of the movement's 20th-century legacy. The country's architects and furniture designers, especially in the 1950s and 1960s, reached an extraordinary level of refinement in their work, combining centuries-long traditions, quality craftsmanship and a holistic vision that brought together functionality, materiality, open spaces and social purpose. Projects by architects such as Jørn Utzon, Arne Jacobsen, Jørgen Bo, Vilhelm Wohlert and Erik Christian Sørensen infused the minimalism of the International Style with the region's sensitive use of natural materials and a connection to the Danish landscape to spectacular effect.

Danish modernist houses: a brief history

The development of modernism in Denmark, and indeed wider Scandinavia, followed the movement's spread across France, Germany, the Netherlands and Czechoslovakia. The strong presence of Nordic classicism in the region in the first decades of the 20th century, and its use of brick, gradually shifted to more modern styles, as highlighted, for instance, in the work of Peder Vilhelm Jensen Klint (his Grundtvig's Church in Bispebjerg, completed in 1940, is an example). Modern expressions continued to evolve in the works of architects such as Kay Fisker, Wilhelm Lauritzen, Arne Jacobsen, Frits Schlegel and Mogens Lassen – and houses were a key component of this change.

During the 1930s, Danish functionalism was fully developed into the specific regional form often referred to as 'Funkis'. At that time, Jacobsen, Schlegel and Lassen started experimenting with replacing brick masonry with the white volumes of Le Corbusier's 'machines for living'. When the growing popularity of the country's vernacular-influenced structures marked a return to designing with bricks, wood and glass in abstracted horizontal forms in the postwar era, homes also evolved into what soon became the typical expression of the golden age of Danish 20th-century architecture. The genre, combining modernist architecture principles with warmth, tactility and a communion with nature, remains popular to this day. One of the movement's last living representatives, architect and designer Knud Holscher, passed away in June 2025.

Three Danish modernist houses to explore

Our contributor, architecture historian Adam Štěch, recently travelled to Copenhagen to document the late Knud Holscher’s groundbreaking house. The trio of homes below (one of which is Holcher's) pays homage to 20th-century Danish modernism and its contribution to residential architecture. The examples here showcase different approaches and the breadth found in the work of Danish modernist architects and their house designs.

Oscar Alfred Borum House (1930/31)

Frits Schlegel was one of the first architects in Denmark to use poured-in-situ concrete to build houses, as well as public buildings. Born in Frederiksberg, Copenhagen, in 1896, Schlegel was an instrumental figure in early 20th-century Danish architecture's transition from traditional to modern forms. Between 1916 and 1923, he studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and later worked for Danish modernist pioneers Edward Thomsen and Gudmund Nyeland Brandt.

While he worked with brick for an early project, the house for a judge and professor of Law at the University of Copenhagen, Schlegel moved to concrete later on. He set up his own studio in 1934 and mastered his concrete skills in the iconic Mariebjerg Chapel in 1936; the Girafe House in Copenhagen Zoo in 1939; and a private house at Bernstorffsvej 17 in Hellerup, north of Copenhagen.

Between 1930 and 1931, Schlegel designed the Oscar Alfred Borum House as a low cubic two-storey home, highlighting its horizontal form with roof overhangs and adjacent volumes. Schlegel’s design was influenced by the Dutch architecture of the time, most notably by Willem Marinus Dudok, and the organic approach of American Frank Lloyd Wright. Stepping through the main entrance, the interior is still kept in its authentic, pristine condition. Large windows bring enough light into the hallway, which features the original geometric handrails and stairs.

Schlegel designed most of the furniture and other interior elements from scratch. Gold-coloured tiles cover a free-standing fireplace in the middle of the living room, and three steps lead to the dining room, which is dominated by a wooden table featuring marquetry that represents an abstract map of the nearby streets, including a portrait of the house itself. Originally, the walls were covered with floral wallpaper. In 1934, Shlegel returned to his work and changed an open veranda into an enclosed winter garden.

Iver and Kirstine Jespersen House (1938)

Just like Frits Schlegel, architect Mogens Lassen – and his brother Fleming – was among the pioneers of Danish modernism. Lassen was born in 1901 into the artistic family of painters. He also studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Arts before working in various architecture studios, including the one run by functionalist Tyge Hvass. An important milestone in his career was his stay in Paris between 1927 and 1928, where he worked for the Danish construction company Christiani & Nielsen.

During his stay, he came across the work of Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret, which had a huge influence on his later work. As a result, Lassen designed several private houses during the 1930s using concrete and Le Corbusier’s construction principles, including pilotis, roof terraces, strip windows, and open-plan living spaces. Influenced by the rise of more organic approaches in architecture at the end of the 1930s, Lassen designed Iper Iversen House, one of the most imaginative and playful Danish modernist structures.

Built for publisher Iver Jespersen and his wife, psychologist Kirstine, the house completes a row of modernist dwellings on Sølystvej Street. For the Iver and Kirstine Jespersen House, Lassen divided the structure into volumes of different shapes and connected them, following the curve of the gently sloping site. Each of the three main volumes has a different roof, from flat to pitched and vaulted, and covers different zones and functions of the house.

The main living area sits beneath the sloping roof and opens up as a double-height, flowing space. In reality, the living and dining rooms are divided spatially by a simple, streamlined suspended staircase, reminiscent of a ship ladder. Organic features are also seen throughout, such as in a beautifully curved brick fireplace. In 1947, Jespersens commissioned designer Finn Juhl to create a series of furniture pieces for the house, including a free-form coffee table and a curved built-in sofa. The house, which is a protected historical monument, is now for sale.

Knud Holscher House (early 1970s)

At the end of June 2025, Denmark bid farewell to one of its last great modernists: architect and industrial designer Knud Holscher, who passed away peacefully in the house he designed for himself in the early 1970s. Born in 1930, Holscher trained under some of the most influential figures of Danish modernism, including Erik Christian Sørensen and Arne Jacobsen. In 1960, he joined Jacobsen’s office and, two years later, moved to England to oversee the construction of St. Catherine’s College. Upon returning to Copenhagen, he became a partner at the renowned architecture firm Krohn & Hartvig Rasmussen (KHRAS).

During this period, he designed his own home in Holte, north of Copenhagen – a project that would become both personal retreat and design manifesto. The house is a study in refined simplicity. Two long brick walls embrace an open, double-height living space, creating both shelter and direction. At one end, a full-height glass façade opens the room to the pond and garden, dissolving the boundary between house and landscape. A glass façade opening guides the gaze toward a tranquil pond and garden.

In the home, Holscher’s dual passions for architecture and industrial design merge seamlessly. Exposed brick walls contrast with crisp white tile surfaces, while metal stairs and handrails create a sense of lightness. The stainless-steel kitchen counters and sleek aluminium cabinetry add a cool, crisp quality to the interiors, reflecting Holscher’s dedication to functional elegance.

In 1995, at the age of 65, Holscher founded his own industrial design studio, further cementing his legacy as one of Denmark’s most prolific designers. He also taught at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, where he became a professor of design in 1994, consistently championing a holistic ethos of 'good design' – whether for a building or a teacup. Today, his house stands as a testament to his well-rounded approach to design, a minimalist celebration of everyday life, and a reminder of the enduring strength of his vision.

Copenhagen Architecture Biennial 2025 – the global event's inaugural edition – launches this September (running until 18 October) under the theme 'Slow Down'. Organised by CAFx (Copenhagen Architecture Forum) with support from a host of bodies, including LINA European Architecture Platform and the Obel Award among others, and led by Josephine Michau, curator of the Danish Pavilion at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2023, the survey of work on show offers a spectrum of spatial responses to the ‘Great Acceleration’ – a period in history characterised by unprecedented growth and energy consumption. The projects displayed look at opportunities for deceleration and de-growth within the construction industry as a response to ecological collapse.

Copenhagen Architecture Biennial 2025 says: 'Slow Down'

A central group show underpins this thesis, exploring options and design solutions. It is located in the Halmtorvet 27 cultural hub, and from there, visitors are invited to explore the city through a series of additional installations, projects and activations around the main theme.

At one end of the scale, a 28 sq m pavilion – aptly titled Slow Pavilion – by emerging architects Slaatto Morsbøl at Søren Kierkegaard Plads reuses a palette of discarded materials – brick, timber and thatch – in a way that repackages them in a fresh way.

Sourced from various demolition sites in Greater Copenhagen, a simple timber frame structure is infilled with bricks to form both walls and floors. The perforated brick, a common and ubiquitous sight in the city, is cut in half. This not only doubles the quantity of material available but also reveals a textured interior which the architects deploy in various inventive ways. The flooring shows the brick mortared in a traditional way to create the effect of a tiled floor. The walls show the brick in use as infill in its natural state. There is an educational capacity to the pavilion in communicating the different expressions of a material.

The theme of slowness is embedded in both the pavilion’s construction and the intent for users to engage with it. Bricks were cut in half by hand, the thatching reed was sorted by length and sewn onto fabric strips, which were then fastened to the roof modules. The act of cutting to expose what is hidden extends to the reclaimed ventilation pipes, which are cut in half to form a scalloped roof profile.

All of this constitutes an interrogation of standard construction processes predicated on speed. The suspension of reed from the ceiling, contrary to its natural locus in the ground, and the unorthodox presentation of brick, engage the visitors in a sensory experience, challenging conventional industry aesthetics.

‘By highlighting the imperfections and inconsistencies of used materials, we aim to show that these qualities can be a strength, not a shortcoming. There is richness and character in what has already had a life, and we believe that can shape a more thoughtful, resource-aware architecture,’ explain Slaatto Morsbøl’s founders, Thelma Slaatto and Cecilie Morsbøl.

At the other end of the scale is Thoravej 29, a former 1967 factory building repurposed to house a mix of galleries, cafés and workspaces. Here, the concept of reuse is pushed with the added ambition that any excavation or demolition waste is to be reincorporated into the outcome as much as possible. The brief, which called for a vertical connection between existing floors, necessitated that cut-outs be fitted into the design. So, rather than discard the cut-out elements, the team retained and positioned them at angles to form supports for new staircases, embracing an architecture of subtraction.

There is a new energy created in this vocabulary where familiar building elements – walls, doors, floors – are adapted to perform new roles that are unfamiliar. The new stairs, clearly recognisable as the former ribbed slab, engage visitors to look again and refamiliarize themselves with a space they had grown accustomed to. Elsewhere, old façades are reinstated as pavement, and doors become furniture, continuing this material transformation of states.

‘Each layer of the structure, even those traditionally deemed insignificant, is regarded as an asset, culminating in 95 per cent of the existing material to be retained and repurposed within the building itself,' explains Søren Pihlmann, founder at Pihlmann architects, the practice behind the project.

What these projects – and more across town – offer is a compendium of approaches. From the incremental work of small-scale practitioners to large-scale commercial projects, the perception of limitation traditionally associated with reuse of existing materials, resources and structure is recast as a generative tool, unlocking the parameters of spatial possibility towards new architectural expressions.

Daylight, natural materials and greenery are key to mental health and patient recovery, which is why they are found in abundance at the new Centre for Health in Copenhagen. The building was designed by Dorte Mandrup, the Danish architect heading her eponymous studio, which is renowned for its human-centred approach.

Step inside a pioneering health centre in Copenhagen

The Copenhagen-based practice's award-winning projects, ranging from a tiny Read Nest Cabin in a private garden to Denmark's Wadden Sea visitor centre, a contemporary take on the humble thatched barn perfectly adapted to Jutland’s vast landscapes, are now joined by this cathedral-like building featuring an impressive central nave with 15m-high timber arches.

Commissioned by the City of Copenhagen to meet the growing demand for the rehabilitation and treatment of people suffering from lifestyle-related diseases, including type-2-diabetes and heart diseases, the centre is located at the entrance of De Gamles By, ‘the City of the Elderly’, a retirement complex in the capital’s Nørrebro district.

Originally built in 1892 as a hospital and care home, the village-like area has long been synonymous with care, health and wellbeing, its red-brick buildings now also housing a variety of community services. Although it draws inspiration from the district’s gable motifs and saddle roofs, the new health centre is resolutely contemporary, its softly curved metal and glass form opening towards a garden.

The entrance atrium, with its series of 15m-high glulam arches, is known as the Heart Room, connecting to the building’s ‘circulatory system’ and linking together the different spaces, including classrooms, areas for physical training, consultation rooms, open meeting spaces, and a kitchen for healthy cooking workshops.

A large wooden staircase with integrated seating forms a meeting place in the central atrium where people can gather and interact with each other, enabling spontaneous, impromptu activities and social encounters.

‘An important consideration has been to ensure room for interaction and community as having this sense of belonging and togetherness is a crucial part of making treatment more accessible, engaging and supportive, and thus encourage long-term changes,’ says studio founder Dorte Mandrup.

Despite their generous size, the light-filled interior spaces are cosy and calming, thanks to the use of exposed wooden cladding on the walls and ceilings. As well as being aesthetically pleasing, the wooden surfaces also help enhance indoor air quality and reduce stress.

‘With Centre for Health, we wanted to create a space that not only contributes to improving the quality of life for the people receiving treatment but actively nudges and empowers them towards a healthier lifestyle.’

dortemandrup.dk

A new tiny church in Denmark is intended to reimagine contemporary sacred space. The small, 12-sided wooden building was designed by Danish architect Julius Nielsen, who was selected from over 100 entries in a 2023 design competition, initiated by Hans Egedes Parish and the Church Foundation. The project, completed in collaboration with timber flooring manufacturer Dinesen, has just opened its doors. The modest 75 sq m Tiny Church Tolvkanten can be found in Copenhagen’s North Harbour district.

Inside Tiny Church Tolvkanten

The religious building's interior is honest and raw. It has been entirely crafted from wood and steps away from the stone and iconography found in many of Denmark's traditional churches. Its timber construction and scale also mean it has been hailed as Denmark’s second most sustainable building (the project's Life Cycle Assessment has found it produces a mere 2.8 kg CO₂e/m²/year meaning it has a very low carbon footprint).

The floors, altar and font are made from Douglas fir, while offcuts have been repurposed for skirtings and door reveals. The floorplan is arranged in a web-like pattern, which is framed by a central skylight, making for a warm, yet spacious environment.

Nielsen’s goal was to deliver a new approach to the traditional church concept. The idea was to expand on what a church is perceived to be, making it more than a place of worship, but also an area for concerts, yoga and community dinners, for example. In addition, the building's modular design allows it to be dismantled and relocated.

‘Tiny Church Tolvkanten blends modest scale with meticulous attention to detail,’ says Nielsen. ‘Unlike traditional churches that use symbols and sacred images, this sanctuary looks inward. Its sacred essence is instead derived from the architecture, carefully chosen materials, and the gentle filtering of daylight. The high-quality Douglas fir floor, with its thoughtfully positioned boards and rich textures, creates a warm and resonant atmosphere, imbuing the space with depth.’

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Few designers have shaped both the skyline and the domestic landscape as profoundly as Arne Jacobsen (1902–71). The Danish architect and designer is remembered not only for modernist landmarks such as Copenhagen’s SAS Royal Hotel but also for furniture, lighting and objects that have become part of everyday life, from chairs to cutlery. More than half a century after their debut, Jacobsen’s designs continue to define the language of modern living – quietly radical in their time, yet still relevant today.

His design philosophy, centred on the concept of total design – a harmonious integration of architecture, furniture and interior elements, was guided by functionalism and simplicity, ensuring that it was accessible and enduring. He believed that form follows function, and that good design is essential to a good quality of life, emphasising proportion and the seamless combination of materials to create unified, human-centred environments. Now, as Prestel launches a new monograph exploring his work, we reflect on Jacobsen’s career and the events that shaped it.

Between architecture and design: who was Arne Jacobsen?

Jacobsen's early life and education

Born in 1902 into a middle-class Jewish family in Copenhagen, Jacobsen originally dreamed of becoming a painter. His father, a wholesaler, persuaded him to pursue the more stable path of architecture. After a stint as an apprentice stone mason, he enrolled at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in 1924, where he produced his first pieces of furniture. His professors included Kaare Klint, regarded as the father of Danish modernism, and Kay Fisker, one of Denmark’s leading functionalist architects, who instilled in Jacobsen a disciplined approach to proportion and material.

In 1925, aged just 23, Jacobsen worked with Fisker on the Danish pavilion for the Paris World Fair, where he won a silver medal for a wickerwork design known as the Paris Chair – an early example of his natural flair for sculptural form.

Family and travels

Two years later, Jacobsen married Marie Jelstrup Holm, with whom he had two sons, Johan and Niels. He established his own studio in 1929 and began to explore the idea of total design. Travels with Marie across Europe proved to be a rich source of inspiration: everywhere they went, Jacobsen painted watercolours and took experimental photographs, capturing the nature and architecture around them. These studies would continue to inform his practice throughout his career.

Civic commissions and ‘total design’

In the early 1940s, Jacobsen completed two significant public buildings: Aarhus City Hall, designed with Erik Møller, and Søllerød Town Hall, in collaboration with Flemming Lassen. In both, the architects took responsibility for the interiors as well as the architecture – designing everything from furniture and lighting to bathroom fittings, door handles and signage. This holistic approach cemented Jacobsen’s reputation as a designer of complete environments.

It was during the Søllerød commission that Jacobsen met his second wife, Jonna Møller, a textile printer who produced fabrics for the project. They married in 1943 and developed a creative partnership, with Jonna helping to translate Jacobsen’s botanical studies and watercolours into textile patterns.

Jacobsen the botanist

That same year, as a Dane of Jewish descent, Jacobsen was forced to flee Nazi-occupied Denmark. He and Jonna lived in exile in Sweden until 1945, where their creative collaboration deepened. Jacobsen continued to paint botanical studies, many of which Jonna adapted into textiles that were put into production by Swedish department store Nordiska Kompaniet.

After returning to Denmark in 1945, the couple eventually settled at Strandvejen 413 in Klampenborg (1951), a home and studio Jacobsen designed for the family, complete with a botanical garden containing more than 300 plant species. His lifelong passion for botany inspired him to create buildings where architecture and nature are symbiotic, such as the Munkegaard School (1957), where every classroom opens onto its own garden, and St Catherine’s College in Oxford (1964), where he personally selected many of the trees and plantings to complement the modernist buildings.

Arne Jacobsen's legacy

Jacobsen’s influence extends far beyond his lifetime. His architecture and furniture continue to be reissued, studied and celebrated as milestones of modern design. The Arne Jacobsen Foundation preserves his archive and supports research into his work, ensuring his philosophy of total design remains visible to new generations. More than half a century on, Jacobsen’s creations still shape the way we live – proving that clarity, simplicity and a respect for human experience never lose their relevance.

SAS Royal Hotel

Jacobsen’s international breakthrough came with the SAS Royal Hotel in Copenhagen (1958–60), the world’s first design hotel. Commissioned by Scandinavian Airlines to symbolise postwar modernity and international travel, it was conceived as a 'gesamtkunstwerk' – a ‘total work of art’. Jacobsen designed not only the building but also the interiors, furniture and fittings – from the famous Egg and Swan chairs to cutlery, door handles and even ashtrays. While much of his interior scheme was later removed, Room 606 remains intact as a rare glimpse into his holistic vision, embodying his belief in complete, cohesive environments.

Other works by Arne Jacobsen

Beyond the SAS Royal, Jacobsen left his mark on education, housing and civic buildings. Early residential projects such as the Bauhaus-inspired Bellavista housing complex north of Copenhagen (1934) showcased his embrace of clean lines, light and sea views, bringing functionalism into everyday life. The Søholm housing development (1951–55) in Copenhagen’s Klampenborg suburb further demonstrated his skill at designing humane, light-filled homes. At Rødovre Town Hall (1952–56), one of his first major public commissions, he refined his modernist vocabulary into a civic context, with a focus on details that bear the hallmarks of industrial manufacturing.

At Munkegaard School in Copenhagen (1957), he balanced architecture with landscape, weaving courtyards and gardens into the learning environment. At St Catherine’s College, Oxford (1964), his first major project abroad, he created a modernist campus where buildings, furniture, textiles and planting formed a seamless whole. Finally, the National Bank of Denmark in Copenhagen (1961–71) revealed the same rigour on a monumental civic scale, with refined proportions and meticulous detailing. His approach consistently blurred the line between architecture, interiors and nature.

7 Arne Jacobsen designs to know (and own)

Further reading

The majestic National Gallery of Denmark's main building in Copenhagen dates back to the late 1800s and forms an essential part of the Danish capital's must-see visitor circuit. Its architectural pedigree includes a famous creator, Vilhelm Dahlerup (he designed it with technical assistance from Georg EW Møller), who is behind much of Copenhagen’s best-known architecture, such as Carlsberg’s famous Elephant Gate, the Glyptoteket and the Hotel d’Angleterre. Dahlerup's travels around Europe served as inspiration for many of his grand designs, and helped shape the city through the 19th century.

SMK, as the National Gallery is known by locals, was inspired by the Italian Renaissance, which was one of Dahlerup’s fascinations. It is also unique in that its architect insisted on using 'real' materials, such as marble, limestone and brick, as opposed to faux/concrete look-alikes used in many of his other works. As a result, the building is a feast for the senses, and that’s even before you start looking at the artworks within.

Explore the National Gallery of Denmark's newest venue

The choice of materials also plays a significant role in defining the architecture of the new branch of SMK, opening on 29 August 2025 in the tiny hamlet of Doverodde near the Thy Natural Park in the northern part of Jutland.

'Rather than build “out of nothing”, we built with what was already there – stone, timber, silence, wind,' explains Reiulf Ramstad, whose eponymous firm won the commission to design the new SMK Thy back in 2021, after SMK had secured a large donation from the AP Møller and Chastine McKinney Møller Foundation to realise a longtime dream of opening a branch outside of Copenhagen.

The site was already dotted with an eclectic mix of buildings. A beautiful old farmhouse from 1852, a huge three-storey brick warehouse from two years later, a 42m-tall grain silo from 1962, and a couple of more structures in different stages of dilapidation.

The farmhouse has been respectfully renovated and contains the museum café, administration and two apartments for use by artists and researchers. The silo, repainted and given a new grand Corten steel entrance, serves both as a viewing platform to enjoy the stunning surrounding nature and an exhibition space, containing three small display rooms.

The main exhibition space was originally planned to be built inside the old warehouse, but after a thorough investigation of the building, it was decided that the structural and architectural integrity wasn’t up to the high standards needed for a museum to show some of the most important works of 700 years of European art history. The warehouse was carefully torn down, but the bricks were saved, cleaned and reused for the exterior of the new building that took its place – using the exact same footprint and elevation as its predecessor.

'When we were invited to shape the new branch of the National Gallery, I immediately sensed that this project was not about imposing something onto a place. It was about responding to what was already there. About crafting a space where art and landscape, culture and community, could not only coexist but enhance one another,' says Ramstad about the decision to disturb the original architecture on the site as little as possible.

The architects also proposed expanding the scope of the renovation to include facilities that would accommodate outdoor experiences, such as a kayak hotel, fire pit shelters and even a dry dock with an adjacent workshop for a Viking Ship Guild already operating on the premises. These buildings are part of The Nature Village – a local initiative to bring nature and outdoor activities to the area – and close to the art exhibited at SMK Thy.

'Our visitors are invited to be present in the artwork, the architecture, and nature. We want to encourage visitors to spend time and be attentive. More broadly, I want to ensure that nature comes to play a significant role in our work in the future,' says Astrid La Cour, director of SMK.

The unpretentious and honest wood architecture of these structures frames the 19th-century farmhouse and the newly rebuilt warehouse in what really feels like a village atmosphere. Materials and elements, such as the massive trusses that carry the roof or the off-cut Dinesen Oak shingles used as cladding of the dry dock, are left exposed so visitors can marvel at the quality of the craftsmanship. Even the humble fire pit buildings have been clad in raw-edge oak planks in a testament to the project's 'quality', Ramsted says.

'I really believe that the more we talk about sustainability, the less sustainable it is. We should rather be talking about quality,' he explains. It is an approach clearly evident here in the reuse and selection of materials; in the careful placement of the new additional buildings; and, of course, in the idea of bringing some of Denmark’s most precious art to what might be perceived as the middle of nowhere.

Yet there is a thoughtful and poetic, full-circle moment in the National Gallery's move. Much of the Art in SMK’s vast 200,000-plus piece collection is precisely paintings of beautiful nature, such as the surrounding Thy National Park. Now some of that art will be going back to its origin.

'As a national cultural institution, we aim to be relevant outside the capital – not by becoming local, but by being present and engaged with local life,' explains La Cour. Just like the silo, dominantly visible on the horizon from far away, SMK Thy might just become a new cultural beacon for doing exactly this.

Youthful, smart, self-aware and a witty, snappy communicator, Bjarke Ingels is the embodiment of the second generation of global starchitects. If the first generation was dominated by figures perceived as occasionally difficult, occasionally obscure and enigmatic, from Rem Koolhaas and Jacques Herzog to Zaha Hadid and Frank Gehry, Ingels is something very different. Like his work, he is brash but accessible, shot through with humour, and he exudes a certain lightness of touch. Unlike all of those previously named starchitects, though, Ingels is yet to produce a masterpiece. Instead, he and his office, BIG, deposit striking, competent and arguably gimmicky buildings across the world.

Who is Bjarke Ingels?

Ingels was born in Copenhagen in 1974, and his initial trajectory was towards becoming a comic artist. He had the idea that studying architecture might improve his drawing skills, but the profession led him astray. After qualifying, he worked for three years at OMA in Rotterdam and there ingested the ideas of bigness, of extrapolating a diagram into architecture and his particular graphic presentation style, which included both comic books, sketches, animations, charts, pictograms and more conventional drawings alongside his own, always compelling, often very entertaining presentations.

Bjarke Ingels and 'hedonistic sustainability'

His key idea is a smart one, ‘Hedonistic Sustainability’. Rather than hectoring about environmental issues and sustainable architecture, Ingels suggests architects should try to find playful ways of subverting infrastructure to produce a side-effect of mass leisure. The most famous example is the Amager Bakke waste-to-heat plant where BIG stuck a ski slope on the power station and, for a small extra expenditure, transformed a piece of utilitarian infrastructure into an attention-seeking public amenity. It was a huge hit.

An earlier incarnation was the Superkilen Park, effectively a pedestrianised street turned into an expressive, humorous and slightly surreal linear park in the socially and mixed neighbourhood of Norrebro, where BIG’s former office was. This early work, big, brash, alemén with gags and bold supergraphics, shows how radical Ingels’ rejection of Danish modernist good taste was, genuinely shaking up the small nation’s often-minimalist, impeccably tasteful traditions of design.

Bjarke Ingels: Maker of icons

Ingels’ knack for creating instant icons also appealed to developers, both in Copenhagen and beyond. First came the VM Houses in Ørestad with their spiky balconies and crisp modernist detailing, then the Mountain Dwellings (a tapering stack of apartments with a huge picture of Mount Everest inscribed on both sides of the corner, a sly gag on Denmark’s topography – designed with JDS). Ingels himself lived in both blocks for a time.

Then he managed to translate this tricksy one-liner language with the astonishing commission for the tetrahedral ‘courtscraper’ Via 57 West, the triangular form of which completely disrupts the skyline by the piers on Manhattan’s west side; eye-catching but inelegant. Better is the DryLine, a little downtown, another shot of hedonistic sustainability in which BIG designed flood defences (provoked by the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy) which extend the Lower East Side shoreline and have the added benefit of creating a new waterfront park.

The practice can also do intimate. Just look at their delicate timber restaurant complex for NOMA in Copenhagen (the venue scooped Best New Restaurant at the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2019), and their new architecture office in Sundmollen is a very fine building. Sited on the end of a jetty in the still-industrial and very much working part of Copenhagen’s harbour is a show of what the practice can do.

But the main model remains relentless bigness. The twisting towers of One High Line in New York, and the torquing blocks of Grove at Grand Bay in Miami, the huge tents covering Google’s Mountain View HQ and the terrible concrete groundscraper of the same company’s King’s Cross building (with Thomas Heatherwick), the blockbusters just keep coming. In a building like his LEGO Museum, though (which looks exactly as you might imagine), the humour and invention still also shine through.

Ingels can still be a welcome break from the profession’s self-consciously serious archetype, the collarless shirt, jacket and eccentric specs. Funny, knowing, (also knowingly naive) and super-smart without intellectual pretensions (a trait which appeals to Anglo-Saxons), he is a unique and energetic character. His self-illustrated graphic book, wonderfully titled ‘Yes is More’, is a deceptively sharp distillation of his approach.

‘Architecture’, he writes, ‘seems entrenched between two equally infertile fronts: Either naively utopian or petrifyingly pragmatic. Rather than choosing one over the other, BIG operates in the fertile overlap between the opposites. A pragmatic utopian architecture that takes on the creation of socially, economically and environmentally perfect places as a practical objective.’ Nice work if you can manage it.

Bjarke Ingels 10 key buildings

Mountain Dwellings

Where: Copenhagen, Denmark
When: 2008

Designed by BIG and JDS, Mountain Dwellings is sprawled across a Copenhagen suburb. The complex features a tapering stack of apartments. A huge picture of Mount Everest is inscribed on both sides of the corner, its creators' sly gag on Denmark’s topograph.

Danish Maritime Museum

Where: Elsinore, Denmark
When: 2013

Almost ten years in the making, the new Danish Maritime Museum in Elsinore opened in 2013. Or rather – glimpsed the light of day – considering the fact that the 6 000 sq m museum is completely submerged underground. The opening marks a new start for an old museum, which, since 1915, has been housed in Kronborg Castle, the stronghold in which William Shakespeare's Hamlet is set. When the castle was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000, the Danish Maritime Museum was forced to leave the premises and find another location for its operations.

Serpentine Pavilion 2016

Where: London, UK
When: 2016

Bjarke Ingels' BIG takes the credit for the main structure in Serpentine Pavilion's 2016 iteration, while four more 25 sq m summer houses were designed around it by Kunlé Adeyemi, Barkow Leibinger, Yona Friedman and Asif Khan. Ingels has an innate understanding of architecture's dramatic potential, and the way in which subtle, repetitive modulations can create a sense of scale and awe. The 2016 pavilion is simplicity itself, built from extruded square tubes of glass fibre, supplied by Fiberline Composites, reinforced and bolted together using hundreds of T-shaped aluminium brackets.

The Grove at Grand Bay

Where: Miami, USA
When: 2016

Bjarke Ingels' twisting towers, Grove at Grand Bay had been steadily rising through Miami's Coconut Grove skyline since 2012. In tandem with luxury developer Terra, Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) sought to create a progressive monument without detracting from the area's colourful history. Coconut Grove is 'a sanctuary for artists, writers, and unconventional thinkers,' explains David Martin, president of Terra. 'It has a long history of challenging the status quo.'

Lego House

Where: Billund, Denmark
When: 2017

A play on the classic LEGO brick, but brought to architectural scale, Lego House sits at the heart of the Billund headquarters of the beloved toy manufacturer in the Danish countryside. Colourful and geometric, the centre houses exhibitions and activities around the popular toy brick.

Amager Resource Center (a.k.a. Copenhill)

Where: Copenhagen, Denmark
When: 2017

As rubbish burners go, the Amager Resource Center (AKA Copenhill) is not a run-of-the-mill square-blocked eyesore. The long-anticipated project, which has just opened its roof, deploys Bjarke Ingels Group’s ‘hedonistic sustainability’ with an artificial ski slope, recreational hiking area and climbing wall on top of the waste-to-energy plant. ‘It’s a very good idea and a crazy idea to build a ski slope on a furnace,’ says the plant’s CEO Jacob Hartvig Simonsen. ‘We have provided a safe facility for them to play on.’

Noma

Where: Copenhagen
When: 2018

BIG and Studio David Thulstrup’s reinvention of this renowned Copenhagen classic triumphed as Best New Restaurant 2019, as voted by our acclaimed Wallpaper* Design Awards jury. Hailed as one of the most influential restaurants of the century, Noma moved into its purpose-built home in March 2018, an eleven-piece ‘village’ designed by Bjarke Ingels Group around a Second World War-era arsenal overlooking the hippie enclave of Christiania.

The Plus for Vestre

Where: Norwegian countryside
When: 2022

Titled The Plus, the building, Vestre's headquarters and factory, is conceived as a village in a forest, guided by principles such as sustainable architecture and high-efficiency production. The Vestre community operates within, creating its product using carbon-neutral fabrication methods. Meanwhile, the project doubles as a public 300-acre park for hiking and camping.

Hôtel des Horlogers for Audemars Piguet

Where: Le Brassus, Switzerland
When: 2022

Also behind the Audemars Piguet Museum in Le Brassus, Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) doubles down on its bold intervention into Switzerland’s Vallée de Joux with a neighbouring property, the Hôtel des Horlogers. Once again realised by Swiss practice CCHE, the new, Audemars Piguet-owned building conforms to the disruptive nature of the museum that sits beside it. However, unlike the exhibition space, which vividly charts the area’s horological history with the strategic use of a spiral structure inspired by a watch’s hairspring, the hotel takes advantage of the topography to present itself as a series of zigzagging ridges declining gently towards the valley floor, internally reflected in an equally dramatic passageway that runs the length of the building connecting its five floors.

The Twist

Where: Kistefos, Norway
When: 2022

Contemporary architecture in the shape of the Bjarke Ingels Group's The Twist, has joined the exhibits at Norway's Kistefos Sculpture Park – or is this new gallery space maybe art too? From a distance, the streamlined twisting shape feels solid and powerful, yet lightly touching the ground, almost like a large format art installation. This was entirely deliberate, explains BIG partner David Zahle. ‘One of our main concerns was minimising the expression of engineering to keep the shape pure, just like art'.

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Half the experience of viewing art lies in the surroundings – and few are more impressive or evocative than a 17th-century Danish palace.

Welcome to Valdemars Slot, newly reopened after its transformation into a public art destination. Situated on the island of Tåsinge, this historic home will now host a programme of exhibitions and events each year, from May to September.

Valdemars Slot is the only privately owned Danish royal palace. Its owner, Louise Iuel-Brockdorff Albinus, represents the 11th generation of her family to steward it. By turning the palace into an art venue, she honours its legacy of patronage, presenting both historical and contemporary works: 18th-century portraits by Swedish painter Carl Gustaf Pilo and Danish master Jens Juel, originally created for the palace, are juxtaposed with newly commissioned pieces by international contemporary artists including Czech-German painter Jiří Georg Dokoupil, Norweigian artist Hanne Lippard, Chinese artist, Rong Bao and Danish artist Pernille With Madsen.

The dialogue between past and present is palpable. In the Baroque interiors, gilded Rococo portraits share space with sculptural, postmodern works. In one room, Dokoupil’s ‘soap bubble’ paintings, created by blowing pigmented soap bubbles onto canvas, and glass sculptures, which playfully reinterpret Marcel Duchamp’s concept of the ‘readymade’, are displayed alongside Pilo’s royal portraits. The soft curves and colours of the ‘bubbles’ harmonise unexpectedly with Pilo’s elegant brushwork, creating a moment that feels both surprising and satisfying.

Elsewhere, Madsen – who recently fulfilled public commissions at Copenhagen Metro and Aarhus University – reimagines Valdemars Slot’s Riding Hall as an archaeological site. A huge sculptural foot emerges as if being excavated, playing with scale and temporality. The artist also explores the miniature with clawed forms evocative of primordial creatures or homunculi, which are displayed in a vitrine reminiscent of a Renaissance cabinet of curiosities.

In the palace grounds, meanwhile, Lippard transforms the barn into a sound installation, playing a spoken-word piece beginning with the line: ‘A ruin is reconstructed through speech’.

Originally built by King Christian IV in 1639-44, Valdemars Slot is enjoying a remarkable second life. Like many European palaces, it once served as a museum, but this new incarnation offers something completely different. It is an art space where the old and new not only coexist, but converse.

valdemarsslot.dk

Kaari Upson emerged as one of the most unsettling and formally ambitious artists of her generation, crafting a practice that tunnelled into the core of American pathology with relentless psychological acuity. Her visceral, often epic explorations carved a singular path through the psychic underworld of American culture, staging installations that probed the unstable boundaries of identity, memory, and desire. Trained at CalArts, she was part of a generation shaped by the school’s legacy of conceptual rigour and performative experimentation – yet her work remained wholly her own, marked by feverish intimacy and hallucinatory logic.

Upson’s oeuvre is deeply tied to Los Angeles: its excess, detritus, dream logic, and devastating fires. ‘Dollhouse – A Retrospective’, currently on view at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark, is the first comprehensive survey since Upson’s untimely death in 2021, of cancer, at age 51. The exhibition, which is set to travel to Kunsthalle Mannheim in Germany and MASI Lugano in Switzerland, traces the evolution of a practice that blurred the lines between fiction, autobiography, and cultural critique. From the psychologically charged multi-part saga Larry Project to her uncanny dollhouse installations – blown-up versions of a dollhouse her mother built for the artist’s daughter – the retrospective encapsulates Upson's ability to blur the boundaries between reality and fiction, constructing uncanny stage sets for the rituals of trauma and repetition. Set against the museum's serene coastal backdrop and elegant architecture, the show stands as a poignant tribute to an artist whose oeuvre is as disquieting as it is seductive.

Several galleries in the show are dedicated to The Larry Project (2005–2014), Upson’s decade-long descent, in different media, into the persona of a man whose personal archive – discovered in an abandoned house in the San Fernando Valley – became the foundation for an expansive, fictionalised mythology. Upson obsessively reworked this material, constructing a surrogate figure that became a proxy for cultural fantasies of masculinity, wealth, and decay.

Her recreations of domestic spaces – including a full-scale replica of Larry’s house in thick, buttery latex in the installation Recollection Hysteria (2012) – positions the project as a dark mirror to LA’s libidinal architecture. The piece The Grotto (2008), for example, is a fibreglass replica of the Playboy Mansion’s infamous cave-like swimming pool, reimagined as a claustrophobic site of psychic excavation. Inside, Upson projected videos of herself inhabiting grotesque female archetypes – donning silicone prosthetics of exaggerated breasts and genitalia – while engaging in phone-sex roleplay and improvised monologues.

‘Her work is outrageously painterly,’ curator Anders Kold tells Wallpaper*, drawing attention to the way Upson mixed pigments into latex and used airbrushing and paint on the soft, pliable surfaces of sculptures resembling deflated furniture. This painterly quality is exemplified in Mother’s Legs (2018–19), a haunting installation of elongated urethane forms suspended like dismembered limbs. Cast from termite-riddled wood from a tree that once stood outside Upson’s childhood home, each form is fused with knee casts –some from Upson herself, others from her mother – creating hybrids of human and arboreal anatomy. Their missing feet and unnatural proportions evoke dislocation and loss, while the palette of fleshy pinks and sickly tones transforms the forest-like arrangement into a dreamlike procession of maternal surrogates, both tender and uncanny.

Upson’s work frequently draws on her mother’s complex personal history – born in the former GDR, she left East Germany and lived in the West before meeting Upson’s father, whom she followed to the United States, seeking the American Dream. This narrative of migration, reinvention, and utter adaptation – not to say self-negation – underpins Upson’s recurring use of her mother’s image and body, exploring themes of femininity and inherited trauma. Upson’s father, on the other hand, is only referenced directly in a single work: Untitled (2020-21) shows a footless, handless figure in blue jeans and a checkered cowboy shirt lying face down, with five ketchup-red bottles wedged into its back, like knives.

Untitled (Foot Face), Upson’s final and unfinished series, comprises 140 ink drawings made as a daily visual diary. Each work repeats the pairing of Upson’s face and her late mother’s foot – symbols of self and origin. Created during a period marked by her mother’s death from cancer and the recurrence of the artist's own illness, the series traces a gradual dissolution. As the drawings progress, the foot vanishes, leaving behind disembodied eyes adrift in dense crosshatching. Shown here for the first time, the series is a lush meditation on grief, and the quiet erosion of identity at life’s end, eerily continuing the posthumous reckoning with a body of work that continues to speak, even in silence.

‘Dollhouse’ is at Louisiana Museum of Modern Art until 26 October, louisiana.dk/en

‘Sensory design is, in many ways, a super-language – one we all intuitively speak. From the moment we’re born, touch is our first sense, forming the foundation of how we connect to the world around us and feel love,’ says Danish designer Lise Vester.

This design code is rooted in her work, and is showcased in the ‘Dream View Bench’ for Muuto, crafted from stainless steel moulded into wave-like curves and previewed during 3 Days of Design (18-20 June 2025).

‘Dream View Bench’ previewed at 3 Days of Design

‘When we design with the senses in mind, we create spaces and objects that allow people not just to function – but to feel, reflect, and thrive,' says the designer. ‘Sensory design enables us to craft atmospheres that are calming, stimulating, or restorative. It’s through our senses that we explore, discover, and make sense of the world –and of ourselves.’ Made in Denmark, the bench boasts smooth curves that follow the body’s form, and allow the user to gaze up towards the sky.

‘My intention was to create a playful, sensory, ergonomic experience – an open invitation to pause and drift into a daydream,’ Vester tells Wallpaper*. ‘The [form] invites the body to lean back and gaze upward, letting the sky become a blank canvas for thought and wonder.’

Designed for outdoor use, the bench needed to withstand the elements. Stainless steel was used for its durability and also for its visual and tactile qualities. ‘The brushed surface softens the material’s otherwise industrial character, making it inviting to the touch,’ says Vester. ‘Its reflective quality allows the bench to mirror its surroundings – especially the sky – bringing the heavens, quite literally, down to Earth.’

The ‘Dream View Bench’ was partly inspired by the designer's personal experience. After losing family members in hospitals, she witnessed firsthand how clinical environments can feel cold and alienating. However, ‘when my aunt spent her final days at a hospice in 2011, the experience was profoundly different’, she explains. ‘The space was warm, welcoming, and comforting – offering dignity and calm in the midst of grief. That moment shaped the way I approach design.

‘Later, I returned to that hospice as a student, for one of my first design projects. I interviewed nurses, the palliative care team, and families to understand what made that environment so healing. My dream is that the empathy and beauty found in palliative care settings can be woven into homes, workplaces, cities – into the everyday fabric of life – so that design quietly, but powerfully, supports us wherever we are.’

The ‘Dream View Bench’ by Lise Vester will be pre-launched at the Muuto space in Copenhagen during 3 Days of Design 2025 and will officially launch on 1 September 2025

Last year, the city of Copenhagen trialled CopenPay, an initiative that allows tourists to ‘earn’ rewards like free ice cream and discounted museum entry by engaging in sustainable behaviours. The scheme will run again this year, for a longer period, and will involve more activities than before.

Visitors to Copenhagen between 17 June and 17 August 2025 have the opportunity to access benefits from 90 attractions participating in CopenPay, including the National Museum, Kronborg Castle and the National Gallery of Denmark, in exchange for things like using electric cars, bikes and public transport, choosing plant-based food, and booking a longer stay (four or more nights).

After the trial period, Rikke Holm Petersen, director of marketing at tourism board Wonderful Copenhagen, which is behind the initiative, hopes that CopenPay will eventually run year-round.

The scheme builds upon 2024’s pilot, which involved 24 attractions. Visitors arriving on foot to a morning swim session received a free coffee; a boat ride was complimentary for those that collected litter from the canals; and tourists who volunteered at an urban farm were offered lunch. Feedback from those who participated was positive (with some expressing reluctance to do things like litter picking if they were only in Copenhagen for a short time), and the city saw a 29 per cent increase in bike rentals during the trial.

CopenPay is a new way to address concerns around mass tourism and its environmental impact, which have increasingly been making headlines. Rather than implementing punitive disincentives like fees – as Venice, Barcelona and Majorca have done – Copenhagen, which received over 12 million international overnight stays in 2023, aims to make tourism a positive force for change. The Danish capital is attempting a ‘carrot’ rather than ‘stick’ approach.

It’s an exciting idea but, while the industry has commended the innovation of the scheme, it has also pointed out that the impact is unlikely to scratch the surface of things like air travel and cruise ships. Nonetheless, CopenPay, which intends to share its findings with other countries, could mark the beginnings of a ‘regenerative travel’ revolution.

It’s rare to get a 360-degree view of a global fashion brand’s operations. Product and process can often be surprisingly separate, with garments dreamt up and designed by an in-house creative team, styled and photographed at a separate studio, before being boxed, stored and shipped from an anonymous logistics facility. Things are different, however, at the all-encompassing new HQ for Rains, the Scandinavian label favoured by the stylish (and practical) for its weatherproof outerwear and accessories.

Step inside the brutalist Rains HQ

The glass-fronted building spans 11,000 sq m and sits on a hillside just outside Aarhus, Denmark’s second largest city. This is the first place Rains can truly call home; since its launch in 2012, the brand has moved offices six times. Its most recent workspace occupied an old industrial building, but even after making a number of aesthetic changes, things didn’t feel quite right. Daniel Brix Hesselager, who co-founded Rains with Philip Lotko, resolved that the next HQ should be built bespoke, so in 2019, he enlisted the help of local architecture studio Sleth, collaborating on the design of the building for the next five years.

‘It was about slowly moving into each other’s heads to find a pathway together,’ says Sleth co-founder Søren Leth. ‘We were particularly fascinated by the separation between the administrative employees and the busy life of the warehouse. So the first thing we did was talk about integration.’

The warehouse, which holds a majority of the brand’s European stock, now acts as a backdrop to the entire HQ. ‘This is not just an office building,’ says Brix Hesselager. ‘I think it’s so important to be close to the product. A significant part of operating a business is logistics, but that’s often outsourced in creatively driven companies like ours.’

Placed behind double-height glass walls, the mammoth space features towering steel shelves oriented lengthwise to protect sightlines through to the administrative departments. The same thinking has been applied to the structural columns, which have been positioned to fall parallel to those throughout the rest of the office. ‘We’ve placed a few columns where a logistic designer probably wouldn’t have, but we wanted a certain rhythm in the building,’ adds Leth.

Beyond the warehouse is a showroom that displays the brand’s current and forthcoming clothing collections. There’s also an airy dining space where staff gather around communal tables to eat lunch (prepared fresh daily by Rains’ chefs). A central staircase, crafted from pale Scandinavian pine, offers a connection to the upper reaches of the building. On the second floor is the brand’s photography studio for shooting e-commerce imagery, and an indoor terrace with a bar area. Meeting rooms can be found on the third floor, each overlooking the hubbub of activity in the warehouse.

Apart from the ground floor – which accommodates a gym – formal workstations have been created on every level, finished in a soothingly neutral shade of grey. Breakout areas are kitted out with sculptural sofas and grey rugs designed to resemble the streaks of weather patterns on a map, while other statement furnishings and objects, specially curated by Brix Hesselager, include craggy ceramic chairs, and spindly, alien-like chandeliers made by Danish glassblower Alexander Kirkeby.

Sleth’s scheme for the Rains HQ not only connects different strata of the company to each other but also to the outdoors – a natural move given that the studio has previously worked on a number of landscape projects. Rainwater is being collected on the building’s roof and redirected off-site to nurture the surrounding fields. A gridded metal framework has also been erected just in front of the eastern façade to form a series of external corridors where staff can step out for fresh air and take in the surrounding vistas. The western façade features a similarly gridded structure, this time planted with ivy that in a few years will have grown to form a lush green wall.

There is still more artwork set to arrive, and staffing has not yet reached its 250 capacity. ‘I don’t think the building is done,’ says Leth. ‘As Rains grows, moves in and fills up the space, it will take on a new feeling.’ That’s the beauty of creating a workspace that prioritises integration and transparency – it allows you to look forward.

rains.com

sleth.dk

A version of this article appears in the April 2025 issue of Wallpaper* , available in print on newsstands from 6 March 2025, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today

Montana Furniture has long championed flexibility with its modular systems, but its latest collaboration, with Danish design duo Kimpop – aka TV personalities Sofie Linde and Joakim Ingversen – pushes personalisation into bolder, more expressive territory. A new limited-edition series reimagines six of Montana’s classic furniture pieces with joyful, colour-clashing abandon.

Kimpop, known for its fearless use of colour and playful interior aesthetics, selected six Montana designs – including a dresser, a nightstand, and a bookcase – as blank canvases to showcase their vision. Each piece is transformed into a bold statement through a curated palette that balances instinct with intention.

'We selected some of Montana Furniture’s classic and versatile designs as a foundation for our creative exploration. Our goal was to infuse them with fresh energy through bold colour choices, while ensuring their functionality and aesthetic appeal remain intact,' say Linde and Ingversen.

Central to the collection is Pomelo, a soft pastel green that serves as the defining ‘red thread’ throughout. From there, Kimpop curated a palette designed to be both playful and cohesive, ensuring each piece stands out individually while the designs work harmoniously as a set.

The six designs are: ‘Kimpop Dash’, a wall-mounted shelf with a drawer; ‘Kimpop Dream’, a nightstand or side table on legs; ‘Kimpop Shelfie’, a mirror with a wide shelf-like frame; ‘Kimpop Show’, a wall-mounted bookcase; ‘Kimpop Box’, a storage box on castors; and ‘Kimpop Carry’, a dresser on legs.

For Montana Furniture, the collaboration is a chance to engage a new generation of design enthusiasts who aren’t afraid to embrace colour (and follows a similarly vibrant vinyl storage series, available in multiple hues). CEO Joakim Lassen explains: 'At Montana Furniture, we are always looking for ways to engage with our community of interior enthusiasts and colour lovers. Sofie and Joakim’s fearless approach to interior design – where they blend colours intuitively and curate eclectic combinations from different decades – is truly inspiring. Their playful, boundary-pushing aesthetic aligns perfectly with Montana Furniture’s ethos, making this collaboration a natural and exciting fit.'

While the collection might push the boundaries of what Montana’s audience has come to expect, Lassen welcomes the change. 'I expect that people will either love it or find it outside their comfort zone, and that’s completely fine,' he says. 'Our aim is to inspire and challenge conventional notions of how colour can be used in the home. We want to encourage people to embrace bold choices and show how colour can transform a space and a lifestyle.'

montanafurniture.com

The global practice of thermal bathing has been around for millennia. But this ancient activity is experiencing a contemporary boom, as we shun screen time in pursuit of meaningful connection.

As Wallpaper’s wellness report outlined in February 2025, the rise of traditional saunas, onsens, hammams and banyas receiving a contemporary twist are a few examples of this phenomenon, beloved for their communal atmosphere. (In the UK in particular, wellness practitioners such as Katie Bracher even offer ‘sauna master’ training courses, billing her techniques as ‘ancient technologies for modern times’).

The Wallpaper* wellness report: thermal bathing is rising

Outside of the UK, old-school establishments are also updating their offering when it comes to bathing. Even in Scandinavia, where people never stopped enjoying sauna and cold dips, run-down venues are being brought back to life. This spring, the Swedish town of Lanskrona opens a renovated pier and modern bath house inspired by the ‘cold baths’ – or ‘kallbads’ – of the 1800s. ‘These bathhouses played a historical role as a social gathering point’, says Ulf Svensson from Magasin A architects who is creating the new space. With picture windows and saunas leading into the sea, it’s not only a place to swim, but one in which to relax with fellow bathers.

Denmark’s legendary Kurhotel Skodsborg has provided preventative health therapies since 1898 and features a Henning Larsen-designed spa with more than 16 different options for thermal bathing. In 2025, the hotel hosted its first Nordisk Retreat with British breath work coach Richie Norton. Here, activities included sauna and steam rituals, sea dipping, breath work, forest walks and more. ‘Lots of spas might feel dated, and bringing in new practices around hot and cold contrast therapy shines a light on other possibilities,’ says Norton. ‘The more we learn about the health benefits of hot and cold exposure, the more spas are going to change.’

Countries blessed with thermal mineral springs and sea baths are brimming with history, culture and authenticity – all qualities that the modern wellness aficionado seeks. Australia’s Great Victoria Bathing Trail, for example, is developing a series of 30 new bathing spots along a 900km route, including the Phillip Island hot springs. In Iceland, Árböðin – a new spa complex designed by T.ark architect Halldór Eiríksson – will open on the banks of the Hvitá River in Laugarás in the summer, with hot and cold pools on multiple levels. (Guests will even have to pass through a waterfall to move between them).

‘In North America, the bathing movement is on the cusp of a huge wave,’ says Robert Hammond, US president of Therme, a water wellness group offering huge bathing complexes echoing the Roman baths of old, such as AIRE Ancient Baths in London. ‘It’s being driven by renewed interest in and deep desire for real life connections with other people and with nature, and the speed at which it’s moving is palpable,’ he continues. Following this trajectory, in the coming months, hotel group Fairmont is set to unveil a new thermal spa called Basin Glacial Waters at Chateau Lake Louise in Canada. Built by architect Matteo Thun and integrated into the natural landscape, this will be the group’s debut ‘wellness-first’ location and has taken two decades to complete.

The UNESCO-listed spa town of Vichy in France is currently undergoing a six-year, multimillion-dollar modernisation, too, where water from Vichy’s natural springs will provide drinks, baths, showers, mud poultices, thermal ovens and swimming pools. French pharmacy stalwart Vichy is also renowned for its skincare products harnessing the healing and soothing power of this water. (Avène is another, drawing its water from the Sainte-Odile Spring in France’s south for face mists and more).

Hungarian skincare brand Omorovicza, which was founded by Margaret and Stephen de Heinrich de Omorovicza in 2006, includes a patented healing concentrate in all of their products. Stephen de Heinrich’s family built Budapest’s Rác Thermal Bath during the 1800s, on the site of a hot medieval spring. With new Omorovicza Institutes continuing to crop up, the brand also partners with hotels, including a new venture at spas in the Four Seasons.

So, what next? According to the Global Wellness Institute, thermal and mineral springs – renowned for their healing properties – have now rocketed to more than 31,000 across 130 countries. And the organisation estimates that this is only set to increase by 14.3 per cent a year through to 2027.

This will include Hyatt’s new hot spring brand Atona, which arrives next year in Japan, bringing 30-50 room ryokans (traditional inns with bathing facilities built on hot springs that date back to the 8th century) to three locations in the country. Also in the pipeline is Therme’s $200 million watery oasis in Incheon City, South Korea, which aims to increase global awareness of Korean health and wellness practices, following the K-beauty’s worldwide take off.

Perched dramatically on a Mallorcan clifftop overlooking the Mediterranean, Can Lis is the Balearic home of late Danish architect Jørn Utzon, built in 1972 following his very public resignation from the Sydney Opera House project. For architecture enthusiasts, the home holds a near-mythical status – partly because of its breathtaking design that merges Scandinavian sensibilities with the Mallorcan vernacular, but also because it remains largely inaccessible. With the property owned and managed by the Utzon Foundation, visitor numbers are carefully controlled, lending it a ‘forbidden fruit’ quality: deeply admired, widely studied, but rarely experienced firsthand.

Last year, following an invitation from the foundation, Phillipp Materna, head of design at Ferm Living, was given the rare opportunity to experience the house’s architecture, materials, and shifting light – one that proved to be revelatory. 'Discovering Can Lis was kind of an “Aha” moment because it's this amazing jewel that we couldn't help but get lost in – both the story of it and the actual architectonic building itself,’ he tells Wallpaper* ahead of the brand’s latest launch – a collection inspired by the house’s magical atmosphere.

'Can Lis itself is a testament to a certain international fusion of Scandinavian and Mallorcan culture. Utzon basically sourced everything from the island – the stones, the wood, the tiles, the faucets. There’s a certain level of raw, matter-of-fact humbleness. It’s almost as if you were to take a Scandinavian mindset and apply it to a Mallorcan palette.'

It was this blend of mindset and materials that Materna sought to capture in the collection. ‘We wanted to reference that palette, incorporating materials like Douglas fir, oak, glass, and different types of stone to create that connection between the two ideas,’ he says.

Made up of 39 pieces, the Can Lis collection is designed to evoke island life – pieces to encourage gathering, eating, and enjoying the outdoors. An FSCTM-certified Douglas fir dining chair nods to Can Lis’ millwork; a mobile is based on the moon motif that appears throughout the house; cast glass vases resemble the brickwork; and a functional ceramic dinnerware set was inspired by the house’s Catalan chimneys, characteristic of those seen in traditional Mallorcan villages.

Materna joined Ferm Living in December 2023, stepping into a newly formed position, when founder and creative director, Trine Andersen, retired from her role. Prior to this, he spent eight years working in London with Michael Anastassiades, where he played a key role in developing the studio’s refined and sculptural approach to lighting and furniture.

Reflecting on his role as Head of Design and what he brings to the Danish brand, he says: ‘My hope is that it’s something that feels transitional, not abrupt. As a designer, you're able to take bits and pieces of the brand that you want to elaborate upon while also adding new things. So it’s a combination – it’s not erratic. It’s an evolution, one that over time will be noticeable but also feel familiar.'

Sustainability has been a growing focus for the brand, not only in terms of material choices but in the broader philosophy that informs its designs. ‘Internally, as a brand, we have a sustainability manager who drives our responsibility strategy, including efforts to lower our CO2 footprint, onboarding our suppliers in this work, and ensuring that our product standards align with our sustainability goals. But beyond that, there’s this idea that the simpler, more analogue, even brutal a product is, the more likely it is to last. There’s a raw simplicity that has an inherent value – something that, frankly, can’t go out of style.'

fermliving.com

The incomparable Danish designer Nanna Ditzel (1923-2005) once said, 'My time is too valuable for housekeeping'. A sentiment that in the mid-20th century reflected more than a personal preference, it was a challenge to the conventional roles expected of women at the time.

Ditzel’s refusal to be constrained by societal expectations was evident in her work and success as a furniture designer – a world that was (and still is) dominated by men – where she broke free from traditional design boundaries. A pioneer of 20th-century design, she focused on freedom of movement and inclusivity, prioritising the human body in her furniture and spaces. So ahead of her time was she, in fact, that in 2019, Danish brand Mater reissued a set of garden furniture she had designed alongside her husband Jørgen Ditzel. Originally launched in 1955, the table-and-chair collection was reimagined by Mater in ocean-waste plastic, the company scooping a Wallpaper* Design Award in the process.

This is why we are delighted to see a new exhibition dedicated to Ditzel's work now open at the Danish Architecture Center (DAC), running until 11 May 2025. ‘Nanna Ditzel: Breaking Free’ celebrates the Danish design pioneer’s visionary contributions and invites visitors to experience how her work reshaped the way we use and interact with spaces. The exhibition, located in the museum's Staircase Gallery space, is an immersive journey through Ditzel’s life and legacy, offering a rare opportunity to engage physically with her modular and flexible designs.

From her iconic ‘Hanging Egg' chair to the multifunctional 'Trisse' chair, the exhibition showcases a variety of Ditzel’s works that challenged traditional notions of furniture. Ditzel’s designs were not static objects but ‘living’ elements that allowed for flexibility, movement, and creativity. One of the highlights is her 'Villette' furniture landscape, created at her London studio Interspace, which merges furniture, surfaces, and colour to form a holistic experience. Also featured is the 'Fairy Tale Room', originally developed for the children's library in Lyngby, which reflects Ditzel's commitment to nurturing imagination and creativity in children through design.

The exhibition highlights Ditzel's ongoing relevance in contemporary design conversations, particularly in addressing today’s challenges around sustainability, flexibility, and inclusivity. ‘At DAC, we consider Ditzel's work as an important reminder of how design can shape our everyday lives,' notes senior curator Pernille Stockmarr. ‘Today, as we face the challenges brought on by climate change, urbanisation and the need for more sustainable solutions, it has become increasingly important to rethink the future of spaces and cities. Ditzel's flexible and innovative solutions can still inspire today’s architects and designers to think with flexibility, adaptability and long-term solutions as key elements.'

‘Nanna Ditzel: Breaking Free’ is on show until 11 May 2025 at the Danish Architecture Center (DAC), dac.dk

Danish jewellery brand Elhanati has nailed the distinctive brand of Scandi cool which champions casual elegance. Textured surfaces, asymmetry and irregularly placed stones are all favourite design choices for founder Orit Elhanati, whose jewellery handcrafted in Denmark merges this minimalism with the richness of her Middle Eastern heritage.

It is a distinctive aesthetic brought to life in a new collaboration (following past jewellery collaborations with Khaite, and with Conie Vallese) between Elhanati and diamond provenance programme Botswanamark, with three new pieces featuring the latter's natural, traceable diamonds. Here, Orit Elhanati tells us why she was drawn to these diamonds and fills us in on the mystical inspiration, translating the story of a mother octopus and her two daughters living in an underwater world into thickly drawn gold.

Diamonds and textured gold: Orit Elhanati on a natural partnership

Wallpaper* Why did you want to partner with Botswanamark on this collection?

Orit Elhanati: Working on this project with Nicholas Moltke and Botswanamark took me to another place and dimension. Knowing the soul and ethos that fuels the Botswanamark mission adds a new element to my work, making me love natural diamonds more than ever. This collaboration has made me realise that nothing is produced in a vacuum: we leave footprints on our planet in everything we do, so how can we make sure we are as considered as possible in everything we produce? Botswanamark is ultimately all about finding the balance in preserving the planet and local culture, while still loving natural diamonds, which greatly resonates with me. The collaboration is a testament to my brand’s journey towards ensuring full transparency in the supply chain.

W: Tell us about the octopus inspiration, what it means to you, and how you interpreted it?

OE: I aimed to create something from the mysterious world of the sea – something with a vintage feel that looked ancient, inspired by the millions of years it takes for natural diamonds to form. The ‘Octopus Diamond Temple’ collection delves into the mysterious underworld and interprets the enigmatic creatures. Diamonds are their curse, yet they guard them with their lives in a realm unknown to mankind. In a sculptural dance, the octopuses safeguard the gemstones.

W: What are the main challenges you encountered when creating this collection, and what are you most proud of?

OE: This is a fusion of my signature collections, like the ‘Roxy’ and ‘Paloma’, the true Elhanati DNA. I took them apart and put them back together, creating a new sentiment and feel. This collection has taken me from the desert to the ocean. It is a challenging and delicate dance between tradition and modernity, which, to me, is where I hope to create art in a wearable form! What I am most proud of is the playful approach to finding a poetic sentiment, and creating something new within my creative practice.

elhanati.com

A trip to Dinesen Country Home is enough to convince you of the Danish timber company's expertise and love for wood. Dinesen's refined timber plank flooring is renowned for lining some of the world's design-led, house-envy-inducing homes across the world and the particular residence in Jels flaunts the business's goods and skills in supporting wood architecture through its serene, thoughtful interiors clad in the beloved natural material.

Now, the property, originally the private home of the Dinesen family, has just received an elegant makeover by Copenhagen-based architecture and design studio Mentze Ottenstein; heralding a new chapter in the historic home's history.

Explore the new chapter of the Dinesen Country Home

Located by the Dinesen manufacturing facilities in Jels, Denmark, the country home served as a retreat for the Dinesen family, since it was first acquired in 2006. The recent renovation sensitively refreshes the period property while transforming it into a showcase of the timber company as well as a guest house and event space for its visitors and business.

The house, a traditional southern Jutland longhouse with a thatched roof, maintains its outer historic appearance, lovingly restored and painted in the typology's signature white tones. Set in the country's leafy outdoors, it offers a haven of tranquillity - while acting as a brand showcase for its owner.

Stepping inside is when the design's timber craft clearly shines through - mixing contemporary forms with age-old traditional techniques honed over centuries. Neutral tones, light colours and natural wood surfaces prevail, making for a calming, cocooning atmosphere.

The property spans two levels, including an expansive ground floor of living areas (kitchen, dining and seating areas), which look out to the green Danish countryside. Upstairs are the bedrooms and bathrooms, all wrapped in warm timber and handcrafted elements (occasionally painted an eye-catching shade of green as a nod to its countryside location).

Designers Mathias Mentze and Alexander Ottenstein say on the transformation: 'We've maintained a consistent colour for door frames and ceiling beams while introducing a gradient from room to room, starting with brighter colours and ending in what used to be a family living room, which is now decorated as a cosy dark-walled library.'

They add: 'A space is like a portrait of the person or the people who inhabit it. We have attempted to draw a portrait of where Dinesen is today through choices and approaches that allow for change so that it is not a static project but open to being filled with new stories. We hope to come back and see that the library has been filled with books, that cabinets are full of textiles and that furniture pieces from and by friends and partners of Dinesen are included and speak to each other in a unified experience.'

Hans Peter Dinesen, brand director and fifth generation Dinesen family member says: 'We hope that the house will, to an even greater extent, form the setting for countless visits and events over the next several years. The house represents, in the same way as the family's history, a love and care for traditions and wood. Since 1885, generations of families have lived here, all supported by the surrounding lands and agriculture.'

'Like any home, the Dinesen Country Home is an ongoing story, a sum of fragments and lives lived as objects have been added and taken away again and replaced by unique items accumulating over time. We aim to both embrace our historical roots and explore new dimensions of the company's identity.'

Dinesen Country Home is open to the company's friends and guests, with some availability for public booking for stays and events on select dates in the future

dinesen.com

Biosis first started working in Greenland upon its foundation in 2018. The Danish architecture studio, founded by Morten Vedelsbøl and Mikkel Thams Olsen, has since designed several projects in the northern territory – from office to residential and public schemes. The architects find themselves continuously challenged by the region's harsh climate, which inspires them to innovate and push the boundaries of architecture within its specific environment. Their approach, they explain, is heavily infused with sustainable architecture principles and the practice's in-depth understanding of the Greenlandic community's specific needs and desires. Leaning on cultural affinity and a site-specific angle is what makes this architecture practice a specialist in building in the Arctic context.

Greenland through the eyes of architecture studio Biosis

W*: What makes Greenland special for you?

Biosis: Greenland is a country of breathtaking, untamed beauty, but it is also a challenging environment where survival depends on resilience and ingenuity. This duality is what makes Greenland so special to us. Here, architecture isn’t just about creating buildings; it’s about crafting lifelines – structures that protect and support the people who call one of the world’s harshest climates homes. The interplay between Greenland’s dramatic environment and the needs of its communities makes designing here both a privilege and a profound responsibility.

What draws us most to Greenland is the opportunity to create architecture that not only endures in these conditions but also respects and enhances the cultural and natural fabric of the place. Our climate-driven, minimal-impact philosophy focuses on resilient design that works with the natural landscape, avoiding unnecessary disruption or blasting of rock, ensuring harmony with the environment.

We feel a deep connection to Greenland through our projects. Sharing the same realm fosters a unique cultural affinity and mutual understanding. For us, working in Greenland is about more than designing buildings - it’s about contributing to its sustainable growth while honouring its extraordinary heritage and the resilience of its people.

W*: How long have you been working in the territory?

B: We have been working in Greenland since establishing BIOSIS in 2018. From the very beginning, our studio has been guided by the principles of climate-driven architecture, where the natural forces and prevailing conditions of a place play a central role in shaping our designs. Greenland’s Arctic climate has always been a key focus for us, and it continues to inspire and challenge our approach.

Over the years, our understanding of building in Arctic conditions has deepened significantly. This knowledge has not only informed our work in Greenland but has also allowed us to expand into exciting projects in Canada, including Newfoundland and Labrador and Nunavut. While our scope has grown, Greenland remains at the heart of our practice. We are committed to creating thoughtful, resilient architecture that supports the Greenlandic people and their environment, and we view our ongoing work there as both a privilege and a responsibility.

W*: What defines architecture in Greenland? What are its challenges and opportunities?

B: Since we began working in Greenland in 2018, we’ve observed that much of the Arctic, including Greenland, has been shaped by imported architectural solutions - designs that are neither engineered for the region’s extreme climates nor tailored to the specific needs of its people. These standardized models, often developed for temperate zones, have been applied with little consideration for the unique environmental and cultural conditions of the North and with little care to the indigenous land and the primeval landscapes. The same goes for some of the places we work in Canada. Unfortunately, this has resulted in buildings that not only fail to perform adequately but, in some cases, pose significant challenges, including health risks.

For us, these challenges represent opportunities. Our design philosophy is rooted in adapting to the defining parameters of the Greenlandic environment: powerful winds, heavy snow loads, complex water management, and steep terrain. We craft architecture that is deeply responsive to each site, ensuring functionality, resilience, and harmony with the landscape.

Our approach also informs our work in Arctic and North Atlantic Canada, where we apply the insights and solutions developed in Greenland to meet similar challenges. By learning from and building on these experiences, we aim to contribute to architecture that is both climate-appropriate and respectful of the communities it serves.

W*: What is the most recent project you completed there?

B: Our most recent project in Greenland is the residential complex Nuukullak, situated on a steep hillside in Nuuk, the capital. The design was shaped by the challenging terrain and an in-depth analysis of local wind patterns and daylight hours. This approach allowed us to map the microclimate and craft a building that harmonises with its natural surroundings.

The resulting horseshoe-shaped structure adapts to the terrain, blending seamlessly into the landscape while creating sheltered spaces for residents. To preserve the natural environment, we prioritised minimal impact by avoiding heavy excavation, which is both costly and destructive to the terrain and biotopes.

Each unit includes a southeast-facing balcony, optimised to capture sunlight from different orientations while shielding residents from the prevailing cold northern winds. At the heart of the complex is an inner courtyard, designed as a versatile, year-round playscape and social gathering area, protected from harsh elements. Nuukullak reflects our core philosophy: creating architecture that balances environmental and social needs while respecting and enhancing the unique character of its landscape.

W*: What innovation have you been applying in your projects there? What can make a difference?

B: We believe that creating architecture on Greenlandic terms requires a specialised approach - one that thoughtfully integrates all relevant factors to produce innovative, highly responsive environments. To this end, we developed our design methodology, Climate-Driven Design. This approach emphasises that architecture must respond not only to the immediate environmental conditions of a site but also to its broader climatic and cultural context. It incorporates a comprehensive range of global, local, and social parameters to create structures that are resilient, adaptable, and culturally appropriate.

Our process begins with meticulous data collection, analysing factors such as temperature fluctuations, wind patterns, snow accumulation, permafrost, limited daylight, and precipitation. This ensures that each project is uniquely tailored to its specific site conditions, giving the design a distinct "DNA" that reflects its natural and social environment. We aim to minimise impact on the landscape by allowing the local climate to co-design our buildings, preserving the terrain and working in harmony with Greenland's fragile ecosystems.

In these remote locations, logistics can present significant challenges, making careful planning essential. Where feasible, we prioritise the use of local materials and manpower, reducing transportation needs and supporting the local economy. This approach not only addresses the logistical hurdles of building in Greenland but also fosters a sense of ownership and connection within the community.

In these extreme Arctic conditions, we focus on materials and techniques that are not only durable and energy-efficient but also align with the community’s way of life. By embedding these principles into the very foundation of our designs, we aspire to create architecture that is not just functional but also comfortable, sustainable, and deeply connected to its environment. Our ultimate goal is to craft buildings that enhance both the quality of life for Greenlandic communities and the resilience of the built environment in one of the world’s most challenging climates.

W*: What excites you about the future there?

B: The opening of the new international airport in Nuuk in November 2024, along with upcoming airports in Ilulissat and Qaqortoq, marks a transformative moment for Greenland. These new transport hubs will significantly enhance connectivity and create opportunities for development that can benefit Greenlandic communities. Architecturally, this opens the door to projects that thoughtfully balance development with Greenland’s cultural and environmental priorities.

The expanding tourism sector also presents exciting opportunities, but it also comes with challenges. Increased tourism must be approached sustainably to ensure it supports the Greenlandic people, their unique natural environment, and Greenland's long-term interests.

We are particularly excited about projects that seamlessly harmonize with Greenland’s extraordinary landscapes. One example is our current development of 150 residences on the outskirts of Nuuk. Designed to adapt flexibly to the steep, rocky terrain, this project minimizes disruption to the natural environment, allowing the landscape to remain virtually untouched. The concept integrates the architecture with the formations of the rocky landscape, creating a balance between built structures and the surrounding environment that has never been seen in Greenland.

Through projects like this, we aim to contribute to a future in Greenland where architectural innovation meets community needs while preserving the Arctic’s unique and fragile beauty. This is an opportunity to set a new standard for sustainable design in a region undergoing significant transformation.

biosis.dk

Jens Sverdrup is chairman of Zenvo Automotive, having joined the Danish company in 2021 after garnering experience amongst the upper echelons of the supercar and hypercar world, including stints at Koenigsegg, Rimac and Czinger. Zenvo itself was founded back in 2007 by Jesper Jensen and Troels Vollertsen, launching its first car in 2009, the ST1, powered by a 5.8-litre V8.

Since 2009, the original ST1 has evolved, becoming the TS1, then TS1 GT, before ultimately ending in the TSR-GT, which produces a remarkable 1,360 bhp from the original V8. Production numbers have always been very limited, split between road and track-only cars, occupying a rarefied niche within a niche to cater for collectors who care more about driving and engineering and less about the badge on the bonnet.

Sverdrup hopes to change all that. In August 2023 the company kickstarted a new era with the launch of the all-new Aurora Agil and Tur models. We spoke to Sverdrup about his ambitions for the new models and where the company sees itself heading.

Wallpaper*: How would describe the new models?

Jens Sverdrup: I’ve come into the picture to help set up the Aurora programme and beyond. We’re doing what we call Zenvo 2.0.

W*: What challenges have you faced?

JS: I’ve known the guys here for a long time – it’s a small industry. They wanted to become the next breakthrough brand in the hypercar world, so they needed a new team. They approached me and it was like dangling a candy in front of a kid.

I also really hit it off with Christian Brandt, our head of design, who is perfect for a small boutique brand where you have to wear many hats. Christian suggested we make something around a monocoque structure and they presented me with some early renders – as a car fanatic, it was hard to resist.

W*: What was the next step?

JS: We’re in Denmark – a world-leader in design, be it architecture or furniture. There’s a very specific design language here, a sort of organic minimalism, not something that’s hard and angular like the Bauhaus. So the first step was to add more ‘Danishness’ to the design, then work on the aero. Christian played with the negative spaces, inspired by cars like the BAC Mono or Aston Martin Valkyrie.

There was all this beautiful engineering, but if you put a monolithic body on it, it hides it away. We wanted to send all the air through the car rather than over it. So it’s fully open on the sides, more like an F1 car.

W*: What else inspired the design?

JS: I’m a big, big fan of motorcycles – you can look at one and you can figure out how it works. So we took a similar approach – let’s only add bodywork where it needs to be. The black surfaces on the cars are the uncovered monocoque chassis. We have our engineering on display, like a Patek Philippe watch – a mechanical fascination.

W*: Is this what defines Zenvo?

JS: It’s what a hypercar means to me – everything is bespoke, from the bolts down to the fluid containers. You can see the engine, the gearbox… every part is beautifully crafted and like a work of art.

W*: So why go with a V12 engine and not an electric drivetrain?

JS: It’s the ego part. In every company I’ve been involved with, customers wanted a V12. If they said they prefer V8s, they’re lying. We canvassed around 100 customers, dealers and even journalists to find out what they preferred. Almost everyone said V12.

W*: Who have you sourced your engine from?

JS: With the Aurora Agil and Tur we have very tight packaging for the engine and gearbox. It would normally cost around £60-100m to develop a V12 from scratch, so we’re working with [UK-based] MAHLE Powertrain to co-develop a modular engine, something that can be supplied to other manufacturers in order to off-load the initial expense.

W*: Do you see a future for a V12 engine?

JS: For us, the Aurora is a brand breakthrough product. A new V12 is now or never, but my gut feeling is right, and we’re drowning in enquiries from other manufacturers. Nobody buys a hypercar for efficiency – they buy it for emotional reasons. Frankly, electric hypercars might be extremely fast but they leave me cold emotionally.

The Aurora is back to basics – it should be fun at low speed or top speed. Let’s not just chase crazy performance numbers. The V12 is paired with electric motors, which also serves as the starter motor and the reverse gear. The gearbox has been co-developed with Ricardo.

W*: How would define a modern hypercar?

JS: It’s like an old-fashioned graphic equaliser – every slider is turned up to the maximum. But we’ve never had numbers in mind. We’re trying to build a car that’s not hugely uncomfortable – nobody cares about being 1/10th of a second faster around the Nürburgring anymore. The cars are geared for the best possible driving experience – a sensory experience [that delivers] smiles per mile.

W*: What’s the difference between the Agil and Tur models?

JS: We have two models because one can’t do it all. The Tur is four-wheel-drive, with additional electric motors on the front axle. The longer gearing is aimed at a more GT-like experience. A huge benefit of the hybrid system is being quiet at 5am – you’re not getting a lot of friends if you start a V12 at that time. You can also take it through congestion zones.

The Agil is track-focused, with more aero and a lighter, different specification. It’s rear-wheel drive and is still road legal. We’ll build 50 examples of each, with production slated to start in Q3 2026. This summer, we’ll have the VP1 prototype up and running.

W*: How have you approached the interior design?

JS: We have a very rich heritage of design. Christian wanted to make something timeless – it’ll probably be around 150 years from now. [Inside], I wanted the feeling that you’re part of the machine, like a cog, but also like you’re the missing part of a sculpture. I have a dislike of screens and technology. The reason you’re driving a hypercar is to escape the world, like riding a motorbike or a horse. Screens are cheap, they cost nothing, but we wanted a very user-friendly experience with a button for everything, not menus.

I also wanted to have analogue instruments, inspired by watches of course. The car is really high-tech, but technology is best when it doesn’t interfere and just supports you. The instrument cluster can flip around and hide the CarPlay and menus. You have all the things you need without being bombarded with data. You just don’t need all these gadgets in a Sunday morning hypercar.

W*: How do you think the Zenvo brand will evolve?

JS: The media has a hard time pinning us down. The customer knows exactly what they want. I was originally tempted not to publish any performance numbers, as we know the car will perform against the very best. But that’s not the reason the car exists – it’s a side effect of doing everything the best way possible.

Our customers are part of our journey, helping us build the brand. It’s been fascinating to see it come alive. I’m allergic to the word ‘luxury’. This isn’t about luxury, it’s about experience, and I think our customers feel the same way – we’re in the extreme sports industry, along with high-end skis, bicycles or running shoes.

We’re doing it because we love going fast and creating an expression of technology. Our customers can get luxury any day of the week. They want to feel something. This is a really, really extreme project for true enthusiasts who care, like me, about quality and artistry.

Zenvo Aurora Agil and Aurora Tur, from around €2.6m, ZenvoAutomotive.com, @ZenvoAutomotive

All photographs by GF Williams

Flora Danica is a new Danish perfume house rooted in the natural world and the Nordic philosophy of hygge. Crafted in Denmark and produced in France, the brand has taken the expertise of three of Europe’s premier noses – Olivier Cresp, Nathalie Lorson and Ilias Ermenidis – to produce a thoughtful debut collection of four scents celebrating a oneness between humanity and nature.

‘In Denmark, we enjoy our nature in its raw and untamed form,’ Michael Shin, Flora Danica’s brand director tells Wallpaper*. ‘The brand’s vision of nature is less romantic, more graphic.’

Flora Danica is a new Danish perfume house rooted in the philosophy of hygge

This outlook is perhaps best exemplified by the scent ‘1761’. Like eating a pastry on a wild walk in a moody, mulchy forest, top notes of citrus and cardamom give way to something much deeper, darker and woodier.

‘Flower Muse’ blends jasmine tea, white poppy, sweet pea and iris, whereas ‘Amber Echo’ brings together ginger, carrot seeds, angelica and frankincense. Finally, ‘Soul Garden’ is an enveloping mix of verbena, honey elderflower and vetiver counterbalanced with an amber gourmand accent.

The house takes its name from an important relic from Denmark’s history, the Flora Danica. This atlas of botany, written between 1761 to 1883, catalogues the diverse flora of the Danish kingdom across 54 illustrated volumes. Certainly, this marriage of history and contemporary Nordic values is a beguiling starting point from which to build a fragrance house.

‘Danish design is about the combination of elevated aesthetics, minimalism and functionality,’ says Shin. ‘We have tried to incorporate this vision, whilst also creating a contemporary identity to a piece of Danish national heritage. It’s about a juxtaposition of modernity with a certain depth and confidence, without being “over the top” or dusty.’

As essential to the Nordic way of life then as it is now, a closeness to nature is at the very heart of the brand, extending from production to branding and beyond. Combining elegant pistachio green as its signature colour with bold sans serif typography – and using organic materials such as paper and wood in its packaging – the house has the characteristics of the inviting yet elevated pragmatism that makes the Scandinavian style so beloved.

‘The choice of four fragrances, just like the four seasons, was conscious,’ Shin notes. ‘We would like to build the brand gradually and had we launched with more creations from the start, it would have meant producing more and using more resources, which we did not want to do.’ Flora Danica perfumes have a high percentage [up to 92%] of ingredients sourced from natural origins. The bottles are refillable and use FSC-sourced paper as a secondary packaging material. ‘We, as Danes, try to make responsible choices when we consume,’ Shin notes.

The process of launching the brand was a journey of discovery, not least for perfumers Crisp, Lorson and Ermenidis, who each brought a unique set of expertise to the brand whilst also taking the opportunity to learn more about Danish cultural identity. But also for Shin, with the Flora Danica encyclopaedia a constant touchpoint throughout. ‘We learnt that the story of Flora Danica is one of generosity, endurance, artistry and courage,’ he says.

‘When King Frederik V commissioned it, he did so to educate his people. It was financed by his personal, not public, budget,’ Shin continues. ‘At the time, the kingdom was much bigger, so researchers had to travel far, often facing dangers, to discover new species. When you look at its illustrations, they depict the flora in its entirety from root to top, not just showing the beautiful parts. To have them printed in colour, not only in black and white, was a remarkable feat of artistry at the time.’

For a tiny country with a population of not quite six million, it’s safe to say that Denmark’s impact on global culture is almost disproportionately immense: we want to dress like the Danes, eat like the Danes and live like the Danes. Copenhagen now rivals Paris or London regarding the city’s aesthetic influence, and also perhaps for its thoughtful way of living; a way of living that Flora Danica has now bottled in its fragrances.

floradanica.com

In most places (at least those that play host to the crop of new hotels we’re eyeing up), October means rustling leaves, sweater weather and a clutch of design-led stays that bring the cosy vibes and call for lingering. We’re eyeing up a revived charmer in a leafy corner of Vermont, a culture-centric hotel in Malta’s capital and a luxurious hideaway with heaps of hospitality pedigree on the under-the-radar Indonesian island of Rote. Also on our radar this month: the hip Eastside of Los Angeles enclave of Silver Lake finally gets the chic hotel it deserves, and yet another fashionable boutique boîte opens in London’s Covent Garden.

The world’s best new hotel openings

October 2026

Hotel Lucile, Los Angeles, USA

Occupying a thoughtfully restored 1931 church, originally designed by architect Scott Quintin and revived by Electric Bowery, Hotel Lucile, the latest addition to Casetta’s portfolio, is a stylish new stay, art gallery, culinary destination and gathering place in East LA’s hip Silver Lake. Preserving stained-glass windows and soaring arches while layering in custom furnishings, a collection of contemporary artwork – including two murals of nearby Eaton Canyon and Elysian Park by artist Erin Lynn Welsh – created in partnership with Uprise Art and L.A.-based Rhett Baruch Gallery and collected antiques, the intimate property features 25 rooms arranged around a courtyard as well as a New American French restaurant and bar, Sous Sous, developed with the team behind De La Nonna.

Hotel Lucile is located at 1629 Griffith Park Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026, United States

Read our full hotel review of Hotel Lucile

NIHI Rote, Rote Island, Indonesia

The founders of NIHI Sumba just debuted a highly anticipated conscious luxury concept and hospitality academy on remote Rote Island in Indonesia’s Nusa Tenggara Timur province. Fitting a project of this scale and soul, it took a team of renowned architects and designers to bring the vision of NIHI Rote to life, blending natural beauty (think: ocean views and lush tropical gardens) and local culture. Walter Wagner and Habitat 5 Bali took the lead on the 21 traditional Rotenese villas, with modern interiors by Dara Huan's DH Liberty using local materials. Hart Howerton crafted the open-air public areas – including the arrival, spa, games pavilion and signature restaurant – with Caroline Usher’s Studio UBD leading the charge on the breezy, earthy design.

NIHI Rote is located at Boa, Rote Barat, Boa, Rote, Kabupaten Rote Ndao, Nusa Tenggara Tim. 85982, Indonesia

Romègas Hotel, Valletta, Malta

Located in Malta’s historical capital, Romègas is the result of a five-year restoration and renovation of a 16th-century palazzo, carried out by EM Architects, with the help of an archaeologist and reconstruction contractor. In contrast to the rich heritage of its structure and ancient carvings, the interiors, by fifth-generation, family-run local studio Camilleri Paris Mode, take a more contemporary lens. Across the 22 rooms and suites (some of which feature traditional Maltese balconies), restaurant and rooftop pool area, locally sourced materials – including bespoke wooden panelling and Palladiana terrazzo flooring – and works by emerging Maltese artists tell a story of present-day creativity and provide calm from the bustling city below.

Romègas Hotel is located at 41-47 Old Bakery Street, Valletta VLT1454, Malta

The Seminary, Old Bennington, USA

The Seminary, burgeoning New England hospitality brand Place in Mind’s flagship, restores the 1829-built Bennington Seminary, an all-boys boarding school that later served as a country club, a collegiate writers’ retreat and a private residence in the idyllic Vermont town of Old Bennington, transforming the building listed on the National Register of Historic Places from relic to revival. Hendricks Churchill led the architecture and design, reconstructing the original bell tower, restoring a barn, preserving original windows, salvaging old wood doors and beams, matching historic paint colours such as creamy white and dark forest green, replicating millwork, and filling rooms with period character through woven textiles, hand-carved furniture and artwork.

The Seminary is located at 3 Seminary Lane, Bennington, Vermont 05201, United States

The Webster Covent Garden, London, UK

While London certainly isn’t lacking in design-savvy hotels, The Webster Covent Garden has already piqued the interest of the creative crowd with its narrative-driven design by London-based architecture and interior studio Red Deer and fabulous location beside Lincoln’s Inn Fields. Fashioned as a place to mix, mingle, chat over terrace cocktails and eventually snooze in the refined rooms, the property feels current yet with a timeless charm that flows between the nostalgia of hand-selected books and mid-century armchairs, the bold tiled floors at Carmelina’s, and the shimmering disco ball at Carla’s List, ebbing between heritage and modern whimsy.

The Webster Covent Garden is located at 62 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London WC2A 3JW, United Kingdom

September 2026

Cori Hornbæk Hotel, Denmark

Cori Hornbæk Hotel is an aesthetic homage to the Danish Riviera. Breathing new life into a once-forgotten architectural gem originally designed by Ole Falkentorp in 1935, Copenhagen-based Jon Clausen of NVMBR Architects and Scandinavian studio AART resurrected the coastal crash pad. Perched on a sandy beach on the northern shores of Zealand, overlooking the Kattegat Strait, the hotel’s interiors exude contemporary Nordic sophistication, with warm, muted hues and clean lines spanning its 77 rooms, five townhouses, bar and restaurant. The property also possesses a spa that, like everything else, is inspired by the raw beauty of Hornbæk’s coastline.

Cori Hornbæk Hotel is located at Havnevej 25, 3100 Hornbæk, Denmark

Read our full hotel review of Cori Hornbæk Hotel

Maison Le Chevreuil, Meursault, France

In conceptualising Maison Le Chevreuil, the idea was to create a smaller, design-driven alternative to the grand château stays throughout Burgundy. Two rising local architects, Aubin Prost and Johanna Leserre, took on the responsibility of renovating the structure and shaping the interiors into something spirited yet sleek, guided by heritage but distinctly fresh. The result is a cosy bolthole with a whisper of luxury located on the main square in the village of Meursault. The reception area – with its terrazzo marble floors made from fragments of local Corton stone, rammed earth (pisé) bar, natural clay plaster walls and oak accents – does triple duty for check-in, coffee and cocktails. Rooms, too, are a masterclass in craftsmanship, with thoughtful details such as Hästens beds, rounded seating and curved showers inspired by wine tanks.

Mansion Le Chevreuil is located at 1 Place de la République, 21190 Meursault, France

Public West Hollywood, USA

In opening Public West Hollywood, hospitality giant Ian Schrager brings his trademark style – polished, but with a subversive edge – to West Hollywood, a place known for boozy brunches and all-night benders. The hotel – a meeting of the minds between the legendary hotelier, architects John Pawson and Alan Bell, and interior designers Francois Champsaur, Aurore Rouillay and ISC Design Studio – isn’t necessarily catering to a raucous crowd, though some revellers will no doubt stop in, intrigued by the metallic magenta sculptures by artist Anselm Reyle in the lobby, views of the Hollywood Hills from the park-like rooftop or in need of a plush bed to sleep after letting loose on the nightclub’s black-and-white checkered floor. If you prefer to skip the late-night antics in favour of a flick, bedrooms come with private screening rooms.

Public West Hollywood is located at 8300 Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069, United States

Quinta Filippa, Laje, Portugal

Hidden away on a 40-hectare estate in the Portuguese countryside, Quinta Filippa is a 16-room, wellbeing-oriented hotel, wrapped in nature and made for slow living. The architecture, much of it restored by Portuguese architectural studio Arquiprivée, taps into the agrarian heritage of the Leiria region. The interiors – a collaboration between owners Mike Schwalbach and his wife, Nikki Mol, and Nanouk Souren van Ramshorst of Circle Studio – take a thoughtful approach, consciously embracing local materials such as original stone and upcycled wooden ceiling beams alongside handmade ceramics and streamlined furniture. Daily activities like guided hikes, farm visits and bread baking, wellness amenities – including a 25-meter heated saltwater pool, infrared saunas and ice baths – and farm-to-table dining foster a grounded approach to restoration.

Quinta Filippa is located at Beco Tropical 5, Laje, 2425-612, Portugal

Recess Hotel & Club, Savannah, Georgia, USA

For Recess Hotel & Club, Left Lane’s latest hospitality project, following the opening of Hotel Bardo Savannah in 2024, the in-house team, in partnership with Atelier Pond, transformed the Beaux-Arts-style Manger Building, one of Savannah’s first skyscrapers, into a nostalgia-driven, new-school stay, tapping into the city’s creative rhythm and a sense of youthful whimsy. The 221 rooms – including 62 bunks – are fun-loving and functional, with analogue elements such as push-button light switches, original mosaic tile flooring and custom throws by local artist Juliana Lupacchino. Each floor has a rumpus room, a guest-only social hub with vending machines, vintage board games and Mahjong tables. Other highlights include a bathhouse circuit (steam rooms, saunas and cold plunges), a convivial bar shrouded in lush greenery and a tiled rooftop pool.

Recess Hotel & Club is located at 7 E Congress St, Savannah, GA 31401. United States

August 2026

1 Hotel Austin, Texas

1 Hotel has already left its eco-luxury imprint on cities around the world, from Miami to Tokyo, and now Austin joins the list. Rising from the tallest tower in Texas, the nature-inspired interiors – a collaboration between Studio MAI and the Starwood Hotels design team – do justice to two of the city’s most emblematic outdoor destinations: Waller Creek, a historic downtown waterway, and Lady Bird Lake, a reservoir on the Colorado River. The dialogue between urban and elemental comes to life through local stone, reclaimed wood, raw textiles and biophilic touches such as native shrubs. Guests can take in views of the restored green corridor from airy rooms, savour seasonal Texas ingredients at the restaurant, enjoy the rooftop bar and pool and switch off at the Bamford Wellness Spa.

1 Hotel Austin is located at 96 Red River St, Austin, TX 78701, United States

Amanvari, East Cape, Baja California Sur, Mexico

Aman’s long-awaited Baja California debut, Amanvari, set within the exclusive Costa Palmas community on the East Cape and meaning ‘peace’ and ‘water’ in Sanskrit, does a right turn from the mega-resorts of Los Cabos. Elastic Architects’ design, with initial contributions from Heah & Co., centres on the elemental landscape and the indoor-outdoor living afforded by its desert horizons, towering cardón cacti, warm breezes and the deep blue waters of the Sea of Cortez. Dotted across the property are just 18 sleek casitas. Each is finished with natural stone, timber and plaster and enhanced by bespoke furnishings, expansive terraces, heated pools, outdoor showers and generous alfresco living spaces. Privacy and peace are intertwined with wellness that taps into ancestral traditions and modern technology, ranging from temazcal to hydrotherapy houses.

Amanvari is located at Eureka s/n esquina con Sta Maria la Ribera, 23570 East Cape, B.C.S., Mexico

Chapter Chianti, Tuscany, Italy

Imagined by South African interiors architect Tristan Du Plessis as a modern Tuscan retreat, the second addition to the Chapter Italia portfolio sits within a restored 17th-century borgo, spanning 50 hectares of vineyards, olive groves and landscaped gardens in the undulating hills of Chianti. That all may sound like a traditional agriturismo, but upon first glance, it’s very clearly a contemporary, slightly unexpected rebrand of the countryside classic. The social and sleeping spaces mix earthy tones and modern styling to create bold expressions with character and soul. The preserved original stone staircases and vaulted ceilings mingle with furniture handcrafted by local makers, custom lighting from DCW Editions and Marset and playful art – from Kokekit drawings splashed across the ceilings of Osso to a striking work concealed beneath the pool and 82 rooms.

Chapter Chianti is located at Loc. Fontebussi, Cavriglia (Arezzo) 52022, Italy

Danieli, Venezia, A Four Seasons Hotel, Italy

Travellers with a penchant for historic grandeur will feel right at home among the treasure trove of brocade, gilded mirrors and Carrara marble at one of Venice’s most legendary hotels, which will reopen after a multi-year restoration under the Four Seasons flag. Uniting a trio of interconnected palaces and set on the Riva degli Schiavoni, steps from Piazza San Marco, with interiors by Pierre-Yves Rochon, the 120-key landmark boasts a museum-worthy collection of Murano glass, local Rubelli fabrics and ​o​il paintings. At the centre of the 15th-century Palazzo Dandolo, the atrium is an exquisite showpiece of soaring pink marble columns and a grand staircase. ​The accommodations range from spacious one-bedroom suites inspired by private Venetian residences, with generous velvet living areas and king bedrooms, to light-filled rooms in soft cream and honey tones overlooking the ​lagoon​.

Danieli, Venezia, A Four Seasons Hotel is located at Riva degli Schiavoni, 4196, 30122 Venice, Italy

Luura - Cliff, Paros, Greece

Paros is quietly rising through the ranks among Greece devotees seeking a more understated alternative to tourist-heavy Santorini and party-centric Mykonos. Its newest stay, Luura - Cliff, designed by Elastic Architects with interiors by Berlin-based studio Lambs and Lions, makes a compelling case for a laid-back Cycladic escape – sans screaming toddlers, blaring speakers, and (hopefully) TikTok reels. Influenced by the island’s artistic legacy, slower rhythm, and warm Mediterranean hospitality, the seafront retreat integrates the enduring charm of whitewashed Cycladic architecture with earthen hues, local stone and a significant art collection, including both site-specific commissions and works pulled from the Khoury family cache – notably pieces by Greek artists Sofia Mitsola and Kostas Paniaras, sculptor Judith Hopf and painter Chantal Joffe. The result is an environment that feels both familiar and unfettered across 39 spacious suites, two restaurants, a wellness area and a chapel.

Luura - Cliff is located at Agia Eirini, Paros, 84400, Greece

Read our full hotel review of Luura - Cliff, Paros

July 2026

Fouquet’s Mykonos, Greece

Fouquet’s Mykonos expands the brand’s reach beyond its exclusive addresses in Paris, New York City, Courchevel, and Saint-Barthélemy to a Grecian jetset hotspot. Set on Paraga Beach, on the southern coast of Mykonos, the sanctuary, designed by Divercity Architects, trades clubbing for calm. Embracing a contemporary take on traditional Cycladic aesthetics, it offers sweeping views of sparkling azure waters of the Aegean Sea from its 61 breezy suites and three villas, imbued with the serenity of sun-faded neutrals, clean lines and natural materials like stone. Embracing restoration, the wellness-focused amenities include indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a spa sanctuary in partnership with Dr Barbara Sturm (think hyperbaric oxygen therapy, a flotation tank and an ice bath) and a basketball court carved directly into the rock.

Fouquet’s Mykonos is located at Paraga 0, Mykonos 846 00, Greece

Gran Hotel Margalida, Banyalbufar, Spain

Annua Signature builds on its Spanish presence with the debut of Gran Hotel Margalida, located in the village of Banyalbufar on the quieter western coast of Mallorca. Madrid-based architect Álvaro Onieva and interior designer Virginia Nieto reinvented a historic building into a contemporary escape that captures the elemental beauty and ease of the Balearics. Local materials – notably stone references the Tramuntana mountain range – hues inspired by the Mallorcan glow and vast water views set the tone for an unhurried Mediterranean holiday. Guests can float between the terraces planted with indigenous wild olive and 29 sea-facing rooms, warmed with sunny yellow accents. For an added dose of relaxation, the wellness area has an indoor pool and a light-washed wood gym that may be the chicest of all.

Gran Hotel Margalida is located at Carrer Major, 49, 07191 Banyalbufar, Illes Balears, Spain

Hoshinoya Nara Prison

Working with longtime collaborator and architect Rie Azuma, Hoshinoya Resorts has transformed the former Nara Prison – the sole survivor of architect Keijiro Yamashita's Five Great Meiji Prisons, built in 1908 by inmates – into 48 soigné suites. Each merges nine to eleven former cells, contrasting century-old red-brick masonry with contemporary finishes. The hotel’s layout mimics a hand: five cell wings radiate from a central watchtower where guards once surveyed prisoners. The former detention block now houses a Japanese-French restaurant, whilst an adjoining museum, provocatively titled ‘An Eternal Question Posed by an Iconic Prison’, asks visitors to meditate on liberty inside spaces built to deny it.

Hoshinoya Nara Prison is located at 18 Hannyajicho, Nara, 630-8102, Japan

Hôtel Nelligan, Montréal, Canada

Following a comprehensive transformation led by Corner Collection, a Montreal-based family-owned independent hospitality group, in collaboration with Atelier Zébulon Perron, the luxe redux of Hôtel Nelligan honours the heritage of existing architectural elements – including original stonework and exposed brick – while integrating refined materials to create a cohesive, elevated environment in lockstep with the past and present identity of Old Montréal. Fostering a deeper sense of place are partnerships with local artists and makers such as Lambert & Fils and St-Damase. The use of rich velvet sofas in elegantly curved shapes, deeply veined marble and warm wood infuses the interiors with character, from the 102 guest rooms to the atmospheric modern Greek restaurant and cocktail bar/music salon nestled within the old stone vaults.

Hôtel Nelligan is located at 106 Rue St-Paul Ouest, Montréal, QC H2Y 1Z3, Canada

Hotel Palacio Bellas Artes, Curio Collection by Hilton, San Sebastián, Spain

One of Spain’s earliest grand movie theatres just entered a second act as a striking hotel. Isabel López Vilalta recast the 1914 Beaux-Arts cinema as Hotel Palacio Bellas Artes, Curio Collection by Hilton, reawakening the building’s spirit and inviting an international audience to experience it anew. An audacious destination for design and gastronomy, the landmark hotel weaves rich colour, texture and subtle cinematic references into a tapestry of early film glamour and San Sebastián’s cultural heritage. The 81 rooms and suites are dressed in sumptuous shades of rose, with heavy drapery and velvet walls that nod to a theatrical past. This sense of drama carries through to the lobby bar and the highly anticipated Basque-influenced restaurant.

Hotel Palacio Bellas Artes, Curio Collection by Hilton is located at Urbieta Kalea, 61, 20006 Donostia / San Sebastián, Gipuzkoa, Spain

Shore Haven Inn, Falmouth, Massachusetts, USA

Cape Cod is one of New England’s most quintessential summer colonies, with an elite pedigree that spans the Kennedy clan and present-day polo-clad elites. But a younger, cooler, more accessible undercurrent is sweeping in. Riding this wave, Lark Hotels continues its commitment to reinvigorating tired stateside digs into hip haunts for modern-minded travellers. At the old Victorian hotel, formerly known as the Beach Breeze Inn, hydrangea-framed gardens, freshly cut lawns, white Adirondack chairs and a classic shingled exterior look like a postcard from the Cape. Boston-based Rachel Reider Interiors gave the hotel a fresh new look, anchored by a coastal palette of watery blues, soft greens and sand, complemented by textured wallcoverings, light wood and rattan accents.

Shore Haven Inn is located at 321 Shore St, Falmouth, MA 02540, United States

The Dean Munich

Irish lifestyle brand The Dean has arrived in Munich’s Westend. Set between the main station and Theresienwiese, the site of the annual Oktoberfest, the historic quarter trades its former factory past for creative studios and indie Java joints with Google and Apple offices nearby. Designer Tatjana von Stein, a Munich native, has reworked a 1970s hotel block into 281 rooms, fusing the city’s Art Nouveau roots with 1980s club culture. Glossy lacquer clashes with burr wood, velvet against polished chrome, whilst the lobby features an oversized eye motif channelling new-wave iconography. For sustenance, Ibasho opens with yellowtail hiramasa, slow-cooked pork shoulder temaco and Wagyu ribeye, and post-prandial treats are served up in four bars, including a hidden speakeasy.

The Dean Munich is located at Landsberger Str. 68, 80339 Munich, Germany

Read our full hotel review of The Dean Munich

June 2026

Casa Cedo, Porto, Portugal

Porto is known for Port wine and the bridges across the Douro River, but it’s underrated when it comes to its boutique hotel scene. Casa Cedo has the potential to put the city on the design-driven hospitality map for a cohort of travellers who prioritise intimacy and curation over spectacle and scale. Daniela Franceschini, founder of Lisbon-based Quiet Studios, worked closely with local artisans and creatives – including Ayala Braidman, a ceramist based in Porto, and Portuguese visual artist Juliana Julieta – to imbue the property with character. The rich details carry from the eight rooms to the common areas: a lounge area, rooftop, private rear garden and a living/dining room that hosts special events with buzzed-about local chefs, as well as a hybrid reception and retail cabinet with ceramics, coffee, fresh flowers and Byredo fragrances.

Casa Cedo is located at R. de Cedofeita n. 334, 4050-174 Porto, Portugal

La Darbia, Chianti, Italy

A peaceful escape with access to wineries in Chianti and Florence (just a 25-minute drive away), La Darbia sits on a hilltop estate spanning 15 hectares of olive groves, meadows, and lavender fields. Restored by Studio Primatesta, the intimate retreat is the result of a meticulous renovation that preserves the 11th-century site’s original character and heritage. A contemporary spark comes through local materials – pietra serena, terracotta, travertine, and wood – and traditional craftsmanship techniques, such as intricate woodwork by Flavio Bettio, which ground its sense of place. Tucked into a trio of historic farmhouses, each of the 17 light-filled suites (four of which cater to families) is individually decorated with layered textures, while the windows frame the rolling countryside. The restaurant, led by Chef Sebastiano Pagliaro, serves seasonal Tuscan cuisine. All guests have access to two panoramic swimming pools.

La Darbia is located at Via Case Sparse (Greve), 16, 50022 Greve in Chianti, Italy

Eréma, Milos, Greece

Empiria Group arrived in Milos with the opening of Erema, a member of Design Hotels, located on the southeastern coast of the island near Provatas Beach. While the moon-like landscape may be hard to pull your gaze away from, the architecture and interiors by Athens-based ID Laboratorium, led by Stamos Hondrodimos, are equally arresting without pulling focus. The volcanic terrain lays the foundation for its sensibility and environmental consciousness. Minerals such as stone and marble, alongside sun-faded earth tones, contribute to a grounded feel. From the 41 suites, each with a private pool and panoramic terraces overlooking the Aegean Sea, to the two restaurants, the indoor and outdoor spaces flow together, an expression of the Cycladic lifestyle. The third location of Anthologist, a boutique curated by Andria Mitsakos, stocks global finds, Greek ceramics and vintage treasures.

Eréma is located at Cape Chalaka, Plaka 848 00, Greece

Faraway Sag Harbor, New York

Faraway, the hip, heritage-tinged brand from Blue Flag, with outposts in Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, has expanded its reach out East. For Faraway Sag Harbor, Jenny Bukovec Studio, in collaboration with the in-house design team, gave the old Baron’s Cove a full facelift, reimagining the iconic hotel, located just a short walk from Havens Beach and Main Street, into a fresh-faced bolthole that draws on maritime history, merging a coastal palette and oceanic revival motifs. The 67 rooms and suites are clad in saturated hues and warm wood. The lobby lounge is envisioned as a hangout when not enjoying the outdoor spaces, including the covered porch, lush patio – conceived as the heart of the social scene – and outdoor pool. Guests also have access to Amalfi Coast–inspired dining at Zagara, a ground-floor bar and lounge and a gym.

Faraway Sag Harbor is located at 31 W. Water Street, Sag Harbor, NY 11963, United States

Kitirua Plains Lodge, Amboseli National Park, Kenya

Abercrombie & Kent’s return to Kenya, with the opening of Kitirua Plains Lodge, an A&K Sanctuary in Amboseli National Park, marks a full-circle moment informed by the legacy of having defined luxury safari travel in the 1960s and a clear vision for the future. Pivoting from archetypal tented camps to something more permanent, Luxury Frontiers created structures from quarried stone with sculptural roofs that nod to traditional mud-building forms and timber screening. Interiors draw directly from the surrounding dust, grasslands and wetlands. Earth tones come to life in textured clay plaster walls, green stucco, green onyx accents, locally sourced Mazeras stone and handwoven sisal ceilings. Kenyan-made furniture crafted from mango wood and African teak is complemented by woven grass artwork and raffia accessories. The sculptural spiral staircase in the main lodge, open-air boma for storytelling and meals under the stars and yoga deck are also calibrated to the landscape.

Kitirua Plains Lodge, an A&K Sanctuary is located at Amboseli National Park, Ol Tukai, Kenya

May 2026

The Baby Grand, Coronado, USA

For its second hotel venture, The Baby Grand, San Diego-based hospitality group CH Projects (the team behind the power-clash cult-favorite Lafayette Hotel in North Park) snapped up a prime perch along Orange Avenue. Once an asphalt parking lot, the 31-key boutique is poised to become Coronado’s coolest stay, steering away from the dulcet tones synonymous with SoCal style. Brooklyn studio Post Company crafted a lush aesthetic that toes the line between overgrown jungle and fantastical underwater oasis. The lobby roars with sculpted rock formations, swaying palms and private lagoons. The under-the-sea themes play out vividly in the rooms, with iridescent clamshell headboards and oversized mirrored minibars mashed up against custom leaf wallpaper and bold leopard prints. The flashy, sensorial feast carries over into dining concepts: an oyster-and-champagne bar with an ornate mosaic of sea creatures and a craggy, Greek-inspired taverna.

The Baby Grand is located at 1315 Orange Ave, Coronado, CA 92118, United States

Hotel Corduroy, Montauk, USA

Montauk, the easternmost point of Long Island and the furthest of the Hamptons towns from New York City, retains a more laid-back appeal than the buttoned-up, busier East Hampton. Hotel Corduroy – the latest venture from Blue Flag Capital, which also includes The Beachside on Nantucket – takes over the former Sunset Montauk. To convert the old motor court into a cool summer weekend escape, Ward + Gray drew on the area’s surfing heritage and its Atlantic coastal setting, grounding the project in a palette of deep green, sun-faded red and light oak. Conceived with mingling in mind, the 29-key hotel will feature outdoor gathering spaces for golden-hour cocktails and firepit stargazing, while the rooms act as sanctuaries with grasscloth wallpaper, reeded bamboo bedside tables and rattan-wrapped consoles.

Hotel Corduroy is located at 437 West Lake Drive, Montauk, NY 11954, United States

Nômade Temple Madrid, Spain

Mexican-owned Nômade brings its breezy, wellness-centric bohemian ethos to Spain’s largest city with Nômade Temple Madrid, a creativity-driven urban destination for design, culture and healing. Housed within the restored Las Letras building on Gran Vía, the hotel’s layered aesthetic, the work of Oneness, is a visual expression of its eclectic vibe – sun-faded reds, geometric prints, modular seating, bold lighting. There's a deeply entrenched spirituality, yet it’s still very socialable. The 93 rooms and two penthouses are tailored for rest; likewise, GÖN House of Healing focuses on restoration. The scene beyond the guests' quarters and wellness wing is far more happening: a 112-seat restaurant draped in natural stone, aged brass and dramatic drapery; a communal cafe softly lit with vintage-style lamps; a speakeasy and nightclub for vinyl and vivid photo opps and a lush, romantic rooftop.

Nômade Temple Madrid is located at Calle Gran Vía, 11, 28013 Madrid, Spain

Sublime Sand, Comporta, Portugal

Following the well-laid roadmap of its destination-defining older sibling, Sublime Sand captures the wild, natural ethos of Portugal’s chicest coastal enclave. The architecture by Lisbon-based Fragmentos in collaboration with Sublime Comporta’s original architect, José Charrua, harmonises with the rugged, windswept landscape of Alentejo, where umbrella pines and cork trees perfume the air and rice paddies stretch as far as the eye can see. The indoor-outdoor spaces, created by Andringa Studio, take a similar approach – drawing from the sun-faded palette of the surrounding landscape and incorporating minimalist textures, local materials like wood and stone and sculptural forms. These elements come together across the multi-bedroom villas, Beefbar, Davvero – the crowd-pleasing Italian restaurant from Sublime Lisboa – as well as the wellness facility and kids’ club.

Sublime Sand is located at Estrada Nacional (EN) 261-1, 7570-337 Muda, CCI 3954 Grândola, Portugal

Tierras Villas, Crete, Greece

A quiet departure from the thumping beats of Mykonos and the hordes swarming Santorini, Crete’s newest refuge, part of the family-owned Omicron Hotels group, focuses on heritage and halcyon. Designed by Manos Kipritidis, Tierras Villas embraces a peacefulness that’s both visual and visceral, signalling a shift in how the island is being discovered – slower, more intentionally, with a stronger orientation toward nature and an eye for aesthetics. Set against the sweeping backdrop of the Mediterranean, each of the five minimally designed villas features calming hues and organic materials such as stone and wood, along with a private pool and expansive terraces for sipping a crisp, chilled glass of Vidiano while soaking in sweeping views of the sparkling sea and blue sky.

Tierras Villas is located at Mononaftis, Ag.Pelagia, 715 00 Crete, Heraklion 715 00, Greece

April 2026

Airelles Palladio, Venezia, Italy

The first project outside France for Airelles reaffirms the French hotel group’s knack for transforming historic landmarks into richly appointed luxury retreats. Spread across impeccably restored buildings – including the church of Santa Maria della Presentazione – the property occupies the site of the late-16th-century Bauer Palladio. Architect and interior designer Christophe Tollemer conjures a Venetian fantasy, steeped in heritage and the serenity of Giudecca. A warm palette of ambers, mahogany and deep blues, along with terrazzo and marble floors, custom Fortuny chandeliers, delicate Murano glass pieces, Rubelli wall coverings and hand-selected antiques gives the impression of staying at a noble villa. The elegant effect carries through the 45 rooms and suites, three restaurants, five bars, a spa and wellness area and swimming pools.

Airelles Palladio, Venezia is located at Fondamenta Zitelle, 33, 30133 Venice, Italy

Conrad Athens The Ilisian, Greece

Like the phoenix, the regenerative bird that rises from the ashes in Greek mythology, Conrad Athens The Ilisian emerges from the remains of its predecessor: the former Hilton Athens. Occupying the redeveloped mid-century modernist landmark on Vasilissis Sofias Avenue, the 307-key hotel commemorates the building’s legacy, incorporating the original 620-square-meter marble façades by 20th-century Greek artist Yannis Moralis and exterior illumination by Eleftheria Deko, the Emmy Award-winning lighting designer behind the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. The interiors by AvroKO pay tribute to the past through original furnishings pulled from the archives, which contrast with the sleek finishes and pop art of its modern revival. There are tonal rooms and suites with skyline views, nine restaurants and bars – including Athens’s first rooftop bar, reborn as Galaxy Dispensary – a spa and the largest outdoor pool in the city.

Conrad Athens The Ilisian is located at Vasilissis Sofias 46, Athina 115 28, Greece

Delano Miami Beach, USA

Delano Miami Beach isn’t a new build – the landmark property dates back to 1948, when its 14‑story tower was the tallest on the strip. Yet if you weren’t aware of its past, the slick surfaces and gleaming fixtures might belie its age. The transformation, led by Elastic, celebrates the spirit and sun-dappled lifestyle of Miami, while honouring the hotel’s legacy. The glossy pool area is flanked by umbrellas, accented with playful fringe. Rooms are bright and airy with crisp linens, light chevron wood flooring, rugs that evoke the soft sands below and large, ocean-facing windows. Gigi Rigolatto, the first-floor Italian concept designed by Hugo Toro, is a soaring oasis of striped plaster walls, intricately carved wooden panels and yellow Sienna marble.

Delano Miami Beach is located at 1685 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33139, United States

Read our full hotel review of Delano Miami Beach

Four Seasons Cartagena, Colombia

Located in Getsemaní, a vibrant neighbourhood steps from the Walled City, Four Seasons Cartagena captures the rhythm, romance and Caribbean charisma of Colombia’s most seductive city while also offering a sense of tranquillity and resort-style amenities. WATG breathed new life into a collection of historic buildings, restoring the Cloister of Saint Francis, timeworn façades, courtyards and the original Club Cartagena grand staircase. French designer François Catroux, in collaboration with Wimberly Interiors and AvroKO, shaped the interiors, which unfold in a warm embrace of old-world charm: intricate woodwork, sun-baked hues, and furnishings and textiles created by Colombian artisan Poli Mallarino. Guests can choose between colonial-style or contemporary rooms, each infused with timeless character. French studio SBM Interior Design extends the visual identity across the eight food and beverage venues, including the cocktail bar dedicated to architect Gastón Lelarge.

Four Seasons Cartagena is located at Calle 30 Media Luna 8B #8B-44, Getsemani, Cartagena 130001, Colombia

Read our full hotel review of Four Seasons Cartagena

Vestige Binidufà, Menorca, Spain

The buzz of Ibiza (thankfully) hasn’t yet reached Menorca. Nestled within an 800-hectare private estate on the island’s unspoiled northern coast, where native Minorcan cattle roam the untouched countryside, Vestige Binidufà preserves the bucolic side of the Balearics, sharing its sprawling grounds and amenities – including two restaurants, swimming pools and wellness facilities – with its hilltop sister, Vestige Son Ermità, which opened in June 2025. Shaped by the land and its history as a working farm, the in-house design studio, Vestige Estudio, restored a red-colored finca into an 11-bedroom, valley-ringed hideout that harmonises rustic farmhouse charm and serene sophistication, expressed through earthy hues, exposed wood beam ceilings, terracotta tile flooring, stone soaking tubs and antiques from the family’s collection.

Vestige Binidufà is located at Diseminado Binideufa, 18, 07750 Ferreries, Illes Balears, Spain

March 2026

1 Hotel Tokyo, Japan

Adding to Tokyo’s striking skyline, 1 Hotel Tokyo, the brand’s first seedling in Japan, is a masterclass in sustainable luxury within an urban setting, rising atop Akasaka Trust Tower. To create a biophilic oasis in one of Asia’s largest cities, Creme, in collaboration with 1 Hotel’s in-house design team, turned to nature, bringing the outdoors in through the thoughtful use of natural materials, a practice deeply rooted in both 1 Hotels’ philosophy and Japanese design. A vertical botanical installation, Oya stone and recycled timber panels greet guests in the 38th-floor lobby. Rooms are adorned with muted earthy hues, abundant greenery and floor-to-ceiling windows that flood in sunlight. The spaces feel like a breath of fresh air: a visual reset, a place to unwind above the bustle of the city.

1 Hotel Tokyo is located at 2 Chome-17-22 Akasaka, Minato City, Tokyo 107-0052, Japan

Read our full hotel review of 1 Hotel Tokyo

Fairmont Hanoi, Vietnam

Fairmont Hanoi, the brand’s first debut in Vietnam, adds a splash of modern luxury to the city’s Old Quarter. Glimmering gold and dripping in glamour, the 241-key hotel is a contemporary take on the opulence of Vietnamese tradition, poised to become a landmark in its own right. Influenced by French Colonial and Indochinese architecture, the sculpted, articulated façade, with collonaded podiums and balconies, punctuates the ever-changing cityscape. The interiors by Aston Design extend the aesthetic, while layering in elements that echo Vietnamese symbolism and the surrounding landscape, from a large-scale floral installation in the lobby to the vertical tapestry of vegetation in the courtyard. The clutch restaurants, bars and lounges serve as the social hubs, while the 3,500-square-meter spa and light wood-accented rooms channel artistry into relaxation.

Fairmont Hanoi is located at 10 Tran Nguyen Han Street, Hanoi, Vietnam

Read our full hotel review of Fairmont Hanoi

The Huntington Hotel, San Francisco, USA

San Francisco is in the midst of a renaissance, driven by new culinary and hospitality happenings, most notably the return of the Huntington Hotel. Once frequented by luminaries like Truman Capote, the storied Georgian estate helped put the city on the map. The redux – now part of Leading Hotels of the World – seeks to reclaim its cultural legacy. For hometown designer Ken Fulk, returning Nob Hill’s crown jewel to its ivy-clad glory required a grand reimagining of its accommodations, restaurant and wellness facilities, alongside a careful polishing of original plasterwork ceilings and boiserie panels. The 143 rooms and suites capture the elegance of the hotel’s heyday, enhanced by the allure of warm, muted hues and bold art. The Big Four benefited from a gracious upgrade without compromising its character, while the emblematic Nob Hill Spa once again beckons with an atrium crowned by Moorish fretwork and a heated indoor swimming pool.

The Huntington Hotel is located at 1075 California St, San Francisco, CA 94108, United States

The Lake Como Edition, Italy

Situated on Lake Como’s western shore in Cadenabbia, The Lake Como Edition balances heritage and hip, standing out among the historic landmarks of Italy’s most legendary lakeside destination. The Edition’s creative directors, Kirstin Bailey and Paul Haslhofer, in collaboration with Neri&Hu and architectural partner De.Tales, transformed a 19th-century palazzo into a modern interpretation of Italian glamour, translating the landscape – lush flora, turquoise water, pink sunsets – into a colour palette complemented by marble-faced archways and terrazzo floors. The lobby lounge is punctuated by a celadon green Sekoya marble bar and a custom Neri + Hu bauble chandelier, while the lakefront pool deck, dotted with striped umbrellas, looks ready to splash across postcards. Walnut furnishings and arched windows add character to the 148 rooms. True to the hotel’s forward-thinking ethos, there’s a state-of-the-art longevity spa for high-tech biohacking treatments and cryotherapy.

The Lake Como Edition is located at Via Regina, 41, 22011 Cadenabbia, Italy

Read our full hotel review of The Lake Como Edition

Six Senses London, UK

While most of London’s luxury hotels cluster around Mayfair and Belgravia, Six Senses London plants its flag in the heart of Bayswater. Taking cues from the building’s origins as the city’s first major department store, AvroKO looked to the heritage façade, the Great Exhibition and the streamliners of that era, weaving in modern, streamlined thinking and a soft palette that shifts the mood from retail to retreat. The residential-style rooms and suites unfold in a serene sweep of rounded forms, inky blues and warm woods. Some feature soaking tubs or glass stall showers that resemble old-school phone booths. Works by contemporary British artists complement a sculptural green bar, curved velvet seating and orb-like lighting in Whiteley’s Bar. Follow the restored circular staircase down to the basement spa, replete with a handmade porcelain petal sculpture by Ula Saniawa, a vaulted swimming pool and a biohacking recovery lounge.

Six Senses London is located at 1 Redan Pl, London W2 4SA, United Kingdom

Read our full hotel review of Six Senses London

February 2026

Alila Mayakoba, Riviera Maya, Mexico

Far removed from nightclubs and co-eds in Cancun, Alila Mayakoba shows off a more tranquil, down-to-earth side of the Riviera Maya. Huber Design Studio took a biophilic approach, celebrating the ecological beauty and deep cultural roots of the Yucatán Peninsula. Situated at the intersection of nature and culture, the five-star, adult-centric resort unfolds across mangrove-framed waterways, cenotes and the Caribbean coastline. Native, locally sourced materials – including tropical hardwoods such as tzalam, parota and rosa morada, along with stone ranging from hand-chiselled Mérida limestone to travertine – ground the design. Furniture, ceramics and henequén textiles handcrafted by Mexican artisans reinforce a sense of proximity and purpose, resulting in a retreat that feels deeply rooted in place while thoughtfully reducing its environmental footprint.

Alila Mayakoba is located at Carretera Federal Cancún-Playa del Carmen KM 298, Mexico

Ayan Zalaat, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Set on a 34-acre estate just outside Ulaanbaatar, Ayan Zalaat gives visitors a visually stunning and immersive introduction to Mongolian heritage. The combination of architecture led by the Mabetex Group and interior design by Fabio Friso reflect the country’s rich roots, while introducing a new echelon of glamour and grandeur to contrast its rugged surroundings. From the opulent double staircase and chandelier-studded reception to the 10 dazzling F&B concepts, it’s lavish on a considerably large-scale – but its sumptuous scene never overshadows its spirituality. The 32 rooms and suites show off bespoke furnishings, premium Mongolian wool carpets, marble bathrooms and expansive windows for soaking in the panoramic views. The property is also home to the Soma Temple and an ornately decorated Mongolian theatre, adorned with bright colours and intricate motifs, that hosts traditional throat singing (khöömii).

Ayan Zalaat is located at BZD - 11 khoroo, Ulaanbaatar 13241, Mongolia

The Newman, London, UK

Designed by the London-based studio Lind + Almond, The Newman is a new independent hotel that strikes a balance between a modern creative vision and nods to Fitzrovia's decades-long bohemian and literary heritage. Drawing inspiration from Art Deco design and the vibrant, creative spirit of the neighbourhood itself, the 81 rooms, including 16 suites, mix a soft yet warm neutral palette and geometric shapes with scene-setting art and a curated selection of books. Guests will also notice references to iconic figures such as the curves of the wood on the headboards, which recall the oversized bangles worn by British writer, heiress and political activist Nancy Cunard. Bathrooms feature bespoke tiling that echoes the façade of Gem Langham Court Hotel and sinks influenced by Shropshire House.

The Newman is located at 50 Newman St, London W1T 3EB, UK

Read our full hotel review of The Newman

The Vineta Hotel, Palm Beach, USA

The newest entrant to the posh Palm Beach scene, The Vineta Hotel, marks the first US opening for Oetker Hotels (the luxury hospitality brand behind Hotel du Cap Eden-Roc and Eden Rock - St Barths). Set on Cocoanut Row, just two blocks from Worth Avenue shopping, the elegant property revives what was previously The Chesterfield, a beloved Palm Beach hotel. Paris-based interior designer Tino Zervudachi headed the top-to-bottom renovation of the 1926 landmark, restoring iconic elements such as the distinctive Mediterranean Revival façade and leaning into its 100-year-old legacy with signature Palm Beach pastels and details like scalloped pendant lights that ooze coastal glamour. Snowbirds can expect 41 light-filled rooms, a flower-framed courtyard restaurant called Coco’s, a cocktail bar and a pool flanked by sun loungers.

The Vineta Hotel is located at 363 Cocoanut Row, Palm Beach, FL 33480, United States

White Elephant Aspen, USA

Colorado’s chicest winter hotspot welcomes a new stay aimed at the well-dressed coteries. White Elephant Aspen – the brand’s first Western outpost, joining properties in Nantucket and Palm Beach – introduces a contemporary, alpine-chic aesthetic to Aspen. The brainchild of Boston-based architectural firm EMBARC, the 54-key hotel showcases a mountainside colourway of white, cognac and charcoal, complemented by the natural textures of leather, wood and stone. Rooms and suites (some of which have crackling fireplaces) are kitted with porcelain tile, embossed headboards and oil-rubbed bronze light fixtures. The art collection boasts 125 original works, including landscapes by Alex Katz and rotating photography of nearby Maroon Bells by Bob Tabor. Guests familiar with the portfolio will appreciate the playful details, such as elephant door knockers.

White Elephant Aspen is located at 110 W Main St, Aspen, CO 81611, United States

January 2026

Andaz One Bangkok, Bangkok, Thailand

For Andaz One Bangkok, a new lifestyle hotel on historic Wireless Road, Thailand interior design firm PIA drew inspiration from the pulse of the city, from the motorbike-jammed bustling streets to the hidden alleys. Envisioned as a base for ‘curious urban travellers,’ the design and energy aim to match the exuberance of the Thai capital. Colour and texture play an important role in expressing a sense of evolution. Arches – in mirrors, hallways and windows – nod to the curved lines of the Thai mid-century movement, while pops of sunny yellow and orange, bold works by Thai female artists and traditional window grills inject character and personality. As much a place to unwind as to sip cocktails at the swank lounge or swim in the outdoor infinity pool overlooking Lumphini Park, the 244 rooms are quiet with peaceful, leafy views.

Andaz One Bangkok is located at 201 Wireless Road, Lumphini, Patumwan, 10330 Bangkok, Thailand

Chesa Marchetta, Engadin Valley, Switzerland

In 2014, Iwan and Manuela Wirth, co-founders of the international gallery Hauser & Wirth, expanded into hospitality with the creation of Artfarm and, four years later, opened The Fife Arms in Scotland. The creative powerhouse couple has done it again with Chesa Marchetta, a cosy 13-bedroom retreat in Sils Maria, a small village in Switzerland’s Engadin Valley. Reimagined by the design-oriented duo and frequent collaborator Luis Laplace, of the Paris-based interior architecture firm Laplace, the seasonal refuge comprises four historic buildings dating back to the 16th century, decorated with arven wood panelling, traditional Engadin furniture and blankets from a nearby weaving collective. As to be expected, the art collection is exceptional: a mix of works by Old Masters and local artists, alongside murals by Corin Sands. There’s also a former barn turned 46-seat restaurant, adorned with stone and an exposed wood-beam ceiling.

Chesa Marchetta is located at Via da Marias 88, 7514 Sils im Engadin/Segl, Switzerland

Read our full hotel review of Chesa Marchetta

Oculto, Mexico City, Mexico

Oculto, the latest venture from Vida Lenta – the hospitality group behind Hotel Dama in Condesa and Hotel Parián in Roma Norte – is an intimate boutique gem in Mexico City’s trendy Juárez neighbourhood. Fernanda Diaz, of Mexico City-based interior design studio Eran, conceived the hotel as both an intentional hideaway for travellers and a tribute to Mexican craftsmanship and creativity. Tucked behind an unassuming façade on Calle Versailles, the 21-room bolthole veers toward minimalism with polished concrete floors and clean lines, yet the interiors are anything but sterile. The palpable warmth comes from the thoughtful layering of locally sourced antiques and contemporary art, creating an authentic atmosphere that encourages slowing down while remaining unmistakably spirited, like CDMX itself.

Oculto is located at Calle Versalles 80, 06600 Mexico City, Mexico

Soori Penang, George Town, Malaysia

​For Soo K. Chan, ​the founder of award-winning firm​ SCDA Architects, Soori Penang​ – the follow-up to the flagship Soori Bali – is deeply personal. ​Situated in the oldest part​ of George Town, the UNESCO-designated historic heart of Penang, ​the extraordinary undertaking reinvents a​ collection of Khoo clan​ shophouses​, where the architect was born and raised, into an intimate 15-key ​luxury boutique hotel. Centuries-old craftsmanship shines, reflecting an unwavering reverence for the past, thoughtfully reinterpreted through a contemporary mindset. The generously proportioned one- to three-bedroom ​suites are imbued with heritage details, from motifs inspired by the ornate Khoo Kongsi temple to carved stone and onyx lanterns, complemented by custom-designed furniture and latticed shutters. Inner courtyards, with reflective pools and bespoke stone fountains, provide a tranquil place to unwind between excursions.

Soori Penang is located at 48 Lebuh Aceh, George Town, Penang, 10300, Malaysia

Read our full hotel review of Soori Penang

V Villas Maldives at Mirihi

International architecture and design firm Studio Gronda transformed an older resort in the South Ari Atoll into a stylish vacation paradise where tropical escapism is elevated with sun-dappled sophistication. The newly unveiled V Villas Maldives at Mirihi, debuting as part of Accor’s MGallery Collection, echoes the barefoot luxury essence of Maldivian holidays. In tune with the rhythms of island living, each of the 42 villas showcases contemporary open-air architecture, seamlessly integrating indoor and outdoor spaces. Throughout the property, guest sanctuaries are accented with timber floors, vaulted ceilings, natural textures and handcrafted furnishings. Accommodations range from overwater villas with private sun decks suspended above the lagoon to beachfront abodes shrouded by lush greenery, as well as multi-bedroom suites complete with private pools.

V Villas Maldives at Mirihi - MGallery Collection is located at Mirihi Island, 00190, Maldives

Wellness in architecture is a hotly debated topic. From biophilic design to inclusive architecture and the role of technology in our homes, it encompasses different elements that translate into varied aspects and practices, promoting well-being in the 21st century. Studying light and ventilation, and their effect on interior comfort is a key piece in that puzzle.

In this landscape, Living Places Copenhagen, a research project out of a dedicated, purpose-built mini neighbourhood in the Danish capital, is an experiment that attempts to address the subject by measuring design's impact on our daily comfort in an attempt to define what makes the perfect, contemporary living environment.

Living Places Copenhagen: who, what, why and how

In 2023, Danish window specialists Velux decided to put its money where its mouth is, kick-starting Living Places Copenhagen - a research project and live test site intent on proving exactly how design can help us live better: alone, together, and within the natural and urban context. Taking over a generous, long and narrow plot in Copenhagen's Jernbanebyen neighbourhood, the company worked with property consultancy Artelia and EFFEKT Architects to create a family of structures - two model homes and four semi-open pavilions (the latter acting as storage and auxiliary spaces, and exhibition areas, supporting the project's function).

Each of the two homes is slightly different. Both made in wood architecture, they were designed using sustainable architecture principles - one in solid timber featuring natural ventilation, and the other in CLT (cross-laminated timber) and hybrid natural/mechanical ventilation. Both are kitted out in state-of-the-art technology which allows the user to control and adapt when windows and sunshades open and for how long, both in terms of regulating sunlight and ventilation inside the home.

At the same time, all structures share a distinct, cosy and minimalist Nordic aesthetic - spaces clad in light-coloured timber, flowing interiors, tall ceilings, pitched roofs and clutter-free detailing. A garden outside - all the structures are arranged across a timber-lined deck that defines the 'neighbourhood' - ensures windows open to greenery which includes a vegetable garden. Guests are encouraged to pick its fruits to use in cooking.

The aim? To highlight the positive impact of 'a healthy indoor climate' and help prove how architecture can be sustainable on different levels in an efficient, scalable and affordable way (each of the homes, the project's representatives say, can be built in the equivalent amount of the typical Danish family home). So if you can afford a house, why not make it one that supports health and wellbeing too, they suggest.

The method? Inviting guests (one of which was this writer) to stay at one of the homes for a few days. The experiment included several visits taking place over the course of a few months. Each visitor experienced the environment and specific settings in the ventilation and daylight window systems, recording levels of comfort, offering feedback and implementing adjustments along the way. Surveys were filled in, questions were answered and the results were fed through to the programme's team to be collated and translated into measurements.

Meanwhile, the methodology used draws on the model proposed in the scientific paper Well-being at home: a mediation analysis of residential satisfaction, comfort, and home attachment by Bernd A. Wegener and Peter Schmidt, published in the Journal of Housing and the Built Environment in 2021.

Living Place Copenhagen: the results

Now, a little over a year on from its launch, the scheme has revealed its learnings. To that end, the Living Places Copenhagen team confirms that while comfort is a broad term and can mean different things to different people, the home environment and its daylight, thermal conditions, indoor air quality, acoustics, and connection with nature, are identified as key factors in user wellbeing.

'It is clear that there is a strong correlation between a high-quality indoor climate and human well-being, according to new data,' the project team writes. 'In July and August 2024, Velux Group invited nearly 100 architects, entrepreneurs, designers and journalists from 12 countries to live at Living Places Copenhagen as part of an experiment that builds on years of research led by Velux Group in scientifically monitoring different model homes to better understand how building design impacts residents' comfort and satisfaction while assessing indoor environmental quality and its effects on human well-being.'

'Designed to optimise daylight and natural ventilation, 83% of all guests favoured spending time in rooms with more natural light while 90% also found it easy to adjust the shadings to ensure an optimal indoor environment. As part of creating well-being at home, functional factors like design, layout, temperature, lighting, and indoor climate can invoke immediate feelings of physical comfort in a building. During their stay, 85% of the guests perceived the houses to fit their functional needs.'

It was additionally determined that each of the Living Places Copenhagen single-family homes emits only 3.85 kg CO2 eq/m2/year (a fact with third-party verification from AAU BUILD - Department of the Built Environment).

'We spend 90% of our time indoors, so the way we build and live directly affects our physical and mental health. Living Places focuses not only on how we create a better living environment for our planet but also on creating a path towards a future-oriented society that enhances living conditions for people as well,' the report highlights.

'Living Places showcases how we can build homes that don’t just make us less sick but actually contribute to improving our health. Combining mechanical ventilation and effective filtration of outdoor air with natural ventilation through windows and doors secures a healthy indoor climate through the whole year, even when the outside temperature drops.' The tests covered areas such as humidity and fresh air and carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations that affect mould and pollutants.

A conclusion summarised in five key themes

• Living Places can inspire and showcase how to build sustainably, in designs that can be financially competitive and scalable, use standard materials and follow contemporary lifestyle trends and aesthetics.
• Healthy buildings that are good for people and the planet can be achieved by applying a holistic approach focusing more on comfort, energy and environmental parameters; a no-brainer, perhaps, that architecture should be addressed from concept to building, operation and afterlife.
• Additionally, the way we design our homes can significantly influence residents' well-being and their way of living ('1 out of 3 Europeans is exposed to at least one indoor climate hazard such as lack of daylight, cold, damp or noise,' the team reports. 'Over 70% of Living Places guests reporting improved mood, increased relaxation, and a sense of connection to nature while experiencing minimal negative effects')
• The design of Living Places Copenhagen, which optimizes daylight and natural ventilation, has been well-received by guests, they add
• Finally, Living Places Copenhagen has achieved an indoor thermal environment within the comfortable range according to the European Standard (being awarded a 'first-class indoor climate'

velux.com/livingplaces

The Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) doesn’t like to do things by halves. Two years after opening an impressive new studio in New York, the hugely busy award-winning firm has now given itself a vast HQ building in Copenhagen, set in the heart of the port to the north of the city centre – and addressing sustainable architecture principles too.

Tour the BIG studio in Copenhagen

A neo-brutalist lump that saves its architectural drama for the interior, the new BIG HQ replaces a car park and stands 27m tall above Copenhagen’s Nordhavn. Three hundred people (or ‘BIGsters’, in the company’s parlance) work here, just under half of BIG’s global workforce. As both designer and client, the studio offered the architects an opportunity to explore and experiment, as well as a chance to practice what they preached in terms of sustainable, low-energy construction and running costs.