Shail Patel creates a potential housing solution for homeless communities using AI, New Yorkers are up in arms about the city’s rebranded logo, and HD announces this year’s Women in Design award recipients. All that and more in this week’s Five on Friday.
The “I ❤️ NY” logo gets an unpopular makeover
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The word “iconic” gets tossed around a lot. But it is perhaps most apt when applied to a description of Milton Glaser’s 1977 “I ❤️ NY” design. In an effort to boost tourism and promote the rebirth of New York following the dark days of the pandemic, the design has been reinvented to tepid reception. Developed by designer Graham Clifford, “We ❤️ NYC” was almost immediately met with derision by the public and, according to The New York Times, the design conjures distaste from numerous angles. From the sans serif font and the unaligned stacks of characters to the confounding shading applied to the heart, Twitter is, as usual, aflame with opinions. The controversial outcome is well-articulated by Tag Hartman-Simkins, director of design at Futurism, who tweeted, “I can tell you this one was feed-backed into the ground.”
Self-contained living pods proposed to combat houselessness
Image courtesy of Shail Patel
Architect Shail Patel has unveiled a series of modular pods conceived using artificial intelligence design tool Midjourney. The concept is proposed as a sustainable solution for supporting communities of unhoused populations in urban areas, designboom reports. Each pod is designed as a self-contained living space that invites abundant natural light and includes integrated ventilation and heating and cooling systems. Crafted with eco-friendly materials and features like solar panels and rainwater harvesting systems, the pods would be equipped with security systems and staffed by social workers and healthcare professionals.
JR’s new art installation worries feng shui experts
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Coinciding with the return of Art Basel Hong Kong, French artist JR has unveiled his monumental new installation Giants: Rising Up overlooking Victoria Harbour. The artwork’s depiction of a high jumper against bamboo scaffolding, however, has feng shui experts concerned, claiming its appearance of a person falling from a building presents a bad omen. Artnet reports that consultants as well as practitioners of the traditional Chinese art of metaphysics and divination are voicing unease over the concept, which see the piece only as a body plummeting into and being pierced by bamboo. Critics took similar issue with Kaws’ 2019 artwork Companion, which depicted one of the American artist’s signature sculptures floating, corpse-like, on the water of Victoria Harbour. In JR’s case, according to Hong Kong astrologer Benson Wong, the artwork is simply a “reflection of collective consciousness” and open to interpretation.
Telfar introduces “anti-luxury” pricing model
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The man behind your favorite tote bag, Telfar Clemens, is set to drop a new collection of unisex clothing from his eponymous fashion label online next week. Introduced with the new designs will be a first for a fashion brand of Telfar’s caliber: no fixed pricing. Fast Company reports that an experimental pricing tool on the Telfar website will ensure that the label’s most popular items will be available at cheaper rates, making good on efforts by Clemens to keep his designs accessible to all consumers. Each item will be listed at its wholesale price and will increase over time at the rate of about one cent every 20 minutes—or $10 to $20 a week. The price at which the item sells out on the site will remain the price for subsequent collections.
HD announces honorees of the Women in Design Awards
The 2023 Women in Design Awards honorees; clockwise from top left: Alda Ly, Eileen Madigan, Meghann Day, Nicole Wilson, and Verena Haller
Hospitality Design is pleased to announce the honorees for HD Expo + Conference’s inaugural Women in Design Awards. Presented during a breakfast session in partnership with NEWH, the award celebrates five influential women who have helped propel the industry forward. The ticketed event, which will take place on May 2nd in Las Vegas, will also include a conversation between HD editor in chief Stacy Shoemaker Rauen and Ashley Kasevich of Zappos. Register for HD Expo + Conference today!
