Dwell September/October 2021

For three years, we’ve been asking everyone featured in the Dwell 24, our annual roundup of exceptional emerging designers (p. 31), to reply to a Proust Questionnaire–style survey about their lives and work. And this year, for the first time, none of them chose the dictum “less is more” as a personal credo. San Francisco designer Viviana Matsuda went so far as to call out minimalism generally: “I think it’s very arrogant and has notes of classism.” I don’t wholly agree. Taken as a style signifying the privilege to have a fashionably empty space, it is certainly, well, hollow. But I believe subtraction has merits that transcend trends. That said, I like the provocation in Matsuda’s statement. It has echoes in the work of many of the designers in this year’s…

Comments [Re “Out of the Office,” July/August]: Hunt does some amazing work, and this home office is such a great case study in simplicity and design clarity. ALNAAR, VIA DWELL.COM [Re “Years in the Making,” July/August]: This is a great home. Love the showcasing of the structural elements and overcoming living-space issues by building up within the existing footprint. New construction that retains the neighborhood’s design language is great! And while I’m not a huge fan of pine (it’s just so knotty), it works very well here, probably because it’s pine boards and not pine ply. What a great use of materials overall, especially the tile flooring and the green tile wall in the bathroom. This is a thoughtful, well-designed, and well-built home. Enjoy! REX MILLER, VIA DWELL.COM Instagram “It was the most unique property I’ve…

1. 13 Floor Plans for Beach Houses That Celebrate Coastal Living Perfectly positioned to embrace ocean views and salt-tinged breezes, these layouts make the most of their seaside settings. 2. 14 Cabin Floor Plans to Make Your Outdoorsy Dreams Come True These retreats are fine-tuned for relaxing and enjoying nature at its most glorious. 3. 9 Shipping-Container Home Floor Plans That Maximize Space Think outside the rectangle with designs that cleverly use limited square footage. PHOTOS: DEREK SWALWELL (1); EUGENI PONS (2); CHRIS COOPER (3). FLOOR PLANS: COURTESY AUSTIN MAYNARD ARCHITECTS (1); COURTESY SNORRE STINESSEN (2); COURTESY POTEET ARCHITECTS (3)…

How to cope with climate change without making the climate worse. @f28278 Sustainability and affordability. @myfordbox Social responsibility! Giving voice and opportunity to a diverse community. @larderlover Eliminating plastics. @teq.parts Sustainable fabrics and heat sources. @itsallwickedgood Bird-safe windows! @chrissol99 Wildfire smoke and rising temps. How to create creative cooling plans for homes. @jennshulllison Building codes that incorporate building science. @elainehigden Global warming in a real way—sustainable, affordable practice, not just fancy gadgetry. @sarah_blood The life cycle of the product. @p3tes Reducing embodied energy in construction/fabrication. @studiohagenhall Healthy materials. @blvv.j Access and usability for people with disabilities. @realtrueblue meandyou Lack of affordable housing. @dordeidre Materials and construction in response to new weather patterns. @james.g.lee Fair-trade manufacturing and sustainability. @michael_weksler Reducing the carbon footprint of manufacturing. @havanahyde Incorporating innovative, new, and locally sourced materials into products and designs. @jschleppeceramics Using budget-friendly materials. @thbarretta Getting back to simple yet modern products versus the latest (not sustainable) gadgets. @lotte.kingma Social sustainability after the pandemic and bioclimatic design. @hoorno_arc Energy use for new products, upcycling, and nontoxic…

@THE_COOLEST_COUPLE Fashion designer Lezanne Viviers and her husband, Walter Anderson, hadn’t intended to move from their cozy apartment in Hyde Park, Johannesburg, let alone buy a new house—until they stumbled upon a modernist gem on a kopje, or small hill, overlooking the city at the junction of the Melville, Parkview, and Westcliff neighborhoods. “When I walked in, I was blown away by the view,” says Lezanne. So the couple put in a “cheeky” offer on the brick-clad, 1960s home. It was swiftly declined. When the property went back on the market some months later, the duo reached out directly to the owners—a couple who had left the house uninhabited for a decade—and arranged a rent-to-purchase deal in 2018. “We were able to start restoring the home even before we owned it,” says Lezanne,…

@MIGUELPORLAN THE DWELL 24 Take a seat and dig into this year’s roster of the most exciting new names in design. THE DESIGN LIFE How do our Dwell 24 designers see the world? We surveyed them to find out. The results—spread throughout the following pages—may surprise you. MY STUDIO IS… 87% A hive of productive clutter 13% A study in head-clearing minimalism IF I HAD TO CHOOSE ONE… 44% Brutalism 30% Memphis 26% Bauhaus CURITIBA, BRAZIL / @__ALEXROCCA Alex Rocca Alex Rocca’s career in cinema had a surprising plot twist. As an art director and scenographer, he cultivated a talent for conjuring locations through shape, color, and material, but he began to yearn for a more direct physical connection to his work. Two years ago, the Brazilian designer decided to take up tufting, a method of textile making involving punching yarn through a backing.…