Detroit State of Mind
What I end up saying when I try to explain to people, and myself, why I bought a vacation house in Detroit.
design
A collection of 12 issues
Very Visible Cities
Giant Chinese pigeons, Scarlett Johansson’s daughter, and deliberately un-green urban living: What to expect from London, Los Angeles, and Moscow in 2040, 2070, and 2100.
Cool Colors
This summer in Manhattan, it was important to wait in line for an hour to see light designed by James Turrell. Many bought the hype. Many were angry afterward.
Super Sad Tiny Home Fetish
Micro-living is no longer just for the very poor and the very bohemian. But how much space do we really deserve? Tracking down the minimum square-footage below which no one should be forced to endure.
The Internet of Actual Things
As we progress from smartphones to smart toasters, our things are becoming increasingly connected. Soon they'll be on Facebook alongside us. From there, it's only a few steps to tactful beds.
Home on the Thames
London's evolution is measured in centuries, not years. But when half of the city's new abodes go to foreign buyers—frequently as third or fourth homes—who's steering the design? Assessing Battersea's return from 30 years in the desert, just in time for a brand new American embassy.
Arts and Crafts and Money
When “small batch” equals big dollars and one-person companies are supported by corporate-size websites, is “hand-made” what we think it is? A report from North America’s largest consumer craft fair, where the competition for puppet dollars is intense.
Americhrome
From Schwarzkopf’s boots to traffic cones, the federal government’s official color palette—yes, it has one—controls much of what we see. An investigation into how America elects to paint itself.
Take Your Seat, Please
Experts answer what they know. The Non-Expert answers anything. This week we answer a question that has plagued us all since the day after we invented plumbing.
Is Gotham the New Interstate?
Most graphic designers are lazy about type, so when they find a font they like, they stick to it. In the ’90s, everyone used Interstate. Dmitri Siegel interviews Tobias Frere-Jones, Interstate’s designer, to see if he’s drawn the next big face.
Emme Stone
The five questions for illustrator and web designer Emme Stone.
Mike Cina of True Is True
Cina is a designer in the broadest sense. His work spans a wide range of commercial and personal art, including print and web design, typography, painting, photography, and bookmaking. Also, he is a fisherman. Our writer interviews the man behind True is True.