The best of desert design

If you were ever attracted to the beauty of desolate desertscapes, whether it's for their natural beauty or for the inspiration they can provide, then no better place to stay than the iThouse, a minimal glass-built house located in a pristine remote valley in the Californian desert near Joshua Tree National Park.

The all-glass house was conceived and developed with utter dedication and passion by Linda Taalman and Alan Koch, almost as a tribute to the surrounding landscape. The house is completely off-grid, powered by solar panels and built using renewable resources. No wonder Dwell named it one of the "Best Homes in America" and the Los Angeles Times even called it one of the best homes of all times in Southern California. See a great writup of the place on Dwell here.

As much detail was given to the interior, which is all about the handcrafted and the custom-made, as emphasised by the floor-to-ceiling curtains in the bathroom and bedroom by designer Elody Blanchard. The main living space features a rotating (yes indeed) fireplace from FireOrb hovering above the ground.

The furniture is from many places, but one piece that stands out is the couch by designer Kenneth Cobonque. "I wanted a sofa that was transparent and natural", Linda told us.

If you need an additional reason to stay, you could coincide your trip with the Coachella music festival, which is held nearby in the second half of April. Instead of staying in another mediocre hotel, this house will give you the perfect setting for taking in both the music and the landscapes. It's only about a 1,5 hour drive from the festival location.

Linda confided to us that she stays in the house as often as she can, but she has a busy schedule and cannot always be there. Luckily enough for the rest of us.

in the midst of art in berlin

Imagine if you had lived in Paris at the turn of the last century frequenting parties at the Stein's. You bought an early painting from Picasso, Gaguguin or Matisse. Or if you spent a few of your hard earned bucks on a Pollock or Warhol in the 50's, standing them against the wall in your tiny New York flatshare, not even being able to comprehend what they one day could be worth. It wouldn't be luck as you bought them out of love.

The last 15 years cheap rents in east Berlin has meant that the Studio 54 of today is in Mitte. Tomorrow's great artists has their morning americano in Kreuzberg and the gallery street Auguststrasse is the Wall Street for contemporary art investmeors. On this lovely street Johann has a stunning apartment right on top of his art gallery DNA Galerie. Parquet flooring and white walls in the midst of it all. 

The installations, prints and paintings on Johann's walls makes the flat in itself a gallery, a placed to be inspired in. His gallery focuses on international Berlin artists in different media. Johann's the perfect guide to finding the piece you love. And it's important to find art that moves you, not that seem like a "good investment." If the artist doesn't break, at least you will have had something that enriched your life daily.

Selfmade by Mariana Vassileva, 2011, is one of the pieces in Johann's home.

Selfmade by Mariana Vassileva, 2011, is one of the pieces in Johann's home.

 

start from copenhagen's history at uffe's

There is a certain thing about travelling to the "up and coming" areas of cities. They're usually just at the end of a long gentrification process and strolls without a destination usually takes you to lovely cafés with bearded baristas, contemporary art galleries and independent fashion shops not yet plotted on Google Maps. But experienced like that these places soon start to feel the same. It's thinking about who walked the streets just a few years ago, who used to live there and what made the places what they are that gives you a unique context and experience. Vesterbro is our favourite part of Copenhagen but it needs to be done right.

Photojournalist Uffe's flat in Vesterbro is one of the last "working-class" apartments of the area. All the other flats have had walls knocked down and charming little alleyways have been bulldozered. Staying in his charming little flat your every morning will start in a historic building, leading you on to the cosy and fashionable streets of contemporary Copenhagen. The building used to be the home of Tove Ditlevsen, a famous Danish writer and poet who wrote about growing up on the streets in the 1930s, a time long before the hipsters. 

Uffe has collected some enigmatic and vivid art photography, a heavy contrast to the journalistic kind he produces for work. He says that his favourite work is by German photographer Wolfgang Tillmans and he bought it at Louisiana "...an art museum situated in a beautiful location by the north coast of Copenhagen. I would recommend everyone to go there. Even without the art, the place in itself is an experience.”

Staying in the small but light and beautiful apartment in Vesterbro you’ll be experiencing not only what it is now, but what has made it what it is, and maybe the floorboards will tell you some of the stories that inspired Ditlevsen. 

stay with monika during milan's furniture fair

April is the month of Milan's furniture fair, Salone Internazionale del Mobile where the biggest design players in the world show their new products in carefully designed exhibition spaces. In the evenings the parties’ guest lists resemble design encyclopedias.  The most interesting part of the fair is however in another part of town, at the satellite exhibition Zona Tortona. This is where you’ll find up and coming brands and design schools with inspiring and ingenious concepts many times without the creative restraints of commercial viability.

Monika Unger, a Polish architect, moved to Milan in 1983 after having trained in Belgium and the US. She rents out two incredible homes in the Navigli area of Milan, minutes away from Zona Tortona. Her incredible apartment on Via Morimondo is our favourite, a 200 square meter loft spanning 2 floors, housed in an old Richard Ginori factory (one of Italy’s famous porcelain manufacturers).

Staying in her home you would be seeing the future of design by day and live in a wonderful celebration of its heritage by night. Like walking through warm breezy vineyards by day, opening great vintage wines by night.

During the years Monika has grown a unique collection of Brazilian mordernist furniture from the 50’s and 60’s. Instead of the usual suspects Eames, Corbusier and Jacobsen, you find pieces from Joaquim Tenreiro and Sergio Rodrigues. 

Salone Mobile isn’t the only famous week in Milan, the two fashion weeks are still some of the most influential in the world. Monika thinks that they’re almost growing together. “I must say that for many years design and fashion were two different worlds but recently the fashion business displays a vivid interest in design with many initiatives to bridge the two creative poles. Although it is a city dedicated to business, the 'visual' values are present everywhere.”

Around Navigli Monika recommends a visit to Cucchi for tea, or La Carbonaia, a very traditional meat restaurant and if you need a break from thick black glasses and Margiela uniforms, the house resides next to Canottieri Milano, a historical sport club.

Chaz is neighbor with Chez Panisse

Alice Waters started the world famous restaurant Chez Panisse in 1971 and for over 40 years foodies from all over the world has travelled to Berkeley, California to eat the simple and seasonal food packed with flavour. Her cookbooks are really what has had the biggest effect on the world and the recipes are often more famous than the restaurant itself (our favourite is The Art of Simple Cooking). When you travel with restaurants as your destinations, managing expectations is key. To cross an ocean for a tomato sauce can often leave you a bit disappointed, in the end it's just a tomato sauce. A restaurant has to be appreciated in its context. A simple restaurant like Chez Panisse requires a couple of visits to fully appreciate its greatness. Changing their menu each day means that every visit will be different. So stay close by and book in a few long lunches and a dinner or two. 

If you throw a ripe peach over your shoulder whilst facing the modest restaurant entrance you'll find Chaz's wonderful apartment which he describes as a "mid-century gourmet ghetto flat". Chaz is a professor at a nearby arts college and his taste as well as personality is ingrained in the place. Design classics, personal details and beautiful art gives the place its unique character. Mid-century Americana echoes the areas heritage as a home for the intellectual elite of San Fransisco, its great food culture and warm ocean winds that has shaped the likes of Alice Waters.

Chaz also recommends trying out Cheeseboard Pizzeria one evening after having wandered to the two weekly Farmer's Markets, or down to the Monterrey Market to sample the bounty of Northern California produce. The flat has a well equipped kitchen so if you become good friends with Chaz, chances are you could treat him to a lovely Sunday lunch, cooking with some of the best and most inspiring produce in the world. Of course using one of the cookbooks you purchased across the road.

 Book Chaz's great Berkeley flat here.