Architecture
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Light bulb moment
Formerly a light bulb manufacturer, Shotoku began making hand-blown glassware in the 1950s. Today its ultra-thin Usuhari glasses are the toast of the town. And it still continues to innovate.
Make it better
Akershus University Hospital by CF Møller was created on the principle that good design makes you feel better. Well lit and easy to navigate, it features bespoke, locally crafted furniture and state-of-the-art technology.
House doctor
In Marylebone, London, a petite penthouse is transformed from a doctor's surgery, using Swiss carpenters and Danish storage to handle a mass of media and an upside-down layout.
Home rescue
Appalled by the demolition of traditional houses in Japan’s Saga prefecture, New York restaurateur Mikio Shinagawa set about saving and restoring them, even selling one to Robert De Niro.
King of the hill
This traditional weatherboard-clad workers’ cottage in Queensland was extended by architects Owen & Vokes, who preserved the home’s authenticity and accentuated the views.
Design dialogue
In the first edition of Monocle’s Design Dialogues, an intimate series of discussions on key design issues, we throw the spotlight on the future of the workplace. Listen at monocle.com.
Box of delights
Daniel Fügenschuh’s simple white house in Innsbruck is a 21st-century chalet. Its modernist proportions and interiors are tempered with warm wooden furniture and traditional details to create a true family sanctuary.
Our top design firms
The firm that's found space to park its buildings, a natural talent from Austria and John Maeda of the Rhode Island School of Design gives his new year predictions.
Space station
Retired architect Shigemi Asano teamed up with Tezuka Architects to create a minimalist home that marries modernity with local tradition, leaving the views of the Japanese countryside to speak for themselves.
