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    IKEA unveils “powerful” first photos by artist-in-residence Annie Leibovitz

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    Swedish furniture brand IKEA has released two images from a series of photographs taken by Annie Leibovitz, its first-ever artist-in-residence, showing people in their homes across the world.

    The American photographer, who is best known for her portraits, travelled to twenty-five homes around the globe to take photos of people in their residences. She visited houses and apartments in Sweden, India, Italy, Japan, Germany, England and the US.
    “The home has always been important in my work,” Leibovitz said when appointed artist-in-residence in 2023.
    “I’ve been photographing people in their homes since I began,” she added. “It’s a way to understand who a person is. The advice I give to young photographers is to photograph their families. It’s one of the best ways to start.”
    Annie Leibovitz photographed 25 homes for IKEA, including this one in GermanyLeibovitz’s photos for IKEA show a variety of different interiors in seven different countries.

    “The result is a powerful photographic document that illuminates the nuances of life at home – across borders, ethnicities and professions,” the furniture brand said of the project.
    The series, which comprises 25 photos in total, was commissioned by IKEA after its IKEA Life at Home Report showed that 48 per cent of people globally don’t feel the media represents their home.
    The first two images released by IKEA, show the homes of Yusuke Onimaru in Japan and Maria Arrechea in Germany – specifically Onimaru’s ceramic workshop and Arrechea’s living space filled with friends.

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    Leibovitz’s photos will be shown as part of the IKEA+ exhibition in Paris, which will take place during Paris Fashion Week.
    It will also feature a collaboration with online radio station Rinse and showcase the Tesammans collection made by IKEA together with Eindhoven-basd design duo Raw Color.
    Six emerging designers from the Casa93 fashion education program are also taking part in the IKEA+ showcase. They worked with “home furnishing mentors” from IKEA to create designs that focus on upcycling and sustainable design.
    The photography is by Annie Leibovitz for IKEA.
    IKEA+ will take place on 28 Rue de Lappe, Paris, from 29 February to 3 March. For more worldwide events, exhibitions and talks in architecture and design, visit Dezeen Events Guide. 

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      IKEA reflects on “the past, the present and the future” of the home at Milan design week

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      Swedish retailer IKEA marked its 80th anniversary at Milan design week with Assembling the Future Together, an immersive exhibition that charts the furniture company’s history and addresses its future.

      Assembling the Future Together took place at Padiglione Visconti in Milan and explored the brand’s progression since the 1950s.
      Assembling the Future Together is on display at Milan design week”The whole exhibition is about the past, the present and the future,” said IKEA designer and chief creative officer Marcus Engman.
      “So it’s a little bit like telling the story of IKEA furniture, things we have done and things that we will do even more,” he told Dezeen in Milan.
      Furniture from IKEA’s history is on display to reflect its pastTo reflect this idea, the space was divided into three main sections. One area dedicated to the past features designs from IKEA’s 80-year history displayed on geometric white shelving.

      Among the pieces was furniture from the 1970s with bright fabrics and bold shapes, which were influenced by the increasing emergence of youth culture during this decade, according to the brand.
      Chunky children’s furniture from IKEA’s Mammut series was also included. The line was first designed in the 1990s and has remained popular ever since.
      IKEA is also debuting its new Nytillverkad collectionFor the present portion of the exhibition, the brand launched the first products in its new Nytillverkad collection.
      Characterised by “simple, functional and playful” elements, the furniture, bedding and accessories intend to pay homage to past iconic IKEA pieces in line with the current wide-spread revival of interest in vintage designs, according to the brand.
      The colourful collection takes cues from previous IKEA designsWhile the collection nods to IKEA’s roots, the brand used contemporary materials to create the pieces.
      “It’s putting old things into a new perspective,” explained Engman.
      Crowd-sourced images of people using the brand’s iconic Frakta bag are suspended in the spaceLarge-scale contemporary photographs, which showed members of the public sporting IKEA’s recognisable blue and yellow Frakta shopping bag in unexpected ways, were suspended from the ceiling throughout the venue
      One image showed a bride protecting her dress inside one of the shoppers on her wedding day, while another has been adapted to transport a dog on the subway in New York.
      “Even if we perceive our products as ‘ready design’, people see them a bit more like Lego pieces to play with,” acknowledged the designer. “People use the Frakta bag in so many ways we didn’t expect.”
      The ‘future’ section references the four elements with installationsThe future area of the exhibition features four towering installations dedicated to the elements of fire, water, earth and wind, which include an illuminated tree and smoke dispensers.
      “The future part is all about showing how we are using design and product development to nudge people’s behaviours into doing something that is good for people and the planet,” reflected Engman.
      “It’s also where we try to challenge people to be part of this – not just wait for IKEA to do stuff, but actually ask, how can we do things together?”
      “We have set out to be fully circular by 2030 so that affects everything that we do,” he continued.
      IKEA intends to urge people to think about the role they can play in shaping the future of designDesigned as an inclusive, “down-to-earth” space that is open to all, the exhibition drew together many other experiences, such as a cinema zone showing portraits taken by photographer and IKEA’s first artist-in-residence Annie Leibovitz that document the “real lives” of people in their homes.
      The project is part of IKEA’s annual Life at Home Report, where members of the brand’s team visit people in their living spaces and document their findings.
      A cinema zone is showing portraits of people at home taken by Annie LeibovitzVarious talks and music events took place in the space throughout the week alongside a dedicated “record shop” and on-site IKEA cafe serving branded food and drinks.
      The aim of incorporating music into the exhibition was to bring people together, according to Engman. Communicating the sacredness of the home is at the core of the IKEA exhibition, said the designer.

      “We have done cutting-edge things that people didn’t see coming” says IKEA’s Marcus Engman

      “This is something for us that we need to constantly work on – finding new ways of getting people to understand how important the home is,” he explained.
      “I mean, the challenges during covid and now the cost of living crisis has been where we can help out even more.”
      “Because people have had to spend more time at home – but how can we make the home also something that is really not just a functional thing, but an emotional thing?” he continued.
      “So I think that’s our biggest thing, but making sure we do that in people- and planet-positive ways. Because that’s the only way forward.”
      The exhibition was designed to be inclusivePreviously, IKEA donated its products and design services to create a series of United Nations-led refugee support centres in Eastern Europe to offer sanctuary to vulnerable groups displaced by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The brand’s research lab, Space10, developed a concept for connecting physical furniture to an ever-evolving NFT tree.
      Assembling the Future Together is on show from 18 to 23 April 2023 at Padiglione Visconti, Via Tortona 58, Milan. See our Milan design week 2023 guide on Dezeen Events Guide for information about the many other exhibitions, installations and talks taking place throughout the week.

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      Printed textiles are “not just an accessory but something that can create a space” says Marimekko creative director

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      Bold colours and prints can enhance interiors in the same way as architectural details, argues Rebekka Bay of lifestyle brand Marimekko in this interview.

      Bay was appointed creative director of the Finnish design firm in 2020 having previously held top roles at fashion brands including Everlane, Cos and Uniqlo.
      Founded in 1951, Marimekko is known for its bright and bold prints that are applied to clothing, ceramics and homeware.
      Bay talked to Dezeen about how printed textiles can add spatial design to interiors. Photo courtesy of MarimekkoMore than just decorative pieces, Bay believes Marimekko’s patterned surfaces can be used as features to define and create interior spaces.
      “Often printed textiles are confused with this idea of just being like a drape or a tablecloth, but really when we develop printed textiles at Marimekko we see them as architectural elements, something that can also add spatial design or architectural elements to your home,” she told Dezeen.

      “They are not just an accessory, but actually something that can create a space.”
      Marimekko collaborated with IKEA on a homeware collection informed by wellbeingIn the wake of coronavirus lockdowns, the ability of colourful prints to improve wellbeing and happiness in the home has become increasingly valuable, Bay added.
      “The role of the home is increasingly important because we have all been forced to relate to what our home environment is and how it supports our wellbeing,” she said.
      “There is a renewed understanding of the importance of creating a home environment that will allow you to both rest and re-energise.”
      “Being surrounded by bold beauty is something that evokes happiness or optimism,” Bay continued.
      References to Marimekko’s and IKEA’s Nordic heritage are seen throughout their collaborationPicking up on this trend, Marimekko recently collaborated with Swedish furniture retailer IKEA to create a homeware collection named Bastua, which includes furniture, glassware and textiles informed by nature and the self-care rituals of the Nordic sauna.
      Drawing on the brands’ Nordic heritage, the Bastua collection features practical home objects made from wood and glass.
      Bay said the collaboration aimed to focus on circularity and longevity.

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      “What we share both at Marimekko and IKEA is that in the design process, we are concerned with how to design for circularity, how to design for longevity, how to design objects of timeless value and also multi-use objects,” she said.
      “Our intent in this collaboration was to design objects that will have this timeless value, both in terms of the design but also in terms of material.”
      “We have worked in very honest natural materials with glass and wood and other materials that improve over time and also focused on how the materials can be either recycled or upcycled.”
      The rhubarb leaf is a repeated motif in the Bastua collectionMarimekko developed brand new prints for the Bastua collection, including a large rhubarb-leaf design that references the plants often found growing beside sauna buildings in Finland.
      This print was applied to bath robes, seat cushions, shower curtains, trays and the iconic IKEA carrier bag.
      “Functionalism and pragmatism joins this idea of celebrating everyday objects, which is very much a product of Marimekko’s mission – to bring joy to people’s everyday lives,” said Bay.
      “I think for Nordic designers, we have strong design traditions in creating very beautiful but very functional, democratic design.”
      Bay believes bold, colourful prints can add happiness to the homeIn addition, she emphasised a desire to inject an element of humour into the designs.
      “At times it’s very subtle and very serious, but I think what is unique to both Marimekko and IKEA is this intent also to bring a smile or a wink,” she continued.
      “There’s something outside of the seriousness, wanting to develop truly high-quality, timeless design but also wanting to bring this little wink.”
      Bay enjoys creating collections that “bring a smile or a wink”Marimekko has accrued a large portfolio of prints over its seven decades of production and still reproduces archive designs.
      The brand’s historic prints are used to inform new print designs that it hopes will resonate with modern consumers.
      “I think there’s always this danger if you only look back that you end up being self-referential, or you end up being an archive or a museum piece,” said Bay.

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      “I would hate to create something of only museum value and not create a proposal for the future,” she added.
      “There is this always looking back in order to look forward, always understanding what has resonated, what has broad relevance and then see if we can reposition or refocus that.”
      Other projects recognisable for their bold textile designs that have been featured on Dezeen include a collection of upholstery fabrics informed by Iranian culture and an exhibition that celebrates a 1940s print by using it to cover walls and seating.
      The photography is courtesy of Inter IKEA Systems BV unless otherwise stated.

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      IKEA designs “safe spaces” for children and at-risk refugees fleeing Ukraine

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      Furniture company IKEA has donated its products and design services to create a series of refugee support centres in Eastern Europe, set up by the United Nations to offer aid and sanctuary to the most vulnerable groups displaced by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

      The Swedish furniture brand created interiors with a homely, comforting atmosphere inside several recently established Blue Dot centres, which are run by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the UN Refugee Agency UNHCR to offer specialist support to children, families and other at-risk refugees.
      Top: numerous Blue Dot shelters have been established in Eastern Europe since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began. Above: IKEA designed the interiors for the sheltersSet alongside major border crossings and transit routes, the centres supply legal aid, mental health support and family reunification services, as well as food and temporary shelter.
      “The work calls for a whole new set of skills because we’re designing spaces that can support people who are experiencing trauma,” said Martyna Pater, who is an interior design specialist for IKEA in Kraków, Poland.
      “We’re using walls made of Kallax shelving units and thick curtains to create a quieter and more comfortable environment, to make it feel more like a home, and we’ve also used decorations and picture frames, to make the space feel as cosy and calm as possible.”

      6.9 million people have fled Ukraine
      Out of the 36 Blue Dot centres that UNICEF and UNHCR have established across seven European countries since the start of the Ukraine war, IKEA has helped to design 10 in Romania and five in Poland.
      Three more are currently in development and plans are in the making for IKEA to help set up of additional outposts in Hungary and Slovakia.
      The initiative forms part of a wider €1 million donation that IKEA has pledged to UNICEF and UNHCR’s emergency relief efforts for the Ukraine war, with an additional €30 million going to other selected organisations.
      The furniture company previously joined a number of brands and studios in pausing its operations in Russia, closing its stores and halting imports and exports from the country.
      The shelters are run by UN agencies UNICEF and UNHCRSince the war started in February, more than 6.9 million people have fled Ukraine – 90 per cent of which are women and children, who UNICEF says are especially at risk of abuse, exploitation and trafficking.
      Blue Dot centres, which were first established in 2016, are designed to provide “safe spaces” for these vulnerable groups, containing playrooms for children, private areas for mental health counselling and safe places to sleep.
      “By far, most of the refugees who have fled unimaginable loss and devastation in Ukraine are women, children and older people or people with disabilities, in need of dedicated support,” said Marin Din Kajdomcaj, Poland’s representative at the UN Refugee Agency.
      “Thanks to our great collaboration with IKEA, we can design comforting Blue Dot spaces where refugees at greater risk can find a moment to rest, feel safe and protected again, access reliable information, counselling and psychological support, all in an effort to have them start healing and recovering from traumatising events.”
      Shelters designed to be convenient, child-friendly and site-specific
      For IKEA’s design teams, this involved creating interiors that are easy to navigate and tailored to both adults and children alike.
      “We’re designing spaces for children that are cosy and playful, but we use low furniture so their parents can see them when they are speaking to advisors,” Pater explained.
      “With thousands of people coming to the hubs, you also have to think about crowd control and creating good signage that helps people move through the space so they can find the right support they need.”
      Since Blue Dot shelters are temporary, they occupy a wide range of settings from tents to repurposed arenas.
      As a result, IKEA’s designers developed tailored interiors schemes that respond to specific sites and scales, rather than coming up with a universal template.
      Martyna Pater is an interior design specialist for IKEA Poland”It’s all about a fast response and providing a comfortable safe space,” said Laurentiu Stefan Serban, a visual merchandiser and shop designer for IKEA in Bucharest, Romania. “The aim is to create an environment where people can recover and find their strengths again.”
      A number of architects have applied their expertise to creating temporary shelters for those displaced by the Ukraine war.
      Kyiv practice Balbek Bureau developed a concept for a modular refugee village, which was picked up by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and is now set to be constructed in the country’s Ternopil region.
      Pritzker Prize-winning architect Shigeru Ban focused instead on creating more privacy in existing shelters by making use of his modular Paper Partition System, which can be constructed from cardboard tubes and strips of fabric in around five minutes.
      The images are courtesy of IKEA.

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