Dezeen Showroom:Forbo has expanded its Marmoleum Linear collection of linoleum flooring, which the brand says is carbon neutral and made with all plant-based materials.
Composed of linseed oil, waste wood flour and jute, the Marmoleum Linear flooring features a softly striped design with an organic feel.
Marmoleum Linear features a softly striped pattern inspired by wood grain (top and above)
The new additions to the collection expand its neutral palette with more greys and light tones, bringing the total number of colour options to 16.
Marmoleum Linear's patterns reference wood but do not try to imitate it. Instead, the designs use the repetition of irregular stripes to create an impression of softness and comfort.
"With this new Linear collection we move away from the institutional look of public spaces and strive to bring the warmth and calm ambience out of home environments," said Forbo.
Different colours of Marmoleum Linear can be used to mark out spaces
The striped patterning on Marmoleum Linear can be used to create directional and connective design between areas within a building while different colours can be used to mark out spaces such as waiting areas or play corners.
The linoleum flooring is PVC-free and according to Forbo, its production is carbon neutral without the need for offsetting due to the amount of CO2 that is sequestered from the atmosphere by the plants throughout their lifetime.
About Dezeen Showroom:Dezeen Showroom offers an affordable space for brands to launch new products and showcase their designers and projects to Dezeen's huge global audience. For more details email showroom@dezeen.com.
Dezeen Showroom is an example of partnership content on Dezeen. Find out more about partnership content here.
The Shanghai showroom forms part of Fritz Hansen's strategy to become the "biggest Danish brand in China".
It is the brand's first directly owned showroom in China
"Our Shanghai showroom represents a physical manifestation of our brand as we take our steps into the Chinese market," said Fritz Hansen's CEO of Asia Dario Reicherl.
"It reflects the evolving vision of a luxury lifestyle brand, first established 150 years ago."
The showroom contains a selection of the brand's furniture
The showroom is divided into four main areas, with spaces dedicated to furniture for dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and home offices.
It features a curated selection of Fritz Hansen's most iconic pieces, including China chair designed by Hans J Wegner, and PK80 daybed, PK54 dining table designed by Poul Kjærholm.
Walls are adorned in oak, marble and plasterboard, while playful floral arrangements add a pop of colour to the space.
Spanish designer Jaime Hayon's Ro and Fri chairs are intended to give the space an adventurous and imaginative modern touch.
"We want to create a dialogue between the classic design and modern young design," according to Fritz Hansen's head of China Jenny Pu.
One room is dedicated to office furniture
Founded in Denmark in 1872, Fritz Hansen produces classic items by pioneering twentieth-century Danish designers including Arne Jacobsen, as well as contemporary figures including Cecilie Manz, Benjamin Hubert and Nendo.
Fritz Hansen opened its first store in Asia in Tokyo, Japan nearly 20 years ago. The brand then entered other Asian countries including South Korea, Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia.
Another is dedicated to living room furniture
"Fritz Hansen's success in Japan and South Korea give me more confidence in its future in China," said Reicherl.
"In the past few years, I've seen more and more young Chinese are searching for higher quality lifestyle, with increasing stress from outside world, they tend to look inward and spend more time at home with family and friends."
SO-IL, Yakusha Design and four other studios have been chosen by Dezeen readers as winners of this year's Dezeen Awards public vote in the studio categories.
Other winners include Tel Aviv-based Sarit Shani Hay Design Studio and Yakusha Design, whose objects are rooted in Ukrainian cultural heritage.
A total of 53,400 votes were cast and verified across all categories. The results of the public votes for the Dezeen Awards 2021 studio categories are listed below.
The public vote is separate from the main Dezeen Awards 2021 judging process, in which entries are assessed by our renowned panel of judges. We'll be announcing the Dezeen Awards 2021 winners online in late November.
To receive regular updates about Dezeen Awards, including details of how to enter next year, subscribe to our newsletter.
Below are the public vote results for the studio categories:
SO-IL won the Dezeen Awards 2021 public vote in the architecture studio of the year category
Architecture studio of the year
New York studio SO-IL was voted architecture studio of the year in the public vote with 28 per cent.
Mold Architects won the Dezeen Awards 2021 public vote in the emerging architecture studio of the year category
Emerging architecture studio of the year
Founded by Iliana Kerestetzi, Athens-based architecture practice Mold Architects focuses on the juxtaposition of traditional concepts and contemporary forms. Our readers named Mold Architects emerging architecture studio of the year with 44 per cent of votes.
Sarit Shani Hay Design Studio won the Dezeen Awards 2021 public vote in the interior design studio of the year category
Interior design studio of the year
Multidisciplinary interior and furniture design firm Sarit Shani Hay Design Studio specialises in private and public dynamic spaces, with a focus on child-centric design. The public voted the all-female studio interior design studio of the year with 29 per cent of votes.
The studio is dedicated to creating innovative and therapeutic learning-through-play environments in schools, kindergartens, hotels and hospitals where design becomes a vital and productive tool for social change.
WGNB won the Dezeen Awards 2021 public vote in the emerging interior design studio of the year category
Emerging interior design studio of the year
WGNB merges the boundaries between architecture, furniture and product design, creating a new sense of experience in its spatial design. The Seoul-based space design studio has been voted emerging interior design studio of the year by our readers with 35 per cent of votes.
Yabu Pushelberg won the Dezeen Awards 2021 public vote in the design studio of the year category
Design studio of the year
Founded by George Yabu and Glenn Pushelberg, Yabu Pushelberg was named design studio of the year with 26 per cent of votes. Yabu Pushelberg's offices in Toronto and New York now span architecture, landscapes, interiors, lighting, furniture, objects, textiles, branding and graphics.
Yakusha Design won the Dezeen Awards 2021 public vote in the emerging design studio of the year category
Emerging design studio of the year
Yakusha Design's minimalist and utilitarian objects show the richness of live materials. The Ukrainian studio was picked as emerging design studio of the year by our readers with 31 per cent of votes.
Yakusha Design supports local Ukrainian artisans and gives a strong voice to ancient crafts and traditions reviving them in modern design.
Slated for completion in 2026, the 26,000-square-metre mixed-use building is set to become the "largest wooden building in Iceland" once complete.
Living Landscape has been developed by French studio Jakob+MacFarlane and local studio T.ark to give new life to the polluted landscape and offer a prototype for similar future developments in Reykjavík.
"The project recreates a fragment of authentic natural landscape on top of polluted land to compensate for years of pollution and heal the man-made damage to what has once been a beautiful coastal landscape," Jakob+MacFarlane told Dezeen.
Project is a Reinventing Cities winner
Once complete, the project will contain a mix of housing for students, elderly people and families, alongside workspaces, daycare facilities and local shops.
It is among the 49 winning projects of the Reinventing Cities competition, which was organised by global network C40 Cities to encourage the transformation of underused urban spaces into "beacons of sustainability and resiliency".
The projects strive to help urban areas meet the goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change by minimising carbon emissions.
Above: Living Landscape will be a low-carbon cross-laminated timber building. Top image: it will transform a landfill site in Iceland
The Reinventing Cities programme encourages projects to minimise both embodied carbon – emissions generated during material production and construction – and operational carbon, which are emissions caused by the building's usage.
Jakob+MacFarlane and T.ark are aiming for net-zero emissions, meaning the design will eliminate all possible emissions and offset any that cannot be eliminated by removing carbon from the atmosphere.
CLT will reduce embodied carbon "by almost 80 per cent"
According to Jakob+MacFarlane, this will be achieved in part by using a prefabricated cross-laminated timber (CLT) structure.
"The CLT construction reduces the embodied carbon of external walls by almost 80 per cent compared to a typical concrete structure used in Iceland," the studio explained.
"The [remaining] embodied emissions will be offset through either wetland recovery or forestry, making the building effectively carbon neutral."
Among the other materials used in the building will be Panoblocs, a type of prefabricated and insulated wall panel with a wooden exterior, which can be easily removed and adapted.
Living Landscapes' operational carbon emissions are expected to be minimal, due to high levels of insulation and use of waste-heat recovery systems and thermostat-controlled underfloor heating.
However, the energy it will require will be sourced from an existing district electricity and heat network powered by renewable hydropower and geothermal energy sources.
Nature to be reintroduced to site
Reintroducing nature to the old landfill site will also be a key part of the scheme. There will be an undulating roof garden and farm, alongside a large central courtyard designed as a communal park for the residents.
"The idea of living with and around nature is key to our project," said Jakob+MacFarlane.
The courtyard will be modelled on Icelandic landscapes, incorporating a mix of rocks, water and plants, which is hoped to encourage insects and birds to occupy the site.
"We aim to enable a fully functioning local ecosystem composed of earth and rocks, water and plants, insects and birds," the studio explained. "Protected from freezing by geothermal heat, this green oasis will develop its own microclimate and, hopefully, become a new generator of life."
Living Landscape is now being continually developed by Jakob+MacFarlane and T.ark with landscape architects Landslag and environmental experts EFLA.
Another winner of the Reinventing Cities competition was architect Arney Fender Katsalidis, who is developing a low-carbon neighbourhood in Rome. The mixed-use project will transform a disused railway site, make use of biomaterials and will feature reversible buildings.
The offices of the Casa Leyros tequila distillery are located in stone buildings arranged around tranquil courtyards by Mexican firm 1540 Arquitectura.
Situated in the town of Tequila in Mexico's Jalisco province, the small office building was designed by Guadalajara-based studio 1540 Arquitectura for roughly 20 employees.
The Casa Leyros distillery offices comprises cubes clad in local stone
The design draws influence from the courtyard houses prevalent in the area, with the intention to create more welcoming and casual workspaces.
"From the local architecture, we took as reference the multiple courtyards and gardens found in the typical houses and haciendas, which refresh the interior and at the same time are pleasant to see, an aspect we consider important for a workspace," said 1540 Arquitectura.
Conference rooms are wrapped in glass, contrasting the rest of the building
The low-slung building is organised by a central corridor that provides access to offices on either side, housed within stone-covered cube shapes that delineate courtyards in between them.
"The corridor becomes a space that seeks casual encounters between all the workers in the company," the studio said.
Interiors are designed to feel homey, with wood panelling and furniture
Breaking up the building's program into these individual boxes allows each office to enjoy views of a courtyard, according to architect Jaime Castillo of 1540 Arquitectura.
Matching the area's relatively dry climate, the landscape surrounding the building is filled with resilient plants and cacti that thrive with little maintenance.
"In addition, these gardens become visible in the route through the central corridor, producing an alternation between mass and emptiness," the architect added.
The offices range from private suites to small rooms for collaborative work. At either end of the corridor, two large conference rooms housed in glazed volumes accommodate larger meetings.
A corridor connects the various offices and meeting rooms
The glass contrasts with the Laja stone, a material prevalent in the region, used to clad the other volumes.
"We are interested and inspired by the stones visible in the cuts of the hills caused by the passage of the roads, which reveal the material that is in the subsoil of the area," Castillo explained.
The residential look of the interiors is intended to feel casual and welcoming
The interiors are also more evocative of a cosy house than of an office setting.
With the exception of the conference rooms, most of the interior surfaces are lined with wood panels. Deep leather couches, brass lighting, and stone countertops reinforce this warm palette.
1540 Arquitectura modelled the design on the courtyard houses found across the region
1540 Arquitectura was established in 2015, in the nearby city of Guadalajara.
