Cool Hunting
Leonora is a London girl who’s always on the move. A born nomad, she’s attracted to small, busy and beautiful metropolises such as Edinburgh, Amsterdam and Barcelona. With a sponge-like tendency she soaks up art, architecture and design wherever she goes.
Having studied art history and subsequently 3D Design, Leonora aims to blur the boundaries of several disciplines in her creative work. Multidisciplinary (but lacking in discipline) she’s a jack-of-all-trades, continuing in her attempts to master at least one. A restless writer, a determined designer, a happy snapper, a lazy linguist, a daring dancer, a truthful TreeHugger, and of course a Cool Hunter!
To date Leonora has worked on design projects for Thomas Heatherwick Studio (London), Marcel Wanders Studio (Amsterdam), Atelier Van Lieshout (Rotterdam) and Niall O’Flynn Designers (Barcelona). In addition to contributing to Cool Hunting, She is currently working as a freelance 3D designer and as a correspondent for TreeHugger.
Quintessentially English with a twist is the best way to describe these gorgeous designs from Barneby Gates. These new kids on the printing block produce beautiful wallpapers that embrace the past with a distinctive contemporary wit. Patterns show typical English influences of country houses, floral decor and heraldry, but on closer inspection have design details that merit a double take. One, called Deer Damask,...
Fans of bold, rock n' roll jewelry will be excited learn that cult jewelry store The Great Frog recently joined the 21st century by launching an online store that carries. This family business, located just off London's bustling Carnaby Street, has been catering to a wide range of rockin' clients—from your average leather-clad biker to stars such as James Hetfield of Metallica, members of...
British artist Orly Orbach produces dark, mysterious illustrations of mythical figures and rituals. Her works are gathering acclaim in the UK film and theater industries, attracting attention for their atmospheric otherworldliness which lends itself brilliantly to imaginative storytelling. Orbach, a Royal College of Art graduate, works within the enchanted world of narrative, taking inspiration from writers and poets as diverse as Edgar Allan Poe...
The kings of the modern modular wall hanging, the Bouroullec Brothers, recently released their latest beautiful creation for Danish textile company Kvadrat. Entitled Cloud, a new hanging system allows endless variations of nebulous forms to be used in any way your imagination sees fit. Cloud comes in two fabrics and seven colour ways. Through the simple device of a customised elastic band, tiles can...
The most astonishing collection we saw at London Fashion Week back in September was "Pool Position" by Swedish designer Sandra Backlund. Since then we've been eagerly awaiting some images of these radically sculptural knits to share with you. Now these photographs by John Scarisbrick have arrived we are reminded of the fantastical structures that stopped us in our tracks a few months ago. Backlund...
One of the most engaging exhibits that we saw at the Design Art London fair last month was this Temporary Printing Machine by one of CH's fave interactive design collectives, rAndom International. This triptych, exhibited by the Carpenters Workshop Gallery under the title A Tribute to Francis Bacon, involves three frames each with a small camera, a digital printing device and light sensitive paper....
The Invisible are a hotly tipped trio of talented musicians who, after several years of highly acclaimed individual appearances on the U.K. music scene, have now come together as one band to form a unique and inimitable sound. Their pedigree is impeccable, with Dave Okumu featuring in the mighty Matthew Herbert's regular line-up, Leo Taylor currently drumming for Hot Chip and Tom Herbert being...
The Talent Zone at Tent during the London Design Festival was a rich source of creativity. After being wowed by Debbie Smyth's Pins and Thread installation, the nearby dramatically-titled Deadly Glasses caught our attention. The elaborate opulence of designer Kacper Hamilton's work directly contrasts the minimalism of Smyth's. His seven hand-blown red wine glasses were exhibited in and around a beautiful wooden box with...
