Design Considered #24 - The Edit
Love hotels, lovelier dominoes and more...
#01 - Opening Thought
With many Japanese people living in close quarters of friends and family in small apartments, love hotels rose to prominence in the second half of the 20th century. These characterful by-the-hour spots are for couples to secure some privacy and, well, make love. Enthusiastically designed, their quirky, fantastical facades have been captured by French photographer François Prost, for his brand new book Love Hotel, funded as a Kickstarter project and available to buy now. "I'm drawn to the aesthetic of these places and how their facades reveal something about the people who inhabit or frequent them," says Prost of the photographic fruits of a road trip between Tokyo and Shikoku Island in 2023 and his prior work documenting the facades of American roadside strip clubs, as well as similar projects in Spain, Ivory Coast, and beyond.
Prost says that Japanese love hotel designs evolve to suit an era's cultural zeitgeist (apparently bamboo-y Balinese style retreats are the rage these days), but all aim to strike a careful purpose - fun, a bit mad, but never sleazy. "The venues aim to evoke a sense of romance, escape, and fantasy, yet they also need to feel safe and inviting—not tacky or sordid," Prost explains. "It's why some of these places have an almost ‘Disney-like’ aesthetic - playful yet carefully curated." His images reveal recurring themes that echo Japan's imaginative national spirit. Boat-shaped facades like the Hotel Sea Stork (pictured next to the dinosaur-themed Hotel Artia) frequently appear, symbolising a sweet sunset voyage toward intimate escape and perhaps a nod to Japan's longstanding maritime heritage.
For Parisian readers, Prost invites you to the launch of Love Hotel at 6 p.m. on March 20th, 2025, at Galerie du Jour (Place Jean-Michel Basquiat, 75013 Paris). The exhibition runs until May 18th, 2025.
#02 - For Your Consideration
1. WHAT TO SEE
Despite the accolades and the architecture link, I'm still not ready for three-and-half hours of The Brutalist. In the meantime, I'm keen to check out two films (soon available to stream on Apple TV and showing at some good cinemas) with design woven into their narratives. Walter Salles' I'm Still Here, Brazil's first-ever Oscar winner for Best International Feature, intertwines the story of a family shattered by the military dictatorship with the striking sunny modernism of 1970s Rio de Janeiro. Meanwhile, Viktor Kossakovsky's visually sumptuous Architecton, featuring Italian architect Michele De Lucchi, critiques our relationship with building and construction. It explores how human ambition to create has often led to destruction, from ancient Lebanese temples to the aftermath of Turkey's recent earthquakes.
2. WHAT TO READ
Following the news these days isn't a particularly uplifting experience. If we retreated into a cabin for a few months—or even years—would the world we return to be all that different? And how much better might we feel after a proper digital / news cycle detox? If the idea tempts you, Cabin Crew, the latest book from The Modernist Society, is the right inspiration for designing your own cosy escape. Beyond typical cabin cliché, it showcases the story behind the finely designed but highly functional holiday works of Welsh architects Hird & Brooks—handsomely crafted getaways that blend Danish summerhouse style with modernist ideals.
3. WHAT TO BUY
This beauty is free, though tracking it down will require some effort. Available if you ask nicely (and probably buy something) at Loewe flagships, the Spanish luxury house's collectable magazine (Issue Six) showcases the brand's sophisticated approach to print—beautifully tactile, thoughtfully curated, with art direction from Thomas Petit.
Inside is a showcase of David Sims' Loewe SS25 campaign imagery and a handsome exploration of the work of Spanish architect Javier Carvajal (check out some amazing images of his 1960s buildings for the brand here). The title demonstrates print's ability to communicate atmosphere and nuance in ways digital cannot replicate. Tasteful and highly expressive, a refined postcard set is included, and the cover transforms cleverly into a poster.
#03 - Design Selection
While a $5,000 upgrade to your games cupboard might not be in everyone's budget, these striking brass dominoes by Vienna's Werkstätte Carl Auböck would find an enduring place on the most discerning coffee tables. Handcrafted in a family-run workshop (current custodian Carl Auböck IV continues a century-long legacy of brass and cast iron craftsmanship), each domino is heirloom-quality. The whole set is elegantly presented in a refined Italian leather travel case. This means you can bring out these beauties in the lounge bar of a grand hotel to raise both eyebrows and the tone of the evening.
Much credit should go to British brand Abask for shining an international spotlight on Auböck's masterful creations, one of many of artisanal makers celebrated in its meticulously curated online catalogue.