De Durgerdam hotel in Amsterdam; credit: Studio Unfolded.…
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A Lakeside Retreat Celebrates The Netherlands’ Maritime Heritage
Six hundred years ago, the port village of Durgerdam was erected on the banks of the Zuiderzee lake just a few miles from Amsterdam. Today, Dugerdam retains its traditional wood-clad houses on the lake, the result of their protection as a heritage site. One, in particular, holds a special history: Built in 1644, its white-painted timber exterior reflected the moonlight so well it acted as an ersatz lighthouse leading fishermen home to the village.
Today, the building is a siren song for design aficionados in its new incarnation as De Durgerdam, a new Aedes hotel featuring 11 rooms and three distinctive suites. For its first hotel interior, local studio Buro Belén crafted bespoke furniture pieces, including headboards of Dutch tulip, complemented by custom tiles by Royal Tichelaar Makkum, the Netherlands’ oldest ceramics company. Suites feature wood-burning stoves and even a sky-blue raincoat by KASSL Edition, perfect for a misty morning walk through the abundant neighboring meadows before dinner at the De Mark restaurant on the property’s ground floor. There, chefs Richard van Oostenbrugge and Thomas Groot—of Amsterdam’s two-Michelin-star Restaurant 212—offer seasonal menus based on local harvests, including the treasures of the deep that fishermen have been lugging home for centuries.—Jesse Dorris
Credit: Anutr Tosirikul/Alamy…
London’s National Portrait Gallery will soon sling drinks from a new cocktail bar as part of a $43 million overhaul.
“This week the National Portrait Gallery (NPG) in central London announced that when it reopens in June after a £35m refurbishment, a new bar will serve cocktails and small plates long after its display areas have closed. By day, Audrey Green will be a cafe offering light lunches and afternoon tea. Later, it will transform into a sophisticated bar, putting the gallery at the centre of “both day and night-time activity in the West End”, the NPG said.” [H/T The Guardian]
An iridescent nano-film developed at the University of Cambridge could make air-conditioning obsolete.
“Researchers used nano-sized materials made from cellulose to create this iridescent effect, and then combined them with another layer of cellulose in white in a flexible film. A square meter of the film can generate over 120 watts of cooling power, as much as some air conditioners. In a study, the material was 7.2 degrees Fahrenheit cooler (or 4 degrees Celsius) than the surrounding air during the day. At night, it was nearly 20 degrees Fahrenheit cooler. Making walls or a roof cooler also helps cool down the space inside a building or car.” [H/T Fast Company]
New York City is poised to fall short of its ambitious solar energy goals.
“New York City has pledged to reach 1,000 megawatts of solar energy by 2030 — enough energy to power 250,000 homes, according to the Mayor’s Office of Environmental Justice. But state data shows that its current pace of installation will land short of that goal, leaving officials and advocates looking for ways to break down barriers to installation.” [H/T Gothamist]
The earliest known image of the Oba's compound in Benin City. Credit: Wikipedia Commons.…
A new study sheds light on the surprising origins of the Benin Bronzes.
“Amid a powerful push to return the stolen sculptures to their home country, researchers are offering new insights on the bronzes’ origins. Writing in the journal PLOS One, a team led by Tobias Skowronek details the first scientific link between the metal used to craft the artworks and manilla bracelets, a form of currency used in the trans-Atlantic slave trade.” [H/T Smithsonian Magazine]
The FBI has seized more than 100 artworks from the Michèle Vasarely Foundation in Puerto Rico.
“The FBI has seized over 100 works from the Michèle Vasarely Foundation in San Juan, Puerto Rico, which houses pieces by the late artist Victor Vasarely and his son Jean-Pierre, also known as Yvaral. The center was founded by Yvaral’s second wife, Michèle Taburno-Vasarely, whose ownership of the two artists’ work has been bitterly contested by Pierre Vasarely — Victor’s grandson and Yvaral’s son from his first marriage.” [H/T Hyperallergic]
AI-powered storm simulations could hold the key to hurricane-resistant architecture.
“Researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have devised a new method to digitally simulate hurricanes. Using data derived from 100 years of hurricane monitoring, infused with modern AI techniques, the researchers suggest that simulating the trajectory and wind speeds of storms can help develop improved guidelines for the design of buildings in hurricane-prone regions.” [H/T Archinect]
Today’s attractive distractions:
One lucky TikToker finds out her thrift-shop purse actually sells for $9,450.
AI is helping refine the fuzziness of the first-ever image of a fiery black hole.
After 15 years, Twitter comedic genius Dril finally steps into the public eye.
Forget moodboards—brand designers are now tasked with building worlds.
