Valspar's Color of the Year. Image courtesy of Valspar. …
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So long brat green: Valspar declares violet-tinged blue as its next color of the year.
Valspar has named Encore, a deep blue with cool undertones, as its 2025 Color of the Year. The designation is a marked shift from 2024’s Color of the Year, a pastel-like robin’s egg blue. In its messaging around the announcement, Valspar praises the color’s versatility and potential to create high-contrast color moments.
A Canadian college dorm by Handel Architects is the country’s largest passive house.
Harmony Commons, a dormitory at the University of Toronto Scarborough, has been recognized as the largest passive house building in Canada and the world’s largest passive dormitory. The U-shaped structure, which houses 746 students, uses 70 percent less energy than older campus buildings.
The Shibuya SCC Sendagaya Community Center. Image credit: Kawasumi-Kobayashi Kenji Photograph Office.…
The largest public art show Harlem has ever seen is taking place across its parks.
The Harlem Sculpture Gardens is the neighborhood’s largest public art exhibition to date, and features two dozen works by artists of color. Curated by Savona Bailey-McClain and Michael Gormley, the exhibition integrates permanent installations like Alison Saar’s Swing Low, alongside works by Dianne Smith, Iliana Emilia García, Sherwin Banfield, and more.
Shibuya gets a sinuous Kengo Kuma–designed kindergarten and community center.
Kengo Kuma and Associates has completed the Shibuya SCC Sendagaya Community Center and Harajuku Kindergarten in Tokyo. The five-story civic and educational complex features circular slabs that maximize light and ventilation while creating a softer, more malleable space compared to traditional rigid public buildings. The build also integrates an atrium that enhances natural light flow and connectivity across its mixed-use floors.
Facing a slew of lawsuits about cancer-causing talc products, Avon files for bankruptcy.
Avon Products Inc. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware to manage 386 lawsuits related to claims that its talc products caused cancer. In the face of $225 million in legal costs and claiming to lack sufficient funds to settle or litigate the cases, Avon’s parent company Natura & Co is willing to buy Avon’s assets for $125 million while forgiving $530 million in debt.
Abel, a fragrance brand using fungus, yeast, and other biotechnology in their perfumes. Image courtesy of Abel.…
Today’s attractive distractions:
After centuries of slow progress, AI helps scholars piece together Gilgamesh.
