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Covered walkway with swing seat looking out onto an open-air courtyard with trees

This lookbook compiles seven living spaces where swings show they have a place beyond children’s playgrounds by providing a gleeful alternative to static seating.

Swings typically consist of a seat made from a flat piece of metal, plastic, wood or canvas, but can also be made from found materials such as tyres and sometimes feature a wraparound design for added safety.

This seat is then suspended by sturdy lengths of rope or chain from a frame, ceiling or tree.

Swings have been used for hundreds of years by cultures across the world for both leisure and ritual-related purposes, and are enjoyed by people of all ages, from children in play areas to older people who might have swinging benches in their gardens.

From basic playground swings transplanted into grown-up interiors to intricately crafted bench swing seats that look out over lush courtyards, read on to view a selection of interiors on Dezeen that feature suspended seating.

This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration, see previous lookbooks featuring interiors animated by indoor slides, living spaces featuring metal furniture and spaces with oversized windows.

Gujarat house, India, by Design ni Dukaan

A wooden swing seat covered in pillows is suspended from the concrete ceiling of this house in the Indian state of Gujarat.

The swing is situated in one of the house’s covered walkways and was positioned to allow the sitter to enjoy views of its open-air courtyard.

Find out more about Gujarat house ›

Kenwood Lee House by Cousins & Cousins (RIBA house of the year longslist) — Photo by Jack Hobhouse

Kenwood Lee House, UK, by Cousins & Cousins

A cantilevered floating stair anchors a swing inside the hallway of this house in north London by local studio Cousins & Cousins.

The wooden seat is suspended by softly frayed rope, creating a subtly rustic composition that compliments both the poured-concrete finish of the walls and the wood used on the ceiling, cabinets and front door.

Find out more about Kenwood Lee House ›

Covered living space beside courtyard with swing seat — Photo by Yash R Jain

Karai, India, by Rain Studio

Local office Rain Studio hung a polished wooden swing seat overlooking a verdant courtyard in this house near the city of Chennai in southern India.

The seat is suspended from all four corners by ornately cast metal hooks and links, some of which feature animals such as elephants.

Find out more about Karai ›

Living room with concrete fireplace and a swing — Photo by Chase Daniel

Austin House, USA, by Melanie Raines

Rustic Californian barns provided reference points for this house in Austin, Texas, which features a lofty double-height living space complete with multiple seating options.

A metal-framed lounge chair flanked by integrated side tables is suspended from the ceiling’s wooden rafters by two long lengths of rope, adding to the interior’s whimsical atmosphere.

Find out more about Austin house ›

Living room interior of Out of the Blue apartment in India — Photo by The Fishy Project

Thane apartment, India, by The Act of Quad

Rigid metal uprights, each threaded with a cobalt-blue sphere, tie this swing seat in with the rest of the apartment’s blue-themed interior scheme, created by design studio Act of Quad.

The seat is softened by a slim cushioned pad and has been attached to the ceiling with metal hardware.

Find out more about Thane apartment ›

The Perch by Chadbourne + Doss Architects — Photo by Kevin Scott

The Perch, USA, by Chadbourne + Doss

A pair of swings are strung up on the boundary between a covered entryway and a courtyard pond in this house in Seattle.

The seats themselves were made from sheets of walnut timber and intended to provide the sitter with the experience of floating above the water.

Find out more about The Perch ›

Living room in a high-ceilinged apartment with a swing hanging in it — Photo by BCDF studio

Parisian loft, France, by Isabelle Heilmann

Hooks, carabiners and thick, knotted ropes affix this swing to the tall ceilings of this Parisian apartment’s living room.

The suspended seat slots in comfortably with the rest of the eclectically-chosen furniture, including a mid-century cantilevered chair and a slouchy, ribbed sofa.

Find out more about Parisian loft ›

Reference

Interior Design

Headquarters of crypto company Copper “provide a sense of assurance”

By Zarkon Group,14/09/2023

Universal Design Studio put a modern spin on the design conventions of bank buildings when creating the headquarters for cryptocurrency firm Copper inside a Richard Rogers-designed office in London.

Copper – a fintech company that helps financial institutions to securely store and trade cryptocurrencies – wanted to break away from London’s financial districts and instead set up its office inside Soho’s Broadwick House.

The building was originally completed by the Richard Rogers Partnership in 2000 and was renovated last year before Copper brought in Universal Design Studio to devise the interiors.

The local practice introduced familiar materials such as marble and walnut into Copper’s HQ to “provide a sense of assurance”.

Seating area in fintech office by Universal Design Studio — Copper-toned curtains provide a sense of privacy

These are contrasted with more contemporary elements including stainless steel, kinetic screens and dynamic light boxes that help to create “an uncanny and cinematic environment”.

“The design approach draws in part upon historic icons of banking architecture through a contemporary lens, to create a familiar space that feels safe, whilst also pushing the boundaries on expectations,” the practice said.

“Being able to contain that within an architectural landmark is very special.”

Overview of Copper headquarters in London — Private meeting rooms are set back from the facade at the core of the building

The lobby features Jesmonite wall panels, referencing the marble-wrapped entrances found in more traditional banks.

By contrast, a gold desk, alcove and gridded lightbox ceiling give a cinematic feel to the lobby and “allude to some of the more unexpected design elements further up the building”, according to Universal Design Studio.

“This idea of bringing together two distinctive finishes that are different recurs throughout the building, to echo the safe and trusted nature of finance with a new digital future,” the practice said.

Overview of London office by Universal Design Studio — The building’s new “Copper Core” is clad in dark timber

Rogers’s original architectural concept for the building focussed on transparency, with glazed facades providing high levels of light penetration.

Universal Design Studio sought to work with this vision, creating light-infused workspaces with a focus on natural materials.

Meeting room inside core of Copper headquarters — Lightbox ceilings provide dramatic illumination

“The main workspaces for the Copper team are light, with a connection to the street level around the perimeter, playing to the strengths of the original facade design,” the studio said.

“But given the nature of what Copper do, an element of privacy was also essential.”

To achieve this, the studio designed a more opaque “Copper Core” that runs through the entire building, punctuating each floor and containing private spaces such as meeting rooms and quiet rooms.

Set away from the exterior facade, the meeting rooms in the core of the building are inevitably less light-filled than the main work areas.

Wood-panelled meeting room — Meeting rooms are panelled with walnut wood

To create spaces that still felt inviting, Universal chose to panel the walls with walnut, harnessing the tactility of this natural material to add a feeling of safety and familiarity.

Stainless steel thresholds were added to create a sense of arrival, as team members move away from general working areas into the Copper Core.

In another nod to the concept of privacy, Universal designed a copper-toned curtain that is found on each floor level, running the full perimeter of the facade.

“Operated digitally, each floor’s curtain closes in unison,” the studio said. “The curtain was also conceived as a type of visual security, locking down the building at night.”

Top floor of Copper headquarters in London — The top floors were designed for hosting clients

Visiting clients are received on the sixth and seventh floors of the building where the meeting rooms take on a hospitality focus, with bar and banquette-style seating capitalising on Broadwick House’s views across the city.

“These areas are styled on a members’ club to serve the Copper team and its clients,” Universal Design Studio said.

“The sixth floor has a focus on gathering both physically and digitally. Cinematic experiences are again utilised in this space with dramatic sliding digital screens for large events and presentations.”

Seating banquettes inside London office by Universal Design Studio — Guests can take in the views from banquette-style seating booths

Other unconventional interiors belonging to financial institutions include Hana Bank in Seoul with its “floating” meeting room and Citibank Singapore, which was designed to resemble a giant conservatory.

The photography is by Ed Reeve.

Reference

Sustainable News

Drones track pollution to provide real-time air quality data

By Zarkon Group,30/07/202212/08/2022

Spotted: Calling itself a Guardian of the Air, Peruvian startup qAIRa combines static and mobile monitoring for the most up-to-date air quality information. Constant data streams help urban planners and transport managers track the environmental effects of their work, while alerting area communities to the best times of day to be outside.

With devices for monitoring indoor and outdoor air, as well as a system of drones for tracking larger areas and changing conditions, qAIRa brings diverse data together into a single platform that makes it easy to see, at a glance, any areas of concern. The platform is open source, and the company encourages feedback and suggestions for new applications of the collected data.

The system measures particulate matter, humidity, temperature, UV radiation, noise, and more, and the outdoor devices are either solar or electric powered. Already working in several locations in Peru, the company is exploring funding options to help expand availability of the platform nationally and internationally. An educational module for schoolchildren is currently being developed.

Springwise has recently spotted several other innovations focused on air quality including an air quality app that empowers users through education, air quality data for building management, and smarter, cheaper industrial air monitoring.

Written by: Keely Khoury

29th July 2022

Email: hola@qairadrones.com

Website: qairadrones.com

Reference

Sustainable News

E-rickshaws provide a second life for used electric car batteries

By Zarkon Group,04/07/2022

Spotted: While electric vehicles certainly release far fewer tailpipe emissions than their internal combustion forebears, the lithium-ion batteries that power most of them face several sustainability issues. One of these is the fact that the average lithium-ion battery is sent to the recycler while still retaining around 70 per cent of its charging capacity. That may not be enough charging capacity for an electric vehicle (EV), but it is enough for other uses. A number of businesses are now popping up to provide a second life for these semi-used batteries. One of these is Nunam.

The non-profit startup based in Berlin and Bangalore is funded by the Audi Environmental Foundation and focuses on developing uses for second-life batteries. Its most recent project, in collaboration with AUDI AG and the Audi Environmental Foundation, is an e-rickshaw powered by used battery modules that spent their first life in an Audi e-tron. The e-rickshaws will be provided to women small business owners in India to use for transporting their goods.

While e-rickshaws are not new to the roads of India, most run on lead-acid batteries, which have a comparatively short service life and are often not disposed of properly – leading to additional pollution. On top of this, most e-rickshaw drivers charge up on the public grid, which gets a large amount of its power from coal. To get around this, Nunam has developed solar charging stations for the rickshaws. During the day, sunlight charges an e-tron battery, and in the evening, the power is passed on to the rickshaws, making local driving largely carbon-free.

Nunam cofounder Prodip Chatterjee describes e-rickshaws as having an ideal eco-efficiency. He explains that, “Car batteries are designed to last the life of the car. But even after their initial use in a vehicle, they still have a lot of their power. For vehicles with lower range and power requirements, as well as lower overall weight, they are extremely promising. In our second-life project, we reuse batteries from electric cars in electric vehicles; you might call it electric mobility ‘lite’.

Rickshaws are just the latest vehicle to join the EV revolution. Their small size makes them perfect for use as EV-powered delivery vehicles. But they are not alone. Springwise has also highlighted other EV delivery or micro-mobility vehicles, including solar-powered tuk-tuks, electric tuk-tuks for use in last-mile delivery, and an autonomous, electric grocery store on wheels.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

4th July 2022

Email: prodip@nunam.com

Website: nunam.com

Reference

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Seven playful living spaces where swings provide dynamic seating

Headquarters of crypto company Copper “provide a sense of assurance”

Drones track pollution to provide real-time air quality data

E-rickshaws provide a second life for used electric car batteries

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