Part of the Utzon and Eco Outdoor collaborative collection.Credit:
When Ben Kerr,founder of architectural surfaces and outdoor furniture company Eco Outdoor,had a random encounter at a Sydney coffee van with artist Mika Utzon Popov,grandson of Sydney Opera House architect Jørn Utzon,it sparked a creative partnership that has resulted in a rarefied release:the first collection of furniture designed by the acclaimed Dane to come to market. The eight outdoor pieces are inspired by a sofa Utzon made for the family’s summer home on Mallorca,Can Feliz;the sofa itself was inspired by the pews he created for the Bagsværd Church in Copenhagen in 1976.
Eco Outdoor’s head of furniture,Matt Lorrain,worked closely with Utzon Popov and his artist mother,Lin Utzon,on the collection. The trio refined the original design to suit 21st-century living,and it’snow the nexus of a collection that also includes a lounge chair,daybed,gallery bench,dining table,bench,and high and low stools (from $625 for the low stool/side table to $8495 for the sofa). Fine-sanded,solid,sustainable teak and teak laminations,bullnose detailing and truss legs form the design language.
“We’ve been able to … work with Mika and Lin in a way that honours the design and the family lineage,” Lorrain told architecture magazine The Local Project. “I’m very proud of what we’ve made,” added Utzon Popov. “It’s really beautiful.”
READ/ RIDDLE ME THIS
Why Do People Queue for Brunch? features 27 essays tackling the big questions in life.Credit:
In ancient Egypt,the dead would form an orderly queue for the afterlife. Last century,people queued for war rations. And today,we line up for … brunch. Unpacking this and other puzzling social phenomena is the job of the Explainer desk atThe Sydney Morning Herald andThe Age. Its latest anthology,Why Do People Queue for Brunch? ($33),features 27 essays tackling the big questions in life:Where did budgie smugglers come from? What’s a narcissist? Can we learn the art of conversation? Packed with fun facts and quirky surprises,it’s a smart Christmas gift for the curious reader. Out now.
SEE/ DOTS,DOTS,DOTS
Sixty-five plane trees lining St Kilda Road in the heart of Melbourne have been wrapped in Yayoi Kusama’s trademark polka dots.Credit:Tobias Titz