Look for joy in the design world right now and you will find it everywhere, and I don’t just mean in the run up to Christmas – it’s a lot deeper than seasonal cheer mongering.
That may surprise you when the world itself, by contrast, seems like a disaster zone. ‘So how is this possible?’ you may ask. Actually it’s quite simple – great design is always a response, in some way, to the social climate of the time.
A designer’s creative output is a reaction to what they see around them. So how is that manifesting itself? The common thread that we see again and again from some of the biggest names in design today is the drive to create products that elicit joy in the beholder.
What’s more, they offer us a form of escapism, and why not? It makes sense to cocoon ourselves away from it all with the express purpose of uplifting and re-energising, so that we can go out at the beginning of each day to elevate and spread light.
Here are just a few examples of joyful interior manifestations:
Safari Dance – a joyous parade
1. Wallcoverings:
Where to start? There is a sea of joyous paternation out there – you can even find it in neutral shades. This Cole and Son, African Dance, for instance, has a conviviality to it can only bring a smile to ones dial.
2. Colour
Farrow and Ball, Nancy’s Blushes. The perfect backdrop for ultimate complexion enhancement.
There are countless manifestations of joyous colour examples. But for something that is hot off the press, Farrow and Ball recently launched a colour called ‘Nancy’s Blush’.
Joa Studholm, Farrow and Ball’s colour guru is quick to point out that pink is the most flattering colour backdrop to all skin tones. What’s more it has a positively uplifting effect on one’s mood.
If ‘Nancy’s Blush’ is too punchy for you, have a look at ‘Peignoir‘. It is a more masculine style of pink with many of the same attributes but less clout.
Sophie Conran Portmerion, Honeypot range in Celadon, Mulberry, Sunshine and Pink
3. Product Design
Sophie Conran thought to add a colour pop to her already iconic range of Portmerion Dinnerware. The results are delightful.
The response of the design industry to this bleak and depressing landscape is simple. An interior design installation or an object d’art needs to be a thing of joy.
So make sure that when you and your loved ones head back to your hub you return to a vigorously concocted antidote which has at its heart a heady mix of joy. Why ever not?
