Opinion – Italian art must acknowledge its powerful women
The proposed erection of a statue celebrating the world’s first woman to get a PhD has sparked backlash across Italy. Should society still be allowed to debate the creation of art that salutes the female gender? In 1678, Elena Cornaro Piscopia became the first-ever woman to receive a PhD. In...
Current in Design
Sustainable desk accessory line bFRIENDS mixes practicality with style
Office furniture brand Bene has partnered with design and sustainability pioneers in both London and Amsterdam to bring us a fun, eco-friendly alternative to plastic desk organisers. Oh, the joys of being organised. It’s a quality most people strive to improve at in their day-to-day life, but without the right tools...
Henry Glogau’s ‘portable solar distiller’ wins the Lexus Design Award 2021
The Lexus Design Award 2021 was all about invention for the good of humanity, and New Zealand born architecture graduate Henry Glogau took first prize for his solar powered water distiller. Since its inauguration in 2013, the Lexus Design Awards have always been shaped by the company principles of ‘anticipate,...
Poet turns Malcolm X’s prison cell into ‘freedom library’
The prison cell that was occupied by the civil rights activist has been transformed into the first of 1,000 planned ‘freedom libraries’. Poet and lawyer Reginald Dwayne Betts is using his MacArthur ‘genius grant’, worth $625,000 (£471,000) to set up 1,000 micro-libraries in US prisons through his charity, Freedom Reads,...
Banksy pledges £10million to transform Reading prison
The prison was shut down in 2013 and plans to revamp the space have continuously fallen through. World renowned street artist Banksy is pledging money to transform it into a positive space for art and culture. What happens to prisons once they shut down indefinitely? In the case of England’s...
Earth’s Black Box will record climate research for future beings
Located in Tasmania, the Black Box - similar to mechanisms found on planes - will outlive humankind and hold all the information we’ve gathered about climate change. Getting real about climate change means accepting that a global failure to meet net zero goals could mean the end of our current...
Tate’s new exhibition points to its own sordid past
‘Life Between Islands: Caribbean-British Art 1950s - Now’ is the latest Tate exhibition to explore the works of renowned British artists such as Sonia Boyce, Claudette Johnson, and Steve McQueen. But housed in a bastion of colonial history, will these displays of Black artistic excellence ever force Britain’s cultural institutions to face up to their pasts? David A Bailey, curator, artist, and member of the British Black Arts Movement...
CopenHill power plant and ski slope is World Building of the Year 2021
World Building of the Year 2021 has been given to CopenHill, a waste-to-energy power plant in Denmark that also serves as a ski slope, climbing wall, and rooftop bar. Looking for a fun getaway next year, provided the pandemic actually calms down for longer than twenty minutes? Want to get your ski practice in while also checking out the world’s most unique, clean energy power plant? Denmark has your very...
New poster campaign launched to fight anti-Asian hate crime
The Asian American Federation has released a series of posters created by various illustrators to raise money for ‘Hope Against Hate’ and to spread awareness of racial stereotyping. A new poster campaign by the Asian American Federation hopes to highlight racial discrimination and raise money for the ‘Hope Against Hate’ charity in New York City. The organisation has released ten unique posters created by artists of varying ages. Each one paints...
‘Eighth Continent’ concept design could recycle plastics from the ocean
Forget a trip to Australia, the only exotic continent you’ll need to visit in 2050 is this man-made recycling structure that collects ocean debris. No word on whether you’ll be able to get a tan yet, mind. If you’ve been checking in on Thred over the past few months – particularly during our COP26 coverage – then you’ll know all about ocean pollution. With plastic still being dumped into our seas...
