In 2017, a plot of land in Hong Kong’s central business district that housed a multi-story parking lot sold for a record-breaking $3 billion. Located directly across from I.M. Pei’s Bank of China Tower, the first supertall built outside the United States and currently the city’s fourth-tallest building, the underutilized site at 2 Murray Road will soon house a sinuous, nature-filled glass skyscraper designed by Zaha Hadid Architects.

The British firm, now headed by Patrik Schumacher after Hadid’s untimely death in 2016, drew inspiration from Hong Kong’s local vegetation. Staying true to Hadid’s famous affinity for curves, the skyscraper’s glass-paneled facade mimics the graceful structural forms of a blossoming Bauhinia—a flower inextricably linked to Hong Kong’s identity. (It first propagated in the city’s nearby botanic gardens and even appears on the Hong Kong flag.) The building’s main body, meanwhile, will be elevated above-ground and connect to the city’s network of raised pedestrian walkways, with courtyards and gardens sitting underneath. Planted areas also appear higher up within open-air balconies that will house running tracks and flow seamlessly into the interiors, which will primarily be used for office space.

A completion date for the skyscraper has yet to be announced, though we anticipate construction may be delayed due to the coronavirus. It’s the latest in a string of mind-bending projects from the in-demand firm, which recently inaugurated the Opus Hotel in Dubai and unveiled visuals for the China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group’s new headquarters in what may become Shanghai’s greenest building.

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Framing African culture in a contemporary context guides the work of Yannis Davy Guibinga. Vibrant, colorful, and evocative, his work behind the lens transcends the regular contours of photography and veers into the realm of fine art. Sift through his digital portfolio, hosted on Squarespace, and his talent for visual storytelling affirms itself; Guibinga’s narrative-driven projects are rooted in parables exploring African mythology, giving his work the linearity and depth of a short film. Meet the Gabon-raised, Montreal-based photographer who is subverting common African stereotypes.

When: Until Oct. 30

Where: Saint Laurent Rive Droite, Paris

What: The minimalist pioneer Helmut Lang walked away from his namesake label in 2005 to focus exclusively on his art practice. When a 2010 fire destroyed more than 9,000 items in his personal archive, he made “fabric confetti” of the surviving pieces and used resin to fashion them into sculptures. Saint Laurent creative director Anthony Vaccarello, a longtime admirer of Lang’s pared-back approach and collaborations with artists like Jenny Holzer and Louise Bourgeois, has now tapped the Austrian designer-turned-artist for a series of like-minded totemic sculptures on display at the French maison’s experimental storefront in Paris.

Slightly evocative of Brutalism, the floor-to-ceiling pillars feature compacted Saint Laurent items including shredded clothing prototypes and unfinished jewelry mixed with pigmented resin and molded in aluminum. The narrative is one of transformation and authenticity: “Helmut was the first to stand up against artificial promotional messages,” Vaccarello told Business of Fashion. “His vision and art direction brought everyone back to the real and meaningful essence of fashion.” The same can be said for these sculptures, which will travel to Los Angeles later this fall and be available for purchase.

Brian Volk-Zimmerman knows that the difference is in the details. The owner of VOLK Furniture—a contemporary design studio based in Brooklyn—creates timeless pieces with an elevated level of craftsmanship, from porcelain pendant lamps to ash credenzas with fabric-lined drawers. “We’re all responsible for taking care of this planet, and as someone whose livelihood is based on creating objects,” he says, “I feel it’s necessary to try to produce things that will not go quickly out of style or whose usefulness will become obsolete.” This year, VOLK Furniture expanded its lineup with three considered new pieces.

So why now? Much like the world at large, the design industry has been turned upside down over the past year. Design fairs, often the premier stage to launch new products and collections, face an uncertain future. COVID-19 has ushered in a new normal, forcing us to fully embrace remote experiences. Interest in home design is surging as people rethink their living arrangements and adjust to the remote work paradigm shift. The e-commerce revolution has entered an exciting new phase, but with it comes the perils of fast-consumerism. Design Dose will take a more thoughtful approach, one that reflects our core values at Surface: provide intel to our audience, delight the senses, and—above all else—champion great design.

More than 30,000 low-income Californians have Chanel to thank for their newly installed solar panels. That’s because the French label has invested $35 million with the San Francisco rooftop solar panel company Sunrun, redoubling efforts to combat climate change outside of its core fashion business. While solar energy and couture may seem like a strange pairing, “we believe in going beyond our own footprint to support communities and natural ecosystems that are already affected by climate change,” Chanel president and chief operating officer John Galantic tells the Los Angeles Times. “The impacts of climate change are already upon us.” The late Karl Lagerfeld famously sent models down a solar panel runway for Chanel’s Spring 2013 show; it seems the brand has now put its money where its mouth is.

Listed as one of America’s most endangered historic places by the U.S. National Trust for Historic Preservation, a section of San Francisco’s dilapidated waterfront finally has hope for a more promising future. The Embarcadero, encompassing Piers 30-32, burned down 36 years ago, but London’s Heatherwick Studio has shared a proposal for its revitalization. Slated for completion in 2026, the mixed-use development, dubbed The Cove, will double as an ecological park: A team of biodiversity specialists collaborated with the firm on plans to restore coastal processes, enhancing habitats for local sea life. Housing retail, offices, and public space, the structure nods to the undulating waves of NorCal—and its elevated construction combats rising sea levels. ⁠

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