What’s Happening: South Carolina interior designer Cortney Bishop is injecting fresh ideas into e-commerce with Album, a shoppable platform that will drop a monthly “tracklist” of curated objects and furniture inspired by her favorite music.

The Download: When Cortney Bishop isn’t dreaming up award-winning projects like Charleston’s free-spirited Ryder Hotel and residences with irreverent touches across the U.S., she’s frequenting art and design fairs like Salone del Mobile and Art Basel Miami Beach “where the artists push the boundaries of what can be created,” she tells Introspective. “I attend them to remind myself to be bold enough to mix things together and to go with what drives me.” Proof of concept: Album, an e-commerce destination she’s launching today that cleverly mixes the worlds of design and music.

Album injects fresh new energy into the design e-commerce experience with product drops presented in music-inspired photoshoots. Each month, the platform will drop a shoppable “tracklist” of eclectic design objects handpicked by Bishop and curator Wills Baker, and themed to a corresponding song. The duo will situate each piece within a styled virtual setting that could easily double as an album cover. “It’s a creative outlet that, as a designer, allows me to play in a way that differs from the project work we’re doing as a firm,” Bishop says, explaining how each piece offers a glimpse inside her mind.

The first drop, which launches today at 11 AM EST in time for New Music Friday, features 13 objects whose arrangement is themed to Moby’s moody classic “Extreme Ways.” In tune with the song’s seductive strings—and perhaps the otherworldly desert pictured on the cover of its album, 18—Bishop envisioned a sandy, florid setting for the shoot that mirrors the “extreme places that never see any light” Moby sings about. Each object intends to heighten the mood, whether a one-of-a-kind Yves Boucard accent table, lighting by Mexico’s Studio Tezontle, a handwoven rug by Amadi Carpets, or an original Togo sofa by Michel Ducaroy.

In Their Own Words: “We want people to visit Album to discover something they won’t find anywhere else—a provocative piece of art, a highly collectible classic, or an object that’s just plain rad,” Bishop says, hinting at a members-only subscription service fittingly called “b-sides” that offers “off-the-record” access and perks.

Surface Says: Given the design e-commerce landscape, we’ll try anything at this point!

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In celebration of our partnership with Polygon and our multi-day, immersive activation during Miami Art Week, we recently launched a collection of limited-edition digital Surface magazine covers. Members of the Surface community can mint one of three 3D Surface NFTs, featuring Daniel Humm, Solange Knowles, and Guerilla Girls.

When the World Trade Center collapsed following the attacks on September 11, 2001, the only religious building destroyed was the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine near the South Tower. Two decades later, as redevelopment efforts continue, the church’s replacement has finally reopened following a restoration by Santiago Calatrava. The Spanish architect, who also designed the nearby Oculus Transportation Hub, intends for the structure to serve as a poignant reminder of the attacks’ continued impact.

Drawing from Byzantine architecture, specifically the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, the church’s drum-shaped form and dome top are clad in thin sheets of Pentelic marble that emanate a gentle glow at night and serve as a beacon for visitors of the 9/11 Memorial. “I hope to see this structure serve its purpose as a sanctuary for worship, but also as a place for reflection on what the city endured and how it’s moving forward,” Calatrava says. “Architecture can have an intrinsic symbolic value, which is not written or expressed in a specific way but in an abstract and synthetic manner, sending a message and leaving a lasting legacy.”

On Dec. 1, Surface and Polygon closed out a four-day takeover at the W South Beach, creating a disco-fied lightwave bungalow that hosted a pop-up art gallery, a series of thought-provoking salon-style conversations, and opportunities to fête with our community of artists and designers. Guests mingled with the creators as well as the Surface and Polygon teams over crudité from the W South Beach and drinks by Liquid Death, Body Vodka, Tepozan Tequila, Desolas Mezcal, Visitor Beer, Juliet Wine, and Ghia.

When was it? Dec. 1

Where was it? The W South Beach

Who was there? Garret Nathan, Manda Kalimian, Alexsandra Guerra, MokiBaby, Iddris Sandu, Neil Hamamoto, Max Kendrick, GRL, Gianna Valintina, and Bonin Bough.

During Miami Art Week, American Express and Resy made a splash in the city’s Design District with Savor and Soul, a dining experience celebrating Black chefs and culture, with a menu designed by the James Beard Award-winning chef Mashama Bailey. There, exclusive works by artists Gianni Lee, Adrian Brandon, and Sabrena Khadija made their public debut. Starting today, all three works are available to purchase on the livestream shopping app NTWRK, in partnership with Amex.

Our weekly roundup of the internet’s most preposterous headlines, from the outrageous to the outright bizarre.

The EU Hosted a 24-Hour Party in Its $400,000 Metaverse to Appeal to Young People, but Pretty Much No One Showed Up [Business Insider]

Elon Musk’s Neuralink Staff Claim His Demands to Rush Brain Implant Trials Led to the Needless Deaths of 1,500 Animals [Fortune]

What’s in New York’s Illicit Cannabis: Germs, Toxins, and Metals [The New York Times]

All We Want for Christmas Is… Spam Figgy Pudding? [NPR]

German Police Seek Help in Solving Bull Sperm Heist [Washington Post]

27 Flee Plane in Spain After Pregnant Woman Simulates Labor [AP]

To anyone paying attention, a tectonic shift is taking place at Rockefeller Center. It started when Ignacio Mattos debuted Lodi, a Milanese-style aperitivo bar and cafe at the New York landmark in September 2021. Opening a new restaurant is always notable for a chef of his caliber, but the fact that it was Mattos—a bellwether of downtown culture who dates the chef-turned-designer Laila Gohar and whose culinary prowess draws everyone from Chloë Sevigny to the fashion designer Emily Adams Bode Aujla to his restaurants—meant something big was happening.

Reach the design world every morning. Find out more about advertising in the Design Dispatch.

HUSH designs experiences for the world’s most dynamic organizations. The firm seeks to create a world in which people and communities are more inspired, achieve greater knowledge and understanding, and have a deeper engagement with their own environment. To do this, they strategically help organizations translate and articulate their mission by connecting brands, people, and space in powerful ways.

Surface Says: HUSH isn’t afraid to think big, so it’s no wonder that they’re sought out for their ability to turn ideas into full-scale, immersive experiences.

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