weblog devoted to the future of design, tracking the innovations in technology, practices and materials that are pushing architecture and home design
From the urban tapestry of Los Angeles to a sustainable city
23 November 2023 @ 12:27 pm
Los Angeles, often hailed as the entertainment capital of the world, is not only a hub for the film and music industries but also a fascinating canvas of urban design. The city's architectural landscape reflects a rich tapestry woven with threads of history, culture, and innovation. As one navigates the vast expanse of Los Angeles, it becomes apparent that the city's design is a dynamic fusion of tradition and modernity.[...]
A Connecticut home with a green roof and minimal site impact
15 August 2023 @ 6:30 pm
Meeting the challenge to gently place a home into a valley below the access road and adjacent to a scenic river, Weston Residence is both a primary residence and an award-winning example of minimal site impact architectural design. [...]
Rivian R1T is the best glamping truck on the market
15 August 2023 @ 5:30 pm
The new Rivian R1T pickup is the fabulous EV glamping truck you didn’t know you needed. This unique EV truck has all kinds of features you need, plus a few you never even thought of. Come along on our test drive of the Rivian R1T and decide for yourself if this is your next daily driver. [...]
Here are the latest sustainable construction materials
14 August 2023 @ 5:30 pm
According to the U.N. Environmental Program, the construction industry is not making enough efforts to achieve net-zero emissions. While all sectors are making efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the construction sector is still to get an organized strategy. Today, up to 50% of the world's climate change is caused by the construction sector. The same industry is responsible for up to 40% of the pollution in water bodies. These figures just go to show, how significant the construction industry is in regards to environmental impact.[...]
Best cut flower varieties for a sustainable home garden
14 August 2023 @ 4:30 pm
Cut flowers sounded easy when I started gardening. Just plant some flowers and then cut them, right? Well, there is a lot more to it than that. Cut flowers are often grown from specific varieties that tend to have long, sturdy stems and big, beautiful blooms, and each variety has its own tips to keep them healthy. It also can be hard to find the right varieties in sustainable versions. [...]
University Mass Timber Pavilion was designed by students
11 August 2023 @ 5:30 pm
Nestled on the Rice University campus, amid multiple microhabitats and surrounded by green, you will see a small pavilion that looks a bit like an ancient Greek temple. But this pavilion was carefully crafted to have a modern design. It's sustainable, beautiful and an example that might just inspire campuses around the world.[...]
Travel to the ancient beauty of Machu Picchu, Peru
11 August 2023 @ 3:30 pm
Our group sat in a circle at a 15th century Inca site. We each held three coca leaves glued together with llama fat and concentrated on protection, prosperity and a balanced life. A young shaman named Lucas alternately prayed in Quechua and explained things to us in Spanish, both translated by our guide Wilfredo Huillca. The shaman added quinoa, corn, confetti and other symbolic items to Pachamama, the Andean earth mother. Fortunately, modern rituals substitute animal cookies for alpaca sacrifices.[...]
Biophilic building enhances biodiversity in the neighborhood
10 August 2023 @ 6:30 pm
Kaiserstraße is a new residential building currently under construction in Blumenau, Brazil. The project is designed by Alencar Arquitetura and aims to harness connections between residents and the natural world.[...]
The first agricultural community of its kind in Ontario
10 August 2023 @ 4:30 pm
Humans living in harmony with nature and with each other is really the goal of sustainable, environmentally-friendly design. And it is hardly a hip and modern idea, not unless you think the Stone Age is trendy. Long ago, people banded together in groups to live and work together as one community, rather than as individuals. Now, Castlepoint Numa is bringing this ancient idea into the modern era with an innovative design.[...]
These are 5 industries being propelled by 3D printing
9 August 2023 @ 8:26 pm
When 3D printing first took off, it was difficult to imagine how diverse the field would grow. Nowadays, the realm of additive manufacturing is growing daily. In particular, five sectors are advancing rapidly as a result of developments in additive manufacturing. These are healthcare, food, fashion, motorsports and aerospace. Based on estimates, it is believed that soon these industries will incorporate 3D printing as a key component of their operations.[...]
The rise of DAB Motors has been nothing short of meteoric. Simon Dabadie founded the boutique French motorcycle manufacturer in 2018, released the first Euro-compliant, made-to-order custom bike in 2019, and then pivoted to electric motorcycles in 2021 with a brutally minimalist prototype. Now, just three years on, that prototype is going into production as the limited edition DAB 1α.
The move comes a year after DAB’s acquisition by Peugeot Motocycles. Bringing DAB’s electric bike to market was a major focus of the part
Just when we think that the Honda CB750’s popularity is waning, we’re hit with another stellar custom build based on the venerable four-cylinder UJM. This time it’s the turn of Germany’s Himora Motors, who has just buttoned up this brawny Honda CB750 roadster.
Based near Jena, a city in the heavily forested state of Thuringia, Hiroma Motors is a custom motorcycle and bike apparel brand founded by Kay Riemann. A graphic and industrial designer by trade, Kay is a third-generation petrolhead who founded the company as a creative outlet. He’s joined by his father and experienced fabricator, Bernd, and a
If you’re still sad about Harley never bringing the Bronx streetfighter to market, California’s Whiplash Speed Company has a custom Harley-Davidson Pan America that might just scratch your itch. Next, we feature a battle-ready Honda Dominator, a Yamaha Scorpio SX225 from Bali, and a 1972 Kawasaki H2-R with a racing pedigree.
Harley-Davidson Pan America by Whiplash S
Although Bike EXIF is dedicated to art on two wheels, our automotive interests are wide-ranging. Our publisher has an enviable car collection, our workshop editor, Dean, is a vintage snowmobile fiend, and I’ve been in love with the Morgan Super 3 ever since I test-drove it at the Malle Mile. So today we’re bending the rules, and bringing you a stunning three-wheeler that’s only really thirty percent motorcycle.
Dubbed the ‘MAC 2,’ it’s the second handmade three-wheeler from Indonesian engineer and vintage bike enthusiast, Cosmas Lili Sudrajat. Cosmas has a major crush 
When the Honda Dax was brought back into production a couple of years ago, K-Speed wasted little time getting their grubby paws on it. The Thai powerhouse’s founder, the mysterious Mr Eak, had a 50 cc Dax as a teenager—and the workshop is particularly good at customizing small Hondas. So a K-Speed-customized Dax was inevitable.
Two years on, and K-Speed is still finding interesting ways to cram massive levels of badassery into Honda’s bite-sized mini-bike. This time, they’ve turned the Dax into an uber-sassy—albeit impossibly compact—
We have a particular affinity for modern Vespa scooters around here. Our founding editor, Chris Hunter, used to commute on one in Sydney, I used to commute on one in Cape Town, and our good friend, Winston Yeh, bops around Taipei on his (a black one, naturally). But we wouldn’t have the first clue on how to customize a modern Vespa.
They’re cute enough as they are, begging to be lightly accessorized rather than heavily modified. It takes a lot of imagination to look past the iconic bodywork and see something radically different.
On paper, the late-2000s Honda CB600F Hornet is a great bike; a lively four-cylinder middleweight, widely praised for its rideability and reliability. But in the flesh, it’s hard to get excited about. Like most of Honda’s naked bikes, the steadfast Hornet lacks panache—which makes it prime material for customization.
This Honda Hornet café racer comes from Sébastien Vernaison in France—a part-time custom builder that works as Seb Kustom Motorcycle. He bought the bike a few years ago, customized it, and then decided to put it back under the knife to add even more swagger. And we’re glad he did, 
It’s been too long since AC Sanctuary graced our pages, so this week’s lead bike is an unapologetic Kawasaki KZ1000 from the Japanese masters of excess. We follow that up with a ridiculously potent Simson S51, a fresh club-style Harley-Davidson Sportster 833, and an immaculately restored BMW R80 G/S Paris Dakar.
Countless motorcycle manufacturers popped up in the 1920s and ’30s in Britain, but somehow, none quite as cool as Vincent. High-end speed machines, combining old-school big-displacement twins, monochrome finishes and titillating names like Rapide and Black Shadow, a Vincent V-twin welcomes you into any roundtable of motorcycling, and it’s not hard to see why. A seat rarely opens at the Vincent Owners Club, even more so when you’re talking about an ultra-rare first-series Rapide.
As Taiwan’s relatively young custom scene continues to flourish, we have the privilege of watching plucky startups become established players. Take Twentytwo Custom; this custom Suzuki TU250 Grasstracker is only their seventh build, but it perfectly showcases their skill at turning lightweight commuters into spicy little scramblers.
Twentytwo is the custom arm of the Taiwanese moto culture and apparel brand, Persist Motorcycle Company. Working in collaboration with the custom workshop Tough Tracker, the crew’s forte is customizing sub-500 cc UJMs with a deft mix of modern and vintage flair.
Download the Mixtape →
Love is a lot of things. Intoxicating, messy, nourishing, consuming, fleeting. And just like love, this mix is a lot things, and it really shouldn’t work, but I think it does. I set out to create a mixtape that contained a multitude of perspectives on love, coming at it from a number of different angles.
It really started off with Crystal Castles classic "Not In Love" as Robert Smith's vocals are incredible on it, and the way it builds at the end always gave me chills. From there I kept thinking of the Bee Gees' "More Than A Woman" as well as Grace Jones, so then figuring out how I m
A recent project they released is for LAI HUI Living, a new Cantonese restaurant under the brand of Laihui. They created a brand visual system that utilizes encircling typography situated around differently shaped plates. They say that this represents "sitting around the table and eating together with the same plate," givin