First look at Future Focus.
Relay returns to Shoreditch Design Triangle 13-21 September (part of London Design Festival 2025) with an exhibition bringing together visionary designers & innovators to showcase this year's most exciting new product design.
Titled Future Focus, this dynamic group exhibition explores how creativity and technology are shaping the objects of tomorrow - combining new materials with traditional craft to map out the leading edge of today’s sustainable design practice.
Each piece on display pushes the boundaries of what's possible, offering a glimpse into the future of design. For instance, the material research of Boris Berlin, whose latest design provides an alternative to using foam in soft seating. His new lounge chair is both a protest and a venture into a new category of upholstery for the future. This approach is echoed by the work of Lorenz + Kaz, who looks towards traditional paperwork & weaving to provide alternatives to foam materials.
These design themes of reduction, reuse and adaptation can be seen as a thread that weaves through the exhibition, including new offerings from Chris Martin and Nick Ross. Both borrowing from the legacy of modernism, their latest works seek to strip back form to the bare minimum, translating natural forms into minimalist structures. Be that the planetary orbits that inspired Martin, or the proto-dwelling rock formations of Ross’s native Isle of Skye. In this category, we could also consider the work of Stockholm-based Korean designer BYMARS and his lighting series, which references sails harnessing the wind that symbolise his native Jeju Island.
The theme of adaptation for future use is perhaps best exemplified by Philippe Malouin’s new sofa, which utilises an innovative lamination process for its upholstery. Through this process, the upholstery gains a new sculptural quality. Designed into oversized covers, which Malouin compares to a hoodie sweatshirt, these can be removed, adapted and replaced.
Adaptation can also be seen in new lighting by Sebastian Herkner where the user is invited to engage with the lamp's form to adjust the spill of light. Prompting the user to interact with the design physically broadens this theme of adaptation into important forthcoming trends around engagement and play. Best illustrated by Spacon's research on the value of play, a research project initiated by +Halle. Their new bench prompts adaptation and movement, resulting in a playfulness that is rarely seen in product design. This theme is also illustrated in new works by Kusheda Mensah. Her new collection of seating brings an unorthodox playfulness into the space, simultaneously graphically arresting and refreshingly carefree.
Future Focus is curated by Relay Design Agents. The title is taken from a series of design trend forecasts produced by the studio.
Supported by +Halle, Ago Lighting, Hem, Massproductions and Zeitraum.