Inconspicuous Matter by Celine Marcq

Inconspicuous Matter by Celine Marcq

Surface designer Celine Marcq's electro-reactive wallpaper, called Inconspicuous Matter, is currently on show as part of Soft Technology, a touring exhibition of electronic textiles which runs in Norway until next month. Watch the video of Marcq's project, where users are able to change the colour of their surroundings with the flick of a switch, after the jump.

HBL Exhibitions: Still Living at Sarah Myerscough Fine Art

Detail from Nature Morte - Carrots by Katherine Melancon; archival pigment print on Hahnemuhle Photo rag 29 7 x 29 7 cm. Image courtesy of Sarah Myerscough Fine Art.

Mayfair gallery Sarah Myerscough Fine Art is to curate an exhibition of contemporary Still Life this November. The show, called Still Living, will present works from contemporary painters and photographers whose practice relates to the genre - and in some cases deconstructs it.

LDF 2011: BoConcept 2012 collection launch

BoConcept

Danish design brand BoConcept will launch its 2012 collection during the London Design Festival with a special event at its Tottenham Court Road branch entitled Urban Danish Design Since 1952.

Lowe’s introduces handheld devices

RIS News reports that US-based home improvement retailer Lowe’s has launched handheld devices for employees. Lowe’s will deploy approximately 42,000 devices in around 1,700 outlets in its US and Canadian stores and expects the roll-out to be complete by January 2012.

HBL Retail News: Asda launches mobile site

Asda has launched a mobile site allowing its customers to shop for groceries online via smartphone. The site provides users with all the features of the main Asda.com site on a mobile optimised format and provides maps and directions to local stores.

HBL Colour: the rise of red

Interiors are warming up for the coming season with the introduction of red accents; in particular, shades of red inspired by Chinese culture and traditions.

HBL News: John Lewis reports on the effect of riots on its business

Internet Retailing reports that "John Lewis today became the first major retailer to give an insight into how its financial performance was affected by last week’s riots – and said online appeared to have benefited as customers stayed at home".

HBL Tradeshows: Live from NYIGF 2011

Morihata at NYIGF 2011

WGSN-homebuildlife reports live from New York International Gift Fair in New York City, highlighting the three emerging trends from the show:

Faux taxidermy: Realistic representations of animals are seen in glossy ceramics

The re-imagined Christmas tree: Wooden Christmas trees are re-imagined with flat-packed recycled and reusable parts

360: Decorative details come full circle in round tabletop pieces made of ceramics and wood

Subscribers can view our full live report here.

The Wallpaper* 150

Wallpaper* has announced the results of its Twitter-sourced poll, The Wallpaper 150*. The list is a compilation of 150 people from the creative and lifestyle industries, judged by the magazine's Twitter followers to have come into our daily lives in the past 15 years and made them better in some way.

Imagination Playground by David Rockwell

David Rockwell during the London launch of the Imagination Playground (credit: Susan Smart)

New York based architect and designer David Rockwell was in London yesterday to mark the European launch of his groundbreaking Imagination Playground concept.

With a focus on loose parts, Imagination Playground is an interactive, transformable environment, that prompts children to manipulate their own playspace. The blocks are made from a cross-linked polyethylene foam, and the pieces are soft, lightweight, waterproof, and biodegradable.

The Shop Floor Project: shop launch

The Shop Floor Project, a British online retail brand which sells a variety of homewares from wallpaper and ceramics to books and prints, has opened its first real-life shop -  in the market town of Ulverston, Cumbria, where the brand's headquarters is based.

WGSN-homebuildlife spoke to Denise and Samantha Allen, the mother-and-daughter team behind The Shop Floor Project, to find out more about developing a bricks-and-mortar shop from a digital retail concept.

HBL Book of the Week: Where They Create

Tongue & Groove, Australia, from Where They Create

Where They Create by Paul Barbera and Alexandra Onderwater (Frame, 2011) is the result of blogger and photographer Barbera's journeys around the world, documenting the studios of artist, designers and creatives as he goes. 32 studios and workplaces are included in the book, including Wallpaper*, Acne and the design studios of Matali Crasset. It will be published in September, but is available to pre-order now.

HBL loves: seeing the differences between each studio - from the way employees dress to how things are stored and the personal keepsakes that are kept close to hand.