International Design Magazines

Here is the research I did on International Design. It includes a two entries on British design, a piece on the stone mansions of the Swahili people in eastern Africa, a look at Objekt International magazine from the Netherlands, and a bit of French style from Art and Decoration.

The English Home: Elegant Living in the Traditional English Style (EH). EH chronicles rural, historic homes renovated in the Traditional English Style. Construction dates of homes in the magazine range from the 15th century to the 1930's.
So what makes a home English Traditional? In spite of the wide range of ages in the homes shown in EH, there are a number of design elements common to all of them.
Setting and grounds: These homes sit on large expanses of lawn with few trees or other plantings. Most have either formal or cottage style gardens on the backside. There is no attempt to nestle the homes into the landscape. Instead, they sit on top of it, visible from long distances.
Exteriors: The homes are symmetrical--a single rectangle or a central rectangle with wings. House fronts are constructed of stone or brick; some have ivy or other climbing vines covering the facades. Casement windows are the norm with a 2 over 2 or 6 over 6 pattern.
Floors and ceilings: Many ceilings have open beams, sometimes original and sometimes added during renovations. Other ceilings are flat. Ceilings range from about 8-12 feet. Floors may be covered in local limestone tiles, checkerboard patterns of black and white tiles, hardwood, and occasionally low-pile carpets.
Furniture: Furniture is mostly rectilinear and substantial. Wood is used extensively for tables, chairs, and cabinets. Windsor chairs and variations are common. Side chairs and dining chairs have upholstered seats and backs, and often have turned legs. Upholstered sofas and chairs often have exposed legs. Dining tables are most often constructed of wood and may be rectangular or oval. Fireplace mantles (chimney pieces) have architectural features with lintels, carved cornices, engaged columns, etc.
Walls: Molding is used to delineate wall from ceiling, and wall from floor, as well as to define the areas around windows and doors. It may be the same color as the walls or painted in a contrasting/complementary shade. Walls are made from stone in the oldest houses. In all the homes walls are painted in a single color (which varies from room to room). Walls are generally flat (i.e. no frescoes, carvings, or other 3-d effects except for the molding). Beds have wooden or metal head and foot boards; only one had a canopy. Most had one or two small shelf or cabinet nightstands flanking the headboard.
Colors and decor: Wall and decor colors tend toward neutrals and some blues, yellows, and pinks. These are generally a rich pastel (spring or "Easter colors"). Drapery is often fairly heavy, floor length with matching valences, although some windows are left untreated in sunny gathering rooms or kitchens. Ornamentation ranges from very spare (a small painting on the wall) to an eclectic mix of colors, textures, and styles that parallels the American "cottage" style of decorating. Decoration on walls was mostly in the form of framed paintings hung singly or in small groups. Small sculptures adorn side tables and mantles. I saw little overhead, recessed, or track lighting. Most was task lighting on tabletops.
Kitchens and bathrooms: Bathrooms incorporate current technology and comfort and even include some modernist shapes and sensibilities. They often combine the minimalism of Asian design with "cottage" elements such as bead board. Kitchens use traditional cabinetry (many with free standing cupboards) but have state of the art appliances ancd countertops.
Conclusion: The style of Traditional English homes uses rectilinear shapes, bilateral symmetry, wood, plush upholstery and simple decor to create a feeling of stability. The style fuses features from the past seamlessly with modern appliances, comforts, and technologies. The style is functional and comfortable.

British Design (Part 2)
Livingetc: The British design celebrated in Livingetc. is entirely different from The English Home: Elegant Living in the Traditional English Style . This magazine is set squarely in the modernist tradition, but it is a family focused publication, as much about actually having a functional, comfortable, and kid-friendly environment as a stylish one. Colors and shapes really caught my eye. Many rooms are white or neutral with just a few big splashes of bold color. Reds and yellows are definitely in. What I noticed most was a variety of styles. Unlike the traditional English which seems to be defined by a somewhat limited number of shapes and materials, the rooms in Livingetc. range from "vintage charm" and "striking monochrome" to "daring color" and "natural touch". Materials for furnishings included wood, upholstery, and organic forms of molded plastics. I found the magazine to be full of playful and vibrant ideas.

Swahili Chic: The Feng Shui of Africa by Bibi Jordan with a forward by Richard Leakey.
It's a book, not a magazine, but I really wanted to find information on so-called non-western design, particularly any with an Islamic influence. So when I found this book I sat myself right down and started going through it. It is sumptuous.
For this entry I will focus on the Stone Houses of Mkomani in the city of Lamu in northern Kenya.
The Swahili culture of east Africa stretched northward from Tanzania to Kenya and into Somalia. The "stone towns" of the Swahili culture are areas of townhouses built in mazes of narrow passageways, just wide enough for a people and donkeys to pass through.
They are heavily influenced by the architecture and values of Islam (introduced to the area in the late 9th century). They also have some elements from the aesthetics of China, India, Europeans, and Arabs--all of whom passed through the Swahili people's lands.
The stone mansions were built by wealthy patricians. The exteriors were made from coral and except for the highly ornamented wooden doors, they were indistinguishable from one another. This uniformity reflected the Islamic values of conformity and equality.
All the mansions had a uniform layout that emphasized seclusion and scholarship. The homes were on an axial plan, oriented north-south, in alignment with the holy city of Mecca which was due north. The homes were 3 stories tall. Like Roman temples and dwellings, and those of Egypt, the spaces in the homes grew more private and intimate as one moved deeper into the structure.

Here's an overview of the floor plan:

The street is a male space, and in general public areas were for men only. One step up from the street was the daka, a recessed front porch which was used for informal gathering, like a row house stoop. The door to the house opened off of the daka. The doors were the only exterior features that expressed individuality. They were made of expensive hard wood and had ornate carvings of symbols for fortune, love, and health. The hardware was made of brass.
Just through the door was the ground floor, a "dark cavern" for servants and donkeys. A steep staircase led up to a guest room and then to a covered landing which was used as a reception area. It had high, clerestory-like windows that let in light but provided privacy from neighbors. The ceiling was high, and the walls were whitewashed with a border of carved plaster friezes. The atmosphere was formal and stately.
Non-family males were not permitted beyond this room.

An atrium courtyard, kiwonda, was the center of activity for servants to work and children to play. It had no windows, but was open to the sky for light and ventilation.
A second steep staircase led to the third floor and a rooftop kitchen as well as a penthouse veranda for women. Beyond this area were 3 rectangular galleries. Each was gently sloped toward the courtyard and each was one step higher than the one before it. This arrangement allowed wash water to cascade into the kiwonda and into street gutters that emptied in the sea.

The three galleries were the main living areas of the house. Each one was deeper, darker, and more intimate than the one before. The first was a sitting room. The second was a sleeping chamber with 2 alcoves for beds at each end, with a sitting area in the middle. The innermost room was the bedroom/bathroom suite for the parents. The gloom of the inner rooms was offset by "luminous white coral plaster carvings that increased in grandeur as one went deeper". Niches in the walls were filled with family heirlooms, china, and leather bound books.
Photos of the houses, some restored and used as inns, show the symmetry of design, and the simplicity of the wall, floors, and ceilings enlivened with the treasures of the family. Jordan writes, "The interior was rich with family life, heirlooms, libraries. The homes embodied "purity and peace".

Objekt International Magazine
The philosophy of this publication is "quality over quantity". It has been in circulation in over 80 countries for 15 years. Seriously upscale. Gorgeous heavy paper--bet it has no recycled content! Most of the articles focus on homes and commercial properties, although there is an interview with Harm Lagaaij, the chief designer at Porsche as well as an article about the Fiat. Featured houses include: Fujiya, a 350 year old inn that has been restored with modern amenities while preserving its historic structure; an over the top (my opinion) remodel/redecoration of a 1990's architect designed house outside London (including a round bed by Ipe Cavalli with a voile hanging by Fox Linten in a child's room); a spa and "wellness temple" of "six illuminated sail-like glass elements. And so on. Wow--this is less?!
I can't find design elements that tie all these structures together. They are all designed to the nth degree, and in general the design is meant to be oohed and ahhed over as far as I can tell.
Some of it is tasteful (I like the Japanese inn) and some is just annoyingly "look at me". There is no thought to sustainability in these designs, and too often it appears there isn't much thought to how one is going to actually live and function in the spaces. Oh well it's certainly an interesting look into how the other .01% live!

Art and Decoration from Paris (with English summaries!)
I would put this on par, as far as type of readership, with Traditional Home.
Except for summaries in the back of the magazine I couldn't read this one, sooo it's all about the pictures. This is a summer issue so there are several beach houses (seaside houses?) featured as well as products for outdoor living. Many of the furnishings and products would fall into our "shabby chic" style with distressed wood, mixes of floral and striped fabrics, "weathered" metals along with ceramics and textiles in turquoise, hot pink, orange and lime green.
Floors and cabinetry are often hardwood in light colors. Windows are often left bare or treated with sheer, textured fabrics. As with our shabby chic and cottage styles most furniture and wall surfaces hold pictures, vases of flowers, nautical artifacts, and natural objects such as driftwood.
A feature on outdoor showers has wood or stone enclosures. Most are meant to look quite old as if they're weathered into the landscape. I liked these. They were relatively private and felt like secret grottoes.
There was a nice spread on room screens. Most of these were constructed of wood. They were accented variously with louvers, cane, and sheer fabrics.
Overall the interior design and decor seemed to be made for comfort and nostalgia. It was the French version of "Cottage" style. A little fussy and busy, but welcoming.