‘Sitting and Looking’ is an exhibition at Somerset House that brings together a juxtaposition of bespoke 21st-century design objects by ten renowned artists. Curated by internationally acclaimed furniture designers Jim Partridge and Liz Walmsley, visitors are encouraged to consider, sit amongst and even touch the objects, some of which are for sale.

‘SITTING AND LOOKING’, 30th June – 5th September 2011

SOMERSET HOUSE

Strand, City of London WC2R 1LA

Garry Fabian Miller – Burning (with Gwen)

Exhibits include ‘camera-less’ experimental photography from Garry Fabian Miller and Thomas Heatherwick’s innovative use of engineering, with his versatile seating made from planks of wood.

Interior of UK Pavilion, Shanghai Expo 2010 by Heatherwick Studio

LONDON DESIGN GUIDE sponsored two awards at the JOY OF LIVING exhibition at Somerset House – a jury award and a public vote. Here, we are delighted to announce the winner of the public vote is…

003: Rorschach’s Carnival by Johanna Basford

Members of the public who visited the JOY OF LIVING exhibition were asked to vote for their favourite artwork. The winning piece (pictured above) seemed to capture the imagination of visitors who were drawn to its intricate detail and cheerful portrayal of the joy of living.

Here is the caption that accompanied the artwork, written by Basford:

When our family had bad news this year, a friend who is also a cancer nurse told me one of the most powerful tools in fighting the disease is optimism and a positive mindset; an ability to see past the black and white of the inkblot, to the carnival within.

Johanna Basford is an illustrator based in Scotland. She refers to herself as an ‘Ink Evangelist’ on her email signature, which seems entirely appropriate. If you are attracted to her illustrative style, you can purchase some of her work via her website.

As the winner of the public vote, Basford has been presented with £500 award money. In the spirit of the event, she did not hesitate to give the money straight to Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres – the charity at the centre of the JOY OF LIVING fundraising campaign. Thank you Johanna!

LONDON DESIGN GUIDE is proud to announce its very first award. To support the current JOY OF LIVING charity exhibition at Somerset House, we’ve put forward £1,500 towards two awards for the artworks that best respond to the exhibition title.

On Monday 14th March 2011, the first award was judged by a jury comprising Claire Catterall (curator, Somerset House); Marcus Fairs (founder, Dezeen); Lynda Relph-Knight (editor, Design Week) and Charles Jencks (co-founder, Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres).

Chaired by LDG editor Max Fraser, the judges spent several hours assessing all of the artworks in the Joy of Living exhibition (for more information about this fundraising project for Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres, click here).

After much deliberation, and plenty of conflicting opinions, a decision was reached by majority vote. We are delighted to announce the winner of the jury award is:

027: One for Sorrow… by Sam Johnson (pictured above).

Caption: My mother lost her battle with cancer in 1990. I was 14. During her illness I became very superstitious, avoiding anything that might bestow bad luck on her illness. The hospice where she died was surrounded by woods where there were always magpies. I now see these beautiful birds as a symbol of freedom and the end of her suffering.

Sam Johnson has been informed that he has won the £1,000 award and has gratefully accepted it. It’s worth pointing out that the designers of the artworks featured in the exhibition are anonymous – the names will only be released to the public when the exhibition has closed on Monday 21st March. Sam Johnson’s artwork is the only one that has been publicly revealed.

The second award is for £500 and will be decided by you. Be sure to visit the exhibition at Somerset House before 21st March and vote for the artwork that you think best represents the title: Joy of Living.

In the words of award judge and Maggie’s co-founder Charles Jencks, “This exhibition has created a new genre for ‘cancer art.’” We hope you’ll agree!

JOY OF LIVING is a charity project that unites over 100 leading lights in the design community to galvanise support for Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres. LONDON DESIGN GUIDE editor, Max Fraser, has set the challenge to new and established UK designers to create a desirable artwork that expresses the joy of living - all starting from a simple sheet of A4 graph paper. BUY YOUR FAVOURITE ARTWORK ONLINE or visit the exhibition.

JOY OF LIVING, 15th-21st March 2011

SOMERSET HOUSE

Great Arch lobby, Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 1LA (entrance via Embankment)

The signed works are exhibited and on sale in London’s Somerset House. The project aims to raise £50,000 for Maggie’s, a charity that helps people to build a life beyond cancer, helping to manage the impact of a diagnosis of cancer and to live with hope and determination.

Max Fraser explains, “After a very personal, emotional journey as I supported my mother through her 6-year battle with cancer, I vowed to contribute in some way to mankind’s fight against this disease. Maggie’s recognises that building an atmosphere of calm and celebrating a good quality of life are immensely beneficial to patients, and I know that my mother would have benefited so positively from its services.”

Charity founder Maggie Keswick Jencks once said, “Above all what matters is not to lose the joy of living in the fear of dying,” and this statement has inspired the design challenge and the Joy of Living project.

A stellar list of UK design talent including Terence Conran, Tom Dixon, Barber Osgerby, Sebastian Bergne, John Pawson, Tomoko Azumi, Daniel Eatock, Fredrikson Stallard, Moritz Waldemeyer, Rob Ryan, Stuart Haygarth, Michael Marriott, Hannah Martin and Troika have contributed unique artworks that embody the Joy of Living theme.

Because democratic values are at the core of Maggie’s philosophy, each artwork is priced at £250, whether by a household name or a rising star. What’s more, the name of the designer will not be revealed until the piece is purchased, making sure that supporters buy a piece to which they have a true emotional response.

If you would like to donate to this project to raise vital money for Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres, please visit the project’s secure online donation page on the Just Giving website: http://www.justgiving.com/joyofliving

LONDON DESIGN GUIDE will be giving a £1000 award to the designer who best responds to the Joy of Living title in their artwork, as chosen by an esteemed jury. The winner will be announced on 15th March 2011 on this website.

There is also a £500 award chosen by the public, so be sure to visit the exhibition to have an input!

Somerset House is staging the popular Super Christmas Market again this year, providing a platform for emerging designers and giving you the opportunity to buy direct from London’s inventive independent talents.

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SUPER CHRISTMAS MARKET, 10th-12th December 2010

SOMERSET HOUSE

The Studio (behind the Ice Rink), Strand, London WC2R 1LA (020 7845 4600)

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Pick up original home wares from ‘All Lovely Stüff’ and special nik naks and Christmas baubles collected from Eastern Europe and Central Asian countries from ‘Shop Eastern Bloc.’

The centrepiece of this year’s market is The Poundshop, a wallet-friendly boutique with specially commissioned stocking fillers costing only a pound. Furthermore, enjoy free festive games and prizes.

This year’s market has been curated in collaboration with Somerset Houses’ Designers in Residence Owens & Yauner (Marc Owens and Freddie Yauner).

This summer marks the 20th Anniversary of industrial designer Sebastian Bergne’s studio. To celebrate, the exhibition ‘Blow by Blow’ is being staged at Somerset House showing a collection of unseen personal glass projects.

BLOW BY BLOW, 10th-27th June 2010

SOMERSET HOUSE (Courtyard Room, South Wing)

Strand, London WC2R 1LA (020 7845 4600)

Since starting his professional practice in 1990, Bergne has collaborated with small glass making workshops to produce these private pieces alongside his regular studio activities.

This series of objects is presented against a background of his mainstream studio activities, shown in digital form, giving the visitor a unique viewpoint of Bergne’s diverse body of work.

The dozen or so projects exhibited range from his first works in glass as a student, through to bespoke shot glasses created for his own wedding to more recent projects and experiments, culminating with a Champagne flute created especially for the event.

A numbered and signed edition of 100 Capped Champagne Tubes (pictured above) are on sale at the exhibition (and on his sales portal: www.spunique.com) as well as other selected pieces.

Somerset House is hosting a major exhibition celebrating 20 years of one of contemporary fashion’s most influential and enigmatic designers, Martin Margiela.

MAISON MARTIN MARGIELA ’20′ THE EXHIBITION

3rd June-5th September 2010

SOMERSET HOUSE

Embankment Galleries, Strand, London WC2R 1LA (020 7845 4600)

The exhibition provides a visual examination of the themes that underpin the essence of the fashion house, from its deconstructivist design aesthetic and avant-garde couture to its understated branding, unusual boutique interiors, signature ‘trompe l’oeil’ illusions, and its couture atelier white coats.

A graduate of Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Martin Margiela formerly worked as design assistant to Jean Paul Gaultier before showing his first collection under his own label in 1988. Employing a ‘deconstructivist’ approach – monochromatic palette, outsized garments, non-traditional fabrics, the use of recycled materials and exposing the construction of his clothes – Margiela displayed a radically new visual language that diametrically opposed the power dressing of the 1980s.

In deciding to let his fashion speak for itself and remain anonymous, Margiela as a brand is driven by product and sheer invention rather than fad, hype and celebrity often linked to other fashion labels.

Various iconic pieces from both the women and menswear collections are on display, such as the highly replicated ‘Tabi’ boots, as well as specially recreated garments for the exhibition.

This multi-layered exhibition was conceived in close collaboration with Maison Martin Margiela and curated by the Mode Museum, Antwerp.

Pick Me Up is a new contemporary graphic art fair in the UK, staged by Somerset House. A selection of avant-garde graphic art and design galleries, collectives and publishers are presenting affordable work by leading graphic designers and illustrators.

PICK ME UP: Contemporary Graphic Art Fair

23rd April – 3rd May 2010

SOMERSET HOUSE

Strand, London WC2R 1LA (020 7845 4600)

Somerset House has invited the likes of Concrete Hermit, Evening Tweed, Le Gun, Landfill/Manymono, Nobrow, Nous Vous, and Peepshow to create unique exhibition spaces. Art works are for sale from both emerging and established talents, alongside graphic prints, limited-edition books, T-shirts, crockery and fanzines.

The fair is presented alongside a programme of events and live performances, including an open studio with paper artist Rob Ryan who has installed his paper cutting studio and printing presses to showcase his processes; Print Club London is running a screen-printing workshop with guest designers including Jonathan Barnbrook, Angus Hyland, Michael Johnson, Morag Myerscough, and Scott King; a programme of film screenings is presented by It’s Nice That.

Check the Somerset House website for details of other exhibitors and the full programme of events.

The fair is curated by Claire Catterall, with exhibition design by Michael Marriott and graphic identity by Anthony Burrill.

The Super Christmas Market returns to Somerset House this year and, due to popularity, will stay open for more days. Some of the UK’s best and most interesting designers are selling original Christmas gifts at affordable prices.

SUPER CHRISTMAS MARKET, open 19th-22nd December, 11am-8pm

SOMERSET HOUSE

East Wing, Strand, London WC2R 1LA (020 7845 4600)

£2 entry

Expect to find many unique, handmade items for under £10, from the likes of design talents like Michael Marriott, Tim Parsons, Sebastian Bergne, Carl Clerkin, William Warren, and students from Royal College of Arts and Camberwell.

Expect plenty of stocking fillers and general Christmas fun and games!

You will also be able to buy copies of LONDON DESIGN GUIDE here.

Happy shopping!