Wellness Is at the Heart of These Chicago Design Week Product Debuts
For the Michael Ford x Momentum Collection, "The Hip Hop Architect" translated one of his son's doodles into this pattern called Breakin' .
By Diana Mosher
The cliché “don’t worry, be happy” sounds too simplistic. this mental health hack can work wonders! But for the times when it doesn’t, interior designers are stepping in with strategies that promote emotional and physical wellness in the workplace and everywhere else humans hang out. The game plan is to prevent burnout, promote joy, and, of course, set the stage for productivity—after all, time is still money.
What makes YOU feel good at work? Research shows it varies from person to person. Sometimes we don’t need science to tell us that the built environment is sick. If you walk into a space and feel the ick, chances are that human and environmental health were not top of mind when those interiors were being put together.
At Chicago Design Week, however, wellness was a recurring theme, as designers increasingly are drawing from neuroaesthetics and neuroinclusivity. At the NeoCon Talks Lounge, we got a heads-up that we’ll be hearing more about salutogenic design, which helps people thrive as complete organisms. Stay tuned for more on this fascinating topic.
In the meantime, check out six “feel-good” products: From true circularity to hip hop vibes, these products from Model N, Turf, Loll Designs, Boss Design, Levitask, and Momentum are just a few that stood out.
Model N, Onda
Model N
One of the coolest products in the Metropolis Sustainability Lab at NeoCon is also super practical, and it delivers an entirely closed loop. Onda is a 3D-printed modular workplace system already disrupting the status quo. Design clients are realizing that conventional millwork uses roughly four times the embodied carbon and a layout that can’t change easily with their business. Onda components are designed to be reconfigured as needs evolve. And, since they’re made using recycled and bio-based materials, when a piece is retired, it’s reground into raw material to be 3D printed again.
Turf Design, Point
Photo by Kendall McCaugherty
Turf
Acoustic solutions manufacturer Turf wants us to get in touch with our “rebellious joy.” And that’s a good thing, especially during a challenging day at the office. Along with new soundproofing products Cushion, Point, Plate, and Platter, Turf rolled out new 10 vibrant colors as part of its Turf Hues palette (now 42 colors and counting) that help designers put neuroaesthetic principles into action. These tones can trigger dopamine release and elevate mood in collaborative spaces or foster a connection to nature for better focus in quiet zones. The expanded palette integrates color, sound, and materiality for environments that influence emotion and well-being.
Loll Designs, Here & There by Argenta Park
Loll Designs
Everyone wants to get outdoors, not for a smoke but to feel grounded. The Here and Now Collection by Loll Designs with Argenta Park was inspired by early 20th-century American conservationist Aldo Leopold, who believed in touching grass before it was a Gen Z thing. This line includes a reimagination of the Leopold Bench, where the founder of ecology himself liked to sit to admire nature. Suitable for all seasons, the Here and Now Collection is made from 100% recyclable high-density polyethylene. And it’s TRUE certified, Cradle to Cradle certified, and Red List Free. Aldo would approve!
Boss Design, Lucy
Boss Design
Lucy is more than just a pretty face. She’s also a revolutionary lounge chair that you have to see to believe. In commercial interiors, fabric is typically the first thing to fail. When it does, the whole chair goes with it, even when the structure beneath is perfectly sound. On the contrary, the Lucy Lounge Chair has a fully removable cover and can be reupholstered right on-site with no tools required. The new upholstery fits taut, as if it were the chair's original fabric. And the old covers are recycled into new textile fibers, extending their value rather than ending their life.
Levitask, Vision Chair
Levitask
When Levitask co-founder Klaus Kummer was a design student in Copenhagen in the 1980s, he heard Dr. A.C. Mandal say that the human body isn’t designed to sit at 90 degrees. After hearing this challenge to conventional thinking, it was impossible to put the toothpaste back in the tube, so to speak. Forty years and many prototypes later, Kummer’s obsession has resulted in his stylish Vision Chair. The patented Elevated Seating concept opens the hip angle to 115 to 120 degrees, rotating the pelvis forward and restoring the spine’s natural S-curve.
Michael Ford x Momentum Collection, Dance Off and Bronx Composition (on chair)
Momentum
Even when they forget their earbuds at home, the team can still totally enjoy the beats every single day. That is, if the workspace features textiles and wallcovering designs by Michael Ford, FAIA, aka the Hip Hop Architect. The Michael Ford x Momentum Collection of bio-sourced, carbon-neutral Type II vinyl wallcoverings and three jacquard upholstery fabrics translates the rhythm, motion, and honesty of hip hop into product design. Each of the five patterns draws on hip hop’s foundational techniques of sampling, rhythm, and movement to express different elements of the genre. These striking designs stopped passersby in their tracks at NeoCon, turning the Momentum showroom into one of the 3rd floor's buzziest spots. ⬥