Design Journey #17 - New Industrial Wave

How this direction shapes interiors today

Happy new week, everyone!

Apparently, we Germans love to talk about the weather - maybe because it’s such a rollercoaster, and we never have a guarantee of a good summer or snow in winter? Well, after a few days of spring feelings, we’re back to winter temperatures. I can definitely feel the effect of these ups and downs on my energy levels, so I booked a flight to Porto today to visit my friend in two weeks. Can’t wait!

Before jumping into today’s topic, I’d love to do a quick poll since I’ve gained quite a few new subscribers recently. It’s really important to me that my newsletters bring as much value to you as possible. Let me know what interests you most for future editions! And if you have any other wishes, feel free to comment or DM me. :)

Today, I want to dive into the industrial influences that are visible in interior design and continue to evolve. This aesthetic has been especially present in store design over the last three years, but more and more products are now following this direction.

The funny thing is, when I think back to five years ago, the industrial look (and its target customer) was all about loft apartments with exposed brick walls, cognac leather sofas, black metal furniture, and DIY pipe wardrobes. A style I could only run away from (no offense to anyone!).

Thankfully, industrial design has taken a complete turn. It has become more chic and modern, and I love how it blends with soft brutalism. The biggest challenge, though, is making it feel like a home - cozy rather than cold.

One interior design studio that often embodies this refined industrial aesthetic for me is the Vaust Studio from Berlin. I adore their projects!

vaust_studio

A post shared by @vaust_studio

vaust_studio

A post shared by @vaust_studio

I still remember when Vaust Studio designed the poke bowl restaurant Jigi Poke in Berlin - three years ago, this style felt so fresh and new for store and restaurant design. Since then, materials like steel have gained much more popularity, making it easier to integrate those elements into homes.

Since Paris Design Week in January, I’ve saved countless products that I’d categorize as Industrial - designs or materials that feel more elegant than in the past. Maybe we could call it a New Industrial Wave. To me, this direction naturally aligns with Soft Brutalism. It’s about appreciating raw materials, often keeping them in their purest form or altering them only through craftsmanship. It’s about embracing imperfections as something unique - so that each piece stands out. At the same time, it’s also about integrating these natural materials into our increasingly AI-driven, machine-forward reality, finding a seamless blend between both worlds.

Let me show you some examples to explain this better:

Open pores & cells

Clean shapes, open pores, natural imperfections. These pieces may initially seem “cold,” but their unique materials and forms make them special. I particularly love how young designers experiment with materials - like Andrea Grecucci, who developed open-cell aluminum.

On Instagram, he described his coffee table for Vaspaar as follows: “This coffee table is a functional piece of furniture, a diptych created from the microcosm of random structures of the open-cell aluminium foam and the severity and preciseness embedded in the industrial metal processes the humans have created through the years. The shape starts as cylinders and planes, later becomes naturally multi-faceted, brutal, and totally unruly, recalling natural phenomena, pressure, strata bonding, friction and the processes of aggregation of minerals and rocks in the universe.”

Metal chairs

Probably not the most comfortable chairs to sit on for hours - but definitely some of the prettiest! Especially the two at the bottom, which I’d see more as eye-catchers in a space like a hallway rather than everyday seating.

Rawness and upcycling

I’m a big fan of upcycling and making use of dead stock or leftover materials from production. This approach isn’t just a step toward sustainability - it’s the direction we need to take. Instead of discarding materials, the focus should be on reimagining how to reuse them.

A perfect example of this is Lee Sisan, who blends two material worlds by casting natural marble with industrial aluminum. His side table is described as follows: “He integrates the confrontational properties of marble and aluminum into one piece using the terrazzo technique, thereby exploring the relationship between these two different materials. Through the heterogeneous textures resulting from the differences in materials and the ease with which these two materials come together due to their distinct physical characteristics, he seeks to convey a harmony within the discord between nature and artificiality.”

Another standout is Kostas Lambridis, who loves to mix “the valueless, the precious, the man-made, the natural-made, the raw, and the processed” to create artworks with a new purpose. His perspective is that "we're surrounded by things that have already been made—so things already have substance." Sometimes, it's simply about blending them in a new, innovative way.

”This coffee table embodies a certain resilience, its marble, ceramic and concrete components expressing a sense of nonchalant immortality. However, Kostas Lambridis loves to break his own rules and, with a hint of characteristic inversion, makes the glass table top section bubble and float over the rough stone beneath it, as if it had been recently poured.” (Carpenters Workshop Gallery)

Cool stools

These three stools are adorable - they have an industrial character, yet subtle details make them incredibly stylish.

• Stool 1 – I love the seating cushion and bow details, which add a soft, almost playful touch to the otherwise industrial look.

• Stool 2 – The standout feature here is the material combination - textured black wood paired with steel. It feels both raw and refined.

• Stool 3 – This one is AI-generated, and I love the idea of mixing a leather seating cushion with travertine and steel - a perfect blend of warmth and coolness.

Each of these pieces balances structure and softness, making industrial design feel unexpectedly inviting.

Structured glas substitutes

Structured or milky glass is nothing new, but what’s exciting is the rise of unexpected material substitutes that mimic glass at first glance.

• Office for ordinary objects experiments with corrugated polyester, an uncommon choice that adds texture and depth. Their lamp, for example, is anything but ordinary.

• Orlando Pippig layers laser-cut acrylic sheets with threaded aluminum spacers to create a table lamp that almost resembles a futuristic building.

• Shomu Taki his side tables and lamps are not only aesthetically striking but also a smart solution for material waste. As he explains on Instagram: “A fixture shop in Okayama Prefecture uses hollow polycarbonate as a material for doors and windows. Hollow polycarbonate has excellent transparency, thermal insulation, and durability, and is used as an alternative material to glass. On the other hand, since each fixture is individually custom-made, there was a surplus of uneven sizes that could not be used for other purposes, and this was continually putting pressure on storage space. We then processed the surplus materials into thin boards of uniform width, which helped to reorganize the storage space, and furthermore, we considered designs that could be produced from these sizes.”

Perforated pieces

Perforated surfaces are gaining more attention, especially when applied on a larger scale, showcasing their versatility in design.

• Marble coffee tables – I love the stackable, modular concept by Studio Hanrahan llowing the tables to be linked together in different configurations.

• Metal wall shelves – A great way to combine functionality and aesthetics, adding a subtle industrial touch.

• Perforated coverings – Whether used for partitions or furniture details, they introduce texture and depth while maintaining a sense of lightness.

Metal grids

While some of these designs could also fall under perforated pieces, I see them more as metal grids - a classic industrial element that can easily feel boring. But these examples prove otherwise! From 70s designs to contemporary creations, whether straight or wavy, monochrome or bold in color, they all embody that raw, industrial aesthetic in a fresh and exciting way.

Clean and geometrical

Leaning towards minimalism, these pieces feature clean lines and strong geometric shapes. What makes them stand out even more is the thoughtful material mix, which enhances their structural presence.

A great example is the Miminat Design armchairs, where hammered ash wood, metal feet, and nubuk leather come together to create a piece that feels both modern and timeless. These elements not only add depth and texture but also emphasize the bold geometry of the design.

Industrial design has evolved into something far more exciting - a mix of bold materials, clever upcycling, and unexpected elegance. From soft brutalism to innovative material fusions, it’s all about balancing raw edges with refined beauty. This is definitely not your typical industrial vibe.

Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for the next edition in 2 weeks!