Highlights from this year’s INDEX exhibition

This was a busy week for me. INDEX, the largest exhibition for interior design, took place in the DWTC. I couldn’t wait for its doors to open and being amazed by the beautiful designs, patterns and colours. This year, I also made it part of my own learning to attend a number of design talks.

I’m so happy to bring you the highlights of the most powerful presentations to you. Let they bring creativity, inspiration and peace of mind right to your home!

1. Did you know that bringing nature into the workplace increases your productivity by a whopping 15%? Steven Pratt from Interface explained Biophilic Design where we thrive when we can combine nature with urban features. As such, you don’t have to work in a garden. Having plants in your office can be a fantastic start and what a cost effective way that is!
2. Companies may have horizontal wall gardens in common areas or have an indoor garden with running water created for their employees. I’ve seen construction companies building a green oasis outside their porter cabins.
3. Urban design will go one step further and create buildings where nature will move around the building. The European Patent Office in the Netherlands and the National Art Museum of China in Beijing are such examples. The structure allows nature to intertwine with the outside and inside of the building. Even architects can’t predict which way nature will go in 5 years.
4. Pratt recommends to get exposed to as much natural light as possible. This view was also supported by Phil Pond from Scarlet Opus, the trend finders for interior design. Turn down the strong artificial lights. Contrary to popular belief, their brightness actually strains our eyes. Have you noticed the change to floor-to-ceiling windows in offices and homes over the years?
5. Designer Joseph Frank created patterns, fabrics and wallpapers which are full of life and in harmony with nature. You can easily do this with cushion covers. Changing cushions is a favourite for interior designers to make a quick change with a big impact. Alternatively, check out some framed prints or smaller items like place mats and napkins to welcome nature in your life.
   
6. Pond highlighted how offices with white walls are robbing employees’ creativity. Companies are urged to paint walls and create an atmosphere which resembles a more natural environment. DH Liberty in London reinstalled barn doors to give their client the natural textures back. Check out the wooden key board designed by Oree.
   
7. Karl Johan Bertilsson from NCS Colour Academy showed us the dramatic new colour trends for 2016 and beyond. We can expect the colours of the tropics to arrive! Equatorial colours, as he referred to them, follow the trend of bringing nature home. We’ll see more colours of the ocean. For Bertilsson, these aquatic and mystical colours let us dream of the unexplored, whether opportunities in our lives or work or in the depth of the ocean.
8. And finally, don’t forget to have fun and return re-vitalised to your work. A round of ping pong, hanging out at the cafeteria designed like a coffee shop or creating a project calendar with LEGO can all be little moments of fun, sparking your creativity and recharging your batteries.

The trend is going to combing work and nature more and more. The insights gained over the last few days were priceless! Best of it all, I can advise you on increasing your own productivity in a stylish way. Gaining focus, increasing creativity and being more productive sound pretty good to me! I can’t wait for next year’s show.

If you have want to solve your unique productivity challenges, contact me here. I’d love to share my knowledge with you and work with you to achieve your goals.

Until next time,
Agni