Lighting installation by Bec Brittain at Want Les Essentiels’ West Village boutique in Manhattan

All year round, we journey through design weeks, fairs and galleries scouring for the most refined, innovative and spectacular designs from across the globe. From sublime exhibition sets and nifty product launches to compelling collaborations and sophisticated new brands, we bring you our guide of the best in design for 2018...

Bec Brittain installation at Want Les Essentiels

For over a decade, the Canadian label Want Les Essentiels has defined what travelling in style can be. To coincide with the appointment of a new creative director Christine Charlebois at the helm, the label will host a series of designer showcases at its West Village boutique in Manhattan, devoted to the furniture, lighting, sculpture and visual arts worlds. Its inaugural presentation kicks off with a custom-designed lighting installation from the designer Bec Brittain. The installation riffs on Brittain’s Shy Beam design; ‘Climbing Beams’ that connect the wall to the ceiling, while ‘Flags’, which pair the brass tube lighting with sheets of smoked and coloured glass, appear to creep up the walls. Writer: Pei-Ru Keh

Want Les Essentiels, 301 West 4th Street, New York, NY 10014, USA

Warby Parker hand mirrors collection

The handheld mirror has always been a component of the Warby Parker experience. In all of the eyewear label’s stores, portable mirrors that resemble ping pong paddles have long been kept at the ready for customers’ use. In fact, the mirrors have become such a presence that Warby Parker approached eight designers from New York and Los Angeles to reimagine the staple accessory. Ranging from Brendan Ravenhill’s elegantly angled brass and aluminium piece (pictured) to Egg Collective’s playful, kinetic sculptures and Chen Chen and Kai Williams’ archaeological dripped cement versions, each of the eight lighthearted renditions are being displayed in Warby Parker’s Greene Street (New York) and Abbot Kinney (Los Angeles) stores for the next two weeks. They will are also up for sale during this time on Paddle 8, with all proceeds benefitting Free Arts – an organisation that empowers undeserved youth through arts and mentoring programs that help develop their skills, confidence and creativity. Writer: Pei-Ru Keh

Zero Space at Musashino Art University, by Igarashi Design Studio