Design Magazine Vol.235 on Sale December 27！

AXIS Inc (Minato-ku, Tokyo; President and Representative Director: Nobuo Asaka) has released  Design Magazine AXIS (vol. 235) published on December 27, 2025.

COVER STORY

Bjarke Ingels（Founder and Creative Director, Bjarke Ingels Group）

Hedonistic sustainability reconciles complex contradictions in society and presents compelling solutions.

Bjarke Ingels is one of the world's most prominent architects and a representative figure of Denmark. The Bjarke Ingels Group, BIG, which he leads, has offices in nine locations worldwide including New York and Shanghai, and a total of 700 employees. BIG's Headquarters building completed in 2023 is situated on a regenerated quay in Copenhagen's harbor. During this interview, a cruise ship slowly passed by the large window.

Feature
Danish Design Envisioning the Future

A future-conscious perspective has become indispensable in creating things today. Danish design absorbs this with ease, transforming it into creative drive. Architecture that reexamines its foundations while staying closely attuned to everyday life. Furniture and fashion that refuse to compromise on beauty or comfort while accounting for environmental impact, product longevity, and working conditions. Designers who carve out their own spaces for creative challenge. A sustainable food culture continually renewed through collaboration between citizens and producers. And, above all, the social structures and systems that sustain these efforts. What unites them is the notion that the future is not a grand ideal to be invoked with gravitas, but a series of everyday choices that enrich daily living. In Denmark, this "future perspective" takes shape organically within the fabric of daily life.

How Daily Life Cultivates the City of Copenhagen

Relaxing in parks and by canals, cycling anywhere you please. Copenhagen, where a comfortable daily life thrives, is currently undergoing redevelopment. How is the city being cultivated while cherishing the everyday lives of its people? We spoke with Miki Morita and Suguru Kobayashi of mok architects, who have lived in Denmark since around 2012 and are now based in Japan and Denmark.

The quiet innovators: furniture brands and designers rewriting the present

Furniture brands that reflect on the meaning and responsibility of creating things in today's climate, putting true sustainability into practice. Designers who work with their own hands, refining their inquiries through the tactile process of trying out new ideas. I met with two furniture brands and four designers that honor traditional craftsmanship while quietly refreshing the values that guide their work.

Collaboration Creates Food Culture ――Denmark's Ever-Evolving Everyday Food

When people think of Danish food, many think of Noma, which made a name for itself as a pioneer of gastronomy that comprehensively captures food through the contexts of culture, science, and society. However, although Noma garners much attention, Denmark's everyday food has also continued to evolve with a perspective to the future. Food journalist Sawako Kimishima spoke with Danish food culture researcher Sachiko Kuramoto about the history and philosophy behind this.

Danish Fashion Today: Balancing Beauty and Responsibility

Denmark is hailed as the "cutting edge for sustainability" in the fashion realm. Distinct from Paris's narrativity, Milan's luxury, and New York's commercial rationality, it is built on functionality and a modest aesthetic, where environmental considerations and social responsibility have nurtured its design philosophy. We trace the major transformation of the Danish fashion scene over the past decade and touch upon the spirit of future-oriented craftsmanship.

How Danish Architecture Is Reshaping the World's Idea of the Future

Propelled by the twin forces of sustainability and creativity, Danish architecture continues to generate innovation across an impressively broad range of fields. From regionally grounded design responses and climate-conscious strategies to playful ideas that enrich everyday life, this feature introduces five standout studios redefining the architectural landscape today. In the second half, architect Shuhei Kamiya, whose experience at BIG gives him an insider's view, reflects on the deeper cultural logic of Denmark's "systematic creativity."

How Copenhagen, the "Human-Centered City," Was Built ――Jan Gehl, the Architect Who Changed Cities

Jan Gehl is a renowned architect, scholar, and urbanist known to virtually everyone who has studied urban planning. His first book, Life Between Buildings (1971), is a masterpiece that has been translated worldwide, and it is still read today. In the 2000s, mayors of major cities such as New York, London, and Sydney asked Gehl for advice. We asked Gehl about his first laboratory city: Copenhagen.

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