Architects and Designers to Watch: Metropolis Magazine’s New Talent 2017

Even though they work at diverse scales, the five emerging practices that we have selected this year as Metropolis’s New Talent 2017 share some fundamental characteristics. They are all open to influences from other places and professions, engage with new technologies and materials, and collaborate with others at the cutting edge of their field. Whether they’re creating architectural installations in London, lighting designs in Vancouver, start-up offices in New York, a hospital in Zambia, or Shaker-inspired objects in Oregon, these practitioners have what it takes to move architecture and design forward.

Adam Nathaniel Furman
Relying on his own imagination rather than trends, Furman—a master of surface and ornamentation—designs exuberant works at all manner of scales.

Orkidstudio
The firm’s small Nairobi-based team is equal parts contractor, designer, and educator, and treats each project as an opportunity to innovate and empower.

Float Studio
Adeptly avoiding the clichés of office design for start-ups, Float Studio instead creates spaces that capture each company’s founding essence—all on a tight budget.

Studio Gorm’s Perfect Balance of Aesthetics and Function
An appreciation of the beauty in an object’s true function drives the work of Studio Gorm.

Lukas Peet’s Simple Lighting Designs Betray Complexity
With an approach that synthesizes pragmatism and whimsy, Peet’s designs reconsider the particularities of lighting and how it fills a space.