Master minimalist Jasper Morrison pulls up a chair to the Design Awards 2018 judging panel

This year saw Jasper Morrison launch the new menswear label Jijibaba, a tatami-inspired sandal for Camper and his first-ever eyewear collection for Japanese brand Jins. ‘I spent my life thinking of things to sit on, so it’s good to turn my attention onto things to wear,’ he says. Meanwhile our 2017 Designer of the Year continued to bring his delightfully minimal aesthetic to furniture designs for Emeco and Maruni, as well as a pen range for Lamy. He also trained his curatorial eye on a book of photographs of day-to-day objects from Portugal, titled The Hard Life.

Surveying our Judges’ Awards shortlist, Morrison was particularly drawn to Michael Anastassiades’ coffee mill, ‘I admire the boldness of this design. The offset of the cylinder, which serves as a handle, is done with perfect proportions between the two volumes.’

Elsewhere, Morrison’s geographically diverse selection of winners seemed to reflect his own periapetic nature. Stockholm’s Tak won his vote for Best New Restaurant due to ‘the contrast of the rather delicate interior, playing off against the brutalist structures which contain it’, he explains. ‘It also helped that they selected my Lightwood chair!’ For Best New Public Building, he chose Marrakech’s YSL Museum, praising its interweaving of textured brickwork and lighter, plainer materials. ‘It manages the needs of a modern museum, while appearing new and fresh and carrying the codes of Islamic architecture.’ 

And while it’s been a long time since Morrison visited Mexico City – winner of the Best City category – his memories of it remain strong. ‘The large and crowded cafés, the quieter residential areas with their exotic architectures, Frida Kahlo’s studio and [Luis] Barragán’s houses,’ he reminiscences. ‘I imagine there’s been a lot of change, but I’m also sure it’s kept its spirit.’

A version of this article originally appeared in the February 2018 issue of Wallpaper* (W*227)

INFORMATION

For more information, visit Jasper Morrison’s website