7 Kinds of Happiness

Overview

In a world where design is pushed to new limits every day, how much do the things we’re surrounded by make us smile? Does fresh, innovative architecture enrich our cultural belonging? An Australia design collective is pointing a microscope on the value of design, delivering three days worth of discussions as part of the forthcoming designEx convention.

And the talking heads bear some pretty serious street cred. Staged over three days, seven discussions will be led by keynote lecturers including the International Herald Tribune's design critic Alice Rawsthorn, designer Stefan Sagmeister, who founded the New York-based design firm Sagmeister Inc and has worked on projects for the Guggenheim and HBO in the past, and British Elle Decoration magazine founder Ilse Crawford.

They'll be chatting about how the material world affects our emotional wellbeing and how happiness may be the key to creating so much more sustainable design. Each seminar is held within the 'Happy Place', an area created specifically for this seminar series and constructed entirely of doonas. Sagmeister will even premiere The Happy Film, a film that explores the concept right down to how we can try to be more happy every day.

True design buffs will get a kick out of Trent Jansen's talk on the Tuesday, which will delve into the history of Australian design and discuss what needs to be done to improve the future of local design. Guaranteed to turn even the most downturned frown upside down.

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