Even though a picture is worth a thousand words, that doesn’t stop the design world from indulging in podcasting. With a little imagination, we even manage to dream big, just at the turn of a conversation. Here is a quick tour of some shows that address the themes of design, architecture or just beauty in general.
Posted at 12:00 p.m.
With us
Deco therapy
Over the past year, multidisciplinary designer Vanessa Sicotte has added another string to her bow: she now produces a podcast. The one we know as Damask & Dentelle concocts, every two weeks, an episode dealing with completely varied subjects. We explore design, current trends or decoration vintage, but also more personal themes, such as the lessons of adult life or life as a couple. Because according to Vanessa Sicotte, everything is intimately linked, whether it be our “domestic interiors” or our “professional and personal interiors”, as she describes it herself. New this year: “urban manifestos”, episodes made up of meetings with architects, designers or other creators, to understand how their work shapes the city.
Design & decoration
Interior designer in the Quebec region, Jessica Nolin discusses several aspects of this profession in her podcast, also launched a year ago. She talks about renovations in times of a pandemic, describes the different professions in the field of design, reveals her favorites or interviews guests (including none other than Vanessa Sicotte!). The podcast has had around ten episodes since its launch. The show took a short break during the fall, but new episodes are in preparation, assures Jessica Nolin.
Built framework
This podcast, which simply focuses on the city, is the initiative of Guillaume Éthier, professor in the urban studies department at UQAM, and Émile Forest. With their director (and occasional co-host) Maude Cournoyer, they comment on the urban space from all angles, interviewing experts, be it the architecture specialist Marc-André Carignan or the journalist Olivier Niquet. Interestingly, most of the episodes were recorded at the architectural firm Microclimat, and one was even produced at the Résidence des interns du Jardin de Métis, designed by Pierre Thibault. A beautiful setting to talk about architecture and urban design.
Abroad
In France : decoder and Where is the beauty?
The affinity of the language facilitating things, we can also take advantage of what is done on the other side of the Atlantic. Two French podcasts particularly caught our attention: decoder and Where is the beauty?. In the first show, Hortense Leluc talks about decoration from every angle and interviews specialists we don’t necessarily know, but who have a lot to teach us. While in Where is the beauty?, Hélène Aguilar speaks, every Thursday, to aesthetes of all kinds, talking about art, design and architecture. For those with a sweet tooth, she has also just launched another podcast, Where is the good?.
In English : DesignMatters
Although it is not in French, this podcast led by Debbie Millman remains essential: it is the oldest that exists on the subject, and one of the best known. In each episode, the designer (who is also a writer and an artist, among other things) interviews all kinds of creative people to find out how they approach their lives. Launched 17 years ago, the podcast will even have its own book, Why Design Matters, in bookstores on February 22.