Zeitgeist

Unfortunately, we are living in a destabilised and unpredictable

world. The global Covid pandemic is not yet under control. The fact

that the global economy strongly recovered from the first wave of

contagion was short-lived as we are now facing the combination of

the infectious Omikron variant and the risk of an overheating of the

economy. Factors such as historically high levels of the housing- and

stock market, soaring inflation and rising interest rates. In addition,

we are experiencing great political tensions and natural disasters that

continuously remind us that our environment is seriously challenged.

When times are uncertain and threatening, our homes become the

safe haven against the world. We are nesting.

For most people, safety is closely linked to what is known. The zeitgeist

of today is therefore characterized by the fact that there, in a broad

sense, is a lack of desire to explore the new and unknown. At the same

time, the break with the throw-away mentality encourages us to make

environmentally friendly choices by purchasing furniture with long life

cycles, which consequently, in time, becomes the known and safe.

When it comes to diversity, we immediately think of a positive

campaign to ensure that we treat each other with mutual respect

across age, gender, race, religion, politics, and sexual orientation.

But it also makes sense to talk about diversity in relation to personal

taste and preferences. Where dominant trend institutes in interaction

with prominent housing magazines could previously dictate global

housing trends, it seems that the internet has democratised trend

formations. The pandemic has created time and need for reflection

in relation to personal preferences and priorities - who am I and what

matters to me? This, in combination with forced isolation from the

collective association, has tended to reduce uniformity and promote

individualism. We are experiencing a reality where it is harder to

implement new and revolutionary, or for that matter simply dictate

megatrends with the necessary commercial clout. Instead, there is a

preference towards combining established trends and designs in a

way that reflects individuality and personality.