Designers are increasingly responding to global issues such as the refugee crisis and environmental degradation, and showing less interest in frivolous topics, according to the curator of the Design Museum's annual awards programme. More
Herzog & de Meuron's Tate Modern Switch House, Ikea's flatpack refugee shelter, and the artwork for David Bowie's final album are among projects nominated for the Design Museum's Designs of the Year awards 2016 (+ slideshow). More
This mosque near Istanbul by Emre Arolat Architects, which features cast concrete walls and a "cave-like" prayer hall, has been shortlisted for this year's Design of the Year award (+ slideshow). More
Prada's "radical" Spring Summer 2014 collection referencing themes of femininity and power has scooped the top prize in the fashion category at Designs of the Year 2014. More
German auto brand Volkswagen's XL1, which it claims is the most fuel-efficient production car ever made, has been named the winner of the Transport category at Designs of the Year 2014. More
A keyboard by East London technology start-up ROLI, with soft keys that allow musicians to alter the pitch, volume and timbre of individual notes, has come out on top in the Designs of the Year 2014 product category (+ slideshow). More
The Portable Eye Examination Kit (Peek) aims to improve opthalmic health in low-income countries by adapting smartphones with clip-on hardware and an app, and is among this year's category winners for Designs of the Year 2014. More
This system of illustrated characters and animations was developed to help people learn to read Chinese, and is one of the 76 projects nominated for Designs of the Year 2014 (+ slideshow). More
A tactile watch designed for blind people by a group of students has gone into production after strong demand from sighted consumers (+ interview). More
Dezeen promotion: Dezeen readers can receive a 25 percent discount on tickets to the Designs of the Year 2014 exhibition, opening today at London's Design Museum (+ slideshow). More
British designer Benjamin Hubert has developed a more stable version of his lightweight Ripple table, which features on the shortlist for Designs of the Year 2014 (+ slideshow). More
Here's a look at one of the standout projects from Designs of the Year 2014 - a floating school on a Nigerian lagoon by architecture studio NLÉ (+ slideshow). More
Competition: Dezeen has teamed up with London's Design Museum to give readers the chance to win five pairs of tickets for the upcoming Designs of the Year 2014 exhibition. More
Fashion designer Sadie Williams has heat-pressed neoprene to create this collection of metallic sci-fi garments, which was nominated for Designs of the Year 2014 earlier this week. More
Mexican architect Frida Escobedo has transformed the former home and studio of painter David Alfaro Siqueiros into a public gallery and encased the entire complex behind a triangulated concrete lattice (+ slideshow). More
This performing arts centre in São Paulo by Brasil Arquitetura features huge concrete volumes lifted off the ground to create accessible public spaces and has been named on the shortlist for the Designs of the Year awards, announced this week (+ slideshow). More
News: the Design Museum in London has announced 76 nominations for Designs of the Year 2014, including a floating school in a Nigerian lagoon (pictured), a table that weighs just nine kilograms and a mobile phone made of detachable blocks. More
Dezeen and MINI Frontiers: in our first movie looking at the interface between design and technology, Andy Millns of 3D production company Inition claims virtual reality will soon become almost indistinguishable from the real world. More
News: Google has announced it is poised to acquire domestic technology firm Nest for $3.2 billion, a move that will increase the tech giant's presence in the home. More
Paris architects Lacaton & Vassal have designed a translucent structure to house an international art collection that is a mirror image of the adjoining former shipbuilding workshop (+ slideshow). More
