Tabletops: New World
New World: Creating for Tomorrow
Apple and It's Nice That are partnering to host a month of free virtual Today at Apple sessions beginning March 1. Building on the success of last year's program, New World: Creating for Tomorrow will imagine a brighter future by investigating how creativity can question where we want to head next.
The last two years have been a challenging environment for live events, to say the least. It would've been easy and admissible for Apple to write off Today at Apple as a lost cause — or at least use the pandemic as an excuse to stop funding any retail programs outside of selling iPhones. Instead, sessions have flourished in new ways to bring inspiration to more people.
We'll take a closer look at Today at Apple in a future newsletter, but for now you can join me in signing up for New World sessions on Apple's website. More information about each artist is available here. It's Nice That has also published a series of Studio Shorts videos to follow along with at home.
Rediscover Iconic Singapore
During February and March, each Apple Store in Singapore will offer unique Photo Walks that explore Emerald Hill, Marina Bay, and Jewel Changi Airport. Rediscover Iconic Singapore is a collaboration between Today at Apple and the Singapore Tourism Board.
New stores in Seoul
Apple has begun hiring for a new store in eastern Seoul, South Korea. For those not keeping track at home, that makes two brand new stores coming to Seoul in the near future. Positions for a different store near the city center opened last July.
These new locations will reach new heights in architecture and double Apple's store count in South Korea. Open positions are listed on the Apple Jobs site under the location “Seoul East - KR."
Hero's journey
Browsing Apple Store hero images is a great way to study how tastes and trends evolve. Architecture fans in the Apple community wait with anticipation to see each new photo.
Apple has reshot several classic stores over the past few weeks, offering the rare opportunity for some direct comparisons:
These photos appear to primarily address the large window displays that once obscured entire storefronts. Apple Glendale Galleria received new tables and stools a few years ago, but most of the other differences are purely stylistic changes in merchandising and photography.
Shadows have been softened and reflections minimized. In some cases, Apple is using a longer focal length to flatten perspective. Malls have modernized their flooring and trim. How many other changes can you spot?
Sidenote: Each store that Apple invests resources into rephotographing is a location we can probably assume will not be significantly remodeled or replaced for quite a while. I'll keep a list.
Featured image
Apple Bağdat Caddesi illustrated in Procreate during a Today at Apple session.
Photo via @karya_landscapes on Instagram.
If you’d like to share photos or suggestions for future issues of this newsletter, my inbox and DMs are always open.