Take a second to imagine a building or a room. Chances are you are envisioning flat rectangular surfaces and straight lines. Whether it be walls, beams or windows, most architectural elements come in standard and extremely practical orthogonal shapes. However, the pandemic has shed light on designs that are not only functional, but also that improve our mood and well-being. In that sense, the power of curved, free-flowing surfaces is unmatched, which explains why they have been making a comeback as a modern design trend. Adopting beautiful nature-inspired shapes, organic curls and bends energize rooms and make users feel good. In fact, neuroscientists have shown that this affection is hard-wired into the brain; in a 2013 study, they found that participants were most likely to consider a space beautiful if it was curvilinear instead of rectilinear. In short, humans love curves.

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While we wait for summer 2020 and another chance to watch the medal counts climb and cheer on our home countries in the next Olympics, a different type of international contest has tallied its scores and the United States has taken the gold in the World Design Rankings, with China and Japan following for second and third place respectively. Sponsored by the international A’ Design Award and Competition, the world’s largest and most diverse design accolade, the World Design Rankings are compiled based on the number of designers from each country granted an A’ Design Award.

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