A look into the Futuro

Who remembers The Jetsons? It was a bit like the Flintstones but for the future instead of the past.

Coming from the celebrated Hanna-Barbera stable of animated productions it first aired in 1962. Its vision of the future took in space-age imaginations, with cars replaced by flying saucers. At the same time, a similar aesthetic was influencing Finnish architect Matti Suuronen, whose Futuro pod design reimagined how humans might live in the future.

Though fewer than 100 of these prefabricated non-flying saucers were made, their cultural influence far outweighs their practical impact on the world.

As ever with the best designs, form followed function and this lightweight pod was first intended to be used close to a ski slope. Its rounded roof meant heavy snow would be more likely to slide off instead of accumulate.

The Futuro embodies the spirit of late 1960s design, architecture, interiors, culture, and lifestyle in a single form. It served as a symbol of faith in the potential for better living during an era of abundant optimism. Today, the remaining 60-odd strong family of Futuros serve as powerful artifacts not to remind us of past failures but to inspire a sense of possibility for the future.

Oh, and to take our heads to a slightly other-worldly place while thinking about designing t-shirts and Chore Jackets, more of which we'll share in due course.