Last night I attended the RCA Innovation Lecture given by Jonathan Ive who was interviewed by Rector, Christopher Frayling. His contribution to design includes the iMac, iBook, iPod and iPhone and I was there with 700 other people to hear what he had to say. I was surprised by his modesty, and he is very much a believer in getting designers to begin their studies by appreciating the simplicity of objects. He puts his success down to collaboration with the talented designers and engineers in the Apple studio. Afterwards we went for a private view of the RCA graduate shows which was nothing short of total genius.

This summer, Bombay Sapphire, in collaboration with Somerset House, opens London’s latest pop-up venue – The Bombay Sapphire Dusk Bar. And so I felt it was my duty to check it out….and enjoy a tasty cocktail! Created by Tom Dixon and set on the banks of the River Thames, the open air structure commands stunning views by day and by night the bar’s poly-carbon walls glow softly with the signature Bombay blue. Open from 10am till midnight The Bombay Sapphire Dusk bar is this summer’s hot spot. Closes on October 18th.

I always enjoy graduate show season; I think it’s great to witness the total freedom of creativity which students enjoy and you can guarantee there’ll always be some outrageous designs on show! At the weekend I went along to Wimbledon College of Art to check out this year’s talent. The graduates produced a stunning show which featured Theatre Design, Costume, Technical Arts & Special Effects, Sculpture, and Fine Art. The piece which stole the show for me was Joel Whybrew’s banjo-playing metal hand. You just popped a token into a slot in the wall to activate this clever piece of engineering and hear it strum a pleasant tune!

While in Basel last week I found a moment to visit the incredible Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein in Germany. This huge space was designed by Frank O. Gehry in 1987 and is currently hosting the ‘Antibodies’ exhibition featuring amazing works by Brazilian Fernando and Humberto Campana. It is also showing ‘Global Street Food’, the current project created by Mike Meiré for the Dornbracht Edges series celebrates wonderful improvised kitchens in public places.

We went to the opening party for Super Contemporary at The Design Museum which was great fun with Wayne Hemmingway as the DJ for the evening. It was a glorious summer evening and many of us were outside enjoying the very potent cocktails made from Beefeater 24. There are 15 commissions for this exhibition, including a listening station by BarberOsgerby. We also love the New London Bin (with rabbit ears) by Paul Smith.

The exhibition will be on until October 4th.