This week in design, the new season of Netflix series Beef places an interior designer at the center of the drama as she simultaneously renovates her personal home and a country club. Stay in the know with our weekly roundup of headlines, launches, recommended reading and more.
Business News
U.S. foreclosure filings increased 26 percent year over year in the first quarter of 2026, hitting their highest number in six years, The Wall Street Journal reports. Experts say the rate can be characterized as a return to prepandemic norms, with the current foreclosure numbers still below those of 2019. Still, they illustrate the financial stress facing homeowners, who are up against increasingly higher housing costs: The average annual home-insurance bill was $2,948 last year, up 12 percent from 2024, and the average property tax was up 3 percent to $4,427.
The entire prize jury for this year’s Venice Biennale resigned last week amid backlash to its decision not to grant awards to artists from countries whose leaders are currently charged with crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court, The New York Times reports. The jury members—who stepped down just nine days before the show’s opening—did not give specific country names, though protests over the decision largely centered on Israel, whose prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has an ICC warrant for committing war crimes in Gaza. In response, Biennale organizers announced that they would allow visitors to vote for the best pavilion and award prizes to artists from the main exhibition.
On a call last week, Bed Bath & Beyond CEO Marcus Lemonis told analysts that the retailer’s AI integration efforts would lead to a “significant reduction in headcount,” Retail Dive reports. Departments like supply chain, IT, accounting, marketing and merchandising could be impacted with layoffs, while some jobs could be transferred to other areas of the business, including customer service and store staff, as the company shifts positions from its corporate workforce to the field. Following several rounds of layoffs, Bed Bath & Beyond’s latest earnings report revealed a 7 percent increase in net revenue year over year, marking its first quarter of significant growth in 19 quarters.
Canadian retailer eSolutions Furniture Group—the parent company of Bush Furniture, Bush Business Furniture and Bestar—is closing, Furniture Today reports. Last week, the Quebec-based company announced that it would cease operations effective immediately, with plans to file a motion this week to appoint a receiver to oversee the sale of its assets. According to FT, eSolutions’ finances have been in steady decline since 2021, compounded by waning consumer demand in the years following the pandemic, the impact of U.S. tariffs, and increased competition from overseas vendors. As a result, the company failed to make interest payments to its lenders for over a year, leading to the shut down.
Beidelman Furniture—the oldest furniture store in the state of Illinois—is closing after 165 years in business, Furniture Today reports. Founded in 1861 in Naperville, the retailer has operated out of the same building since 1928; in 2024, the structure was established as a historic landmark. “Operating expenses have gotten so high just everywhere that we’re really no longer able to provide the service that we’ve been providing these years economically at this point,” fifth-generation owner Katy Heitmanek told Naperville News 17 of the decision she and her mother, co-owner Lana Heitmanek, made to shut down the family business.
Launches and Collaborations
Anthropic has released Claude Design, a suite of artificial intelligence–driven tools for creatives. Launched in partnership with existing platforms and software, including Canva and Adobe Creative Cloud, the new features are designed to make users’ work easier. For the design industry, the rollout includes an integration in partnership with SketchUp that allows users to turn conversations with the Claude chatbot into 3D models.
Rifle Paper Co. has reunited with Loloi to introduce an expanded array of framed wall art and throw pillows, along with the collaborators’ first collection of washable rugs. Inspired by country homes, the assortment features motifs like intricate florals, playful shapes and botanical patterns.
Denmark-based furniture brand BoConcept has released Catskills, a new collection that draws influence from the upstate New York retreat of its new global artistic director, Copenhagen-born supermodel and photographer Helena Christensen. Through the lens of Danish design, the line explores organic forms, textured materials, and a muted, earthy color palette in a selection of tables, seating and home accessories.
Showhouses
The 47th annual San Francisco Decorator Showcase debuted this month, transforming a nearly 10,000-square-foot Queen Anne–style Victorian home in Pacific Heights. The designer cohort tasked with reimagining the space includes talents like Kendall Wilkinson, Tineke Triggs and Chantal Lamberto. The showhouse is open to the public through May 25, and proceeds will benefit San Francisco University High School’s financial aid program. For more information, click here.
Recommended Reading
The rising frequency of natural disasters like hurricanes, wildfires and tornadoes is driving up insurance premiums across the country. Once an issue primarily for coastal regions, rising rates are now affecting areas much further inland: Iowa, for example, saw home insurance rates increase 91 percent since 2021, due to the increased risk of hail damage. To better understand the potential risks and associated costs of a given area, The Wall Street Journal has developed a tool that allows readers to compare the numbers by state and county.
Many were shocked when a series of decorative arts pieces and furnishings from the collection of Jean and Terry de Gunzburg fetched a record-breaking $96 million at auction last week, but it was no fluke: Design sales at Sotheby’s are up 80 percent since 2019, with a 25 percent increase in under-50 bidders over the same period. For Curbed, David Lê explores why design is becoming just as valuable as prized artworks in collectors’ portfolios.
If the U.S. housing market had hopes of a spring rebound this year, the war in Iran has dashed them—according to last month’s National Association of Realtors report, existing-home sales fell by 3.6 percent from February to March, and the organization has lowered its home sale forecast for the coming year from 14 percent to just 4 percent. For The New York Times, Linda Laban consults economists and real estate agents on the current state of buying activity, which appears to be dampened by increasing interest rates and general consumer uncertainty.
