NYCxDesign kicks off today, and AN’s editors have put together a preview of eight events, installations, and new collections to check out. From an AAPI-centered exhibition at 3.1 Phillip Lim to work on communal sharing in two Brooklyn locations, there will be plenty to see over the next week.
David Rockwell’s At the Crossroads of American Design
The International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) and WantedDesign Manhattan are again colocating at the Javits Center where renowned interior architect David Rockwell has designed and curated At the Crossroads of American Design: Celebrating the Established and the Emerging. This exhibition seeks to create conversation around what American design can be by representing designers and studios from across the country, all within different phases of their careers, and all shown within Rockwell’s immersive environment which blends the great outdoors with the American home. The installation is divided into several spaces to highlight the diversity within the collection, and is anchored by Fort Standard’s oversized striped dining table.
On view May 21–23
Javits Center
On the Move
Another item to look out for while perusing the Javits for ICFF + WantedDesign Manhattan is Bernhardt Design’s collaboration with California’s ArtCenter College of Design, Studio: On The Move. The furniture design company has selected the work of four students from the company’s sponsored interdisciplinary design studio. Furnishings on show include Border Table by Yiting (Erin) Hou; Camber Stool by Chris Jing; Ishi Tables by Tomoki Nomura; and Janeiro Chair by Pedro Villar. The set of products coalesce around adaptability, incorporating lightweight, and reconfigurable designs for quickly-changing needs.
On view May 21–23
Javits Center
Upon Further Review
3.1 Phillip Lim will host the work of female Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) designers in Upon Further Review. The show, which features the work of 20 designers and artists, is curated by Lora Appleton, founder of the Female Design Council, and Andrea Hill, founder of furniture and homegoods brand Tortuga Forma, alongside the Asian American Pacific Islander Design Alliance. Upon Further Review will explore themes of reflection and mirroring, particularly within the AAPI community.
On view May 20–25
3.1 Phillip Lim
48 Great Jones Street
New York
Public Access
Furnishing Utopia, “a global collective of creatives exploring how design values are interconnected across cultures and time,” will feature work at two Brooklyn locations through June 3 in Public Access. An indoor exhibition at Head Hi and an outdoor exhibition at the Naval Cemetery Landscape will show work from 37 designers looking at “communal acts of sharing.” Designers were asked by curator Jean Lee, cofounder of Ladies & Gentlemen Studio, to consider sharing in terms of interactions with neighbors, the environment, material use, and what one can “offer” rather than “fix.” All submissions include open source plans for digital reproduction.
On view May 18–June 3
Head Hi
146 Flushing Avenue
Brooklyn, New York
Naval Cemetery Landscape
63 Williamsburg Street West
Brooklyn, New York
MUJI IS
Beloved purveyor of Japanese wares, Muji will present an iteration of MUJI IS in the United States for the first time. Setting up shop in its Hudson Yards location, the exhibition will invite visitors into a forest-like assemblage of 15 structures resembling trees. The structures will be themed around verbs included in the brand’s book MUJI IS. The installation will reflect on the brands wide and far-reaching history at a digestible scale.
On view May 18–June 4
20 Hudson Yards, Level 4
New York
Knockoff Show at Colony
Independent design gallery, Colony will debut their latest exhibition, The Knockoff Show, which gathers nine designers to create something new inspired by something from the past. The work responds to the frustration of secondary parties reproducing designs and ideations from the independent design community without sharing credit or profits. Notable pieces include a Lindsey Adelman–inspired lighting fixture by Bec Brittain, a desk by KWH Furniture that takes inspiration from a Bottega Ghianda trash can, and a lounge chair made in collaboration by Studio Paolo Ferrari and Hiroko Takeda that pays homage to the landscape paintings of Milton Avery and a collaboration between architect Pierre Chareau and textile artist Jean Lucrat.
On view May 19—June 30
Colony
324 Canal Street, 2nd Floor
New York
Stellar Works x Sony STAYDREAM
STAYDREAM–a surreal reality is a collaboration between two Japanese companies: furnishings manufacturer Stellar Works and tech giant Sony. The experiential exhibition has taken over the ground floor and basement of the Stellar Works showroom in the form of seven distinct “experience zones.” Each zone will showcase a different collaborative product between the two brands, while also contributing to the overall intention of the exhibition to digitally bring the outdoors inside. Traditional Japanese screens, Byōbu, have been reworked into high tech room dividers that will change the environment as the viewer moves through the experience.
On view May 18–25
Stellar Works New York Showroom
304 Canal Street
New York
Mercer Street Block Party
To celebrate a number of new launches and special installations, a handful of showrooms and galleries along the Mercer Street corridor between Grand and Canal are opening their doors to the public. The Mercer Street Block Party will take place on Friday May 19th from 6 p.m.–9 p.m., where visitors can sneak a peak at the Néad, a plush upholstered armchair from Irish furnishing outpost Orior, along with debuts from Bocci, Roll + Hill, Calico Wallpaper, and Atelier de Troupe nearby.
