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New York-based Builtin Studio has helped a young family expand their Upper West Side apartment into the adjacent unit and create mid-century-influenced interiors that complement the historic details. More
Traditional Korean architecture influenced the layout and shelving design in the library at the Korean Cultural Center New York, designed by Studio Empathy and Praxes.
Changhaak Choi of Studio Empathy and Jiyoung Kim from Praxes worked together to complete the 1,600-square-foot (149-square-metre) library, located on the third floor of the Korean Cultural Center New York’s new venue in Midtown Manhattan.
The library is arranged to from a central courtyard formed by bookshelvesThe space houses a collection of over 10,000 books, periodicals, government publications, and multimedia resources in both Korean and English.
It acts as a resource for research on Korea, introduces Korean writers to the New York audience, and provides educational materials for young Korean-Americans and those interested in Korean culture.
The shelves are fabricated from plywood elements and joined to resemble traditional Korean architectural details”This new library aspires to be a cultural hub, promoting information exchange and enhancing mutual understanding of Korea among the Korean-American community and the broader New York population,” said Choi.
“The design seamlessly blends archaic forms with a minimalistic and contemporary aesthetic, which incites a biophilic space.”
The central space is populated with cube-shaped stools for visitors to sit and readTo enable easy circulation, the bookshelves were arranged in a rectangular plan with a pathway around the perimeter and a courtyard in the centre, with openings to allow movement between the two.
The layout is akin to a traditional Korean han-ok house, which is similarly organised in a loop around a central space.
The shelves sit away from the building’s glass walls so that visitors can circulate around the perimeterHere, the “courtyard” serves as the reading area and includes cube-shaped wooden stools upon which visitors can sit.
“This design enables visitors to continuously explore the diverse scenery of book stacks and enjoy views of the rooftop garden through glass walls, seamlessly integrating indoor and outdoor elements,” Choi said.
The library’s children’s section is housed within a lower storage moduleThe bookshelves were also modelled on the typical post-and-lintel assembly and joining techniques found in han-ok homes.
They were fabricated as modular units using thin plywood panels, slats and metal components to be efficient and cost-effective.
Studio Hinge creates library spaces beneath tree-like wooden columns
Along the tops and sides of the storage modules, a wooden lattice is coloured in five bold hues to enliven the design.
“This design resonates with the vibrant book spines, creating a dynamic visual contrast with the monochromatic, bright wood shelves, and light grey stone floor,” said Choi.
Wooden latticework is also installed across the ceiling and behind the reception deskThe aim is for the library to become a community hub for Korean-Americans and others New Yorkers, and host events like book launches and other group activities.
“This project showcases how cultural heritage can be preserved and celebrated through thoughtful and contemporary design, creating a unique and enriching environment for all visitors,” said Choi.
The tops and sides of the shelves are coloured in five bold huesPlayful shelving solutions have become a hallmark of contemporary library designs around the world.
At a space in São Paulo, MAB3 and Zénite created forest of books where shelves encircle tree-like columns, while Studio Hinge took an arboreally informed approach to storage at a library in Mumbai.
The photography is by Michael Moran and Changhaak Choi.
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Swedish designer Gustaf Westman displayed existing and new objects including a colourful “puzzle” shelf during a three-day pop-up event in New York City.
Named Gustaf Westman in New York, the show was located in an industrial storefront in Williamsburg and displayed the designer’s colourful objects and furniture on a meandering pink and orange pathway.
Swedish designer Gustaf Westman held a New York City pop-up that gave nod to a museum experienceSmall descriptions were placed on the ground in front of the objects, as “a nod to a museum experience”, while printed pamphlets similar to museum guides were available to visitors.
“The decision was very organic,” Westman told Dezeen. “When we came here, it was like a gallery space. It’s also a bit ironic, because I’ve only been doing this for four years and I’m not really ready to do a museum.”
A brightly coloured pathway weaved through the space, which was divided by Westman’s screens and a larger display wall towards the front.
Gustaf Westman and Swedish Stockings transform nylon tights into “terrazzo-like” tables
Among the new objects displayed was Puzzle Shelf, a shelving unit made of interlocking, stackable rectangular forms that conclude in puzzle-shaped feet. Westman noted that the shelf is 3D-printed and processed to resemble the material qualities of his other ceramic and metal objects.
“I have an obsession with trying to test all different materials and trying to make them look the same,” said Westman. “Even if I work with wood or ceramics or glass, I want to keep the same finish, so [3D printing] is the next step.”
The shelf was made in a host of bright colours such as red, pink, cream, and dark blue.
Existing and new objects from the designer were displayedThe remaining space was filled with pedestals and shelving outfitted with existing glassware and objects such as a spiralling book stand and flower-shaped mirrors, along with furniture such as a coffee table that pinches wine glasses in place.
The designer previously used nylon tights to create “terrazzo-like” tables and displayed his objects during Day Two from Stockholm Design Week 2024.
The photography is by Kate Fatseas unless otherwise stated
Gustaf Westman in New York was on show at 25 Fillmore Place, Brooklyn from 10-13 October. For more events, exhibitions and talks in architecture and design visit the Dezeen Events Guide.
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New York studio Office of Tangible Space has refreshed the interiors of the cafe at the Brooklyn Museum, ahead of the institution’s 200th anniversary next year.
The Brooklyn Museum Cafe is located in the building’s light-filled entry pavilion, which was added to the original beaux-arts building in 2004 by Polshek Partnership Architects (now Ennead Architects).
Furniture at the redesigned Brooklyn Museum Cafe is laid out like “islands and streams”Serving a menu by local restaurateur and sommelier André Hueston Mack, who runs the neighborhood restaurant & Sons, the redesigned cafe is intended for locals and museum-goers to enjoy light bites and drinks.
“Playing off the mission of the museum, [we] envisioned the cafe as a Brooklyn stoop where all are invited,” said Office of Tangible Space. “The space embodies the playfulness, creativity, craft, and expression that make Brooklyn and Brooklynites so unique.”
The cafe occupies a portion of the building’s light-filled entry pavilionThe locally based studio created a fluid layout that allows visitors to meander through the space.
Furniture is arranged in “islands and streams” that can accommodate diners in varied group sizes, as well as those stopping for a casual coffee.
Periwinkle-hued tables with angled sides form snaking shapes through the space”The space is anchored by large islands of seating and undulating streams of custom tables indicating the walking paths,” said Office of Tangible Space.
Aluminium chairs with seats and backs perforated with large holes accompany tables, including circular wooden designs for up to six guests and dark green two-tops.
Dark green two-top tables are accompanied by aluminium chairs perforated with large holesOther tables made from folded sheets of thin periwinkle-hued metal have angled sides, allowing them to form snaking shapes when lined up in a row.
Round cushioned poufs upholstered in pale blue and green are placed around the perimeter, which is demarcated by a set of freestanding wooden dividers and potted plants.
OEO Studio uses materials in a “playful way” for Designmuseum Denmark cafe and shop
“The incorporation of bold color and material add to playfulness and tactility of the space,” the studio said.
For the new space, the museum and Office of Tangible Space commissioned 10 local artists to design one-off stools that are peppered through the cafe.
Large round poufs are provided for more casual seatingThe handcrafted wooden seats, manufactured by Sundays, have been customised by Minjae Kim, Chen Chen and Kai Williams, Ellen Pong, Kim Mupangilaï and more.
“These handcrafted pieces not only complement the cafe’s design but also echo the philosophy that food, like art, is an immersive experience – engaging the senses, sparking conversation, and creating a connection between the creator and the audience,” said Office of Tangible Space.
The cafe was redesigned ahead of the Brooklyn Museum’s 200th anniversaryThe Brooklyn Museum’s building, designed by McKim, Mead & White and completed in 1895, will host a variety of exhibitions and events planned to celebrate its bicentenary.
These include Breaking the Mold: Brooklyn Museum at 200, a showcase celebrating the institution’s collection and legacy that opens in February 2025.
Founded by Michael Yarinsky and Kelley Perumbeti, Office of Tangible Space was longlisted in the emerging interior designer of the year category of Dezeen Awards 2020.
The photography is by Matthew Gordon.
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New York-based Gachot Studios has redesigned the patrons lounge at The Metropolitan Opera, imbuing the space with rich materials like textured wallpaper, black granite and brass accents.
Gachot Studios transformed the Keebler J Straz Lounge while keeping the 1,861-square-foot space aligned with its ornate surroundings.
The bar at the refreshed Keebler J Straz Lounge features a matte brass front and black stone topStudio founders and opera lovers John and Christine Gachot have a personal connection to the venue, which is part of the Lincoln Center complex designed by American architect Wallace K Harrison and opened in 1966.
“Our son, who attended LaGuardia High School, would walk past The Met Opera every day on his way to school,” said the couple. “As New Yorkers, we value city institutions like The Met with its incredible history and cultural influence.”
Wall-to-wall carpet in a rust hue complements the palette chosen for furnitureThe lounge was originally designed by late American decorator Billy Baldwin, and Gachot Studios referenced his layout and some of the furnishings as part of the redesign.
“It had an intimate residential feel with various deep sofas defining seating areas,” said Gachot Studios. “The new furniture layout draws inspiration from Baldwin’s thoughtful arrangement with four lounge seating groups.”
Brass accents including bar-top lighting are found throughout the patron’s loungeA series of upholstered screens that were once used to delineate the different lounge areas were reinterpreted as walnut-framed panels that direct guest flow from the entrance and conceal the back-of-house door.
The arc-shaped bar is fronted by matte brass panels and topped with a curved slab of black granite.
Seating and tables from Roche Bobois were customised to accommodate guests of all agesBronze-tinted mirrors in the back bar area reflect the room’s gold-painted ceiling and provide a mount surface for delicate shelving and a vintage clock.
Sheer drapes are hung across the windows, and the wall are covered in textured wallpaper between vertical bands of polished brass.
Gachot Studios creates cosy New York neighbourhood bar
Rust-coloured wall-to-wall carpet provides a plush finish underfoot, and complements the palette of furniture pieces in cream, blush, caramel, oxblood, and various brown and black tones.
The seating and tables from French brand Roche Bobois were customised “to accommodate for patrons of all ages” Gachot Studios said.
Textured wallpaper sits between vertical strips of polished brassA dining area behind the bar is also provided for those wanting to sit more formally or use the space for meetings.
Architectural lighting is kept to a minimum so as not to detract from the ceiling, while sconces, floor lamps and table lamps by Hudson Valley Lighting offer a warm glow.
Black and white photos from The Metropolitan Opera’s history adorn the wallsThe majority of the furniture and decor can be rearranged to accommodate events beyond the use of the space before performances or during intermissions.
“In a building that requires a balance between grandeur and practicality, the lounge is no different,” said the studio.
Gachot Studios reinterpreted the screens originally designed for the lounge by Billy BaldwinElle Décor magazine collaborated with the opera and the studio to secure furnishings and fittings for the project.
Founded in 2012, Gachot Studios has completed several hospitality and commercial projects across the US.
These range from boutique hotels in Detroit and Washington DC, to the New York flagship store for cosmetics brand Glossier.
The photography is by William Jess Laird.
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Designer Neri Oxman has unveiled a studio in Midtown Manhattan designed with architecture studio Foster + Partners that houses a production workshop and wet lab.
Oxman unveiled the lab for her studio, Oxman, in a building originally designed by American architect Albert Kahn as a car manufacturing plant and renovated by Rafael Viñoly Architects to house shops and offices.
Neri Oxman has unveiled a studio designed with British architecture studio Foster + PartnersOxman’s team worked with Foster + Partners to design a two-storey studio on the 9th and 10th floors of the building.
The 36,000-square-foot space (3,345 square metres) is characterised by white-painted walls and columns, and is largely open – most of the dividing walls are glass. The lower floor features design offices, a library, kitchen and lounge, while the upper floor holds the wet lab and production studio.
“Every detail of this project has been developed in conjunction with Neri and her team, reflecting Oxman’s holistic approach that spans scales and disciplines,” said Foster + Partners founder Norman Foster.
“Both levels of the new studio have their own distinctive characters and contain a range of highly adaptable workspaces and labs, which enhance creativity and will become an epicenter of world-leading research.”
The studio is located in a building designed by Louis Kahn and renovated by Rafael Viñoly ArchitectsOxman said that the design of the studio was meant to be open, flexible and technical to enable collaboration between the designers, scientists, architects and other employees who work there.
She said that the space was meant to facilitate the actualisation of her The Krebs Cycle of Creativity – a rendition of German-British scientist Hans Krebs’ diagram depicting stages of energy generation in organisms.
It is two storeys and contains a wet lab and central glass staircase”The dream for this building, this lab was to embody the diagram,” said Oxman.
“The lab looks clean and nice on the inside, but inside, packed in the ceiling and in the ground, are conduits that are embedded for insert allowing access to data, to power, to gasses that feed the workstations – there’s 70 miles worth of Ethernet and an optical cable for cloud computing.”
It is characterised by white-painted walls, glass dividers and wooden furnitureThe entrance space for the studio is a central atrium lit from above by panel lights in the ceiling that conceal the complex mechanical systems, including over 100 miles of colour-coded cabling to enable high-speed data.
One side of the first floor holds the design studio where rows of custom-produced wooden desks run perpendicular to the floor-to-ceiling glass windows that overlook the high-rises of Hell’s Kitchen. A garden terrace with walkways and plants runs outside the windows.
Conduits in the walls allow for access to data, power and gasses according to OxmanOpposite the windows run a series of private offices, completely lined in glass, with vitrines featuring samples of Oxman’s work, serving as visible dividers between each wood-backed space.
On the other side of the first level, past a central stair, is a long conference table used for displaying work and models, and behind that a series of enclosed spaces for respite.
It is meant to foster collaboration between employeesThe floating staircase was custom-designed for the space and has a single stringer at the top of the space and interlocking glass panels.
The second storey holds a production workshop with robotic arms and 3D printers to fabricate shoes made from polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) – plastic-like molecules derived from bacteria.
The interior is largely openAcross an atrium is a wet lab with custom Krion benches. Opposite the windows are a series of “capsules” that are heavily mechanized and can be used to simulate natural environments.
According to Oxman, the studio is currently working on three primary areas: urban design and architecture, product design and molecular biology.
The space was meant to facilitate the actualisation of The Krebs Cycle of CreativityOne of the biology products is a device called ALEF, which uses sensors to monitor biodiversity by training it to intake biogenic volatile organic compounds – described as “smells” – to provide data about environments.
“From a biodiversity chamber designed to study and heal a struggling ecosystem to a ‘scent computer’ designed to concoct a functionalized fragrance with no harm to the environment, we seek to advance our understanding of the natural world while offering alternatives to methods of designing molecular goods that rely on monocropping,” said Oxman.
“In fact, one of the most ecologically biodiverse environments in New York City currently thrives in our lab.”
Neri Oxman and Bill Ackman told to alter Norman Foster design for their New York penthouse
The opening of the studio corresponds with the announcement of this endeavor, as well as the bioplastic shoes and a series of modelling systems for urban design based on what Oxman calls “ecological programming” – AI-driven modelling programs used to make planning decisions to optimise for nonhuman, as well as human, life.
“The Lab’s organizational ‘parti sketch’ perfectly mirrors the organizational and operational logic of the company, enabling tight physical and visual connectivity across zones dedicated to hardware, software, and wetware design,” said Oxman. “In other words, one can design, build, and deploy a bioreactor in a matter of hours.”
“We are a design and innovation company,” she said. “We operate across scales, across disciplines and application domains, to target and to heal three broken industries.”
The opening corresponds with a biology product called ALEFOxman, who is a former tenured professor at MIT and led The Mediated Matter Research Group, is known for her experiments in novel materials for construction such as melanin and silk.
Earlier this year Oxman was caught up in an academic plagiarism row with Business Insider reporting that her dissertation was “marred by plagiarism”. She responded to allegations in a statement on X, formerly Twitter, saying she “omitted quotation marks for certain work that I used”.
The photography is by Nicholas Calcott
Project credits:
Collaborators: Foster + Partners, Adamson Associates Architects, Sciame HomesConsultants: Benchmark Woodworking, Cosentini Associates, Front Inc., Hollander Design, Jacobs Associates, Pentagram, Percival Scientific, Inc., Persak & Wurmfeld, Shen Milsom & Wilke, LLC, Silman, Spiralis, Syzygy 3, Inc., Tillotson & Associates, TKO Project Management
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Canada’s Futurestudio has designed the interiors for wellness space Othership’s first location in New York City, employing a deep, earthy palette and atmospheric lighting to heighten the experience for guests.
The 9,550-square-foot (887 square metres) sauna and ice bath experience in Manhattan’s Flatiron District is Othership’s third outpost, following those in Toronto’s Adelaide and Yorkville areas.
At the entrance to Othership, a patchwork curtain blocks views from the streetAt Flatiron, “journeyers” have access to a spacious 640-square-foot (59-square-metre) performance sauna and ice baths for up to 16 people in a private cold sanctuary room.
There’s also an amphitheatre-style tea lounge, where guests can gather around a central fireplace to socialise.
Cedar panelling along the corridors visually extends the sauna experience into public areasFuturestudio, led by founding principal Ali McQuaid Mitchell, designed the interiors to feel equally transportive and grounding.
In the reception area, a curtain of custom-designed patchwork textile softens the entry and blocks views from the street.
Atmospheric lighting is used throughout, including around the plunge poolsCedar panelling behind the counter and along the corridors visually extends the sauna experience into public areas.
Narrow ceramic tiles stacked in a variety of bonds and pebbled river-stone flooring installed in the wet zones both add pattern and texture.
River stones are used for flooring in the wet areasThe saunas are designed to provide heat up to 190 degrees Fahrenheit (88 degrees Celsius), with aromatic snowballs providing humidity that feels like 200 degrees Fahrenheit (93 degrees Celsius). The custom-designed ice baths are kept as low as 32 degrees Fahrenheit (zero degrees Celsius).
Between sessions, guests are encouraged to relax and converse in the 700-square-foot (65-square-metre) tea lounge on bleacher-style seating around a full-height central fireplace.
Performance saunas are designed to reach up to 190 degrees Fahrenheit (88 degrees Celsius)A halo-shaped light, custom-designed by Futurestudio and Anony, circles the stack and shifts colours to mimic sunrise, sunset and moonlight.
“At Othership, every element harmonises to support the founders’ vision of redefining wellness through immersive and connecting experiences,” said McQuaid Mitchell.
Bathhouse spa with sensory deprivation tank opens in old Williamsburg soda factory
The tradition of hot and cold bathing dates back to the Roman period, and is said to bring about an array of health benefits.
“As a society, we’re starting to think much more about how much our emotional state impacts not only our physical health, but day-to-day life,” said Robert Bent, co-founder and CEO of Othership. “Othership’s unique take on hot and cold therapy has helped over 200,000 people de-stress and transform their relationships.”
Guests can relax and socialise around a fireplace illuminated by a custom light fixtureSpa and bathing experiences are gaining popular as social spaces in New York City, offering an alternative to bars and restaurants.
“People are tired of going to a bar or restaurant in order to have a social night out; there needs to be a better way,” said Amanda Laine, Othership co-founder and lead facilitator. “People want to reconnect with themselves, relax, drop their guard, and feel safe.”
Lighting plays an important role in setting the mood throughout the bathhouseAnother brand, Bathhouse, recently opened a second location – also in the Flatiron District – following its Brooklyn venue in a converted soda factory that was shortlisted for leisure and wellness interior of the year at Dezeen Awards 2020.
In other parts of the world, bathhouses with notable interiors include a space in Tokyo designed as a contemporary take on a traditional sento, and a white marble mikveh used by Mexico City’s Orthodox Jewish community.
The photography is by Ian Patterson.
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Canadian studio Bureau Tempo has completed a “gentle redesign” of a loft space in Brooklyn, New York, which features a subtle pale green kitchen and fritted glass partition walls.
The home faces the busy Atlantic Avenue thoroughfare that runs through the Brooklyn Heights neighbourhood and enjoys tall ceilings and large windows at either end.
A mural depicting Prospect Park is painted above the loft’s den areaMeasuring 1,600 square feet (150 square metres), the loft is roughly divided into three sections.
At the front are the primary bedroom – painted in a colour called Dead Salmon by Farrow & Ball – and an office space that is equipped with a foldaway Murphy bed that can be deployed for guests.
The dining room features a large black table and matching Windsor chairsThis multifunctional space is separated from the living area by a partition of wood and fritted glass panels.
Folding doors open to connect with the lounge and dining area, but the light can still reach these central spaces when closed thanks to the glass.
The lounge is furnished with comfy sofas and armchairs, plus an oxblood-coloured coffee table”The addition of an operable wood and fluted-glass wall between the primary space and the Atlantic Avenue end of the home allows for an open office by day and an inviting and private quarters when hosting guests,” said Bureau Tempo.
The lounge is furnished with comfy sofas and armchairs, plus an oxblood-coloured coffee table, all placed atop a rug by Armadillo.
The office space can be opened up to the rest of the apartment with folding panelsBeyond is the dining area, where a large black table is accompanied by six Windsor chairs and a pair of stretched-fabric pendant lights that hang overhead.
The final portion of the loft is raised up two steps, and contains a den area with more soft seating and the kitchen.
A retractable Murphy bed allows the office to double as a guest roomAbove a section of bead-board panelling where the TV is mounted, a mural by artist and friend of the loft’s owners Melody Lockerman depicts nearby Prospect Park.
“Painted in tones that compliment choices throughout, the mural adds a welcome touch of levity,” Bureau Tempo said.
General Assembly exposes wooden beams inside revamped Brooklyn loft
In the kitchen opposite, textured four-by-four-inch ceramic tiles create a subtle checkerboard pattern of pale pink and white across the floor.
Millwork on the central island and lower cabinets was painted a very light shade of green and is accented with brass hardware.
Fritted glass panels allow light from the front window to penetrate deeper into the apartment”These rooms share a direct connection with the intimate yet spacious and light-filled north facing terrace, which dramatically extends the perception of the home’s size,” the team said.
The majority of the walls throughout the apartment are covered in a textured lime plaster finish by Bauwerk Colour, complementing exposed wooden ceiling beams in each room.
The primary bedroom is painted in Dead Salmon by Farrow & Ball to contrast the lime plaster in other spacesMany of Brooklyn’s former industrial buildings now house chic apartments and lofts, many of which maintain nods to their past.
At a residence in Gowanus, wooden structural elements were uncovered and retreated during renovations by General Assembly, while a home inside a former chocolate factory in Bedford-Stuyvesant has ductwork and services are left exposed.
The photography is by Alex Lesage.
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New York gallery R & Company has curated collectible design work by 55 contemporary artists and designers based throughout the United States.
The exhibition Objects: USA 2024 is the second instalment in a series of triannual exhibits by the gallery surveying the current state of collectible design practices in the country.
The show touches on topics such as revived craft traditions, material experimentation, political instability, environmental degradation, and cultural re-appropriation.
R & Company has showcased 55 designers and artists from across the United States. Works by Dee Clements, Justin Favela, Luam Melake, and Coulter FussellDesigners that represent different generations and backgrounds are on show, including Minjae Kim, Chen Chen and Kai Williams, Roberto Lugo, Katie Stout, and Hugh Hayden.
“In recent years, collectible design has increasingly entered popular consciousness, in part, thanks to the diversity of individuals embracing handmade processes and propelling them in new directions,” R & Company said.
“Objects: USA offers an incisive exploration of the formal innovations and conceptual motivations that shape the distinct and varied landscape of today’s object-making.”
It was organised according to seven “archetypes”. Works by Trey Jones, Nicole McLaughlin, and Kim MupangilaïAccording to the gallery, many of the artists and designers defy easy categorisation and challenge the understood boundaries between art and design.
The show was guest-curated by writers and historians Angelik Vizcarrondo-Laboy and Kellie Riggs, who chose to present works thematically through several “archetypes.”
“After a long period of examining what we believe to be some of the most compelling work being made today, we took on the daunting but exciting task of finding the throughline between 55 unique practices,” Vizcarrondo-Laboy said.
“What emerged were seven archetypes that provide a dynamic way to explore object-making, not only within this group but also in the future.”
Designers and artists working across the United States were represented. Works at centre by Brian Oakes, Matthew Szösz, Carl D’Alvia, and Hugh HaydenThe groupings are organised under the headings Truthseekers, Codebreakers, Betatesters, Doomsdayers, Insiders, Keepers and Mediators.
Showcasing talents that uphold and find new purpose for long-established handicrafts, the Truthseekers section includes pieces by Los Angeles wood artist Nik Gelormino and New Mexico-based ceramicist Lonnie Vigil.
The exhibition was curated by Angelik Vizcarrondo-Laboy and Kellie Riggs. Works by Cammie Staros, Ryan Decker, Liam Lee, and Francesca DimattioThe Betatesters grouping presents artists and designers who experiment with these techniques and push the limits of material.
On view as part of this “archetype” is Houston designer Joyce Lin’s Wood Chair concept, which was created using MDF, epoxy, and oil paint. It shows her ongoing exploration of how the lines between what people think of as natural and artificial can be blurred.
The Doomsdayers section touches on how talents are addressing today’s political polarisation and dystopian angst.
The work under this dystopian heading includes Brooklyn-based designer Ryan Decker, who creates graphical works out of materials like fibreglass, resin, and aluminium – like Leaky Bladder – to comment on the rise of technologies like VR and the role video games play in our lives.
The groupings were chosen to showcase the wide scope of the collectible design world in the US. Works by Minjae Kim and Jolie NgoThe Insiders grouping explores how design can address domestic space and how that impacts the human experience, especially during the lockdowns during the Covid-19 pandemic. Designers in this category included Hugh Hayden who presents “unexpected interventions” into everyday objects such as cribs.
Brooklyn-based Congolese-Belgian designer Kim Mupangilaï’s Bina daybed was grouped under the Codebreakers section. It demonstrates how designers incorporate distinct forms from different cultural sources.
“[Mupangilaï’s] distinct body of furniture is imbued with personal narratives, embracing materials symbolic of her Congolese heritage and childhood in Europe,” R & Company said. “Her elegant, organic forms reveal historical and contemporary complexities of identity and experience as the viewer revels in the details.”
The Keepers section includes one-off designs, sculptures, and installations by artists and designers that utilise these mediums to explore how people establish cultural and interpersonal connections.
The Mediator “archetype” highlights designs used to help people negotiate with their surroundings and heritage – such as those by Chicago-based Norman Teague.
“Norman Teague’s multi-faceted practice [architecture, installation, and object design] is inspired by his Chicago South Side neighbourhood and broader African aesthetics,” R & Company said.
The works range from futuristic to traditional. Works by Misha Kahn, Venancio Aragon, and Ryan DeckerMade using ebony-finished basswood and leather as well as traditional carving and stitching techniques, the Africana Rocking Chair combines references to both his Western and African upbringings but Teague distils them in a contemporary form.
Also exhibited as part of the Mediator section, Las Vegas-based artist Justin Favela re-appropriates the piñata as an important symbol of Latinx identity in both still-life paintings and painted life-size objects such as low-rider bikes.
Bright colours were used for backdrops. Work by Nicki GreenAccording to Riggs, the idea was to use these groupings as a way of highlighting the full complexity of American collectible design and offer fresh insights on how conceptual and self-expressive objects fit in the larger cultural conversation; how these designs can be both functional and used to comment on different aspects of contemporary American society.
The photography is by Logan Jackson.
Objects: USA 2024 is on show from 6 September 2024 to 10 January 2025 in New York City. For more exhibitions, talks and fairs in architecture and design visit Dezeen Events Guide.
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