Claus Mueller

Held at Industry City in Brooklyn and the Terminal Stores building in Manhattan from May 17 – 23 with numerous partners this international design fair attracted more than 18,000 visitors with innovative North-American interior designs and exhibits from Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Spain, France, Germany and the Netherlands. Wanted Design included numerous talks and awards to participating designers and companies.  The Swiss watchmaker Rado presented the finalists of its Radio Star Prize promoting the achievements of young designers. Industry professionals identified Toronto’s Luvere  Studio as “Best of Launch Pad 2017” for its system of grow lights and the Interior Design magazine and ICFF (International Contemporary Furniture Fair) honored products and projects in over 30 categories.

The successful marriage of culture and commerce generating and embellishing our creative life space is a guiding principle of the 5th edition of Wanted Design. Among the noteworthy exhibits of the show were lamp shades by Richard Clarkson designed to mimic the shape and textures of a cloud; a crafts and design platform “Fresh from Brasil” featuring high-end designs in the furniture and textiles presented by the non-profit Objeto Brasil / Unisol group. ‘in-possible’ displayed a fascinating collection of prototypes of well-designed household consumer objects that never went into production for engineering, marketing or other reasons.  The display included   50 projects created from the 20’s to the present by well-known designers. The prototypes on view were provided by the Alessi Museum in Omegna Italy which houses more than 25,000 objects and 19,000 designs.   The German Rolf Benz Company excelled in the manufacture of office upholstery and chairs, presenting appealing samples at the design fair.

Under the Ventura Projects designation the Dutch section of the Wanted Design show cased the latest cutting edge designs from the Netherlands focusing on emerging talents and their exposure to the American market.  In this section 17 young Dutch artists bridged the boundary of commerce and design and disregarded traditional separations of materials, form and functions.  The design Studio Alissa + Nienke focused on materials prompting interaction between the audience and the object. Its Dangling Mirror made with reflective thin steel sheets moved by the air triggers the audience reaction. Isaac Monte fuses technology and nature by growing crystals on design objects into petrified raisin. With rubber casting techniques Nynke Koster produces unique three dimensional copies of spaces surrounding us and covers chairs or other objects with the molds. Studio Plott built its own 3D-printer and prints objects up to several square meters. The printing generates a plastic yarn covered with textile fibers with possible variation  of shapes and deep colors. The Dutch section demonstrated innovative creative approaches leaving the box of traditional design.

Claus Mueller      filmexchange@gmail.com