NYCxDESIGN 2023
Welcome to the NYCxDesign 2023, the annual week-long festival celebrating design innovation in New York City. A hub of fashion and furniture to architecture and technology, the city one of the most important creative hubs in the world. Each May, designers, architects, and art lovers step out to attend events and exhibitions to explore the latest furniture and interiors trends, discover emerging talent, and tune into current discourse on architecture and urbanism. Ahead of the festival, held this year from May 18th — 25th, designboom rounds up some of the must-see city-wide events and exhibitions. Be sure to follow along as we take a closer look!
image © Jason Briscoe
Ron Arad solo exhibition at Opera Gallery
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Friedman Benda presents COARSE, Samuel Ross‘ second solo exhibition and his first in New York. Through his furniture collection, the designer, artist, and A-COLD-WALL* founder explores the connections between the body, material, meaning, and memory, drawing inspiration from West African furniture, modernism, and brutalism. He uses industrial materials such as wood, metal, stone, and marble, which he lacquers with organic materials such as turmeric, honey, and milk to add a layer of history and intentionality to the pieces. The exhibition highlights the designer‘s approach to the object’s function and narrative, emphasizing the importance of process and ritual in the making of his work. See designboom’s coverage of COARSE here.
See the exhibition at Friedman Benda’s New York gallery space at 515 W 26th Street from May 18th — June17th.
image courtesy NYCxDESIGN
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image courtesy NYCxDESIGN
Early Patterns: Reintroducing Akari of the 1950s
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image courtesy The Isamu Noguchi Foundation and Garden Museum
Pratt Shows: Design is an eagerly anticipated yearly event that celebrates the talent and hard work of exceptional graduating students from the School of Design, School of Architecture, and School of Art at Pratt Institute‘s bucolic Brooklyn campus. This annual exhibition showcases a wide range of innovative and cutting-edge design work, providing a platform for graduates to display their creativity and hard-earned skills. This exhibition offers a unique and diverse presentation of what’s next in design, highlighting emerging trends, techniques, and visions from talented graduates.
The design shows will be on view at the ARC building in Pratt Institute from May 11th — 17th.
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Sony and furniture brand Stellar Works will collaborate to present ‘STAYDREAM — a surreal reality’ during NYCxDESIGN. Stellar Works will team up with Sony Design to showcase a series of conceptual pieces in an immersive environment that blends space, furniture, and technology to create a sensory and storytelling experience. The exhibition will focus on bringing the outdoors inside by highlighting the ambiance of nature within interior spaces. ‘This project aims to convey and unveil new forms of user experience, sensing techniques and human interaction, exemplifying the coexistence of physical and meta realities,’ writes the team.
The exhibition will be held at Stellar Works’ New York showroom at 304 Canal Street from May 18th — 25th.
image courtesy Sony Design
MUJI IS
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Galerie Philia exhibition
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image courtesy NYCxDESIGN
Open Studio at Ottra
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image courtesy NYCxDESIGN
Soho Design Day
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image courtesy NYCxDESIGN
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Architecture Now: New York, New Publics
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MAGENTAVERSE
Join ARTECHOUSE and Pantone on a journey into MAGENTAVERSE, an immersive experience that allows you to discover the limitless possibilities of Viva Magenta, the Pantone Color of the Year 2023. Explore a world of stunning visuals and sounds that draw inspiration from the earth and the cosmos, while immersing yourself in a space filled with creative energy that invigorates your spirit and improves your well-being.
In addition, the exhibit will showcase technological explorations from NASA, setting it apart from the previous MAGENTAVERSE exhibit at ARTECHOUSE Miami (see designboom’s coverage here). While this marks the fourth year in a row that ARTECHOUSE and Pantone have collaborated to unveil the Pantone Color of the Year, but it is the first time that a dedicated exhibit is open to the public.
The installation will show at ARTECHOUSE NYC at 439 W 15th St from May 18th — May 29th. Find tickets here.
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WEST CHELSEA BY DIMORESTUDIO
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The Thick Skin: Cork in the Constructed Environment
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Design Talk with photographer Iwan Baan
Among today’s leading photographers, Iwan Baan is best known for capturing works of architecture and urban design. Through his lens, he documents the evolution of bustling cities around the world and showcases the works of prominent contemporary architects such as Herzog & de Meuron, Rem Koolhaas, and Zaha Hadid. Iwan Baan’s distinctive style of vibrant realism highlights the connection between people and their surroundings, while his expansive perspective offers a comprehensive overview of the importance of architecture and urban design in our lives.
During the fall of 2023, the first major retrospective exhibition of Baan’s work will take place at Germany’s Vitra Design Museum in the fall of 2023. Ahead of the exhibition’s opening, Iwan Baan will take part in a public conversation during the NYCxDESIGN festival.
The talk will be held at 1014 Space for Ideas, 1014 5th Ave, on May 19th at 6:30pm — register for free here.
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Beinecke Library Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, SOM | image © Iwan Baan
ECOPHILIA
Designer Constantin Boym has created a project called Ecophilia in collaboration with Hudson Valley-based store and gallery Available Items. Ecophilia draws inspiration from Enzo Mari‘s ‘Autoprogettazione’ manual and the idea that eco-humanism should be expressed through design. It is a series of contemporary habitats for plants and animals that can be constructed using accessible, inexpensive, and environmentally friendly materials and tools.
Available Items will display an installation of Ecophilia objects designed by Boym in the courtyard of the new Penny Williamsburg hotel. The exhibit will include a recently published book titled ‘Ecophilia’, which includes illustrations and instructions for building and installing each piece, along with a foreword by architect and environmentalist James Wines.
The project will be on view at Penny Williamsburg hotel, 288 N 8th St. from May 20th — 22nd.
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the beauty of black and white
image courtesy Rottet Collection
IFDA Japan Fair
IFDA, the International Furnishings and Design Association, will be holding a Japan Fair to mark the occasion. The event will feature artisans from our Japan Chapter and will include a series of seminars highlighting architectural preservation (Minka), and demonstrating traditional ikebana floral design, calligraphy, ceramics, the art of tea, and the development and design influences of Chinoiserie.
The seminars will be held between three locations on Lexington Ave on May 20th, May 22nd, and May 23rd — see the full list of events here.
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image courtesy NYCxDESIGN
ICFF + Wanted design manhattan
WantedDesign Manhattan, a special ‘show within a show’ exhibition dedicated to both established and emerging designers, will return to New York’s Javits Center from May 21st — 23rd. The annual event attracts a large number of visitors each year seeking to explore the various exhibitions and programs on display. These programs include Look Book, a platform for high-end North American studios, and Launch Pad, which showcases emerging international designers. Other features include the Wanted Interiors Lounge, the Schools Exhibit which highlights student work from design schools around the world, and ECO Solidarity, a movement promoting sustainable and responsible design.
ICFF + WantedDesign will take over the Javits Center from May 21st — 23rd.
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image courtesy NYCxDESIGN
ARCHITECTURE IN NEW YORK (576)
DIMORESTUDIO (16)
FRIEDMAN BENDA (60)
IWAN BAAN (101)
LOEWE (8)
MUJI (33)
NYCXDESIGN 2023 (9)
PANTONE (43)
RON ARAD (36)
SAMUEL ROSS (8)
SONY (64)
STELLAR WORKS (11)
THE NOGUCHI MUSEUM (11)
PRODUCT LIBRARY
a diverse digital database that acts as a valuable guide in gaining insight and information about a product directly from the manufacturer, and serves as a rich reference point in developing a project or scheme.