Favorites, with a twist
They ogled designer Rachel O’Neill’s chandelier made out of black lace panties, walked all over Manhattan (or at least a glass map floor of it) at the Cosmopolitan Glass booth, then swarmed the free sushi bar set up by countertop maker Durcon. (One piece per person, please. We’re in a recession, don’t you know?) At the International Contemporary Furniture Fair, North America’s premier showcase for contemporary design, the number of exhibitors may have been down 7% compared with last year, but crowds still packed the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. About 560 companies showcased their latest home furnishings across 145,000 square feet of exhibition space. By the time the show closed Tuesday, more than a few visitors had rested their weary feet in the Hastens booth, where blue-and-white gingham-covered mattresses were oh so very comfortable. (“One particularly pregnant woman stopped by twice for a lie-down,” a representative of the Swedish company said.) Recession notwithstanding, designers and manufacturers managed to premiere some innovative ideas and clever twists on long-running trends. Here are half a dozen standouts from this year’s show.
1. Multi-tasking tables
Compact nesting tables designed by Paul Loebach for Areaware serve as tables, seats and storage -- a welcome addition to a small apartment or house. The verdant hues represented one of the most popular colors at this year’s fair. Hiding out in the top drawer: Harry Allen’s black resin pig, a 2004 design that continues to be a bestseller for the company in spite of the swine flu. www.areaware.com
2. Got a quarter?
Vermont welder turned furniture designer Johnny Swing seemed more apropos than ever with his pieces made of loose change. He clad his new lounge chair with 6,800 quarters, welding them together onto an intricate steel frame. If that weren’t enough of a recessionary design statement, he used one-dollar bills to create pillows and teddy bears. His latest creation, the Dollar Pig, unzips at the bottom -- just in case you need easy access to the piggy bank. “I have the only business in the world where the cost of my materials will go down due to inflation,” Swing said. www.johnnyswing.com
3. Expandable screen
Kiril Kirov of RazortoothDesign created an innovative system of interlocking tiles that form expandable screens. A box of 18 Modulari Architect tiles makes a 31-by-62-inch partition that can be hung from the wall or the ceiling. The swirl, leaf and drop motifs are available in several colors, including the ever-popular green. The lightweight tiles are made of ethyl vinyl acetate, or EVA, that’s nontoxic and UV-stable, which is good for use indoors or out. www.modulariscreen.com or www.razortoothdesign.com
4. Organic, with an accent
The lyrical Mangrove chair designed by Japanese artist Eiji Shibata for Teko Design walks the line between design and art. Inspired by the convoluted roots of its namesake tree, the sculptural seat is made of 1/16 -inch steel that has been powder-coated a delicious pistachio green. It’s also available in red and white. www.tekodesign.com
5. 21st century armoire
Young Belgian designer Maarten de Ceulaer reinvented the wardrobe by assembling one with six aqua-hued, custom leather suitcases. Butterfly bolts and metal straps in back hold the pieces together and allow the armoire to be taken apart and reconfigured. If you ever need another bag for a trip, you can borrow one from your closet. The lighthearted piece, appropriately dubbed “A Pile of Suitcases,” comes in a limited edition of 12. www.maartendeceulaer.com
(Cover) Everything repurposed
Old things took on new lives, and that included the buzzword “repurposed.” A light fixture featured at the Bklyn Designs show earlier this month and at the group’s booth at ICFF featured a chandelier made of reincarnated glasses. The 250 vintage glasses -- one of them an 1880s vaseline glass etched in gold -- were purchased from estate sales and Craigs- list. “It’s named Nebu -- short for nebulous -- because it resembles a floating cloud of glass,” said designer Francois Chambard (pictured on Page E1). The frame is aluminum, cut with a water jet and powder-coated a glossy black. All 250 glasses can be lifted out for cleaning -- or for use as barware for your party. www.umproject.com