Design Miami 2024 is alive with possibility: here are 13 things to see

As 2024 hurtles towards a close, the final major design event of the year is almost upon us. Design Miami will open the doors to its 20th edition from 4-8 December with a preview day on 3 December. What started as a modest gathering in 2005 during Art Basel Miami Beach has grown into a leading global fair with annual editions in Miami, Basel, Paris and, for the first time this year, Los Angeles.

The Miami iteration has helped to revitalise the city’s design district and continues to attract designers, collectors, and curators from around the world, all in search of high design with a side of winter sun.

What to see: Design Miami 2024 highlights

Curated by American curator and author Glenn Adamson, this year’s fair is centred around the theme Blue Sky, exploring bold and imaginative design that exceeds expectations. ‘Design is inherently a speculative venture,’ says Adamson, ‘and also a collective one – a shared framework of reference at a time of global interconnection. The theme presents an opportunity to celebrate Design Miami’s role as a platform for the 21st-century avant-garde – showcasing the very best in contemporary and historic design for two decades.’

Among the names in this year’s line-up are Design Miami stalwarts like bi-coastal US gallery The Future Perfect, alongside debutants such as London’s Lamb Gallery. Exhibited works run the gamut in terms of scale and origin, from bold sculptures that resemble oversized Ndebele jewellery to intricate Werregue side tables from Colombia. Here are the exhibitors on our hit list.

1. The Future Perfect

In its largest booth to date, The Future Perfect will present nearly 100 new works from more than 20 emerging and established artists, including Chris Wolston, Lindsey Adelman (both among 50 top American creatives photographed by Inez & Vinoodh for Wallpaper* earlier in 2024), and Cody Hoyt. The exhibition also features six new artists making their Design Miami debut, including Anina Major, Laurids Gallée, and Olivia Cognet. Additionally, Indian designer Vikram Goyal will showcase his intricate metalwork for the first time in the US, bringing India’s rich artisanal history to South Beach.

Dates: 3-8 December 2024
Location: Design Miami, Miami Beach

2. The 2024 Annual Design Commission: Nicole Nomsa Moyo

The Miami Design District, in collaboration with the Design Miami Curatorial Lab, has announced Nicole Nomsa Moyo as the recipient of the 2024 Design Commission. Moyo’s vibrant installation, Pearl Jam, is inspired by the intricate patterns of South Africa's Ndebele tribe and will include interactive sculptures throughout the neighbourhood, including oversized pearls, deconstructable necklaces, and radiant earrings. The installation also honours the craftsmanship of Ndebele women who will handcraft over 1,000 ‘earrings’ using locally sourced materials.

Dates: 1-9 December 2024
Location: Miami Design District

3. Lasvit: ‘Herbarium’

Made from hundreds of suspended glass droplets, each featuring the form of a delicate plant, Herbarium is an immersive lighting installation by Czech glass company Lasvit, which will provide a little theatre at the fair. It is made from a new type of glass that incorporates repurposed waste, and users can adjust the colour of the light to create an ever-changing experience. Additionally, Lasvit will pay homage to postmodernist designer Borek Sipek, featuring pieces inspired by his legacy, alongside a mirror inspired by Miami’s sand.

Dates: 3-8 December 2024
Location: Design Miami, Miami Beach

4. Ralph Pucci: ‘Primal Mysteries’

Last year saw Ralph Pucci open a 10,000 sq ft gallery in Miami’s Wynwood. This year, he follows up with ‘Primal Mysteries’, his eponymous gallery’s first in-house collection in over a decade. The collection, which includes new lighting and tables, is inspired by figures from sculpture and painting, including Alberto Giacometti and Constantin Brâncuși, and is handcrafted from clay and plaster at Ralph Pucci’s Manhattan studio. The gallery will also showcase Marjorie Salvaterra’s surreal photographic work Sheila in Technicolor and new pieces by longtime collaborator, French designer Patrick Naggar.

Dates: 3-9 December 2024
Location: Ralph Pucci (Miami), 550 NW 28th St Miami, FL 33127

5. Southern Guild

Southern Guild will showcase the work of 12 leading African ceramic artists, presenting an exploration of the medium’s historical roots and its modern resurgence. The works on display include sculptures, vessels, and furniture by artists such as Andile Dyalvane, Michal Korycki, and Jabulile Nala, among others. These pieces highlight the intersection of tradition, technique, and symbolism within African culture and provide a compelling narrative on the evolving nature of ceramics in contemporary art.

Dates: 3-8 December 2024
Location: Convention Centre Drive and 19th Street, Miami Beach, Booth G28

6. Lexus and Crafting Plastics: ‘Liminal Cycles’

Located in the sculpture garden at Miami’s Institute of Contemporary Art, Liminal Cycles is an interactive installation by Lexus in collaboration with design and research studio Crafting Plastics. At its heart, are four environmentally responsive bioplastic sculptures that engage with viewers through sight, sound, smell, and touch, including a central sculpture inspired by the Lexus LF-ZC concept car that changes colour in response to UV levels. To accompany the installation, Lexus will debut a capsule collection of 26 limited-edition collectible design objects developed in collaboration with clean fragrance brand dilo.

Dates: 3-8 December, 2024
Location: ICA Miami Sculpture Garden, 61 NE 41st Street, Miami, Florida 33137

7. æquõ

Following its 2023 debut, India’s collectible design gallery æquõ returns to Design Miami with a curated collection that merges traditional Indian craftsmanship with contemporary design. Featuring designers like Mumbai-based Chamar Studio and Belgian Linde Freya Tangelder, æquo’s pieces embody the concept of balance, where designer and artisan are given equal status. This year’s show places particular focus on practices from Maharashtra, where materials are as much a part of the story as the design itself.

Dates: 3-8 December 2024
Location: Design Miami, Miami Beach

8. Sarah Myerscough Gallery: ‘Rest and Reflection’

The intimate relationship between humans and their bedrooms will be explored in Sarah Myerscough Gallery’s presentation at Design Miami. Featuring new works by Marc Fish, Tadeas Podracky, and others, the collection demonstrates how the design of personal spaces can foster emotional wellbeing and invites visitors to reconsider the role of the bedroom as a sanctuary for rest and solitude.

Dates: 3-8 December 2024
Location: Design Miami, Miami Beach

9. Theoreme Editions

Making its Design Miami debut, French gallery Theoreme Editions will showcase a collection that meditates on the emotive power of colour and material. Featuring works crafted from alluring and tactile materials, such as onyx, mohair, and translucent blue resin, the pieces examine how colour and texture can elicit emotional responses that transcend visual aesthetics.

Dates: December 3-8, 2024
Location: Design Miami, Miami Beach

10. Lamb Gallery: ‘Magnetic Midnight Maison’

Part of Curios – a platform dedicated to immersive exhibitions – London’s Lamb Gallery makes its Design Miami debut with ‘Magnetic Midnight Maison’, a collection of work by French Colombian designer Lucía Echavarría that blends Colombian artistry with Miami’s art deco palette.

Dates: 3-8 December 2024
Location: Design Miami, Miami Beach

11. Meritalia: Le Edizioni del Pesce

Meritalia returns to Design Miami with ‘Le Edizioni del Pesce’, a tribute to the late and great Italian designer Gaetano Pesce, who died earlier in 2024 at the age of 84. Displayed as part of the fair’s Curio platform, Meritalia’s selection will include everything from umbrella racks and coat hangers, to mirrors and lamps that showcase Pesce’s unmistakable sculptural style and inventive approach to materials.

Dates: 3-8 December 2024
Location: Design Miami, Miami Beach

12. Mindy Soloman Gallery: Jaime Hayon, ‘Bestial’

Spanish designer Jaime Hayon will reveal a previously unseen aspect of his oeuvre at Mindy Soloman Gallery – a series of fantastical large-scale paintings and sculptures. Featuring surreal creatures and strange flora realised in fibreglass, acrylic on canvas and Murano glass, the works explore the complex relationship between humankind and nature. ‘Bestial is an exploration of the wild side in all of us,’ says Hayon. ‘Each creature I’ve crafted is a piece of that raw, untamed spirit within us.’

Dates: 30 November 2024 - 18 January 2025
Location: Mindy Solomon Gallery, 848 NW 22nd Street, Miami, Florida

13. Alcova Miami

Alcova Miami returns for its second edition taking over the city's pastel-hued River Inn hotel. Among the venue's palms and vegetation, visitors will discover work by a host of international designers and collectives. Highlights include ‘Something Last’, an immersive show of monochromatic pieces, including handcrafted wood furniture, porcelain lighting, architectural ceramics and metal fixtures, curated by Los Angeles designer Jialun Xiong. LcD Textile will present ‘Metallic Ocean’, a textile installation crafted from semi-precious metal mesh handmade in Belgium, while Ukrainian brand Furn Object will showcase nature-inspired furniture and objects.

Dates: 3-8 December 2024
Location: River Inn, 118 SW South River Drive, Miami, Florida 33130

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