This is the second year that Design Miami/Basel has been located in Hall 5 of the gargantuan international air fair, but for the first time it seemed not so much an interesting add-on as a truly dynamic force in its own right.
It has taken commentators a few years to move on from the 'is it art? is it design?' debate and just enjoy it for what it is: a brave new world of both. Stand after stand seemed to have raised the curatorial bar, with plenty of new works by big talents such as Studio Job, Pablo Reinoso, Studio Makkink & Bey, Atelier Van Lieshout, Richard Woods and Marc Quinn to name a few.
The legendary Maria Pergay showed current pieces at Demisch Danant (New York) while acclaimed typographer and graphic artist Stefan Sagmeister launched his first foray into the design-art hybrid at Droog (New York). But there was plenty to discover as well – design satellites on the upper floor included the 2010 W Hotels Designers of the Future Award – Beta Tank, Graham Hudson, rAndom International and Ziegbaum & Coelho – as well as eight smaller galleries each devoted to one rising star.
While 21st-century pieces undoubtedly stole the show, mid and late 20th-century was still a core feature. Controversially, the 18th-century was also represented by Didier Aaron (Paris) and Galerie Perrin (Paris) – while this prompted dark mutterings from some along the thin-end-of-the-wedge lines, others viewed it as an opportunity to educate collectors that if a design is excellent, it will always sit happily with a design of equal excellence – no matter how old it is.
Detail from Alone in a Crowd table, by Rolf Sachs, 2010. Image copyright of Rolf Sachs, Cologne
Alone in a Crowd table, by Rolf Sachs, 2010. The frame is made of oak and steel and under the glass surface Sachs has personally placed 511 Preiser miniature figures. Image copyright of Rolf Sachs
’Fabrique en Chine’ - Dike Shoes, by André Dubreuil, 2010. In this work, the prolific artist-craftsman challenges the notion that China is a country where everything is made cheaply.
Berceau, by Christophe Come, 2008. New York
Broken Cubes, by Maria Pergay, 2010. New York
Cabinet cart, by Kiki Van Eijk, 2010. courtesy of Secondome, Rome
Fake Chair (Skull), by Danful Yang, 2010. One of the new additions to the Fake series of 20 pieces by XYZ Design - a continuing statement about the onslaught of consumer culture in China.
ragile Future Concrete Chandelier, by Lonneke Gordijin and Ralph Nauta, 2010.
Fragile Future Concrete Chandelier, by Lonneke Gordijin and Ralph Nauta, 2010.
Artificial Vases, by Hella Jongerius, 2009 - limited edition collection of four vases installed on a table: glass, blow glass, ceramic, plastic, leather and wood. courtesy of Galerie Kreo, Paris
Fakir cabinet, by Mattia Bonetti, 2004.
Swarm, by rAndom International, 2010. More than purely decorative, the Swarm chandelier reacts to ambient sounds - combined with 9,000 LEDs, the sophisticated behavioural algorithm reacts naturally, and in realtime, exactly as a swarm of insects would.
Rattus Maximus, by Rolf Sachs, 2010. Unique in a series of 17 glass dome lights - an albino rat stands on a carefully crafted still life of sardine cans, broken eggs and other household waste.
The Unbearable Lightness, 2010
Darwin chair, by Stefan Sagmeister, 2010. This is the prototype of a planned edition of 20 - a structure of about 200 sheets of attached prints, made of Tyvek and epoxy, developed by Grenswerk. courtesy of Droog, New York
Octopus Chair, by Sam Woong Lee, 2010. Mother-of-pearl work in the Korean tradition on a contemporary form.
Mission side table, by Roy McMakin, 2008. New York
Rietveld Lego buffet, by Minale-Maeda, 2010. A playful interpretation of Rietveld’s 20th-century buffet made of approximately 28,000 Lego bricks. courtesy of Droog, New York
Panther, Satyendra Pakhalé, 2010.
Painting on the Floor coffee table, by Philip Michael Wolfson, 2010. This work is inspired by a reverence for the training required for a scholar to achieve mastery of Music, Board Game, Calligraphy and Painting.
Stag Stool, by Rick Owens, 2009. courtesy of Jousse Enterprise, Paris
Honeycomb vase, by Tomas Libertiny, 2007. This is the piece that gave rise to Libertiny’s spectacular The Unbearable Lightness, 2010, that was one of the stars of the fair - the controlled manufacture of the figure of Christ produced by bees.
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Hella Jongerius’ ‘Angry Animals’ take a humorous and poignant bite out of the climate crisisAt Salon 94 in New York, Hella Jongerius presents animal ceramics, ‘Bead Tables’ and experimental ‘Textile Studies’ – three series that challenge traditional ideas about function, craft, and narrative
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A photographic study of a family hi-fi store is a vivid portrait of a small businessFashion photographer Nik Hartley looked behind the scenes at Wilkinson’s Hi-Fi, a longstanding part of its Lancashire community.
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The Contestant: inside the dark and exploitative beginnings of reality TVClair Titley’s The Contestant examines a sensationalist moment in TV history, before Big Brother meant reality became an accepted part of popular culture
