design miami 2021 offers a long awaited hybrid format a best of both worlds.
above> r & company gallery
design miami/ returns to pride park with new curatorial director, wava carpenter. the 17th edition of the fair will explore the theme of human kind and how design can impact the world for the better.
above> wava carpenter / photo karli evans
edited official release — design miami/ is delighted to present the 17th edition of it’s fair in miami beach from 1 – 5 december 2021. taking place in pride park, opposite the miami beach convention center, the fair will feature over 35 gallery and curio exhibitions to be presented alongside an exciting lineup of partnerships and collaborations. in addition, design miami/ will be presented in a hybrid physical and digital format. all exhibited works on the show floor will be available to purchase at designmiami.com for a limited time, alongside a robust online program of design talks and 3d virtual tours.
jennifer roberts, ceo of design miami/, says: “the 17th edition of design miami/ brings a myriad of reasons for celebration – from returning to our home in pride park to our human kind theme, which will look at how design can play a role in shaping the world for the better. as we continue to see the collectible design market grow, in both physical and digital spaces, we’re pleased to also welcome many new members to the design miami/ family – galleries, curios and partners – all of which are bringing thoughtful contributions to the fair”.
the theme of human kind, shining a spotlight on design-led visions for a more equitable and interconnected future. those operating at the cutting-edge of design thinking will bring together works, ideas, and presentations to spark conversations around the current state of the world and where we need to go. the galleries and partners have planned thoughtful and diverse responses to this timely theme.
carpenter says: “the practice of design, at its heart, has always aimed to create a better future. but in recent years, as the global challenges that humanity faces have approached existential proportions, the future that designers envision increasingly demands a fundamental reorientation of what it means to be human in this world, calling on all of us to become better stewards of nature and of each other.”
[ aesthetics of the moment: the fantastical & the primordial/ ]
perhaps as an escape from the realities of the world as it is now, designers and collectors are drawn to truly extraordinary forms that evoke another time and place. this larger trend finds two expressions: the fantastical and the primordial. the former aesthetic is exuberant, vibrant, surreal, as if created for a fairy tale or science fiction story, often inflected with a tongue-in-cheek wink. the second expression has a minimalist yet striking aura that calls to mind relics of the ancient past, prehistory and beyond time.
above > extraño 1 / tanya aguiñiga / volume gallery / 2020
at objective gallery, ‘reincarnation’ presents the work of brecht wright gander, fernando mastrangelo, j mcdonald, vincent pocsik, eny lee parker, and charlotte kingsnorth, which as an ensemble conjures objects of past lives and nostalgia for bygone ways of living. in the age of industrial and mass production, it is less possible to commune with one’s environment and the art of everyday life. the works in reincarnation revive pre-industrial artisanal processes and mastery of materials. jason jacques gallery presents ‘ceremony’, an ayahuasca ceremony from the planet zeefromzeglop. the ceremony posits that all that exists in the universe is connected through cracks in time-space that are universally opened by plant medicine. on show are tapestry depictions of great spirit animals and plants. meanwhile, volume gallery presents new braided and draped woven works from renowned craftsperson tanya aguiñiga. forming part of the designer’s ‘extraño’ series, the objects are a craftful expression of the grief, gratitude, rage, and exhaustion aguiñiga has felt in response to the constant threats faced by the bipoc community, as well as the diverse effects and losses of the pandemic.
above> tomorrow land / studio proba and enjoy the weather / miami design district
the miami design district has named creative studios, studio proba and enjoy the weather, this year’s winners of its highly anticipated 2021 annual design commission. curated by wava carpenter and anna carnick of anava projects and design miami/, this year’s installation, titled tomorrow land, will transform the neighborhood—as well as the entrance to design miami/—into an interactive playground through a series of joyful sculptures, seating, and ornamentation designed by studio proba. the physical installation will serve as the basis for an interactive, virtual game created by enjoy the weather. a dedicated app that uses ar technology and proximity beacons will allow visitors to ‘collect’ and customize studio proba’s shapes and place their own custom totems throughout the neighborhood and beyond.
[ material of the moment: ceramics/ ]
through their direct, hands-on and hands-in nature of production, ceramic works are an ideal medium for storytelling, especially autobiographical and sociological stories, which resonate deeply with audiences in this time of disruption and separation. it seems that, more than ever, ceramics artists are working with clay in new ways to share perspectives on and insights into who they are, where they came from, and where they want to see the world go. this has resulted in a thriving market for ceramics, and this year’s fair presents a strong representation of both contemporary and historical ceramics.
above> zizipho poswa / southern guild
southern guild presents an exhibition of ceramics specifically commissioned for the fair from four of south africa’s most accomplished artists working in clay – andile dyalvane, zizipho poswa, madoda fani and chuma maweni. these contemporary artists use the medium to explore aspects of traditional xhosa culture and spirituality while drawing on their personal experiences and deep belief systems. titled ‘studio visit’, the booth will take visitors behind the scenes of the artists’ practices as they foreground new techniques and achieve some of their most technically ambitious work to date. at friedman benda, the gallery will introduce a series of never-before-seen portrait works produced in glazed stoneware by nigerian american ceramicist and sculptor ebitenyefa baralaye – the first collaboration between the designer and the gallery. interpreted through a diasporic lens and abstracted through the aesthetics of craft and design, baralaye’s work explores cultural, spiritual, and material translations of form, objects, text, and symbols – this new series being a vehicle through which to offer reflections on his experience of being a black man in america.
mindy solomon presents ‘free flowing geometry’, a striking presentation of works by john gill, kelsie rudolph, and minkyu lee. exploring the boundaries of form and function, each artist builds pieces that are carefully crafted with functionality in mind, taking artistic license to bring movement and vibrant color to the mix. moderne gallery offers contemporary and 20th century ceramic pieces, including a masterful ceramic representation of the planet, glazed ceramic globe (2021) by japanese ceramicist hashimoto tomonari, presented alongside estelle halper’s 1960s organic sculptural work.specialized in nordic design and decorative arts, hostler burrows also presents a beautifully curated selection of contemporary scandinavian ceramics alongside a few exceptional historic design pieces, including works by steen ipsen, martin bodilsen kaldahl, taher asad-bakhtiari, bjorn friborg, frida fjellman, maren kloppman, torbjorn kvasbo.
[ the best of the best/ ]
as always, design miami will host galleries representing work that tops today’s collectible design market, both vintage and contemporary. masterpieces from icons of the 20th century include works by pierre jeanneret, charlotte perriand, george nakashima, harry bertoia, joaquim tenreiro, and verner panton, while contemporary highlights are found in works by daniel arsham, katie stout, the haas brothers, and more.
moderne gallery presents a strong selection of rare and unique mid-century design, with a focus on studio craft movement pieces. a particular highlight is george nakashima’s first furniture design: the karuizawa chair (1935), made for st. paul’s catholic church in karuizawa, japan. until recently, only two chairs were known to exist worldwide. across the chair’s peeled cryptomeria frame is suspended a seat made of woven grass threads, a design that displays both traditional materials and a modern sensibility. it’s clearly the precursor for what is now nakashima’s most popular, grass-seated chair (designed 1944).
above> amnesia or platelet apparition? / samuel ross / friedman benda / 2020
at friedman benda, the gallery will present a solo booth of work by artist and creative director samuel ross, celebrating the launch of the gallery’s partnership with the acclaimed british designer. emblematic of his all encompassing, conceptually rigorous approach, ross will transmute the traditional fair booth into a quasi-industrial setting. the space, caught between construction and deconstruction, acts as a liminal staging ground for select works from three discrete but intersecting series: signal, rupture and amorphous strand.
[ design miami/ 2021 curios/ ]
curio is an exhibition platform that invites designers, architects, curators, innovators and gallerists to present total environments of objects, textures, artifacts and ideas that challenge and contextualize familiar design narratives. curios are interspersed amongst design miami’s gallery program, infusing the fair with inventive snapshots of today’s design landscape. the 2021 miami fair presents a diverse range of 19 curios that question and respond to the theme of human kind, including 13 fresh faces this including: apical reform & zeel studio, bea interiors design, bohinc studio, james de wulf, objective gallery, pelle, tuleste factory, twenty first gallery and verdi.
non-profit organization and platform, house of today returns to miami after their debut curio presentation in 2017, this year showcasing a solo exhibition of work by lebanese designer khaled el-mays. this new series of work has been made in collaboration with craftspeople in mexico city and is a continuation of the long relationship between el-mays and house of today, founded by cherine magrabi tayeb. entitled new nature, the five-piece series features two mirrors, a bar, bench and the designer’s first ever chair, made from leather, wood, raffia, and wicker as well as ceramics which is a new material for the designer who has collaborated with master company anfora who has over 100 years experience in the industry. also returning to miami is harry nuriev with his sixth curio presentation, a continuation of the designer’s recent explorations of transitory spaces that serve as a metaphor for “traveling through different layers of space, reality, and consciousness”—a theme found in much of nuriev’s work. the bedroom is a silver bedroom installation that will feature a ryokan-style mattress, situated within a zen-like cube that underscored the value of the bedroom as a space to escape reality, meditate, experience vulnerability, and access different levels of consciousness.
above> mass table / tom dixon / mass research studio / 2020 // below> emotional rocks / apical reform & zeel studio / 2021
amongst this year’s debut curio presentations, highlights include first time exhibitors apical reform & zeel studio – a collaboration between designers amrish patel, darshan soni, and gordana zgonjanin that brings apical reform’s innovative work that encompasses functional, bespoke and kinetic art – presented by miami based zeel studio. for design miami/ they will debut emotional rocks, an installation that aims to capture the essence of time through the impact of the intangible aspects of emotions on hard objects such as rocks. the emotional rocks and blurry stars kinetic benches will also be installed throughout the common spaces of design miami, offering visitors a spot to rest and to take the time to evaluate their relationship with the world. also new to miami is new york-based twenty first gallery who will showcase an exhibition of new work by london-based polish designer marcin ruask.
[design miami/ 2021 galleries/ ]
ago projects/ mexico city
ateliers courbet/ new york
bernard goldberg fine arts/ new york
carpenters workshop gallery/ new york
converso/ chicago
friedman benda/ new york
hostler burrows/ new york
jason jacques gallery/ clinton corners
john keith russell/ south salem
magen h gallery/ new york
moderne gallery/ philadelphia
ornamentum/ hudson
r & company/ new york
side gallery/ barcelona
southern guild/ cape town
the future perfect/ san francisco
thomsen gallery/ new york
todd merrill studio/ new york
volume gallery/ chicago
wexler gallery/ philadelphia
[ design miami/ 2021 curios/ ]
apical reform & zeel studio/ gujarat
atra/ mexico city
bea interiors design/ miami bohinc studio/ london
gallery all/ alhambra, beijing harry nuriev/ new york
house of today/ beirut
j. lohmann gallery/ new york james de wulf/ los angeles mercado moderno/ rio de janeiro mindy solomon gallery/ miami objective gallery/ shanghai pelle/ brooklyn
reinaldo leandro/ new york room 57 gallery/ new york
tom dixon/ new york
tuleste factory/ new york twenty first gallery/ new york verdi/ bogota
[ design miami/ 2021 partners/ ]
doha design district
fendi
grand seiko
kohler
lexus
maestro dobel
miami design district
perrier jouet
panerai
scad
usm
[ schedule of events/ ]
preview day/ by invitation only
tuesday, november 30/
members preview/ 11am – 12pm
collector’s preview/ 12-7pm
wednesday, december 1/
vip preview/ 11am – 1pm
public show days/
wednesday, december 1/ 1–8pm
thursday, december 2/ 11am–8pm
friday, december 3/ 12–8pm
saturday, december 4/ 12–8pm
sunday, december 5/ 12–6pm
design miami/ connects the world through extraordinary collectible design, with live fairs and experiences on four continents that bring together galleries, designers’ studios, brands, experts, collectors, and enthusiasts, and designmiami.com, a content-rich digital marketplace. each edition of design miami/ features museum-quality 20th and 21st century furniture, lighting, and objets d’art from the world’s top, expertly vetted galleries with flagship fairs taking place alongside art basel in miami, florida, each december and basel, switzerland, each june. design miami/ is also accessible 365-days a year through designmiami.com, featuring shoppable works from design miami’s expert galleries, dm/bx – a curation of more accessible one-of-a-kind, limited edition, and small batch design objects, as well as virtual programming, and engaging storytelling at the forum magazine.
this is a developing story…
