Design Miami 2023 Tent Exterior. Photo: James Harris




Adventurous New Makers Shine 
at the 19th Edition of Design Miami 



by Benjamin Genocchio




Photo: James Harris



Design Miami 2023 points to the future with the accent firmly, once again, on audacious design by a roster of international makers. The booths are weighted toward the new and bold, filled with intoxicating design that spans the spectrum from eye-catching to eye-popping.



Twenty First Gallery



The pleasure of this fair is that you can see so many fresh designs, materials, technologies, and ideas in action, often within a single booth. Twenty First Gallery has an installation of twelve artists in a booth curated by scenographer Jean de Piépape. The display is filled with boldly curved, organic forms centered around a velvet sofa by Mattia Bonetti. Two new pieces by Erwan Boulloud, the Primaire Mirror and Cabinet, show the artist’s leap into the use of color in a very big way. Polished aluminum is painted with electrically colorful, mesmerizingly optical painted “tiles”—these are thrilling works.



Galerie Mélissa Paul



A fusion of nature and design is everywhere in this show with the trend continuing towards organic forms, as in several pieces at the booth of Galerie Mélissa Paul, debuting at the fair. These include ceramics by Agnès Debizet and an enchanting cast bronze chair and side table by Clotilde Ancarani that appear to be formed from giant, gold-dipped leaves.   


Nature provides inspiration for numerous works at the entrancing and inspiring booth of Maison Gerard, where Michela Cattai’s naturalistic seed-like vessels rub shoulders with Carol Egan’s candy-colored, nature-inspired furniture. Niamh Barry steals the booth with her light sculpture at the center and a huge contemporary sculptural table made of patinated bronze which is one of the best designs I have ever seen. It combines simplicity with absolute elegance. 



Galerie Negropontes   Photo: James Harris for Design Miami



Galerie Negropontes has a sleek booth, as always, with a handful of choice items including a fabulous console, titled “Under the Sheets,” by Gianluca Pacchioni, combining a patinated brass base and lovely green-gray quartzite stone top. There is also an unusual coffee table with a perforated milky glass top by Perrin & Perrin that is also new and beautiful. Classic meets contemporary here.



Charles Burnand Gallery   Photo: James Harris for Design Miami



Charles Burnand, in their first appearance at Design Miami, has a selection of attractive works by DenHolm, a longstanding gallery artist, and “La Misma Pietrasanta,” by Reynold Rodriguez, a cool hand-carved solid mahogany couch that resembles a collection of rocks balanced together that drew the attention of crowds eager for selfies sitting in it. 


Handcrafting is everywhere here and is as big a trend today as the thrust toward organic shapes and forms in design. Mindy Solomon filled her booth with flashy collectible ceramics. Hostler Burrows has a fabulous hand-crafted ceramic beaded chair by Loewe Craft Prize finalist Marianne Huotari, while R & Co and Carpenters Workshop Gallery brought a selection of their ambitious handmade designs. Both booths have a few quieter, impactful pieces such as a new 2023 iteration of Joyce Lin's well-known Exploded Chair at R & Co., this one crafted in white oak and suspended inside a plexiglass box. 



Galerie BSL



Galerie BSL has an impressive booth with examples of the Gandhara Carapace coffee table and chairs by the Beirut-based designer Nada Debs working in collaboration with Studio Lél, a Pakistan-based art collective that employs centuries-old hand craftsmanship. The pieces are clad with local blue, brown, yellow and green stone mosaic inlays arranged in a geometric design. These are special, unique design works that successfully merge different techniques, cultures, materials, and ideas. 


David Gill has returned to Miami this year for the first time in almost a decade with a group show of the gallery artists, dominated happily by several pieces from the late architect Zaha Hadid made of cast glass. The sinuous forms she created using computer modeling technologies remain unique in the design world and were executed with the architect’s unparalleled devotion to precision and detail. 


Cristina Grajales has a massive, magnificent carpet made of woven metallic materials by Hechizoo, a weaving atelier based in Bogotá, Colombia, which produces custom-made textiles. It’s a masterpiece, and if you look closely you can see that the design incorporates fine woven depictions of flowers from throughout the Americas. It is $70,000 and unique. Todd Merrill Studio is also showing contemporary designs with a flair for color and decoration including George Ranalli’s “Festa Credenza.”


Side Gallery has a thoughtful, inviting booth showcasing pieces by Max Collins, a British Jamaican designer, that are simple, and functional but also distinctive. Wexler has a really beautiful booth with lights by the Turkish artist Feyza Kemahlioglu that combine hand-blown glass with carved Meerschaum, mixed with other terrific designs including chairs by Ethiopian-born Jomo Tariku, one of the co-founders of BADG (Black Artists + Designers Guild) that take inspiration from Afro combs. 


These have been sold, as have several pieces at Mercado Moderno, with a terrific booth made up of Brazilian modern furniture mixed effortlessly with contemporary design. The gallery sold all four pieces on the stand by Gustavo Bittencourt, two chairs by Percival Lafer, and two chairs by Jorge Zalszupin. 

 

Though the fair is heavily weighted towards adventurous new design there are dealers here selling collectible historical design. Among the notable historical galleries, Patrick Seguin continues to show his roster of classic mid-century French designers with pieces by Jean Royère, Charlotte Perriand, Jean Prouvé, and Pierre Jeanneret. 



Moderne Gallery



At Moderne Gallery, several astonishing pieces by George Nakashima made an immediate impact, including an enormous two-piece split George Nakashima dining table and chairs that sold within moments after the fair opened. The gallery sold several other pieces from the booth including a pair of studio craft wood floor lamps circa 1970 by Michael Gilmartin. “We could have sold them ten times over,” said a gallery representative. 



Ethereal Desk and Chair by Marc Fish at Sarah Myerscough Gallery



Sarah Meyerscough has Gareth Neal’s giant urns made of 3D printed sand, an outrageously inventive use of new technology and materials alongside Marc Fish’s limited edition flowy, fluid console, table, and chair made of a mix of sycamore veneers and resin. These are gorgeous.



Victoria Yakusha   Photo: James Harris for Design Miami



The Curio program offers little booths, what the fair organizers call ‘cabinets of curiosity’, interspersed among the larger gallery booths, each curated around a creative concept. This year’s Curio program includes Tuleste Factory, a closely-watched dealer from New York, with a themed presentation titled, ‘The Zone’ that includes stone pieces by the creative Sten Studio from Mexico with other up-and-coming designers. Ukrainian designer Victoria Yakusha, also part of this section, is debuting an unorthodox seating collection with pieces in the shape of mythical animals composed of a new eco-friendly material made up of cellulose, clay, flax, fiber, and wood chips. 


The astonishing variety of artistry and skill on display confirms that design today is more ambitious, creative, thoughtful, and downright pleasurable than ever before, stocked with fresh creative voices from around the world.



Design Miami 2023 Gallery List

Adrian Sassoon, London

Aequo Gallery, Mumbai

Ateliers Courbet, New York

Atelier Ecru Gallery, Ghent

Bernard Goldberg Fine Arts, New York

Carpenters Workshop Gallery, London/Paris/New York/Los Angeles

Charles Burnand Gallery, London

Cristina Grajales, New York

David Gill Gallery, London

Diletante42, Sao Paolo

Friedman Benda, New York/Los Angeles

Galerie BSL, Paris

Galerie Mélissa Paul, London

Galerie Negropontes, Paris

Galerie Patrick Seguin, Paris

Galerie SCENE OUVERTE, Paris

Gallery FUMI, London

Hostler Burrows, New York/Los Angeles

Ippodo Gallery, New York

Jason Jacques, New York

Lebreton, Monaco

Magen H Gallery, New York

Maison Gerard, New York

Mercado Moderno, Rio de Janeiro

Mindy Solomon Gallery, Miami

Moderne Gallery, Philadelphia

Ornamentum, Hudson, New York

R & Company, New York

Sarah Myerscough Gallery, London

SIDE Gallery, Barcelona

Southern Guild, Cape Town

The Future Perfect, New York/Los Angeles

Todd Merrill Studio, New York

Twenty First Gallery, New York

Wexler Gallery, Philadelphia/New York


Curio List

AGO Projects, Mexico City

Aqua Creations, Bat Yam/Englewood

Elisabetta Cipriani, London

Emma Scully Gallery, New York

Harry Nuriev, Paris/New York

J. Lohmann Gallery, New York

Marta, Los Angeles

Rademakers Gallery, Amsterdam

Room 57 Gallery, New York


Design Miami 2023

Convention Center Drive & 19th Street Miami Beach, Miami


Public Show Days

Wednesday December 6/ 1pm–7pm

Thursday December 7/ 11am–7pm

Friday December 8/ 12pm–7pm

Saturday December 9/ 12pm–7pm

Sunday December 10/ 12pm–6pm


To learn more about the 19th edition of Design Miami, please visit designmiami.com