The Best of WantedDesign 2018

Keeping up its reputation for presenting some of the freshest and most cutting-edge design—whether locally from Brooklyn or as far away as Turkey and China—WantedDesign did not disappoint this year, showcasing a wide range of talent, from established brands to emerging talent. After culling the many presentations, collaborations, and initiatives, here’s what caught our eye from both the Industry City and Manhattan editions:

Top picks at WantedDesign Brooklyn

François Azambourg: A decade after producing his Douglas Glass series, designer François Azambourg decided to return to the project, reuniting with the glass workers at Centre International d’Art Verrier. Collaborating with Brooklyn Glass and designer Leo Tecosky, he reinterpreted the original creations, experimenting with new shapes and scales.

Azambourg Douglas Vase. Photo by Paul Clemence.

COULEUR exhibit: Curated by WantedDesign founders Odile Hainaut and Claire Pijoulat, the exhibit used color as a theme to feature the work of three new French designers. The elegant display, designed by Eve-Marine Basuyaux, included pieces by Julie Richoz, Ionna Vautrin, and Pernelle Poyet.

Couleur. Photo by Paul Clemence

Liz Collins: The artist-designer, known for her experimental knitting performance pieces and large-scale textile works, collaborated with flooring manufacturer Mohawk to create a colorful installation that blends handcraft with machine-made, making a visually enticing statement on process and binary approaches to cultural thinking.

Liz Collins. Photo by Paul Clemence

Top picks at WantedDesign Manhattan

At the Terminal Stores in Manhattan, the new Look Book section (a partnership with Modern) had its debut. “The idea was to facilitate their participation, in terms of budget and logistics, and make sure we give them a clear voice and visibility to reach out to interior designers in particular, as well as to an international audience,” explained WantedDesign co-founder Claire Pijoulat. Among the twelve studios selected were Yuko Nishikawa, Simon Johns, and Richard Clarkson. Furthermore the fair is adding new countries and regions to its roster of exhibits: “We are proud to welcome for the first time at WantedDesign the Shangai Design and Chile, confirming WantedDesign as the right platform to combine culture and commerce and to be the place for an international conversation,” noted co-founder Odile Hainaut.

Look Book area. Photo by Paul Clemence.

From China, the Shanghai Yipinghui Culture Development Group brought a talented group of porcelain artists, including Lin Langming, Wang Yuzhe, and Lu Yunhua, to the fair. The pieces exuded a fun and playful aesthetic, while also managing to be contemporary in feel.

Ypinghui Shanghai. Photo by Paul Clemence

The Fresh from Brazil paid homage to Brasilia, featuring designers from the iconic modern capital whose work took inspiration from the city’s architecture. Highlights in the presentation include furniture by Aciole Felix, which incorporates elements of Oscar Niemeyer’s designs, and Danilo Vale’s “Athos” chair developed in conjunction with the Athos Bulcão Foundation using the artist’s famous graphic iconography.

Fresh from Brazil. Photo by Paul Clemence

This year’s American Honor Award recipient, Oliver Haslgrave of Home Studios, is known for his distinct hotel and restaurant design. At Wanted, he flexed his creative muscle in a new arena, creating unique garment pieces displayed in a shimmering, avant-garde setting—demonstrating that his talents are not bound by any singular material or discipline.

Oliver Haslgrave, American Honors. Photo by Paul Clemence.

Food meets design

Tapping into the ever-expanding foodie trend, Wanted presented two edible projects that offered some interesting culinary ideas without forgoing design. At Industry City, Carolein Niebling took on the sausage, this well-known delicacy and reworked it for vegetarian-leaning eating habits. She approached it as “designer would a chair design,” imagining all its many possibilities but also with an eye on the technical aspects of production. The delicious tastings were set against a highly graphic display, featuring gorgeous photography by Emile Barret. The project was organized by the Consulate General of Switzerland and Swissnex in New York, and supported by ECAL and Lars Mueller Publishers.

Sausage of the Future. Photo by Paul Clemence

Then at the Manhattan venue, Zero Waste Bistro brought a taste of the healthy, sustainable food movement to New York with its zero food waste concept that made the Helsinki restaurant Nolla famous. The secluded dining room (located off of the main fair hall) was created using zero waste materials by Durat and ReWall. The installation was designed by Finnish designer Linda Bergroth with Finnish Design Shop, and features accessories by classic Finnish manufacturer’s such as Iittala and Artek. The project was curated by Bergoth and designer Harri Koskinen for the Finnish Cultural Institute of New York.

Zero Waste Bistro. Photo by Nicholas_Calcott