Home » Decorating + Design, Design Trends

Design Miami 2008 Highlights – Part One

Submitted by Editor The Decorating Diva.com on Wednesday, 3 December 2008

Design Miami 2008 in one word: Impressive. A must see for the design aficionado. Not just for the designs exhibited but for the breathtaking structure that houses said exhibits. The Design Miami exhibition structure was created by the New York-based architectural firm Aranda/Lash, and sets the tone for the outstanding and innovative design finds housed within.

Exterior “lace draped” entry – Design Miami Exhibit Hall and detail view of “structural lace”

Beyond Organic: Design in the State of Nature is the first Design Miami in-house curated exhibit. This exhibit is a stylish nod to the role nature has in design.

GLASSLAB performed live outside, creating unique and beautiful glassware. They captured the attention of the press, and the general public as they demonstrated the age-old technique of glassmaking. GLASSLAB design performances at Design Miami 2008: Dec 3/Dec.4/Dec.5/Dec. 6 (11:00a.m.-1:15p.m., 2:00p.m.-4:15p.m.,5:00p.m-7:15p.m.)

Tom Dixon’s installation of heavyweight furniture created through the industrial process of flame cutting steel. The furniture was designed and created for the grounds of the 14th century Sudeley Castle.

One of my personal favorite’s was the Al Sabah Art & Design Collection. The Bokja design collection by the very talented artist/designer team of Hoda Baroudi and Maria Hibri is pictured below. Their fresh, colorful approach to design married with the artisanal traditions of the East creates a unique, original piece of furniture with a story of its own. The Bokja collection is housed in a Design Miami satellite location on 40th NE street. You must make time to visit and enjoy this amazing visual experience. Actually, the entire experience at Al Sabah’s exhibit was extraordinary. From the beautiful music, incredible fragrances and delicious Middle Eastern treats created an environment that delighted, enticed and seduced the senses. Like I said, you have to make Al Sabah Art & Design Collection a must see on your Design Miami/, Art Basel and Art Miami excursions this week and over the weekend.

Industrial Organic Chic by Sebastian Erranzuriz from Cristina Grajales Inc (New York). The images speak for themselves. Mr. Erransuriz is a tremendously talented artist that has captured and fused the beauty of nature with the hard reality of industrial materials like glass and steel. My favorite pieces are the bamboo plant wall shelf “Bilbao”- absolutely ingenious design and the rooted tree table base. I like the duck lamp for its surreal beauty and the fashion in which the lamp mimics the duck’s posture (had it had a duck head).

David Wiseman’s collage chandelier and wall sculpture. Beautiful. Inspiring.Captivating. Ground-breaking. Just a few words to describe this work of art. Take it in for yourself at R 20th Century’s exhibit booth.

NEXT IN SERIES: Design Miami 2008 Part II - Bursts of Color and Style Collisions. Get the latest installment of our Design Miami 2008 coverage. Follow us on twitter or subscribe to our RSS feeds below.

Share |

(c)2003-2009. The Decorating Diva LLC. Reprint permission.

2 Comments »

  • Kelly said:

    Thanks for this very great post. I will read the other parts as well :)

    - 14 January 2009 at 7:55 am
  • Laurie Suzuki said:

    The light fixtures and wall sculptures are absolutely gorgeous. I have not seen anything like it! What a statement piece! Impossible not to notice in a home.

    Laurie Suzuki
    http://www.yumiandlaurie.com/

    - 11 February 2009 at 5:28 pm