In my line of work, it’s wonderful how often the line between business and pleasure gets beautifully blurred. Like during my recent buying trip to the New York Now Market for Home & Lifestyle, where I got to source new pieces, meet new artisans and craftspeople, and – perhaps best of all – connect with many of the vendors that we at Unison already have the pleasure of working with.
Check it out:
Workaday Handmade was exhibiting some really unique etched, dark stoneware in geometric pattern. I love the contrast of painterly and marbled style with that of geometric pieces.
Also, I noticed the great material play of their plywood backdrop: it really helps the ceramics stand out.
River Song Jewelry had an amazing textile collection, all limited run and hand made in Mexico of very substantial wool. Look at the great pops of color against the natural wool. Very dimensional and tactile quality.
The Areaware booth displayed new colors in Brendan Ravenhill’s magnetic bottle opener. We’re big fans of color here at Unison, and I picture these integrating wonderfully with our Shapes table linens.
Also, the vibe and imagery of their booth was a showpiece: very SoCal summer, modern/relaxed.
Good Thing! Glad to finally meet Jamie and Sam in person – and see their new line of spun aluminum trays. Very original use of material, and great execution, made in the USA. (Similar to the reasons we already love their undeniably stylish Utility Hand Mirrors.)
Another highlight of the show: these Ruutu vases by Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec for Iittala. These striking pieces are mouth blown and meant to be layered, creating unique color fields and geometric structures.
I love how the vases draw upon Iittala‘s and Nuutajärvi‘s rich history of colored glass from the 50s and 60s.
Beyond the show, it was great to see the body of work at the Matisse cut-out exhibit at MoMA. From early development to the large, full-room environment, it was very impressive.
The paintings are very much like textiles in their color, scale, and repetition. I can see how they influenced Maija Isola of Marimekko in the 60s.