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DESIGN MIAMI/ BASEL TO PRESENT THREE EXHIBITIONS THAT FOCUS ON THE PRESENCE OF THE PAST IN CONTEMPORARY DESIGN

EXHIBITIONS CURATED BY ECAL, IKEPOD AND CASA BRUTUS

Enhancing an already remarkable and wide-reaching program of events, Design Miami/ Basel will host three additional on-site exhibitions, each of which taking as its theme the presence of the past in contemporary design.

FIREWORKS
Under the guidance of Max Lamb, one of the 2008 Design Miami/ Basel Designers of the Future, industrial design students from The Ecole cantonale d’art de Lausanne’s (ECAL), one of Europe’s most respected art colleges, will present their third Design Miami/ exhibition. Working in collaboration with leading glass designer Matteo Gonet, the students explore the traditional art of glassblowing, creating a collection of lighting fixtures called Fireworks. The title, which plays on the technical requirements of the glassblowing process, likewise describes the explosive creativity that ECAL students’ design training brings to this ancient method. Each piece redefines the craft and reveals new possibilities for the future of the technique.

IKEPOD
Also applying a 21st-century mindset to a historic model is Marc Newson, whose exhibition will be a recreation of the final room from Stanley Kubrick’s influential sci-fi classic 2001: A Space Odyssey. On view will be examples of Newson’s contemporary interpretations of 1960s “space age” designs including his Embryo Chair, Canteen Table, Super Guppy Lamp, Black Hole Table, TV Chairs, and Bucky Ball. Of particular note, the Bucky Ball will be filled with Newson’s latest IKEPOD wristwatch collection, Solaris, a series that resulted from his fascination with the relationship between time and space. IKEPOD is a luxury brand of timepieces that combines economy of gesture, cutting-edge technology and sensuality of materials.

Hiroshi Nakamura (photo credit: Kosuke Mae)

WHAT IS NEXT?
Traditionally, museum architecture has been modeled after Greek and Roman temples, however, in recent years, Japanese architects have begun to generate a new aesthetic standard through commissions by many of the world’s most significant cultural institutions. What is Next? is a compelling installation of conceptual designs created for Japanese Architects Award: Projects for a Private Museum in the XXIst Century, a competition to design a new contemporary art museum to be built in Mexico City. Yoshikuni Shirai, Editor-in-Chief of Casa Brutus, The Jumex Collection, one of the most important private collections of contemporary art in Latin America, and New York’s Yoshii Gallery curated the exhibition. Intended to highlight the growing prominence of young Japanese architects, participants include Sou Fujimoto, Akihisa Hirata, Hiroshi Nakamura, Mt. Fuji Architects Studio (Masahiro Harada & Mao Harada), and TNA (Makoto Takei & Chie Nabeshima) and will be housed in a space designed by Fujimoto. All of the architects will be on hand during Design Miami/ Basel to discuss their work.

These exhibitions will take place at the Markthalle, Viaduktstrasse 10, Basel, Switzerland. Regular show hours will be from 11:00am – 7:00pm, Tuesday, June 3 through Thursday, June 5.