Design Miami, Basel 2015
Design Miami, an international forum for designers and galleries from around the world to display their art work, had its 10th iteration this year in Basel, Switzerland. A host of contemporary exhibits of lighting, furniture and objets d’art were on display in this arena and some of the freshest talent from around the globe was present. Gallery ALL’s exhibit, with designers Aranda\Lasch, Zhoujie Zhang, Naihan Li, Trent Jansen and Chen Lu, put forth a display whose highlight was a seamless union between materiality, abstraction and functionality. The overall visual was a pleasant medley between digitally morphed brass furniture with the rustic charm of well crafted wood. With an old country manor feeling to the entire setting, the lighting design and furniture well complemented each other. 
The Brass Split Chair, Brass Bow Tie Chair and Heart Chair by Zhoujie Zhang The chairs are a part of Zhoujie Zhang’s Brass Collection developed with Endless Forms, Zhoujie’s own personal digital fabrication system that generates an ever changing family of objects. With multiple trail runs and extreme caution, these crystal like forms have been evolved over time in brass. The Cloth Valet ,Bar, Birmingham Library Sidetable and the Leeds Broadcasting Tower Cabinet by Naihan Li The Cloth Valet is the newest addition to the CRATES series by Naihan Li. Inspired by the uncertainty of Beijing’s shifting urban landscape, the CRATES series brings with it the functional nature of a shipping container, modular in nature and with a whole world of opportunities once opened up.Extremely quirky in nature, the Birmingham Library Side Table and the Leeds Broadcasting Tower Cabinet are a playful yet classy addition to any room, from the I AM A MONUMENT series by Naihan Li.
Another foldable object from the CRATES series, the bar on wheels is a translation of one of Naihan Li’s favourite activities, travelling the world with foldable furniture on wheels!The Metal Low Chair by Aranda\Lasch One wonders how comfortable it would be but honestly if I had a chair as stunning as that I’d probably never sit on it! The Briggs Family Tea Service by Trent Jansen Symbolizing the beginning of a hybrid culture with the marriage of George Briggs – a free settler in Tasmania to Woretermoeteyenner of the Pairrebeenne people and the four children they had together. The Tea Service takes the materials common for water holding in each culture – Porcelain in Britain and Bull Kelp in Tasmania and unites them in the most harmonious manner. The Dream Lantern is a modern day rendition of the magic lamps and lanterns of the late 18th to mid-19th century. Cordless and mobile, the lamp is flexible enough to be used as a pendant light or as a table lamp. Replacing the ‘slides’ of the magic lantern with 4 discs, the lamp changes its aura with the application of each shade.
By : Shamita Chaudhry
