Be Original Americas Teams Up With Ace Hotel New York to Talk Design Originality

In an age defined by social media and unfettered exposure, designers are constantly faced with the challenge of protecting the integrity of their products and services in a highly competitive and rapidly evolving marketplace. To better understand the challenges of being a creative in the 21st century, Be Original Americas is debuting a showcase titled “Be Original Americas: Originality Deconstructed” at Ace Hotel New York later this month, in partnership with the Ace Hotel and Lumens.

Mounted by independent design writer and curator Adrian Madlener, the showcase will highlight physical designs, disassembled elements and raw materials by Be Original Americas members Emeco, Flos, Louis Poulsen and Suzanne Tick. By offering an in-depth look into the different aspects of production, including how materials are sourced and processed, the showcase aims to allow visitors to better understand issues surrounding both sustainability and the challenges of copyrighting design.

“This traveling exhibition is a unique opportunity to peek behind the curtain and discover the whys and hows of great design,” says Laura Walsh, Lumens CEO. “We’re so excited to learn more about the process behind so many of the brands that Lumens is proud to carry.”

To mark the debut of the installation, at 7pm ET on October 18, industry experts will come together at Ace Hotel New York for a discussion titled “Let’s Get Real: A Discussion about Counterfeit Design,” to highlight how brands and designers are counteracting the effects of the counterfeit market. The showcase, which commemorates Be Original Americas 10th anniversary, will be on display at Ace Hotel New York from October 19-30, and at Ace Hotel Palm Springs and Los Angeles in 2023. 

Family-Run Furniture Brand Orior Opens Global Flagship in SoHo

When Brian and Rosie McGuigan fled war-torn Northern Ireland for Copenhagen in the 1970’s, designing and building furniture was merely a pastime, the couple worked at a burger joint to pay the bills. But when they returned in 1979, they launched Orior, a family-run furnishings company (son Ciaran McGuigan is creative director) named after a street in Newry, their hometown. Today, Orior has opened a 2,500-square-foot global flagship in SoHo, with Connemara marble floor tiles at the entry and a quartet of oak-trimmed archways delineating zones. Vignettes feature funky pieces from the spring ’22 collection, like the walnut Brea side table, a whimsical riff on ’80’s-era waterbeds with rounded edges and a channeled-leather drawer front. Nearby, op art rugs by the McGuigans’ daughter, Katie Ann, juxtapose Corca, a retro side table with a tubular cast-bronze base and a translucent top, in Irish crystal, of course. oriorfurniture.com

Quincy Ellis’ Solo Exhibition in Chelsea Explores The Many Shades of Skin Tones

What color is nude anyway? It’s a question Quincy Ellis of Facture Studio, based in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, asked with “Tone,” his solo summer exhibition at Tuleste Factory, a Chelsea gallery founded by sisters Satu and Celeste Greenberg. On one level, the circular pieces are color studies, with gently blurred gradients of saturation and hue. But on a deeper level, they explore the idea that skin tones, like colors themselves, are many, varied, and multiple. Indeed, all the shades in the Tone Halo series are taken from Ellis’s own skin, showing the breadth and variety that can be present on a single body. His eight wall objects are 6 feet in diameter and made from aluminum and wood surfaced with resin polished to a smooth-as-glass finish.

Makers from Guadalajara and New York Collaborate on Satin-Glazed Ceramics

In 2018, José Noé Suro of Cerámica Suro, a leading ceramics workshop in Mexico, was visiting New York when he stumbled upon a line gathered outside a factory building. It led him into a pottery sale, where he met ceramicist and photographer Helen Levi. Talks of a collaboration between the Guadalajara maker and Queens-based New York native began shortly thereafter. The resulting satin-glazed earthenware series consists of two tile groupings. Hand-painted 3 ½-square-inch Color Field is like mini abstract-art canvases, while the solid Corduroy, in 3 ½- or 4 ½-square sizes, recalls its namesake fabric. Proof of the tiles’ desirability? Peach Color Fields have just been installed at the latest outpost of woman-owned brewery Talea Beer Co. in Williamsburg.

This Weekend Home in Amagansett, New York Reflects an Elevated, Oceanside Vibe

After purchasing a 2-acre lot in the Hamptons—within walking distance to the beach—a New York City couple with college-aged children turned to designer, Monica Fried, for advice on envisioning their oceanside retreat.

Spread over approximately 7,000 square feet, the modern new build by Thomas Heine Architect and Cardel Development features an open-plan living area on the ground floor sans formal walls, allowing one room to flow seamlessly into the next. The large entry and living room meld into the kitchen, dining area and family room while an L-shape shows off the pool in the interior courtyard, which is framed by a pool house on the opposite side. The private spaces for the family occupy the upper level while a full basement comprises a room with bunk beds as well as a gym.

With such close proximity to the ocean, Fried drew inspiration from the natural landscape, introducing a palette of blues, ivories and sand tones, which happen to be the homeowners’ favorite colors. To bring interest and texture into the space while adding warmth, the designer turned to a mix of natural oak for the window frames, doors, and ceiling details. Stone and marble accents add more visual interest, drawing attention to the fireplace, as does the Christophe Delcourt Lek sofa coated in a Geiger fabric in the living room.

“The vibe is modern with a mix of organic and vintage, which is something we like to bring to every project,” says Fried, noting that all the furnishings were designed or purchased specifically for the home. Inviting and relaxed yet sophisticated and timeless, this coastal refuge has everything the homeowners have always dreamed of—and more. 

Kickie Chudikova Unveils Her ‘Spiral of Life’ Installation in DUMBO

Most public benches hardly command a glance, let alone offer meditations on their surroundings, but designer Kickie Chudikova set out to change that. Her public sculpture, Spiral of Life, offers a sinuous contrast to its linear backdrop beneath the Brooklyn Bridge, and was unveiled before an intimate crowd September 15 as a winner of NYCxDESIGN’s inaugural IMPACTxDESIGN competition.

As part of the IMPACTxDESIGN competition, designers were challenged to use Caesarstone’s material in new ways to foster public engagement and community—Spiral of Life does exactly that. Chudikova’s sculpture, which doubles as a conversation starter, seems as if it’s always in motion given its undulating form made from waterjet-cut pieces of Caesarstone’s quartz Outdoor Collection.

“The whole idea was to give people a playground to sit however they like,” Chudikova told Debbie Millman, host of The Mic podcast, during a panel discussion later that evening at BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group‘s DUMBO office. “It’s such a challenge to design something three-dimensional out of two-dimensional slabs.” She shared that a childhood toy of a dinosaur skeleton served as inspiration. Like the toy, her modular bench consists of bonelike pieces connected by a single metal structure.

The installation’s form also nods to the gentle waves of the Hudson River and the sculptures of Isamu Noguchi. This project, says Chudikova, offered “an opportunity to work with quartz in a new and exciting way without the fear of discoloration and staining.” Chudikova’s confidence in the material is evident in her color choice—the bench is an eggshell shade of white.

NYCxDESIGN and Caesarstone brought the installation to life in collaboration with the NYC Department of Transportation’s Art Program, Dumbo Improvement District, and Design Trust for Public Space.

An Immersive Design Experience in New York City Celebrates Black Ingenuity

In 2018, artist and designer Malene Barnett founded the Black Artists and Designers Guild, a community-driven nonprofit, to increase visibility, equality, and entrepreneurship among the Black creative community. So far, it’s yielded plenty of success: Barnett unveiled a textiles collection with S. Harris, several BAGD designers launched an elevated home collection for Pottery Barn inspired by the concept of “Black joy,” and members have spoken at prominent art schools and high-profile industry events, including NYCxDESIGN. But the guild is just getting started.

“Interior Design is proud to be the media sponsor of the Black Artists + Designers Guild BADG of HONOR Awards, celebrating the extraordinary contribution that Black creatives bring to the growth and development of our industry,” notes Cindy Allen, editor in chief. “We’re grateful to BADG for supporting and shining a light on such amazing talent and are excited to feature and promote the next great generation of Black architects and designers.”

In a well-designed space, there should be room for everybody. “By creating immersive experiences,” explains Barnett, “we foster conversations on how space-making can form the foundation for Black creatives to maintain physical, social, emotional, and creative well-being.”

Sculptor Vince Palacios Unveils His ‘Potato Trees’ in a New York Exhibition This Fall

Sculptor and ceramics professor Vince Palacios was born in Michigan and is based in California. Yet for his latest body of work, he references, among other inspirations, Peru—particularly taken with the the notion that a certain tuber symbolizes purity there. For “Haptic Memory,” at Gabriel & Guillaume in New York this fall, his series of “potato trees” nods to the food’s bulbous and awkward, yet beautiful and essential qualities. “I’m most interested in the unexpected things that emerge in the moment,” he says.

Indeed, the vessels are delightfully surprising, a result of manipulating clay by wheel and hand, then treating it with glaze and various flux before it undergoes multiple firings. “We all have bumps and lumps, my goal is to cause viewers to reflect on finding a way of fitting in.” Gabriel & Guillaume has done just that, this exhibition launching cofounders Nancy Gabriel and Guillaume Excoffier’s first permanent location. They’ve chosen to put down roots in the landmarked Steinway Hall (now, with a new adjoining tower by SHoP Architects and Studio Sofield, called 111 West 57th Street), engaging design agency FrenchCalifornia and Cueto Art Advisory to establish 17S, a former duplex apartment, as a soaring, 5,000-square-foot gallery.

Take a Deep Dive into This Contemporary Kitchen by Bilotta Kitchen & Home and Dufner Heighes

Some house-hunters have a wine cellar or infinity-edge pool at the top of their lust list; others covet a four-car garage or a double-sided fireplace. Erica Holborn dreamt of one day owning a house with a butler’s pantry. The Sandow Design Group CEO finally got her wish two years ago when she and her husband, Andrew, purchased a historic property in Pelham, New York, with a generously sized scullery tucked between the kitchen, dining room, and entry hall. So when the couple embarked on a renovation of the kitchen proper, they naturally intended to keep the pantry separate. 

But as the Holborns’s interior designers, Daniel Heighes Wismer and Greg Dufner of Dufner Heighes, started hashing out the new scheme with cabinetry specialist Bilotta Kitchen & Home, it quickly become apparent that something had to give. “We were working on a plan maintaining the original footprint,” Heighes Wismer explains. “But the main kitchen space had an unusual and problematic shape and was quite small; Andrew cooks a lot and felt that it just was too snug.” Plus, the designer adds, the center island was underscaled and awkward—conducive neither to cooking nor eating. “It only sat two people and was weirdly square.” The configuration just wasn’t proving functional for heavy-duty family use. 

Collaborator Sarah Witkin of Bilotta Architecture suggested rethinking the option of tearing down the structural wall between the butler’s pantry and kitchen and combining the two zones. Such a move would not only open up the floor plan, freeing up enough square footage to design around how the family really lives, but it would also maximize natural light, since the contemporary kitchen would gain one more window in the process. Although merging the spaces would certainly entail a more comprehensive renovation—new structural steel, rerouting plumbing and electrical, etc.—the team ultimately decided it made the most sense. “My dream has always been to have a butler’s pantry,” says Holborn, “and then I finally get one—and go, ‘tear it out!’” Luckily, she and her family gained much in the process. Here’s how the space came together—and a close-up of its key features.

custom cabinetry ties together old and new

Cabinets were specified in Dove White paint, which disguises the classical detailing somewhat to assert a more modern vibe. That same reasoning informed the choice of square-top trim (rather than crown molding) along the ceiling. “That way, it doesn’t distract from the more classical original woodwork of the door frames,” Bilotta says. “We were very conscious of the abundant detail in the rest of the house.” Brass hardware plays surprisingly nicely with the brushed stainless-steel finish of the exposed appliances (only the refrigerator is hidden behind panels). “The mix of gold and silver tones works really well here, especially with the overall gray-and-black palette,” Bilotta says. Adds Witkin, “It’s a classic white kitchen but the finishes and furnishings make it playful and extraordinarily unique.”

stone topped the wishlist for the contemporary kitchen backsplash and countertop

a playful pattern defines this tile floor

an airy dining nook completes the contemporary kitchen

The stone wall below the breakfast nook windows is a holdover from when the space was an outdoor porch. Dufner Heighes designed a built-in wraparound banquette to maximize space and create more room for circulation than a traditional table/chairs setup would allow. The stone did make for tricky millwork installation, Bilotta recalls. “We had to fool around a lot with the paneling to get the bench just right, but the result is amazing.” The Wishbone chairs are by Hans Wegner.

the mudroom serves as an extension of the contemporary kitchen

When the Holborns purchased the property, the zone adjacent to the kitchen served as a small family room. The homeowners decided to convert the space, which connects to the back entrance, into a mudroom. “The shape of the little den wasn’t really conducive to hanging out, and the space is right off the driveway, so the conversion made sense,” Holborn explains. (A newly added second door now leads to the backyard, making it more accessible.) The design team specified the same cabinetry and flooring that was used in the kitchen proper, so the two spaces read as continuous. The mudroom functions as a hardworking hub for hanging coats, donning shoes, and storing kitchen gadgets; plus, the addition of window seats and a central table suits it to use as a breakfast nook, too. 

Cabinetry is increasingly being specified in locations beyond the kitchen and bath—from bars to libraries to TV rooms, Bilotta notes. “Our business really focuses on whatever room can have cabinetry in it, and as open-plan and one-room living have boomed, we’re doing more in those types of spaces than ever before.” 

bespoke accent tables add a touch of whimsy throughout

The kitchen and mudroom are not the only areas of the house that showcase stunning stones. Dufner Heighes specified the material for decorative touches in other rooms, too, including bespoke accent tables. In the sunroom, a multi-height Iacoli & McAllister coffee table sports a custom top in Turkish rainbow onyx from Artistic Tile; intriguingly, the veining runs in a different direction on each level. “That’s one of my favorite pieces in the entire house,” Holborn notes. “Everyone who comes over comments on that table. It makes the room.”

And in the family room, pinky Cosmopolitan quartzite tops a Fly cocktail table designed by Space Copenhagen. The Brazilian stone floats atop the table base rather than wrap around it—an effect at once grounded and elevated. “The table comes standard with a white-stone top and we thought, ooh, let’s put something more interesting on that,” Dufner recalls. “Using bold, traditional marbles on really simple modern pieces creates such a nice dynamic.” The use of slabs for small accent tables is great way to play around with a more exuberantly veined or patterned variety, Levinson agrees notes. “Both the Rainbow onyx and the Cosmopolitan are pretty intense when you see the full slabs on display in our Secaucus slab gallery, but fabricated and put in place, they’re definitely not overpowering.”

Artistic Tile: Flooring, Counters

bilotta: Cabinetry

CARL HANSEN & SØN: chairs, stools

e15 through stillfried wien: table

Louis Poulsen: Pendants

bilotta: Cabinetry

seungjin yang through the future perfect: pink stool

Suh Architects and HLW Elevate the Car-Buying Experience With Genesis House, New York

2022 Best of Year Winner for Mixed Showroom

IIDA Winner for Showrooms & Exhibition Spaces

If car-buying were ever elevated to a multicultural experience, it’s at Genesis House, the three-level, 9,600-square-foot endeavor that’s part showroom (for Genesis vehicles, the luxury division of South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group), part hospitality venue. “We love that the project creates a conversation with New York,” says Kyungen Kim, principal of Suh Architects in Seoul. HLW principal and managing director Edward Shim, Kim’s Manhattan-based counterpart, concurs: “Our intent was an immersive experience that’s traditionally Korean, yet distinctly New York.”

The powerful brand-ethos connection begins at street level, where a metallic mesh curtain spanning the front facade drapes over new car models and a stunning installation of hinged portals (think automotive gull-wing doors) hangs against a wall of weathering steel. Adjacent to the showroom, more than 91,000 flip-top copper discs tell the story of where the new Genesis introductions have recently arrived. The second floor, accessed by a connecting stair, alludes to a Korean village. Below a dimensional oak roofscape, inspired by Seoul’s Unhyeongung Palace, are zones for a central tea pavilion set with a curated library and artisanal vessels, plus a restaurant, bar, gift shop, and seating areas. An adjacent terrace with views of the High Line and the Hudson River extends the experience. The third level is a below-grade auditorium, its concrete, blackened steel, and wood finishes plus an all-encompassing stage with LED panels as striking as any event to ensue.

suh architects: eulho suh; KyunGEn kim

HLW: Edward shim

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