Rhode Island School of Design to Participate in ICFF + WantedDesign Manhattan During NYCxDESIGN 2023

Furniture Design department to present Rewilded Domesticity at WantedDesign Manhattan; RISD to also take part in panel discussion on design education and industry partnerships on event main stage

PROVIDENCE, RI  – April 27, 2023 – Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) is pleased to participate in the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) + WantedDesign Manhattan at the Jacob K. Javits Center during NYCxDESIGN 2023 from May 21–23 in New York, NY. This year RISD’s Furniture Design department will present Rewilded Domesticity at WantedDesign Manhattan (booth W1170). RISD will also take part in All Together Now: Designing for (and with!) the Next Generation, a panel discussion focused on design education and industry partnerships on May 22 at 2:30 pm, part of the ICFF + WantedDesign Manhattan Talks programming.

Rewilded Domesticity – WantedDesign Manhattan Booth W1170 (May 21–23)
Unbounded by any preexisting definitions or illusions of domestic bliss, Rewilded Domesticity represents a collection of objects that express a collective yearning for connection through bold, organic materiality, honest structure and the inherited wisdom of found artifacts. Acknowledging the angst of displacement, migration, disharmony and inhospitable conditions, these objects fiercely reclaim the agency to make a “home” in any situation and with any chosen collective. 

Created not as products, but as tools of in-person interaction, models of care and attention and vessels of meaning, these objects speak loudly of what is deemed to be missing in keyboard strokes, mouse clicks and digital socializing by choosing to demonstrate the physical, emotional and creative labor essential to establishing and nurturing genuine bonds. Not so much a nod to a former existence or traditional techniques, though many are deftly deployed, they serve as an intentional grounding in processes more earthly than virtual. The result is a form of generative utility that facilitates the reciprocal and life-sustaining feedback loop of meaningful connection.

The work includes Chair 03V08 Lite, Vessel 01 by Samuel Aguirre MFA 24 FD, Day Mantle (Heart of the Home) by Bill Carroll MFA 23 FD, Sinew Table by Louis Cohen MFA 23 FD, Untitled by Jonathan Samuel Dinetz BFA 24 FD, Chained Basket by Callum Houck BFA 23 FD, Eternal Recurrence – Landing by Michelle Jiaxin Huang BFA 23 FD, Twig Chair by Yuxuan Huang MFA 24 FD, Fraser Bench by Aydan Huseynli BFA 24 FD, New Land by Han-Ray Jahn BFA 23 FD, Sauna Stove by Cam Lasson BFA 2024 FD, Yellow Study by Theju Nimmagadda BFA 23 FD, Bowline Chair by Jan Rybczynski BFA 23 FD, Reflection Plane by Lisa Sacco MFA 23 FD, Plane Chair by Jake Stockman BFA 23 FD and Oak Chest by Kira Wilson BFA 24 FD. 

A selection of images from Rewilded Domesticity by photographer Erik Gould can be found here.

All Together Now: Designing for (and with!) the Next Generation – ICFF + WDM Talks Stage (May 22)
During the fair, RISD will also participate in a conversation on the power of mentorship and collaboration across generations. RISD Provost Anais Missakian and graduate student Bill Carroll MFA 23 FD will join Patricia Urquiola (founder, Studio Urquiola) and Giulio Cappellini (founder, Cappellini) to discuss the dynamic relationship between emerging talent and seasoned professionals as they shape the future of design together. The panel will be moderated by Interior Design magazine Editor-in-Chief Cindy Allen, presented with the support of Haworth. Register here to attend the talk on May 22 at 2:30 pm. All talks are open to ICFF + WantedDesign Manhattan event registrants.

Other RISD Participation at ICFF + WantedDesign Manhattan 2023
RISD student Sam Aguirre MFA 24 FD will also be showing work at WantedDesign Manhattan’s Launch Pad, a platform for emerging designers, under the studio name Samindaman.

RISD Furniture Design faculty members will also have a presence. Amy Devers MFA 01 FD, executive producer and host of Clever Podcast, will lead the jury for Launch Pad and present the Emerging Designers Showcase on the ICFF + WDM Talks Stage on May 21 at 4 pm. RISD faculty member Bowen Liu is exhibiting as part of Look Book, a platform dedicated to promoting design and fostering the local and international creative community, at WantedDesign Manhattan. 

About Furniture Design at RISD
Students in RISD’s Furniture Design department embark on a course of study encompassing theory, skills, context, research and professional practices. Drawing from a rich tradition, they are encouraged to experiment and work with a wide range of emerging materials and technologies, developing individual voices through the process of making. The program emphasizes the principles and practice of furniture design as well as the social value of art, design and responsible citizenship. 

About Rhode Island School of Design
RISD (pronounced “RIZ-dee”) is a creative community founded in 1877 in Providence, Rhode Island. Today, we enroll 2,620 students hailing from 59 countries. Led by a committed faculty, they are engaged in 44 full-time bachelor’s and master’s degree programs and supported by a worldwide network of over 31,000 alumni who demonstrate the vital role artists and designers play in today’s society.

Beyond facts and figures, what is the spirit of this community? Through a cross-disciplinary curriculum of studio-based learning and rigorous study in the liberal arts, RISD students are encouraged to develop their own personal creative processes, but they are united by one guiding principle: in order to create, one must question. In cultivating expansive and elastic thinking, RISD seeks to activate a critical exchange that empowers artists, designers and scholars to generate and challenge the ideas that shape our world. RISD’s mission, at both the college and museum, is not only to educate students and the public in the creation and appreciation of works of art and design, but to transmit that knowledge and make global contributions. Learn more at risd.edu.
 

RISD contact:
Jaime Marland
Senior Director, Public Relations / RISD
jmarland@risd.edu
401 427-6954