Found at ICFF

Maria Huiza, co-founder of Juntos Projects 

Exhibiting new materially experimental yet typologically  decipherable furnishings within the WANTED Look Book section over the past few years, New York-based studio Juntos Projects continues to set a quality standard for the showcase. For co-founder Maria Huiza, having a presence at the fair has been incredibly beneficial. 

“During the first year at the show, we met Rebecca Hernandez from interiors studio LOVEISENOUGH Studio, who was drawn to our work and commissioned custom pieces for Trailborn Highlands, a boutique hotel in North Carolina,” she explains. “The project not only came to life beautifully but also gained widespread recognition.” Multiple magazine features highlighting the project but also introducing the practice culminated in Juntos Projects receiving a Best of Year Award from Interior Design Magazine and an Emerging Hotel Concept at the Gold Key Award for Excellence in Hospitality Design Magazine, presented by Boutique Design Magazine.

During its second time showing, the studio’s founders met Colin Stief and Sarah Zames of Assembly Line, the revered Brooklyn-based showroom that now represents them exclusively in New York. 

Lawrence Godfried, owner of Terrazo by Lorenzo

For Lawrence Godfried, owner of contemporary art furniture studio Terrazo by Lorenzo, exhibiting at ICFF many moons ago led to an unexpected commission that lasted for a decade, opened a new facet of his practice, and became a substantial source of revenue. 

“I found the facilities director of the Guggenheim Museum NYC in my booth at ICFF,” he explains. “They told me they had just renovated the entire museum, but they were at a loss for how to restore their iconic spiraling terrazzo ramps as they could find no one suitable to get the job done correctly. They were impressed with the terrazzo designs I exhibited at ICFF and asked me to assess their terrazzo floors.”

For the following 10 years, Godfried was the go-to restorers for various architectural elements of the landmarked museum. “You never know what you’ll find or who will find you at the ICFF,” he adds. 

Silvina Chialva, director of Black Oveja 

Silvina Chialva, director of Argentinian gallery Black Oveja, ‘found’ their U.S. sales rep and distributor—Truesdale Fine Surfaces—while exhibiting as part of the 2023 edition of WANTED. “We started to talk after the show, the company learned about our product, and we built a relationship,” she says. “One month before WANTED 2024, they announced that they wanted to represent Black Oveja in the country and presented with us at the show.”

Alec Holland, principal of Alec Holland Design 

“I met the incredible Elizabeth Lyons of More Fire Glass Studio and fell in love with her hand blown glass and wrought iron flowering branches, ” says Alec Holland, principal of his eponymously named New York interior design studio. “We ended up collaborating on a few projects, the most recent was featured in AD Italia, House & Garden, Archello, and other publications.”

Justin Nelson, owner of Fernweh Woodworking

“In 2022, we had a momentous first encounter with future friend and partner Jomo Tariku,” says Justin Nelson, owner of Bend, Oregon-based studio Fernweh Woodworking, which now fabricates the Virginia-based talent’s iconic Nyala Chair. “We chatted on instagram a couple years before we met in person at our booth at ICFF but meeting in person catapulted our friendship and opened the doors to discussions of collaboration. Jomo came out to the studio last year and we were able to capture the launch of our partnership in a short film by Benjamin Edwards. We’re grateful that ICFF brought us together.” 

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