The Crossroads

Located at the back of the 800 + 900 aisles,

next to WantedDesign Manhattan

The Crossroads is the new heart and showpiece of ICFF and WantedDesign Manhattan. Creative Director David Rockwell and Rockwell Group with Editor/Co-Curator Pei-Ru Keh have created a playful and immersive environment in ode to two pillars of Americana – the great outdoors and the American home, which simultaneously nods to the interplay of contrasts amongst the works and objects on display.

Divided into several spaces, which include a communal area anchored by Fort Standard’s oversized striped dining table, a gallery of objects highlighting the diversity in practice, origin and method of practitioners that straddle both form and function, and a casual configuration of stools made by the members of Lumber Club Marfa, a woodworking club of girls aged 7-14, the installation serves as a space for visitors to both discover and reflect on the breadth of American design.

The inspiration
Like the inherent duality within the United States itself, the American design landscape has evolved from providing practical, industrial design-led solutions to creating more artistic, fantasy-driven pieces that are rich in narrative. In the last two decades, American designers have increasingly incorporated provenance, materiality, texture, and color in their work, embracing diversity and disruption in both methodology and aesthetics to respond to the social issues facing the world today.

From the established to the emerging, The Crossroads offers a snapshot of American design in its many shapes and forms. United by entrepreneurship, individuality and a love of making, this showcase of designers and studios from across the country kick starts a conversation about what American design can mean, at the junction of the city’s two major design fairs – ICFF and WantedDesign Manhattan – newly under the same leadership for the first time.

Monday, May 22, 4pm – “Meet the designers” at the Crossroads
Join Co-Curator and Editor, Pei-Ru Keh, and Rockwell Group Principal, Barry Richards, for a brief introduction to The Crossroads and its participating designers. Together, they will share the concept behind the The Crossroads installation and speak candidly with some of the designers about what American design means to them.

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Creative Direction:
David Rockwell and Rockwell Group

Editor/Co-Curator:
Pei-Ru Keh

Dialogues at The Crossroad moderator:
Tiffany Jow, editor-in-chief of the design journal Untapped,

Partners include:
B Zippy
Drop It Modern
Superflower Studio
Coil+Drift
Fort Standard
Bower Studios
Ladies & Gentlemen Studio

Contributors include:
Alexis Tingey, Bradley Bowers – Emma Scully Gallery, David Weeks Studio, Grain, Liam Lee, Lumber Club Marfa, Nifemi Ogunro, Norman Teague Design Studio, Sophie Lou Jacobsen, and Sunshine Thacker – Love House.