The "idea of limitless imagination" drove this year's Design Miami

Works by designer Mathieu Lehanneur, architect Javier Senosiain and artist A$AP Rocky were among those shown at the Design Miami fair, which was curated by New York-based writer Glenn Adamson during Miami art week.

The show, which took place last week, featured more than 40 galleries and brands arranged in booths in a tent across from the Miami Beach Convention Center and was organised around Adamson's theme of "blue sky thinking".

For Adamson, the concept connotes the "imaginative leap intrinsic to the design practice" as well as the current need for "optimism in the face of a challenge".

"What makes design different from fine art – or even poetry, music, other disciplines – is that designers need to not only imagine the future, but they need to build it in a very practical way," he said.

"So the functionality and the materiality of the objects that you see throughout the fair, whether they're historical or contemporary, are in an extremely powerful combination with that idea of the limitless imagination," Adamson added.

The fair was organised into two primary sections: gallery and curios, with a number of special projects spread through the thoroughfares and gathering areas.

Outside, a large-scale installation based on jewellery design by designer Nicole Nomsa Moyo was shown – part of an installation that was also on show in the Miami Design District.

Inside the front entrance was an installation by Lehanneur, who designed the torch for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Directly referencing Adamson's theme, it featured a wall covered in hand-crafted ceramic tulips wrapping the entrance to the fair.

Further along, California-based design duo the Haas Brothers showcased a massive tree called the Strawberry Tree as part of New York-based gallery R & Company's booth, which also featured work by artist Katie Stout.

The Strawberry Tree was made from bronze with thousands of Venetian beads woven together to resemble natural patterns. Originally commissioned by the Nasher Sculpture Center, the work represented a "return" for the brothers after having explored the art world.

"This is where we grew up, inside of Design Miami," Nikolai Haas told Dezeen.

"And for us to come back around and represent ourselves with the work that was the largest commission that we've made so far, it just made a lot of sense, to bring it back home."

Another noteworthy special project was the design for the talks stage, which was formulated by Swiss brand USM to resemble a listening room, with speakers by Devon Turnbull's audio brand Ojas and chairs by LA designer Willet.

The gallery section of the show saw a mix of industrial and decorative works, past and present.

American gallery Friedman Benda won the Best Gallery award for its showing, which included a collection of colourful tiled furniture created on a commission basis by Senosiain.

It also featured an oversized, minimalist wooden lamp by Italian design studio Formafantasma and a cabinet by Bentley Light House Award 2024 winner Fernando Laposse.

A number of well-known institutions who had never shown at Design Miami before also took part, such as Anna Karlin from New York and Blunk Space from Los Angeles.

Blunk Space, which was founded to honour artist JB Blunk, featured a number of works directly informed by Blunk's work, including a series of panelled shelves made from salvaged redwood by London-based designer Rio Kobayashi, informed by Blunk's home. The booth won the Best Curio award.

The city of Barcelona sponsored a booth curated by Illacions Gallery that featured a series of conceptual and functional furniture meant to represent the design scene of that city, including a bent aluminium chair with an internal spring by Spanish studio Kutarq that combined principles of lounge and rocking chairs.

California designer Sam Klemick showed at Objective Gallery alongside other US-based designers such as Jack Simonds and Luke Malaney as well as Jeff Martin from Vancouver.

Klemick, who showed at Alcova Miami in 2023, said Design Miami's layout made the space feel "bigger".

Fashion brand Fendi exemplified airiness with its booth, spreading just a few "patchwork" wooden furniture pieces by London-based designer Lewis Kemmenoe across its massive booth.

Nearby, Italian furniture manufacturer Gufram teamed up with A$AP Rocky's brand Hommemade to create a series of blow-up skylines and a large multi-media console with a space-age vibe.

There were also some interactive and playful designs, such as a concrete ping-pong table in the booth of James De Wulf that was used by visitors to the fair.

Another crowd favourite was a chair made from rubber constructed with leather techniques by India-based Chamar Studio, showcased at the Aequo booth, which aimed to combine traditional Indian craft with contemporary design.

Beverage company Saratoga Spring Water partnered with colour company Pantone and designer Emilie Baltz to create a multi-sensory installation featuring Saratoga's signature blue. This recently became an official colour for Pantone, which also released its Color of the Year last week.

The photography is by Kris Tamburello unless otherwise stated.

Design Miami took place from 3 to 8 December. For more global events in architecture and design visit Dezeen Events Guide. 

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