ICFF 2009 - Part 3 (Japanese Pavilion & Greenjeans Faves)

In my last installment of ICFF 2009 coverage, we take a look at the rich, atmospheric Japanese Pavilion as well as some highlights by some of our favorite designer/makers, including schools.

JAPANESE PAVILION



The Kiri Treasure Box was my favorite piece in the entire ICFF. Created by designer Eiri Iwakura from Paulownia wood, the joinery is so tight and smooth that when one drawer is pushed in, others push out from the subtle interior air pressure. The story is that when a baby girl in born in Japan, a tree is planted in her honor. When she marries, the wood from the tree is used to build a Treasure Box such as this. Beautiful.

This little bamboo place setting helps kids learn their table manners. By Funfam.

Majikiriya presented gorgeous patterns in deep but subtle colors for use as folding screens, lamps, and other applications. Love.

The color is off in this picture -- the piece isn't really so yellow -- but the form and litheness of the beechwood Hiroshima Chair was striking. Comfortable too. By designer Naoto Fukasawa.

Women in traditional dress cleaning up their booth at the end of the day.

What you can't see in this shot of the elaborate Japanese Pavilion is the airy electronic music that filled the space. Everyone was moving a little slower and more relaxed in here.

GREENJEANS FAVES

Brooklyn's Uhuru showed this sweet coffee table with a raw edge walnut top and mint green metal legs. The "stitch" joints are also in mint. Yum!

Known for her undulating wood furniture and loopy metal screens, designer Susan Woods (Aswoon) launched a fabulous line of tabletop pieces this year. I want them all!

I covet the rugs by Barcelona-based Nanimarquina. This year they presented their Global Warming rug, the surprising pop-up detail pictured here.

The Furniture Society showcased work by several Greenjeans faves including Tanya Aguiniga, Isaac Arms, and Sylvie Rosenthal, whose Perch Desk shown left was also in the 2009 Searchlight Artists Exhibition.

Amy and Brendan of SMC Furnishings take a coffee break with friends at the end of the day in the Furniture New York booth.

I love seeing student work, and the ICFF always has a good handful of booths for schools to show what's fresh and new. Cranbrook Academy of Art presented this work under the title Innate Gestures.

Students at the Maryland Institute College of Art focused on solving the problem of greening groceries in a smart and clear presentation that got a hat tip from the editors of Metropolis.

That's it for ICFF 2009! I'll be posting shortly on the satellite show Model Citizens as well as Table Fights. Stay tuned!

Posted and images by Amy Shaw for Greenjeans.