Miami Living Magazine

D MIAMI LIVING 31 ecember in Miami. It is definitely, absolutely a busy time to be any sort of a scenester, especially during the first and the last week of the month, the latter for obvious reason. The beginning of the 12th month, though, can be downright overwhelming, y' know, what with the "Basel madness" – as it is commonly acknowledged – that takes hold of the 305 as Art Basel Miami Beach, Art Miami & Co. get going. It seems like it was only a few years ago that there were two or three, or, OK…maybe four or five art fairs vying for Miamians' and visitors' favor, but these days, they are, in a way, a dime a dozen. No disrespect to any of 'em, for each champions a worthy section of the art world – in a fantastic setting, no less! – that most likely wouldn't be paid any consequence by the layman the rest of the year, but the situation can get a little daunting. Design Miami/ is one of those truly must-attend fairs that completely delivers on its promise on the regular. Trust – if you put it on your schedule, you walk away a happy visitor. And this year's edition shall be no different. For one, it'll be an extra- special one since the fair will be marking its 10th anniversary Dec. 3-7. Rodman Primack has been the executive director of Design Miami/ since March. He has been attending the fair in myriad capacities (guest, competitor, advisor) since its inception, here and in Basel (Design Miami/'s sister show in Switzerland is held every June). This year, he is looking forward to being there as a leader, and, of course, to seeing you at the Design Miami/ Pavilion at 19th and Meridian on South Beach, which was created by the Minneapolis-based designer Jonathan Muecke. "Like every year, we're very excited about our highly edited gallery program," he said. "It's very competitive to get into the fair, and this year our committee selected only 35 galleries from around the world to be part of the show" – including 11 that participated in the fair's first year. As a special celebration, several of those founding galleries will present exhibitions highlighting the growth spurt of the collectible design market in the last 10 years. These include a display dedicated to public commissions in France from the 1960s and 1970s, from New York's Demisch Danant; an exhibition on the functional, durable furniture that was conceived and created for universities by Charlotte Perriand, Jean Prouve and, Le Corbusier from the Parisian Galerie Patrick Seguin; as well as newly commissioned works debuting at the fair with the Cristina Grajales Gallery and R & Company from New York, Galerie kreo from Paris, and Milan's Nilufar. The popular Design Talks (Dec. 3-5, 3-4 p.m. and 6-7 p.m.), also will be back on the schedule. This is a program that presents the design world's most compelling topics du jour, bringing together the creatives, collectors, and critics who are actively influencing the discourse and production of design. Past participants include Stefano Tonchi of W Magazine and Martha Stewart, and Craig Robins, the CEO and president of Dacra, and Pharrell. What's new? This year, Design Miami/ is launching the new exhibition strand, Design Curio, and presenting, for the first time ever, a Design Visionary Award, to Peter Marino, for his work as an architect (Marino is the founder of an eponymous studio that is based in New York); for his knowledge and status as a collector of design, art, and the decorative arts; and for the impact that he's had as an advisor on contemporary and 20th Century design to his clients throughout his career, which have included Andy Warhol, Yves Saint Laurent, Chanel, Dior, and Graff. As such, Marino will be the subject of Design Miami/ exhibition celebrating his multiple roles within the world of design. In a stand-alone display space of his own design, the exhibition will feature antique and contemporary chairs from his collection, architectural maquettes, and his series of cast bronze boxes. "What we did previously was present a Designer of the Year Award [as well as a Designer of the Future Award]," said Primack. "Going into 2014, we decided that we needed to change what this award was about, so the Design Visionary Award is really about the impact that someone has had, not just in their own work but as advocates and supporters of design. "We would give Peter an award for his work alone in any year, but this is more about his commitment as a member of the design community." Spanning the 20th and 21st-first centuries, meanwhile, is Design Curio, an initiative that presents four distinctly designed, immersive environments of objects, textures, artifacts and ideas that truly challenge and contextualize familiar design narratives. This first edition will emphasize surprising installations of scientific research alongside handcraft and creative production. These include Coral Morphologic's "Blue Room," an oceanic art and design endeavor that offers a coral-eye view of Miami's aquatic waterscapes; and Naihan Li's latest installation from her "I AM A MONUMENT" series, presented by Beijing's Gallery ALL and recreating that cityscape to a scale of 1:100 with billowing smog rising amongst buildings reimagined as furniture pieces. Koenig & Clinton and the Joe Sheftel Gallery partner to present a collection of Sottsass objects interacting with works by the Memphis group in a jewel-box space; and the Patrick Parrish Gallery invites you to experience the vertiginous grid-based exhibition "Surfaces on Which Your Setting and Sitting Will Be Uncertain," which displays a group of sculptural furniture objects by RO/LU with matching clothing designs by Various Projects. Is it us, or is Design Miami/ 2014 sounding more and more like the one fair we cannot miss this season? The by-invitation-only Design Miami/ preview is set for Dec. 2, but the public days are Dec. 3-7. General admission is $25, while students and seniors pay $20. A combination ticket to Design Miami/ and Basel is available for $55. For more information, visit www.designmiami.com. ML ON THE SCENE

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