For its sixth exhibition at The Salon Art + Design, Friedman Benda will present a contemporary drawing room highlighting diverse practices from design pioneers, as well as the premiere of new collaborations from emerging voices in the field.
Born outside of Zurich, Carmen D’Apollonio (Swiss, b. 1973) established her studio in Los Angeles after working with Urs Fischer for over a decade. Through diverse varieties of local clay, she sculpts organic compositions, explaining, “It’s so easy to work with. Everything is possible, and it’s never ending. There’s always something new you can do.”
Paris-based designer and Design Academy Eindhoven graduate, Raphael Navot’s (Israeli, b. 1977) work delves deeply into the use of raw materials paired with traditional craftsmanship. This presentation debuts his oak console, Aleatoric A, and is his first collaboration with Friedman Benda.
Bruno Gambone’s (Italian, b. 1936) lifelong exploration in ceramics began when he was first exposed to ceramics while working at his father’s studio in Florence at the age of 14. After travelling to New York in the 1960s and becoming immersed in its burgeoning arts scene, Gambone returned to Tuscany and established his burgeoning practice now in its sixth decade. This presentation will highlight works from the 1980s and 1990s that have never been shown in the US.
For this exhibition, Detroit-based Chris Schanck (American, b. 1975) will premiere a wall-hanging bar complete with a custom glass barware set and upholstered iterations of his iconic shell chair design.
Trailblazers in the global design landscape, Fernando and Humberto Campana (Brazilian, b. 1961,1953), fearlessly combine sculptural thought with design execution. This marks the debut of the woven velvet Arachnid White Chair, their exploration of a radical typology paired with traditional Modernist-leaning elements.
The gallery’s presentation features new sculptural compositions by Jonathan Trayte (British, b. 1980). Trayte was among the internationally renowned artists to be selected for Sculpture in the City in London, and his installation, The Spectacle, is currently on view in Bishopsgate.
Among the most dynamic American practitioners in the ceramic discipline today, Los Angeles based artist Adam Silverman (American, b. 1963) is widely admired for his sculptural vessels, which feature richly textured glazes.
Misha Kahn (American, b. 1989), who just completed an ambitious installation for the exhibition, Speechless, co-organized by the Dallas Museum of Art and the High Museum of Art, will present new work in bronze.
In anticipation of her upcoming second solo exhibition at Friedman Benda opening in May 2020, the exhibition highlights work by leading London-based designer Faye Toogood (British, b. 1977).
A series of Fragments by Najla El Zein (Lebanese, French b. 1983) “illustrate the disturbance of one’s own foundation. Metaphorically, the pillar is the basic structure of any given entity. If disturbed, and if one loses knowledge of the self, that would lead to instability, fragility and confusion,” states El Zein.
Lastly, the setting will include works from design pioneers Ettore Sottsass (Italian, 1917-2007) and Wendell Castle (American, 1932-2018), both of whom made monumental contributions to the field.
