Jul 23, 2011

Sold Out Accent on Design® Welcomes Newcomers & Showcases Emerging Talents

White Plains, NY – Nearly 25 new companies will join an established collection of 200 contemporary design resources showcased in the sold-out Accent on Design® at the summer 2011 New York International Gift Fair® (NYIGF®), Sunday, August 14, through Thursday, August 18, 2011, at New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.  Also new for August 2011 is the positioning of two design collectives – JOIN Design Seattle and the American Design Club – and “A+: The Young Designers’ Platform” just outside the entrance to the Accent on Design exhibit floor.

“Accent on Design is at full capacity this summer with 200 of the best design resources available to the gift, home and lifestyle industries,” said Dorothy Belshaw, GLM senior vice president and NYIGF director. “It will feature an influx of new design ideas and inspiration – through the introduction of exciting new resources as well as the expansion of several well-established exhibitors.”

Notable newcomers to Accent on Design this summer include 24 companies from around the world, including: Ambre Industries by 3Form (personal accessories & home objects); Atelier Abigail Ahern (lamps); Bacsac (flexible plant containers); Bend Seating (furniture); Borealis Studio (glass objects); Carga Bags (personal accessories); De Soto Glass (glass objects); Eleven Design Studio (wool animals); ferm-LIVING (Danish home accessories); From Shtlm (Swedish home accessories), Furthurdesign (glass objects & lighting); Hood River Trading (keyrings); Meghan Patrice Reilly (handcrafted jewelry); Mira Design Corp. (cardboard objects); Modern Representation (home accessories); Montreal Collective (objects & accessories); Mydrap (single-use cloth serviettes); Naef (wooden toy objects); Native Union (handsets); Nikkuu (home décor and accessories); Pigeon Toe (handmade ceramic home accessories & objects); Scandic Imports (home furnishings and recycled stationery); Serene House (home diffusers); and Vanessa Yanow (personal accessories).

Emerging and innovative design will be showcased near the entrance to the Accent on Design, with the repositioning of two design collectives – JOIN Design Seattle and the American Design Club (AmDC) – and the “A+: The Young Designers’ Platform” – a showcase for up-and-coming design talents – at the base of the escalators leading to the exhibit floor.

JOIN Design Seattle, a group of independent, Seattle-based designers who have cooperatively participated in wholesale markets since 2008, will bring eight designers to Accent on Design this summer: Blk Pine Workshop (canvas bags); Free Time (calendar posters, emergency buttons); Fruit Super (silicone rings); grain(rings, hand mirrors, wall mirrors, shower curtains); Iacoli & McAllister (bottle openers, paper weights, table lights, jewelry); Ladies & Gentlemen (serving spoons, salt and pepper shakers, piggy banks); plainMADE (silk screened and knit scarves and blankets); and R&L (series of silk screened planners and notebooks).

AmDC, a professional community of American designers founded in 2008, to heighten awareness for emerging designers and provide exhibition opportunities, will bring 11 designers to the August 2011 market: Andie Olive (honey pots, jewelry); Ck1 (cold cuts coasters); Emily Rothschild (jewelry); Felicia Ferrone (glassware); Fort Standard (balancing blocks); Kiel Mead (birdie lite); Mark McGinnis (ABC prints); Pat Kim (salad tongs); Silva/Bradshaw (jewelry); Steph Mantis (pack rack); and Thomas Im (tote bags).

Presented as a showcase within Accent on Design for emerging designers, “A+: The Young Designers’ Platform” will feature four companies – Paper Punk from Mill Valley, CA; sit n d’amico from Brooklyn, NY; thirtyfive creative works from New York City; and Tunapaper from Seoul, South Korea – to participate in summer 2011.

Paper Punk, a new creativity toy and tool for humans of all ages, is conceptualized and designed by Grace Hawthorne, an entrepreneur, artist, author and educator.  www.paperpunk.com

With the ethos “own less and own well,” sit n d’amico, a collaboration formed between Farrah Sit and Dana D’Amico in 2011, create stylish, well-made desk accessories, as well as furniture, light fixtures, and tabletop pieces from natural materials such as wood, ceramic and metal.  www.farrahsit.com

thirtyfive creative works, a home furnishing and accessories design studio lead by Turkish designer Ufuk Keskin, will showcase a line of clocks, shelving, seating and packaging. www.36-1.com

Tunapaper is a paper and home accessories design studio in Seoul, South Korea. Designer Simin Oh transforms eco-friendly paper into functional furnishings, lighting and accessories such as clocks and mobiles. www.tunadoma.com

These newcomers join Accent on Design’s returning design leaders: Artel Glass, Canvas Home, Donna Wilson, Eva Solo, Geneva Lab, Martha Sturdy, Mio, MoMA/The Museum of Modern Art, R.F. Yamakawa, SCP Ltd., and Urban Butik.  Several current exhibitors will return to the summer market with larger exhibit spaces: Ameico, ASA Selection, Design House Stockholm, Lomography, Neo, neo-utility, NPW & Associates Australia Steamboat, CFL LLC, and Seletti North America, Inc.

For more than 25 years, Accent on Design has been the industry’s leading source of design-driven gift, home and lifestyle merchandise.  Its dynamic, juried collection of contemporary and innovative products is presented semi-annually as a division of the New York International Gift Fair®.  Accent on Design Selection Committee members are: David Alhadeff of The Future Perfect; Ilene Shaw of Shaw + Co! Productions; Kathy Thornton-Bias of MoMA; Laura Young of Areaware; Miguel Calvo of Calvo.co; and Wilma Wabnitz of Wabnitz Editions.

NYIGF is the nation’s premier gift, home and lifestyle marketplace, with 2,800+ exhibiting companies featuring an extraordinary breadth and depth of design-driven home fashion products and complementary giftware. Some 35,000 attendees from all 50 states and more than 85 countries worldwide are expected. Information and registration is available online at www.nyigf.com.