Dezeen Magazine

Design performances at Design Miami

Design Miami 07: glass-blowing, hand-felting and a tattoo parlour dispensing designer tattoos are among the ten design performances taking place at Design Miami later this week.

Designers who will be creating objects live at the event include Stuart Haygarth, Wieki Somers and Jason Miller, while the tattoo parlour will feature designs by Tord Boontje (above) and Lawrence Weiner (below).

Design Performances will be presented daily between 12:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. The performances will take place between noon and 5pm from 6-9 December, in the Loft Building, 3627 NE 1st Court and Chatham Building, 155 NE 40th Street in the Miami Design District (except the glassLab, taking place at Oak Plaza).

Here are descriptions of the performances from Design Miami:

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WIEKI SOMERS: “SURROUNDED BY OBJECTS” (above)

Wieki Somers will reveal the subtle interplay in her work between function, content and materials through a live demonstration of her Bath Boat under construction, along with a film set in her studio that will illustrate material processes and her use of found objects. Somers is bringing a boat builder from The Netherlands to demonstrate how the wood of the boat is steamed and bent. Support provided by Mondriaan Foundation and Consulate General of the Netherlands

STUART HAYGARTH: “DROP CHANDELIER”

Over the three-and-a-half days of Design Miami/, Stuart Haygarth will use the base portion of plastic bottles from different brands of bottled water to create a chandelier shaped like a water droplet. Visitors can leave their empty water bottles with Haygarth to incorporate into his chandelier.

TOBIAS WONG, JOSÉE LEPAGE & ARIC CHEN: “AS LONG AS IT LASTS” (above)

“As Long as it Lasts” will be Design Miami/’s first pop-up tattoo parlor, offering visitors the opportunity to get a tattoo, inked by a licensed professional, in one of eight specially-commissioned designs created by prominent artists and designers, including: Vito Acconci/Acconci Studio, Tord Boontje & Andrew Allenson, Juergen Mayer H, Lawrence Weiner, Hella Jongerius, Yves Behar, 5.5 Designers, and Kaws (shown above). How far will art and design lovers go?

STUDIO LIBERTINY: “WHAT IS NATURE?”

This collective of young designers based in the Netherlands will glue together stacks of printed scrap paper—page by page, one on top of the other—until a large wood-like block is formed; the paper is returned to its pre-industrial state, while maintaining traces of its man-made past. The resurrected wood will be turned on a lathe and carved by hand to create unique bowls. Visitors are invited to participate in the gluing and carving processes. Support provided by Mondriaan Foundation and Consulate General of the Netherlands

JASON MILLER: “BETTER THAN YOU REMEMBER” (above)

Working with a hypnotist, Jason Miller will ask Design Miami/ visitors to remember and describe meaningful domestic objects from their pasts. These remembered objects will serve as a starting point for Miller to create new designs in a process he describes as “rummaging through a metaphysical thrift store.”

PETER MARIGOLD: “SPLIT” (above)

Rooted in DIY improvisation and natural geometric patterns, Peter Marigold will create a special edition of his Split series of individualistic shelves, tables and storage towers. Utilizing locally sourced timber and allowing the natural quirks of the wood to dictate the final shape of the object, each Split will be a unique memento of his project in Miami.

TANYA AGUIÑIGA: “HARDCORE SOFTNESS” (above)

Visitors will assist Tanya in creating felt skins to transform an industrially made chair into a unique work of handicraft. By hand-rubbing natural fleece with ecologically friendly soap and water, participants will experience how hand felting becomes a means for seamless upholstery and a tool for changing the characteristics of iconic mass-produced consumer goods.

JOSEPH HEIDECKER: PHOTOBOOTH FURNITURE (above)

Joseph Heidecker’s playful sensibility will be on display as he constructs a new series of design Miami/ photo-booth seating. Visitors can participate by having their photo taken in the booth, thus becoming memorialized in his design.

ECAL (ECOLE CANTONALE D’ART DE LAUSANNE): “ICE CREAM PARTY”

ECAL’s Industrial Design Department presents a reinterpretation of the ice cream cone, designed by student Delphine Frey and created in conjunction with French porcelain company Bernardaud. The cone will be available during several ice cream parties throughout Design Miami/.

CORNING GLASS MUSEUM & VITRA DESIGN MUSEUM: “GLASSLAB” (above)

These two institutions are collaborating to show the glass-making process in action. Using mobile glassblowing equipment developed by Corning, the Campana Brothers, Sigga Heimis, Constentin & Laurene Boym and Paul Haigh will experiment with new glass designs developed specifically for this project.