Smart Deco I by Droog Design

Droog Design
Smart Deco I, 2006

We live in dynamic times in which boundaries are dissolved and smart solutions are integrated with traditional styles, materials, and techniques. It is a time of craftsmanship, nostalgia, tradition, and decoration, but also of globalization, technological innovation, and shifting aesthetics. Play, humour, and idiosyncrasy go hand in hand with a growing concern for the sustainability of our world — and Smart Deco II reflected exactly this spirit.

Droog & the Barry Friedman Gallery in New York present Smart Deco, a period room of the 21st century at Art Basel Miami Beach 2006. Smart Deco is an authentic expression reflecting the zeitgeist of cutting-edge design.

The Smart Deco period room is furnished with specially designed works, all small editions, created by 10 of Europe’s most innovative designers, architects, and artists, including Marcel Wanders, Joris Laarman, and Atelier van Lieshout.

Furniture has come from all over the world to be a part of Design Miami. So did Smart Deco with a beautiful show including exquisite pieces in a limited edition, made by Europe’s most innovative designers. Crochet Chair by Marcel wanders and Bone Chair & Bone Chaise Longue by Joris Laarman got a lot of attention and were bestselling products. In an overview in Art Basel / Miami Beach “that was then (2005) and this is now (2006)”, Smart Deco was named as the hit of 2006.

Each participant had complete freedom to choose forms, materials and aesthetics. All works show a fascination for high tech materials and advanced techniques, for human interaction as well as for re-using the waste we produce. Highlights of this show were Joris Laarman’s revolutionary Bone furniture and Marcel Wanders’ impressive Crochet chair.