NYCxDesign 2019: 9 Design Destinations Throughout New York City
All the major design destinations you need to know for this year's NYCxDesign, from furniture fairs to installations and creative hubs.
Westfield World Trade Center
Opened in 2016, the Oculus is Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava’s soaring addition to the World Trade Center complex. Primarily a transit hub serving several subway lines as well as the PATH train to New Jersey, the Oculus astounds visitors with its bone-white ribs and airy interior. The building’s main atrium is illuminated by a skylight that runs its entire length and is a downtown retail destination.
Westfield World Trade Center 185 Greenwich St. at Fulton St. westfield.com/westfieldworldtradecenter Courtesy Mark Wickens
NYCxDesign offers an endless supply of exhibitions, fairs, gatherings, and discussions. Sometimes it can be useful to simply start with the must-see destinations—that’s where this list comes in. We recommend you consult the rest of our NYCxDesign previews and coverage (see the link at the bottom of the page!) but this selection gives you the city’s primary go-to spots for design professionals.
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A&D Building
A center for luxury interior design, the Architects & Designers (A&D) Building features more than 35 showrooms and 200,00 square feet of retail space. The A&D’s kitchen, bath, tile, appliance, and residential furnishings make it a treasure trove for high-end home design.
A&D Building, 150 E. 58th St. btw. Lexington & 3rd Aves. (212) 644-2766 adbuilding.comCourtesy FC Harles PhotographyA&D Building
A center for luxury interior design, the Architects & Designers (A&D) Building features more than 35 showrooms and 200,00 square feet of retail space. The A&D’s kitchen, bath, tile, appliance, and residential furnishings make it a treasure trove for high-end home design.
A&D Building, 150 E. 58th St. btw. Lexington & 3rd Aves. (212) 644-2766 adbuilding.comCourtesy FC Harles Photography -
Waterfront Creative Hubs
Two massive industrial centers, Industry City and the Brooklyn Navy Yard, have been reborn as waterfront epicenters of design and incubators for a new generation of urban manufacturing. This year, the Navy Yard, home to producers of everything from countertops to craft whiskey, hosts Brooklyn Designs (May 10–12), a celebration of the borough’s flourishing creative scene. Further south, WantedDesign Brooklyn at Industry City (May 16–20) features installations, exhibitions, and open studios as part of the lively IC Design Festival (May 16–20).
Brooklyn Designs 141 Flushing Ave. at Clinton Ave., Brooklyn May 10–12 bklyndesigns.com
WantedDesign Brooklyn Industry City, 274 36th St. btw. 2nd & 3rd Aves., Brooklyn May 16–20 wanteddesignnyc.com.
Seen here: Matthias Pliessnig at IC Locals at WantedDesign Brooklyn (curated by Hannah Martin)Courtesy Matthias PliessnigWaterfront Creative Hubs
Two massive industrial centers, Industry City and the Brooklyn Navy Yard, have been reborn as waterfront epicenters of design and incubators for a new generation of urban manufacturing. This year, the Navy Yard, home to producers of everything from countertops to craft whiskey, hosts Brooklyn Designs (May 10–12), a celebration of the borough’s flourishing creative scene. Further south, WantedDesign Brooklyn at Industry City (May 16–20) features installations, exhibitions, and open studios as part of the lively IC Design Festival (May 16–20).
Brooklyn Designs 141 Flushing Ave. at Clinton Ave., Brooklyn May 10–12 bklyndesigns.com
WantedDesign Brooklyn Industry City, 274 36th St. btw. 2nd & 3rd Aves., Brooklyn May 16–20 wanteddesignnyc.com.
Seen here: Matthias Pliessnig at IC Locals at WantedDesign Brooklyn (curated by Hannah Martin)Courtesy Matthias Pliessnig -
FortyOne Madison
Designed by Emery Roth & Sons and originally opened in 1974 as the New York Merchandise Mart, this 23-floor glass-and-steel design center houses showrooms representing more than 125 global brands. Product categories include tableware, gifts, housewares, accent furnishings, and lighting from leading manufacturers. The center, which overlooks Madison Square Park, is also home to the New York Tabletop Show, which occurs twice yearly in the spring and fall.
41 Madison Ave. at E. 26th St. (212) 686-1203 41madison.comCourtesy FortyOne MadisonFortyOne Madison
Designed by Emery Roth & Sons and originally opened in 1974 as the New York Merchandise Mart, this 23-floor glass-and-steel design center houses showrooms representing more than 125 global brands. Product categories include tableware, gifts, housewares, accent furnishings, and lighting from leading manufacturers. The center, which overlooks Madison Square Park, is also home to the New York Tabletop Show, which occurs twice yearly in the spring and fall.
41 Madison Ave. at E. 26th St. (212) 686-1203 41madison.comCourtesy FortyOne Madison -
Times Square Design Pavilion
The Times Square Design Pavilion is a free multi-day design happening, completely open to the public, offering a suite of live programming, site-specific structures, interactive environments, and platforms for innovation. This year’s programming includes the Times Square Design Lab, Design Talks NYC, Design Market NYC, “Sound & Vision” from the American Design Club, “A Sense of New York” workshops exploring sensory experiences of the city, immersive exhibits on sustainable design from the Virginia Tech School of Architecture and Fernando Mastrangelo Studio, and a partnership between Azimut Yachts and One Ocean Foundation.
Times Square Design Pavilion btw. Broadway & 7th Ave. from W. 42nd & 47th Sts. May 10–22 design-pavilion.com
Seen here: FutureHAUS by Virginia Tech School of ArchitectureCourtesy Virginia Tech School of ArchitectureTimes Square Design Pavilion
The Times Square Design Pavilion is a free multi-day design happening, completely open to the public, offering a suite of live programming, site-specific structures, interactive environments, and platforms for innovation. This year’s programming includes the Times Square Design Lab, Design Talks NYC, Design Market NYC, “Sound & Vision” from the American Design Club, “A Sense of New York” workshops exploring sensory experiences of the city, immersive exhibits on sustainable design from the Virginia Tech School of Architecture and Fernando Mastrangelo Studio, and a partnership between Azimut Yachts and One Ocean Foundation.
Times Square Design Pavilion btw. Broadway & 7th Ave. from W. 42nd & 47th Sts. May 10–22 design-pavilion.com
Seen here: FutureHAUS by Virginia Tech School of ArchitectureCourtesy Virginia Tech School of Architecture -
ICFF
The International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) is the trade fair at the heart of NYCxDesign. For over 30 years, the fair has attracted industry professionals, designers, and enthusiasts from around the world. ICFF boasts an encyclopedic array of contemporary furniture, lighting, textiles, and materials by more than 900 exhibitors from around the globe. Additions this year include ICFF Contract, a destination for designers of commercial spaces, and ICFF Connect, which highlights the latest innovations in smart technology.
ICFF Javits Center, 655 W. 34th St. at 11th Ave. May 19–22 icff.com
Seen here: Bebop by Fermob at ICFFCourtesy Sebastien EromeICFF
The International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF) is the trade fair at the heart of NYCxDesign. For over 30 years, the fair has attracted industry professionals, designers, and enthusiasts from around the world. ICFF boasts an encyclopedic array of contemporary furniture, lighting, textiles, and materials by more than 900 exhibitors from around the globe. Additions this year include ICFF Contract, a destination for designers of commercial spaces, and ICFF Connect, which highlights the latest innovations in smart technology.
ICFF Javits Center, 655 W. 34th St. at 11th Ave. May 19–22 icff.com
Seen here: Bebop by Fermob at ICFFCourtesy Sebastien Erome -
New York Design Center
With nearly 100 showrooms, this trade-only center has been the design industry’s premier source for furniture, lighting, fabric, flooring and wallcoverings, and kitchen and bath accessories for more than 85 years. Built in 1926 as the New York Furniture Exchange, the 16-story, 500,000- square-foot center is the country’s oldest furniture and design building and a vital resource for A&D professionals. The NYDC continues to introduce new initiatives, such as Access to Design, which allows the public to visit the center and get information about working with designers.
NYDC, 200 Lexington Ave. btw. E. 32nd & 33rd Sts. (212) 679-9500 nydc.comCourtesy New York Design CenterNew York Design Center
With nearly 100 showrooms, this trade-only center has been the design industry’s premier source for furniture, lighting, fabric, flooring and wallcoverings, and kitchen and bath accessories for more than 85 years. Built in 1926 as the New York Furniture Exchange, the 16-story, 500,000- square-foot center is the country’s oldest furniture and design building and a vital resource for A&D professionals. The NYDC continues to introduce new initiatives, such as Access to Design, which allows the public to visit the center and get information about working with designers.
NYDC, 200 Lexington Ave. btw. E. 32nd & 33rd Sts. (212) 679-9500 nydc.comCourtesy New York Design Center -
Storefront for Art & Architecture
Founded in the 1980s, this cross-disciplinary forum for design ideas and dialogue hosts events and competitions to promote innovation and public discourse around critical issues currently impacting art and architecture. Under the direction of José Esparza Chong Cuy, the recently appointed executive director and chief curator, Storefront continues to host rigorous exhibitions at the intersection of art and design. The space’s striking facade—a collaboration between artist Vito Acconci and architect Steven Holl—is a composition of 12 pivoting sections capable of opening the entire length of the narrow gallery space to the street.
Storefront for Art & Architecture 97 Kenmare St. btw. Cleveland Pl. & Mulberry St. storefrontnews.orgCourtesy Storefront for Art & ArchitectureStorefront for Art & Architecture
Founded in the 1980s, this cross-disciplinary forum for design ideas and dialogue hosts events and competitions to promote innovation and public discourse around critical issues currently impacting art and architecture. Under the direction of José Esparza Chong Cuy, the recently appointed executive director and chief curator, Storefront continues to host rigorous exhibitions at the intersection of art and design. The space’s striking facade—a collaboration between artist Vito Acconci and architect Steven Holl—is a composition of 12 pivoting sections capable of opening the entire length of the narrow gallery space to the street.
Storefront for Art & Architecture 97 Kenmare St. btw. Cleveland Pl. & Mulberry St. storefrontnews.orgCourtesy Storefront for Art & Architecture -
WantedDesign Manhattan
WantedDesign’s original location is at Chelsea’s Terminal Stores (for its Brooklyn location head to Sunset Park’s Industry City). Since founding the fair in 2011, Odile Hainaut and Claire Pijoulat have established a platform for the global design community with a diverse schedule of events and socially conscious programming. Highlights include Look Book, a program that connects North American design studios with interior designers and architects, and Launch Pad, a showcase for emerging product designers. This year’s fair also features “Tools for the Apocalypse,” organized by students in SVA’s MFA in Products of Design program, which responds to a projected world utterly transformed by climate change.
WantedDesign Manhattan at the Terminal Stores 269 11th Ave. btw. W. 27th & 28th Sts. May 18–21 wanteddesignnyc.com
Seen here: Design by Andrés Jalif Estudio for Launch PadCourtesy Andrés Jalif EstudioWantedDesign Manhattan
WantedDesign’s original location is at Chelsea’s Terminal Stores (for its Brooklyn location head to Sunset Park’s Industry City). Since founding the fair in 2011, Odile Hainaut and Claire Pijoulat have established a platform for the global design community with a diverse schedule of events and socially conscious programming. Highlights include Look Book, a program that connects North American design studios with interior designers and architects, and Launch Pad, a showcase for emerging product designers. This year’s fair also features “Tools for the Apocalypse,” organized by students in SVA’s MFA in Products of Design program, which responds to a projected world utterly transformed by climate change.
WantedDesign Manhattan at the Terminal Stores 269 11th Ave. btw. W. 27th & 28th Sts. May 18–21 wanteddesignnyc.com
Seen here: Design by Andrés Jalif Estudio for Launch PadCourtesy Andrés Jalif Estudio
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Categories: Design
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