From significant business changes to noteworthy product launches, there’s always something new happening in the world of design. In this biweekly roundup, AD PRO covers everything you need to know.
Design Happenings
Guest Edit: Adam Charlap Hyman’s coveted selects from The Winter Show
From January 24 through February 2, esteemed art and antiques fair The Winter Show returns to New York’s Park Avenue Armory for its 71st edition. “I am always so excited for The Winter Show because the quality of the works shown there and the range of time periods, styles, and places of origin is truly staggering,” says AD100 designer Adam Charlap Hyman, whom we’ve asked to cull through the show’s 70-plus exhibitors to share the pieces he’s eyeing this season. “I always learn something and come away feeling immensely inspired by the show, and as an interior designer I find it quite useful to see a consolidation of such incredible pieces to potentially show my clients,” he adds. Here are the picks earning his red dot.
The Winter Show commences on January 23 with the Opening Night Party, followed by Young Collectors Night on January 30. During its run, the event will also include a talks series featuring notable talents Christine & John Gachot, Elizabeth Graziolo, David Netto, and more. All ticket proceeds from the fair benefit the East Side House Settlement, which offers support programs for all ages in the Bronx and Northern Manhattan.
At Heimtextil, AI leads the way to textile trends
What was once a challenge for textile manufacturers—working with delicate materials prone to snags—has now become an opportunity for innovation, thanks to artificial intelligence. At this year’s Heimtextil textile trade show in Frankfurt, robots demonstrated their dexterity by gracefully plucking fabric from hooks and swirling it through the air before returning it to its rightful place. The AI-driven display was part of “Future Continuous,” a trend installation curated by fair first-timer Alcova, Milan Design Week’s edgy design platform held at derelict industrial sites. Architecture and research studio Space Caviar designed the space, while creative studio Studio Vedèt crafted the visual identity.
“Technology is becoming more humanized,” shared Alcova cofounder Joseph Grima, as oversized fabric swatches dangling from another automation—a circular, ceiling-mounted conveyor belt—swayed past overhead. The exhibit unveiled three key textile trends set to define 2025: regenerative materials like pineapple fiber and plant-based industrial waste; radically restructured fabrics, including fully biodegradable textiles; and beautifully imperfect materials such as 100% linen. —Mairi Beautyman
AD PRO Hears…
…AD100 Hall of Famer Bunny Williams is the latest industry trailblazer to lend her expertise to educational resource Create Academy. Spanning 35 lessons and a downloadable workbook, Williams’s course takes viewers inside her Connecticut and New York City properties to share her design philosophies.
…while best known for his car-part sculptures, John Chamberlain’s rarely seen, experimental photography of Parisian life is a site to behold. His estate presents Paris Rue, a curation now available on 1stDibs.
Exhibitions
Louis Vuitton’s vibrant New York pop-up puts the spotlight on Murakami reeditions
Contemporary Japanese artist Takashi Murakami first dreamed up exuberant designs for Louis Vuitton back in 2003, including the iconic Monogram Multicolore floral motif. To celebrate Murakami’s reimagining of his originals for the fashion house, a pop-up in New York’s SoHo neighborhood (part of a seven-city global series) is open through January 31. In the constellation of color-block rooms that take cues from Tokyo’s sleek capsule hotels, ogle archival bags, head to the cinema for one of Murakami’s remastered Superflat films, or score stickers and trading cards from a vending machine.
