SOFA Favorites

SOFA is the Sculpture Objects Functional At + Design Fair that takes place annually in Chicago. SOFA can be a show of extremes, just like the price tags that range from $100s to around $400,000.

Silver and gold from Marion Kane

Where else might you find high-end jewels from an Israeli company (Yvel), the likes of which are typically modeled by celebs like Rihanna? Taxidermy forms cloaked in colorful beads (some inspired by Haitian voodoo) by Nancy Josephson? A nearly 10-by-10-foot screen/room divider composed of Andy Paiko’s modern glass reliquaries, which found a permanent home at the Chazen Museum in Madison, Wisconsin?

Members of The Trend Curve’s subscriber family can read about the top trends from SOFA in the December issue of The Trend Curve, available now. Below are a few more favorite pieces from this high-end show, selected by Elaine Markoutsas, Editorial Correspondent for The Trend Curve:

• Tanya Lyons and Mathieu Grodet’s enchanting “Strands of Time,” flame-worked glass bubbles filled with found objects and suspended in rows, engaged like the so-trendy string gardens of Dutch artist Fedor van der Valk.

• The inventive spirit of recycling and repurposing was apparent in steel furniture by Jim Rose, inspired by Gees Bends patchworks, jewelry made out of Velcro and a sculpture crafted from recycled skateboards.  Amber Cowan recycled unwanted pressed glassware into fanciful collages, many of which referenced the sea with shell-like pieces. 

• Gold and silver. From gold-plated ceramic converse kicks to gold-leafed vessels, the warm tones favored in furnishings flourished at SOFA. But at this high-end artisan venue, silver also was a force. Makers like Marion Kane moved it into more burnished or matte finishes, an alternative to polished nickel and steel that made this metal feel warmer than before.

  

  Metallic bracelet from Yvel

  

  Nancy Josephson’s beaded figures for Judy Saslow Gallery

  

  Andy Paiko’s Optic Twist Screen for Wexler Gallery

  
  

  

  Lyons and Grodet: Strands of Time

  

  Steel furniture by Jim Rose

  

  Amber Cowan for Heller Gallery