F*sho 2011

I had the pleasure of going with Drew to F*sho tonight. I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew I’d see a lot furniture, but I was really excited to see great design coupled with great people. This was my first time venturing into the design “scene” in Cleveland since school, and I’m not sure what it is about exhibitions, I always get this feeling of the “in” crowd…and well, everyone else.

It wasn’t like that at all and I was so refreshed to just see people passionate about their craft, doing it well and, just being friendly about it. We met quite a few designers and fabricators one of which was Shawn R. Sowers of Commonhouse Furniture. The detailing and finishing in his Block Desk and Quartet Chair were beautifully elegant. We also spoke with Modern Farm Furniture and the construction of their flat-pack stools and tables is what caught my eye. I used a similar lap joint construction for my table. I also got to meet Joseph Ribic of Objeti, ICFF 2010 New Designer Award winner. He was actually a really nice guy. He showed us a new floor lamp prototype (just finished at 6am today) that was really great, as well as a bookshelf he’d just completed for Wallpaper.

I’m happy I made it to the show. It’s nice to feel re-energized by design by just seeing what people are doing in the Cleveland area. Sorry about the quality of the pictures…all of my phone.