Eny Lee Parker’s “Pretty Secrets” Exhibition Puts the Spotlight on 7 Major New Female & Nonbinary Talents

We’ve been Eny Lee Parker stans ever since she debuted her first collection with Sight Unseen at our 2017 Offsite show, and it’s been rewarding to watch her meteoric rise from breakout star to global name. Recently, the New York–based artist and designer has been doing her own part to highlight a new generation of emerging talent, the latest by curating a showcase of works by seven female or nonbinary designers in collaboration with Spring New York.

Parker’s second exhibition of its kind, titled Pretty Secrets, took place October 27-30 on the first floor of Spring Studios, and featured an eclectic mix of furniture, sculpture and objects by seven new names: Angelina Pei, Cat Love, Michelle Jia Xin Huang, Izzy Yang, Madeleine Young, Maggie Pei, and Sarah Holloway. “These artists are moving away from bright and saccharine optimism and instead turning to historic imagery and craft aesthetics of Art Nouveau, Brutalism, and American folk to inspire their work,” Parker said. “Each artist works with a diverse yet complementary range of materials, methods, and perspectives, with longevity as the common theme as they contend with the cyclical systems of life and death.”

Among the many highlights in the exhibition: a 4-foot-tall beeswax candle coiled around a tower-like metal frame, and a ribbed-leg candlestick positioned as if it’s about to walk away, both by Yang; an actual wood-burning stove by Canadian-by-way-of Providence Madeleine Young; a dual desk and vanity with built-in monitor and “office chair” with custom copper Aeron chair upholstery by Holloway; and a metal structure by Love with steel wisps and cast-bronze walnuts that might be a votive holder and definitely gives off a distinct Paris Métro vibe. A few anthropomorphic designs on show included Huang’s svelte coat stand with symmetrical hangers resembling beady eyes. Among the unusual explorations with materials were a variety of chairs, such as Love’s design with bricks for a seat, several by Huang — namely one formed from bubbles of inflated steel and another from shards of slate — and a piece by Pei wrapped in decorative lace-like bands of cut-out metal. Metal in general was a theme; traditional woodworking seems to have gone the way of the dodo. With all this talent in one place, here’s hoping that each of the participating designers will replicate Parker’s success in the coming years.

Top: Michelle Jia Xin Huang