For some, a global pandemic was just the intervention they needed to change course or to finally give a latent vocation the opportunity to blossom. For Brooklyn-based art producer and sculptor-turned–furniture designer Vince Patti, a pandemic-enforced interlude of “being underemployed with a lot of time with my hands” — coupled with a newfound interest in the home environment — led him to escape more frequently to his Bed-Stuy studio. There, he began making side tables, dining tables, benches, and platform beds — and eventually hooked up with Mischa Langley, Patti’s now partner in furniture and life. Together, they formed the design practice Lesser Miracle, whose debut solo show at David Lewis’ home-cum-gallery in Chelsea is where we met for this interview on a sunny Sunday afternoon in May.

From a young age, there was never any doubt in Lukas Cober's mind that he would pursue a career in design. “I have always been into crafts, so for me, it was clear at a very early stage that I would be building things with my hands” says the designer, who grew up in Aachen, a small medieval city at the tripoint of Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands. But Cober inevitably embarked on his current path by pursuing a somewhat surprising endeavor for such a hopelessly landlocked city. “At one point in my late teens, I got heavily into the art of hand-shaping surfboards,” he recalls, “which sparked my fascination with functional art and gave me a deep understanding about to approach aesthetics."

Rutger De Regt's current project, "Mommy I made an ashtray," on view at Casa Perfect in New York until June, expands on the Dutch designer's research into balloon-sculpting, using ceramic in lieu of pellets to hand-form objects.

Nicholas Devlin's gunky, almost Pixar-esque furniture pieces merge sculpture and function; pieces like his bright yellow flower lamp serve as both personal reading lights and friends. But on top of his playful aesthetic, Devlin has a philosophical approach to his work that deconstructs how we have historically looked at the home. 

Snickeriet are interested in investigating traditional Swedish woodworking craft but also seek to bend the rules, molding the material in unconventional and extremely satisfying ways.

By now, you might be aware that latex is having a bit of a moment in the fashion world. But have you ever seen sheets of the stuff applied to — or, more specifically, becoming — the canvas? We hadn't, or at least we hadn't seen instances where it was not only used but was in fact the main event, which is precisely why we found the work of Paris-born, UK-based artist Manon Steyaert so interesting.