Baltimore, crumpandkwash.com
At ICFF this year, the Baltimore-based duo made a splash with their Arcade Collection, whose arched forms were inspired by that ancient architectural element. The collection’s standout was an indoor-outdoor lounge with a polished aluminum frame and a vibe that calls to mind Kuramata in the best possible way.

What is American design to you, and what excites you about it?

There’s a wonderful sense of play and exploration coming from American designers today. It’s encouraging to be part of a community that is perpetually expanding what’s possible. We’re seeing passionate artists designing products, finding their own path to fabrication, and simultaneously building an audience through their social media presence.

What are your plans and highlights for the upcoming year?

In early 2020, we will be opening our first gallery! The space will feature a revolving collection of our line, custom one-offs, as well as work from other designers we admire. The opening will coincide with the release of a new contract seating collection and, later in the year, our second line of high-end case goods.

What inspires or informs your work in general?

Problems and practice! In a very real (and probably very boring) way, our work is practice based. As designers, we get a lot of inspiration from tactility working with new materials, exploring forms, and solving the problems that come along with production. We’ve always maintained different interests outside of the shop, bringing unique perspectives on how to best approach a product. Of course this has lead to the metaphorical head butting, but for the most part the combination of our individual perspectives results in an even stronger design.

SHOP WORK BY CRUMP & KWASH IN OUR 1STDIBS STOREFRONT!