Quebec design in force in New York

From May 19 to 21, the Big Apple will host a Quebec delegation of 24 designers, artisans and manufacturers at the ICFF (International Contemporary Furniture Fair), as part of New York design week. Montrealer Nicholas Sangaré presents aluminum and velvet furniture combining robustness and delicacy. A happy contrast in the spirit of the times.

Jérémy Paguet, FOUND, Simon Johns, David Raymond or even Smallmediumlarge… Many of them for this New York design week have focused on metal. Thanks to textural effects, hammering, polishing, lacquering or, as for the designer Nicholas Sangaré, brushing, these daring young creators relieve materials such as steel and aluminum of their cold and strictly industrial. Under their leadership, they reach every room of the house, from the kitchen to the living room. Here with a table or a shelf, and there with a lamp or, simply, a vase.

After his first participation in WantedDesign, an American platform for promoting emerging talents, in 2019, Nicholas Sangaré returns to New York to present the Phoenix aluminum and velvet chair, in his section Launchpad, at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF). An event taking place from May 19 to 21 at the Javits Center, in a district undergoing rapid urban expansion.

It is a pure red that he chose for the seat and back of this one, in the vein of that of the TWA Hotel, housed in a former terminal of the John F. Kennedy airport and designed by the Finnish architect Eero Saarinen in the early 1960s. “I wanted to give a nod to this hotel which fascinates me with its design and its decor where we find only two colors, red and white”, he explains. But this welcoming and generously proportioned seat is above all inspired by the famous Barcelona chair by architect and designer Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. “I have always appreciated its elegance, its presence and the presence it exudes,” confides its creator.

Material effects

Like the Bong side tables that accompany it, this lounge chair is the result of several years of work in close collaboration with various players in the Quebec manufacturing industry. A hydraulic folder made it possible to model its elements, the surface of which was then patiently treated using a crimped wire brush by the designer in his studio in the Chabanel district of Montreal.

“This brush, which is also used for treating rust on metals, allows you to create varied finishes and give a texture to a uniform material,” reports Nicholas Sangaré, who also ensured that the elements of this brush chair can be assembled without welding and, therefore, transported in flat packaging.

As with the other Quebec designers and artisans exhibiting at the ICFF show, this presence on the New York design scene comes with high expectations.

“Make a show internationally is important for the notoriety of our studio even on the Canadian market,” he assures. Following his presence at the WantedDesign show five years ago, with his then teammate, Lambert Rainville, Nicholas Sangaré also saw his sculptural Biau stool distributed by the company EQ3, which has numerous stores in Canada and the United States.

This time, the designer hopes to forge more links with those behind the prestigious New York decors, whether interior designers, architects or gallery owners. After mounting a pop-up of the GOODEE brand at the Whitney Museum, not far from the Javits Center, he and his team are creating the interior and furniture of a hotel which should soon open its doors in Harlem. Forced to have to slow down his momentum last year following a serious injury, Nicholas Sangaré wants to dream big. “Like the Phoenix, I am reborn from my ashes,” he emphasizes. The name of the chair he unveils this weekend in the City That Never Sleeps suddenly takes on its full meaning.

Visit Nicholas Sangaré’s website

Visit the ICFF website (in English)