12.05.23

Up and Coming

Frederik Fialin on His New Tubular Metal Collection: “We All Like to be Comfortable, But Other Things Are Often More Important to Me”

Danish designer Frederik Fialin understands the idea that you have to know the rules before you can break them. He’s certain something is working not only when it’s functional and beautiful, but when it makes him laugh. It’s a way of taking the work seriously, without taking yourself too seriously, and it may have something to do with how Fialin got started, with a classic cabinetry apprenticeship. “I didn’t particularly enjoy it at the time, but now I see why everything has to be done in a certain way. I consider this, now, to be possibly the greatest foundation of my professional life that I could ever have asked for — especially because I can use, remix, and warp this never-ending chase for perfection that dominates the environment. There’s reason in the madness.”
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12.04.23

Excerpt: Exhibition

In His Latest Solo Exhibition, Magnus Pettersen’s Glass Orbs Evoke a Sense of Metaphysical Disturbance

In Norwegian designer Magnus Pettersen’s latest solo exhibition, which was on view at QB Gallery in Oslo last month, a new series of sculptures was presented, which purport, per the press materials, to transgress the boundary between artworks and functional objects. But that isn't remotely the most interesting thing about the pieces; pretty much everything published on this site at this point achieves that with equal aplomb. For us, the most interesting thing is the addition of wood, yes, especially in brilliantly tinted hues like emergency orange. But more important is the inclusion of tiny glass orbs, perched on the arms or backs or smack dab in the middle of several of the seats, which sometimes prevent the pieces from being functional objects at all. Why are they there? What is their meaning? Has Pettersen recently discovered astrology?
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12.02.23

Saturday Selects

Week of November 27, 2023

A weekly Saturday recap to share with you our favorite links, discoveries, exhibitions, and more from the past seven days. This week: a med spa so chic we'd live in it, three unmissable group exhibitions in New York and San Francisco, and pretty new photos of a standout Italian furniture collection (above).
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12.01.23

Sighted

These Bauhausian, Artisan-Made Rugs Embody The Spirit of Argentina

When you think of Argentina, what’s the first thing that comes to mind? Steak? Soccer? For many, it’s tango —the passionate partner dance that’s fast, fiery, and frankly far too complicated for my two left feet. Since Australian textile brand Pampa works with skilled artisans in remote parts of Argentina, as well as across Latin America, the company has chosen to dedicate its latest collection of rugs to the vibrant culture of its partners. So using bright red natural dyes to color the 100% wool fibers, they created the Tango collection as an homage to the spirit of Argentina, and specifically to its national dance.
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11.29.23

Excerpt: Exhibition

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.
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11.27.23

Sighted

Sweden’s Oldest Rug Brand Finally Lands in Soho

Scandinavian design brands have been a favorite of American consumers since the mid-20th century — and of Sight Unseen since we could barely recognize something as "design." This month, one of our favorite of those brands — the Swedish rug company Kasthall, with whom we partnered for Sight Unseen Offsite in 2017 and created a capsule collection of rugs pre-pandemic — opened up a new permanent showroom in Soho, leaving behind the trade-friendly but consumer no-mans-land that is the D&D Building for the cobblestone streets and extensive foot traffic of downtown NYC. The company has created beautiful woven and hand-tufted rugs at its factory in Kinna, Sweden, since 1889, and its spacious new flagship on Howard Street will allow customers to touch and see the quality of those carpets IRL.
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11.20.23

Gift Guides

Italian Fruit Bowls and Books About Bookends: Monica’s 2023 Gift Guide

Welcome to what just so happens to be our 10th annual Sight Unseen gift guide series! Today's guide comes from Monica, who's excited about Gianfranco Frattini fruit bowls, abstract sculptural book stands, and the bright-green floral duvet cover that's given her bedroom serious vibes. See — and shop — her full list after the jump!
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11.18.23

Saturday Selects

Week of November 13, 2023

A weekly Saturday recap to share with you our favorite links, discoveries, exhibitions, and more from the past seven days. This week: an array of chic, ready-to-install mantels, an exhibition inspired by a classic work of American literature, and a sock utopia opens in Brooklyn.
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11.16.23

Sighted

Sarah Ellison Just Made Some of Her Most Iconic Designs Outdoor-Ready (It’s Summer in Australia, At Least)

Australian designer Sarah Ellison has a way of blending contrasting qualities into a beautifully integrated whole: refined yet comfy, chunky yet shapely, lowkey yet high polish, distinctive yet versatile. It’s a totally engaging vibe, one that seems made for lounging on a patio by a pool. It only makes sense that the studio would bring it outside, sustaining the warm, earthy neutrals they’re known for while translating some of their signature indoor pieces into weather-ready versions.
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11.14.23

Sighted

Anna Karlin’s New Collection is All Sculptural Forms and Sophisticated Whimsy

There was no definitive starting point for Anna Karlin’s new collection, no big moment, but rather a gradual becoming over a stretch of time. “The way that I work is essentially all one long conversation,” Karlin says. Some pieces are the result of an experiment from years back, set on the backburner until it finally makes sense in relation to something else. “I think about pieces in dialogue rather than in isolation, and a language develops.” It’s a call and response: a curve begs for a clean line, a futuristic turn hankers for heritage. And Karlin listens. “Once it gets to a point where every piece has bounced off another and the circle closes, then that's the collection,” she explains. “It sort of decides itself.”
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