PAD London: Marks of Existence at Movimento Gallery

Works by Federica Biasi, Pietro Franceschini, Federica Elmo, and others. Courtesy of Movimento Gallery and PAD London.

For its debut at PAD London, Movimento Gallery, based in London and Milan, enters with quiet grace in an exhibition that embraces imperfection. In this intimate show, five representatives selected from the gallery’s international roster––it boasts designers from two dozen countries–– will gather in celebration of “the beauty, unpredictability, and irreproducibility of natural materials,” the gallery says.

The show’s title, Marks of Existence, recalls the Buddhist belief that all beings share and are defined by three characteristics: anicca (everything is temporary), dukkha (suffering is inevitable), and anatta (there is no such thing as a soul). Buddhists contend that following these teachings, also known as the Three Universal Truths, will lead to happiness. In design, this worldview is exemplified in the aesthetic known as wabi-sabi, which means having an appreciation of objects bearing signs of transience or impermanence such as cracks, rust, or patina.

“Each Movimento artist does things a little bit differently,” the gallery says. For Los Angeles–based Uruguayan designers Emiliana Gonzalez and Jessie Young, who work collaboratively as Estudio Persona, this means following the ethos of “the power of simplicity.” They constrain their sourcing to the Los Angeles area, meaning they only work with materials or manufacturers in their immediate community. They turn these self-imposed limitations into opportunities and let this hyperlocal principle inform their design process. The result is furniture built on the supportive foundation of sustained, meaningful relationships, with each piece exuding warmth and depth—such as the plush Hole Bench, which resembles a brick whose edges have been tumbled into softness by ocean waves.

A highlight of the PAD presentation is the Swell chair by Seoul–based Atelier Sohn, run by designer Donghoon Sohn, whose last name might have predestined his career as it translates to “hand” or “craftsmanship” in Korean. He “always brings some playfulness to his work,” Movimento Gallery notes, “and this piece is no exception.” Looking like an irresistibly unpopped bubble, the chair takes visual cues from inflatables. “The soft forms of the piece evoke certain emotions in us that can take us back to our childhood,” the gallery says, “and any object that can do that is something very special.” Indeed, becoming painfully acquainted with the brief lifespan of a balloon is likely most children’s first introduction to the concepts of anicca and dukkha.

Movimento Gallery’s PAD London group is rounded out by three artists with ties to design capital Milan: architect and designer Pietro Franceschini, whose rounded forms are softly sculptural; Federica Elmo, known for her signature biomorphic puddle-shaped tabletops; and Federica Biasi, whose style is Nordic, simple, and clean.

While the gallery will always champion talent from its home city, its perspective is global, and its eye is currently focused on what’s happening in South Korea. “There is such amazing talent coming out of South Korea at the moment and Sohn is one of the leaders of this new school,” it says, referring to the aforementioned designer of the Swell chair. With South Korea “setting the standard for innovation and style in the last five years,” the gallery notes that “there is certainly more on its way, and getting in now is no bad thing.”

From October 8 to 13, design connoisseurs leap to PAD London, the international design fair poised to launch its 16th edition. Over the next 10 weeks, NUVO shines a spotlight on the fair’s roster of talented newcomers, many of whom are local to London, and identifies the artists and exhibitors who should be on every visitor’s radar.

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