Brooklyn Designs - Show your function

The trip to Dumbo was a bit of an adventure today...  starting with the fact that my train was not running.  A shuttle bus was provided.  The sign did not bode well that the bus would show up.

But I once I got there, I was reminded with this view of what an awesome city NY is.  That's the Manhattan Bridge I'm about to walk under with the remainder of 100 year old trolly tracks pointing towards the Empire State Building glowing in the distance.

Brooklyn Designs is always a charming show.  It's small enough that I enjoy it without fear of overload or exhaustion.   I wont deny that I think it could afford to get a little bigger, but it may be an issue of space and/or finding enough designers interested.   Those they do have are wonderful artists.  There wasn't one booth there that I thought poorly of.  The design standards were high and the craftsmanship was top notch.

One repeating theme I noticed was a desire to play with function as an art feature in and of itself.  A roller coster trellis tranformed to chaise lounge base.   A building block construction of three joints and varying wood sizes.   A wall with peek-a-boo joints.   And an end table with a secret.   Check them out:

Uhuru's Cyclone Lounger - If you've ever seen Coney Island's Cyclone roller coaster, you'll recognize those white struts.   But what takes this lounger beyond just a visual homage is that it is made out of reclaimed wood from the Coney Island boardwalk!

This next item from EcoSystem Furniture's snug-it collection has to be posted in three pics.   First you see these strange shapes.   They look like heavy duty steel clamps... but are actually incredibly strong, but light-weight aluminum.

Here they are in action...

 And the final shelf.   They'll custom cut the boards for you, so all you have to do is figure out what you want to make.  Shelving?  Tables?  A bed?   It's all up to you.

Next up was Miscione Design's wall system.   I absolutely love the blunt honesty of this simple loop and wedge construction.   It's like getting to see the skeleton of the wall.   And no nails, hammers, or other tools are needed for installation. 

 One of the most charming pieces of the show was Colleen & Eric's NorthStar Table.  I was initially just delighted to learn that the inlaid brass dots were placed according to actual constellation charts.  But lo-and-behold, pressing the North Star popped open a secret drawer!

I've got some videos too of other fun things from the show and nearby... just need to figure out how to edit them.   They look bizarre sideways!   Can't wait for more stuff to see next week at ICFF!