Grela Orihuela is the senior vice president of fairs at Design Miami, now in its 18th edition in Basel. Located across the street from the main Art Basel fair, Design Miami welcomes 25 design vendors. This year’s fair honours the late Italian artist and designer Gaetano Pesce, who died in April. There are works by Pesce on several galleries’ stands, and on display outside of the main sales floor. Here, Orihuela chooses some of the pieces that caught her eye at the fair.
Nouveaux Moutons (Agneau), François-Xavier Lalanne, Galerie Mitterrand (pictured at top of page)
Galerie Mitterrand is known as a leading dealer of work by the French surrealist designers François-Xavier and Claude Lalanne, perhaps best known for François-Xavier’s Mouton sheep. For this year’s Design Miami/Basel, the gallery has brought along a smaller lamb that Orihuela says is rare. The sculpture is a staff favourite and has been nicknamed Henrietta. It is a later edition of Moutons, dating to the 1990s, and is made from durable bronze and epoxy stone so that it can be kept outdoors. The sculpture, priced at €600,000, had not yet sold as of yesterday morning.
‘Anemone’ Sofa by Jean-Pierre Laporte at Galerie Meubles et Lumières David Owens
‘Anemone’ Sofa, Jean-Pierre Laporte, Galerie Meubles et Lumières
The Parisian gallery Galerie Meubles et Lumières is showing a large, circular 1960s sofa with seven chairs that come together to form the shape of a flower. First exhibited in Paris in 1969, the piece got coverage in many magazines, but few sales. This week, the sofa sold for an undisclosed price to a contemporary art foundation in Zürich. “We’re very happy, because it’s going to be surrounded with Basquiats,” says the dealer Guilhem Faget. The gallery’s stand, made up of 1960s avant-garde French designs, was awarded best in show this year.
Parchment bed by Jean-Michel Frank at Galerie Maxime Flatry David Owens
Parchment bed, Jean-Michel Frank, Galerie Maxime Flatry
The Paris dealer Maxime Flatry has dedicated its stand to work by Jean-Michel Frank, one of the most influential designers of the 20th century. One of Orihuela’s favourite pieces is a daybed with Frank’s famous parchment covering. “When I looked at this when it was being installed, I pictured the person who has it and the life they live: where they like to eat dinner, how they dress,” Orihuela says, adding her imagined owner is “very chic, but very relaxed at the same time”.
Monkey Wisdom II by Richard Texier at Laffanour-Galerie Downtown
David Owens
Monkey Wisdom II, Richard Texier, Laffanour-Galerie Downtown
Another of Orihuela’s picks is a bronze floor lamp by the contemporary French artist Richard Texier, which is being shown by Laffanour-Galerie Downtown. The lamp features whimsical animal figures and a warm light cradled by patinated bronze leaves. Orihuela says the piece makes viewers feel “like it’s coming up from Middle Earth, and everything is coming to life”. The lamp has not sold yet and is priced at €68,000, says the gallery’s owner, François Laffanour.
Bourrache Verte by Suzanne Ramié at Lebreton Gallery David Owens
Bourrache Verte, Suzanne Ramié, Lebreton Gallery
The late Suzanne Ramié lived in the French city of Vallauris, where she and her husband owned a pottery studio famed for its association with Pablo Picasso. The Spanish artist experimented with pottery there in 1946 and was inspired by Ramié’s work, according to the Lebreton Gallery co-founder Karim Mehanna. This vase dates to 1945 and is glazed in a rich green, with bits of ash from the woodfire in the kiln. The vase was sold to a collector from New York.
Pink sculpture by Rie Aizawa at Pierre Marie Giraud David Owens
Pink sculpture, Rie Aizawa, Pierre Marie Giraud
This pink, coral-like sculpture was created by the young Japanese artist Rie Aizawa, apparently using a secret technique. The piece has sold for around €8,000, says the Brussels dealer Pierre Marie Giraud. Orihuela says that it is a work she is “obsessed with”, adding the coral-like sculpture reminds her of Miami. Giraud specialises in contemporary decorative arts, and works with many Japanese artists.
Pratt chair n°7 by Gaetano Pesce at Pulp Galerie David Owens
Pratt chair n°7, Gaetano Pesce, Pulp Galerie
Pratt Chair n°7 was included in a Gaetano Pesce show at the Centre Pompidou in 1996, which explored the architect and designer’s experiments with synthetic materials. The chair, of pliant resin, is part of a series of nine created in a collaboration with students at the Pratt Institute in New York. The seat’s mould features a range of symbols throughout, including a crucifix, a graphic sex scene, and Pesce’s handprint on to the back of the chair. The asking price is €60,000.
