Dezeen promotion: Salon Art + Design takes place in November, making it the "first major design fair to take place in New York since 2019". Dezeen readers can receive a 20 per cent discount on their ticket.
Based at Park Avenue Armory in New York, Salon Art + Design was launched by Sanford L Smith + Associates as a major fair dedicated to celebrating global art and design.
The fair celebrates its ten-year anniversary at this year's edition from 11-15 November, when it will showcase a diverse range of collectible art and design, including ceramics and lighting.
Pieces on show date from the 1920s to the present day and include work by both well-known and emerging artists.
The fair will exhibit collectible design from over 11 countries, including tribal and Japanese design and pre-Columbian work.
Above: Seagull Chair by Gosta Berg and Stenerik Eriksson will be shown. Photo by Lost City Arts. Top: Wendell Castle, Blowin' in the Wind will also be on show. Photo is by Daniel Kukla for Friedman Benda
This year the fair will also show jewellery for the first time, including Didier Ltd of London's collection, which includes a Lalanne necklace and bracelet.
"The fair's 10th anniversary will celebrate not only the world's finest art and design but the opportunity to experience it in person, the first major design fair to take place in New York since 2019," said the Salon Art + Design organisers.
Marquetry vase with pink and purple floral patterns. Photo is by Silvia Furmanovich
"The fair is also excited to welcome back such galleries as London's Michael Goedhuis Gallery who had been a past exhibitor but taken a break for the last few years," said the organisers.
Portuondo, which has galleries in Madrid, London, and New York, will exhibit a curved sofa designed by late American designer Vladimir Kagan.
Kari Dyrdal, Troubled Waters III. Photo is by Hostler Burrows
Onishi Gallery of New York will showcase a range of Japanese designers' metalwork, whereas Hostler Burrows will present the Troubled Waters art piece by Kari Dyrdal.
Lost City Arts will exhibit a range of American and European pieces, including the Seagull Chair and Ottoman by Gosta Berg.
A number of sculptural pieces will also be on display, including Luiza Miller's coffee table exhibited by Magen H Gallery, Wendell Castle's Blowin' in the Wind, and Ron Arad's chair-like sculpture showcased by Geoffrey Diner Gallery.
Luiza Miller Coffee table. Photo is by Magen H Gallery
Also on show during the fair is Silvia Furmanovich's jewellery. The collection will be presented in the Armory's historic Library Room, which will be transformed into a Brazilian rainforest installation.
"Collectible design is now more desirable than ever," said Jill Bokor, executive director of Salon. "People who have been stuck at home look around, and after a certain point, their eyes need refreshing."
"They realise the need for a new dining table, they want to change their lighting, or realise that a new ceramic would brighten their homes; they may have moved or renovated, and this has created newfound craving to change their mise-en-scene," she added.
"As New York returns to normal, there is a hunger for connection and engagement, and Salon will provide that to its audience."
Dezeen readers will receive a 20 per cent discount to Salon Art + Design with the code 21DZPT. To learn more about the fair, visit its website.
Partnership content
This article was written by Dezeen for Salon Art + Design as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.
A meandering wooden path leads towards a centuries-old oak tree situated at the centre of this alpine garden in China's Yulong County, which landscape design studio Z'scape created to celebrate the region's native plants and indigenous culture.
The Hylla Alpine Garden project forms part of the Lijiang Hylla Vintage Hotel complex in the foothills of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in Lijiang, Yunnan province.
Z'scape added winding paths throughout the alpine garden in Lijiang
The garden was designed by Beijing-based studio Z'scape and is shortlisted in the landscape category of Dezeen Awards 2021.
The hotel project is inserted carefully into the existing landscape, and features buildings constructed using reclaimed and local materials to ensure it links the past with the present.
Local stonemasons and craftspeople were employed to create the garden's architectural features
The landscaping adopts a similar approach, employing local stonemasons and carpenters to create a contemporary design that feels connected to the site's history.
Native plants, local stones, textures and water features that recall the wells found in nearby villages all contribute to an environment that invites visitors to explore the local culture.
"The design effort draws upon the site," explained the architects, "establishing a distinct closeness with indigenous Naxi culture and alpine nature in creating a place of comfort, solitude and peace."
A water feature was designed to reference the local wells
The garden is located close to UNESCO world heritage sites including Yuhu village and the historic town of Baisha, both of which are overlooked from the elevated site.
A Naxi village that was abandoned for several decades has been renovated to form the basis for the hotel and garden, which covers an area of approximately four hectares.
A large oak tree is located at the centre of the garden and is surrounded by a winding path
At the heart of the garden is a large oak tree, which would have been a sacred feature of the original village. Trees such as this were called Xupai by the Naxi people, who believed they would help to protect their land.
"The design team carefully kept [the Xupai tree] untouched and used it as a visual focal point to create a culturally sensitive landscape which blends together new and old seamlessly," Z'scape added.
Visitors enter the site along a path flanked by a wall made from white stone, before stepping down onto a wooden boardwalk that meanders across a lawn towards the oak tree.
The alpine lawn is used as a gathering space for events and provides the best views towards Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and the town of Baisha.
A decked path snakes through the landscape
All of the stone and timber elements included in the project were crafted by local workers using traditional techniques that have been passed down through generations. This helps them to retain a sense of the Naxi identity and a cultural uniqueness that is regionally specific.
Some of the walls include water features designed as abstract interpretations of the historic "three well" irrigations system developed by the Naxi people.
Channels filter melted snow from the mountains into pools, small ponds and wells
This system channels melted snow from the mountains into an upper well used for drinking water, a middle well for cleaning fruit and vegetables, and a lower well for washing clothes. The outflow is then used to irrigate the surrounding farmland.
The irrigation system informed two water features that feature long channels set into the stone walls. Water flows along the channels and pours down into stepped pools that represent the three wells.
Forests surrounding the garden were preserved
The overall approach to the landscape design aims for minimal intervention and was created without the use of heavy machinery to protect the existing ecosystem.
A large forest that was preserved in the north and west of the garden contains oak trees, sumac, paulownia and Yunnan pine trees. Native plants such as rhododendron, irises and euphorbia were also introduced to reinforce the unique alpine ecology.
The gardens were built around a hotel
Z'scape was founded by Zhou Liangjun and Zhou Ting, and creates landscaping for clients involved in sectors such as cultural tourism projects, boutique hotels, urban spaces and residential developments.
The Al Thumama Stadium in Doha designed by Qatari architect Ibrahim M Jaidah has been inaugurated ahead of the FIFA 2022 World Cup.
The 40,000-capacity stadium in the south of Doha is the sixth tournament-ready venue to be completed ahead of the World Cup, which is scheduled to take place in Qatar next year.
Al Thumama Stadium has been completed ahead of the World Cup
Named Al Thumama Stadium after a locally found tree, the stadium has a distinctive circular form.
It was designed by Jaidah, who is the chief architect of Arab Engineering Bureau, to look like a gahfiya, the traditional woven head caps that are worn throughout the Middle East.
The stadium was designed to look like a gahfiya
"I remember that night, I got my hands on all types of gahfiyas in order to study the different patterns on each," said Jaidah.
"I've always worn it as a child, however, I didn't expect to see all the different shapes and the depth of their designs."
It will have a perforated facade
"I used to wake up in the middle of the night to examine the patterns on the different gahfiyas," Jaidah continued.
"I finally drew a rough sketch that I liked and told my engineers that this will be the design we are going with."
During the World Cup, Al Thumama Stadium will have 40,000 seats
Jaidah and his studio Arab Engineering Bureau were one of several organisations invited by Qatar's Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy to design a stadium informed by a gahfiya for the site.
He hopes that his design will reflect both the modern and traditional nature of the country.
"I had a feeling my competitors were going to take the original shape and completely modernise it; removing its traditional essence and making it look nothing like a gahfiya," said Jaidah.
"I wanted to ensure my design was modern but at the same time, I didn't want to strip it from its traditional identity. Preserving local identity and heritage was of paramount importance to me."
After the World Cup, the top tiers of seating will be removed
The circular stadium has a concrete bowl that will have 40,000 seats during the World Cup.
Above and around, this the head cap-shaped canopy will provide shade for spectators and players as part of the stadium's cooling strategy.
Large pitch-side nozzles will pump cooled air onto the pitch
"The shape of the gahfiya does not only serve a design purpose," said Jaidah.
"In a similar way to how the gahfiya is used to cover one's head from the heat, the shape is also used to protect the spectators from the sun."
The stadium is located in the south of Doha
Like many of the venues at the World Cup, which will be played in November and December, Al Thumama Stadium will be artificially cooled.
At this stadium, air is cooled using fans powered by solar energy and then released into the venue through large pitch-side nozzles and grills in the stands.
Following the World Cup, the stadium's capacity will be reduced, with 20,000 seats from the upper stands removed.
In their place, a boutique hotel will be built with 60 rooms directly facing the pitch.
A €15 billion project to link the capitals of Finland and Estonia via a tunnel beneath the Baltic Sea will create a metropolitan area "much, much better" for tech startups than Silicon Valley, according to CEO Peter Vesterbacka.
The Finest Bay Area project will add 200,000 homes in four new districts, including affordable accommodation for 50,000 people on an artificial island in the Baltic.
The vision is to attract talent from around the world to an area that is already a leading hub for tech startups while avoiding the inequality of Silicon Valley, Vesterbacka said.
Top: the tunnel could trigger development around station areas such as Otaniemi/Keilaniemi in Helsinki. Above: Peter Vesterbacka
"We're not Silicon Valley; we're better much, much better," said Vesterbacka at the Utopian Hours conference in Turin earlier this month.
"That's the starting point. Silicon Valley has a lot of challenges and inequality is one of the biggest ones."
Vesterbacka claimed that Estonia and Finland are already the first and second most successful countries at attracting venture capital and that Helsinki has the highest number of gaming companies per capita in the world.
"We're much more successful than Silicon Valley"
"We have the highest density of startups, the highest amount of venture capital deployed into those startups per capita," he claimed. "We're much more successful than Silicon Valley, much more successful than China."
"It is also critical that we build enough affordable housing at scale," he added, pointing out that San Fransisco and other Silicon Valley areas suffer from extremely high housing costs.
Vesterbacka spoke about Finest Bay Area at the Utopian Hours conference in Turin
But the privately funded project aims to replicate Silicon Valley's success in attracting talent from elsewhere, Vesterbacka said.
"Time after time, all of these success stories coming out of Silicon Valley are because the talent is there," he explained.
"The people who founded the success stories typically were not there to start with," he added. "Most of them actually came from somewhere else. So that's a very important thing. To build a successful ecosystem, we need to create that kind of gravity."
Rail tunnels will reduce travel time to 20 minutes
Vesterbacka, who previously worked at Finnish gaming company Rovio and helped create gaming sensation Angry Birds, is now founder and CEO of developer Finest Bay Area.
The name, which combines the first three letters of both Finland and Estonia, reflects the desire to merge Helsinki and Tallinn into a new pan-Baltic metropolis.
Two parallel rail tunnels with diameters of 17.3 metres will reduce the journey time between the cities from two hours by ferry to 20 minutes by train. One tunnel will be dedicated to passenger trains while the other will carry freight.
An artificial island in the Baltic could house 50,000 people in affordable units
"We're connecting Helsinki and Tallinn with a tunnel," Vesterbacka said. "We're making it into one unified metropolitan area with about two million people."
The area could eventually expand to include Stockholm and St Petersburg, Vesterbacka said in his talk at Utopian Hours, which is an annual conference about city-making and urbanism.
The privately funded Finest Bay Area project will link the capitals of Finland and Estonia via a 103-kilometre tunnel, which will be the longest underwater link in the world.
Artificial island to house 50,000 people
New urban developments each housing 50,000 people will be built around four stations at Helsinki Airport, the Otaniemi/Keilaniemi (Otakeila) area close to Helsinki, an artificial island 15 kilometres off the Finnish coast, and at Tallinn airport.
"The goal is to have the tunnel completed and trains running by 24 December 2024," he said.
"All the station areas are being designed to accommodate 50,000 new people moving to the area so we're adding 200,000 people in the Helsinki/Tallinn metropolitan area, which currently has a population of two million people."
"And all the station areas will have their own universities," he added. "We're talking to several universities, mainly in Asia. They will have their European campuses in the station areas. Twenty per cent of the population will be students."
"We're working to increase the number of international university students in Finland to 250,000," he explained. "We're increasing the talent pool. Education is at the core of this. It's super, super important."
We're bringing people together, not keeping them apart"
Vesterbacka told Dezeen that an agreement for the required €15 billion of funding has been signed with London-registered Chinese fund Touchstone Capital Partners.
"Physical construction has not started but we have completed the environmental impact assessment on the Finnish side and the governments have signed the nation-to-nation memorandum of understanding," he added.
Referring to moves elsewhere to prevent immigration by building walls, Vesterbacka said: "We need to fight this kind of wall building. It's super bad to build walls. And it's even worse to build walls for the wrong reasons."
"So we are building tunnels, not walls. We're bringing people together, not keeping them apart."
Utopian Hours took place in Turin, Italy from 8 to 10 October 2021 with Dezeen as media partner. For details of more architecture and design events, visit Dezeen Events Guide.
