A Colorfully Designed NeoCon 2015

Color is always an integral factor on how new products are received. This factor stood out a bit more to me this year at NeoCon. Maybe it is because I am no longer in retail design, so I am free to introduce color into the spaces I am helping to design.

The industry has looked to its past, gaining inspiration from those that came before. Our fascination with color, texture and the clean lines of Mid-Century Modern design has been revived within the design industry. The use of beautiful textiles and balance of rich, saturated color with pale neutral color was perfectly executed in this year’s show.

With that said, there were a few showrooms and products that stood out to me, keeping those elements in mind…

The National showroom, across the street from the Merchandise Mart had some whimsical & colorful furniture. They specialize in Education (more so Higher Ed), Healthcare and Corporate. They are bringing some competition to Steelcase’s ‘Node’ chair.

Dirtt’s showroom, which is also across the street, has an excellent color infused classroom set-up. It is equipped with brightly colored pivoting doors, splashes of color onto the walls, some bold graphics on the windows and it’s fully loaded with the most up to date technology. It is a must see!

Tandus Centiva launched a few beautiful collections. ‘Cartography’ is a gorgeously textured carpet that has the look of a textile. And a new linear pattern designed by Jhane Barnes called ‘Maelstrom’. Their showroom was predominantly blue. Blue and beautiful. They honed into the luxury of handmade textiles for inspiration for these new introductions.

Milliken introduced a new plank sized carpet tile collection called ‘Color Field.’ This line has 64 color offerings. It is vibrant and exciting. Color Field is inspired by:

Dramatic color creates life when there is no distinctive figure to distinguish where one form ends and another begins. Respectful of the boundary, yet driven by the need to explore something larger, our perspective is shaped by the entirety of the canvas, be it one of smooth linen or rough-hewn board.

Bernhardt Design launched a few new seating options and many new casework options. The new introduction ‘Colours’ is a fabulously shaped ottoman collection that offers 12 different shapes, 8 of which are design as connecting modules. This product line will be sure to spice up our future libraries and break out spaces!

Haworth is driven by classic design. It is always evident when walking through their showroom. I am a lover of MCM design so I enjoyed all that there was to take in. From furniture design to the color and fabric selections, this was a home run in my book.

When touring the ICF Group showroom (comprised of ICF, Nienkämper, Eisys & Unika Vaev) there were a few amazing products that captured my attention. I was excited to see the new Neinkämper stool & table collection called ‘Moment’. This product is whimsical and functional. These tables and stools have power supply and ganging options. Moving inward we experienced the acoustic offerings from both ICF & Unika Vaev. There were acoustic panels and other wall and ceiling treatments available. These are great options for our current and future projects.

The last stop on the furniture experience was Okamura. I was drawn in because of their Runa product. The concept is ‘Simplistic design that embodies the functional needs of a versatile environment’. Runa is a collection that offers a comprehensive seating collection with a wide variety of colors and finishes.

Other impactful products that I ran across were by Snowsound. They have a great selection of acoustic products.

And Eink, the use of color changing technology applied onto one of 3-form’s 3-dimensional wall products. This installation was the highlight of my day! ….how do they do that?!….