As we dream of warmer climates here in NYC, we are delighted to see some events heating things up on the calendar.  Celebrating the best in South Florida art and design, the Design Center of the Americas (DCOTA) kicks off its 2010 event season with Winter Market and Design House 2010.

This year’s Winter Market is a two-day event, consisting of two design-forward keynote addresses, “Evolution of Design” and “Process of the Process”.  The well-curated lineup of speakers, panelists and moderators participating in Winter Market includes Sophie Donelson and Julia Noran of editoratlarge.com, Brad Ford of Designtherapy.com, Pamela Jaccarino of Luxe Interiors and Design, and interior designers Eric Cohler and Philip Gorrivan.

Design House 2010 also opens today at the DCOTA. Benefiting 3 South Florida cultural institutions, the Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale, Norton Museum of Art, and Vizcaya Museum & Gardens, the Design House is a 9,000 square-foot model house created within the building of the DCOTA, featuring the visions of 14 top designers in 15 coveted rooms. Interested in taking a look? Design House will remain open until June 11, 2010, giving us Northerners plenty of time to contemplate a South Florida getaway.

Tonight, head over to the St. Charles of New York showroom for a superbly superficial event…that is, the Sensational Surfacing seminar. Presented by St. Charles of New York, New England Stone, and Brooks Custom, the seminar will discuss exotic marble, concrete, and semiprecious stone. Guests can also avail themselves to sensational wines and hors d’oeurves.

WHAT: Sensational Surfacing

WHEN: Tuesday, January 12, 2010, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm (seminar begins at 6:00 pm)

WHERE: A&D Building, St. Charles of New York Showroom

150 E. 58^th St., 8^th Floor

New York, NY

Please RSVP to reserve a space: kl@stcharlesofnewyork.com or 212.838.2812

Our good friend Susan Harkavy gave us a shout to tell us about this upcoming exhibition produced by WMF and sponsored by Knoll, Inc. opening at the Center for Architecture in mid-February 2010. The exhibition will travel from Gainesville, Florida to New York City, stopping at design schools and other venues everywhere in between. Consisting of large-scale photographs by the renowned photographer Andrew Moore and panels with five case studies including the ADGB Trade Union School in Bernau, Germany; the A. Conger Goodyear House in Old Westbury, New York; Riverview High School in Sarasota, Florida; the Grosse Pointe Public Library in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan; and the Kent Memorial Library in Suffield, Connecticut, the exhibit illustrates the impact that designers have on preserving landmarks.

For more information about the locations of the exhibit and a brief video of the gallery, click here.

Interior Design is kicking off the near year by sponsoring a retrospective of mid-century design. Cindy Allen will moderate a discussion about American modern furniture from both historical and relevant contexts.  She’s put together a great group of panelists including: Donald Albrecht, Museum of the City of New York Curator of Architecture and Design; Phyllis Ross, author of Gilbert Rohde: Modern Design for Modern Living; Gunnar Birkerts, internationally known architect; and Andy Lin and Larry Weinberg, founders of Lin/Weinberg Gallery: 20^th Century Modern Furnishings. The discussion will be followed by a reception and a presentation of the exhibitions Eero Saarinen: Shaping the Future and The Future at Home: American Furniture, 1940-1955, co-curated by Albrecht and Ross.

When: Wednesday, January 13, 6:30pm – 8:30pm

Where: Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Ave. at 103^rd St.

Reservations required. RSVP to larryweinberg@mac.com.

The fifth anniversary edition of Design Miami/ proved to be once again a great success with an overall increase in visitors and sales. Visitors rose by 4.5% from last year with a record of 23,000 attendees. Sales were continuously strong throughout the event, with a high point including the MOSS Gallery’s sale of three of Maarten Baas‘ Grandfather clocks priced at $100,000 a piece. Named Designer of the Year, Maarten Baas’ presented series of older works in his exhibition along with some more newly created pieces in conjunction with vignettes of his inspirations and live actors performing his ‘Real Time Clock’. With the 2009 edition of Design Miami/ just behind us, the extensive range of performances, exhibitions, and installations illustrate that this was its most creative and extensive program yet. We can’t wait to see what’s in store for Design Miami/ 2010!

Real Time Grandfather Clock from Maartan Baas

On Tuesday night I joined the cognoscenti of the design world in collectively mourning the loss of I.D. Magazine. It was hosted by the many key players that oversaw its impressive 55-year run including I.D.’s first “official” editor Jane Thompson, former design director Luke Hayman, Tucker Viemeister, Micheal Beirut and editors Richard Caplan, Chee Pearlman, Julie Lasky and Jesse Ashlock. Assembled in a carefully chosen venue – The Half King in New York is owned by writers – the crowd was filled with journalists, designers and others wishing to show their support for the outlet that created the term “industrial design.”

With the sort of nostalgia only seen at reunions, the staff at Metropolis Magazine and Architect’s Newspaper traded anecdotes with familiar faces from Met Home and Domino while inspecting the bar’s walls adorned in I.D.’s iconic covers. Although the cause of death is rather nebulous – whether brand identity, the onset of digital media or lack of advertising dollars – the mood of the event was still hopeful. Change is inevitable and as Jesse Ashlock quoted Buckminster Fuller in his farewell note, “How often I found where I should be going only by setting out for somewhere else.”

I.D. covers from the past

Amber Bravo and Geoff Halber (both former Dwell employees)

Kimberley Oliver and Marlene Cimicato Capron

The New York International Gift Fair (NYIGF) rolls into town in late January with an expanded international feel.  Global suppliers will be featured throughout NYIGF’s eight divisions through government-sponsored pavilions, as independent exhibitors and – for the first time this winter – within a newly formed international consortium in Accent on Design.  We got a taste for Japanese craftsmanship this month at Japan Brand at Felissimo “The Wish List” and can’t wait to see what is in store at the NYIGF’s new Accent on Japan.  The pavilion will include four independent Japanese exhibitors including Gallery 91, Inatome, Morihata International Ltd. Co. and Tanuma Co., Ltd ( a first-time NYIGF exhibitor).  The shared space will be a showcase for their products (gifts, accessories, and tableware from Japan) and feature work from emerging Japanese artists.’

When: January 30- February 4, 2010

Where: Jacob K. Javits Center, NYC

Morihata's Seisuke88 collection offers traditional Japanese motifs with a modern touch.

December is a month full of important birthdays, including the birthday of the Milan-based furniture company Kartell, which celebrates a cool sixty years of innovation and style. The company, known for its plastic contemporary furniture, continues to move forward through collaborations with design stars such as Philippe Starck, Patricia Urquiola, and Ron Arad.

Louis Ghost Chairs by Philippe Starck for Kartell

From balcony to show floor, the Blu Dot store on Wooster Street was brimming with designers, employees and patrons to take part in a “real good party” last night. Everyone seemed to be in high spirits (and I don’t think it was just the Blueberry vodka) to celebrate the premiere of the Real Good Experiment documentary and the one year anniversary of Blu Dot ’s arrival in SoHo.

If you’re not familiar with Blu Dot’s stunt last month, it was an interesting experiment on social design and “curb-mining” in New York. The company dispersed 25 of their Real Good Chairs around the city – placing some near trash cans and others in slightly more inconspicuous places. Many of the chairs were also GPS-enabled, which allowed Blu Dot to track down the unsuspecting participants in a Candid Camera-style follow-up.

Coming from a city where resourcefulness is key to maintain an expensive lifestyle even if you don’t have the funds, it was definitely an interesting video to watch. It was also a reflection on the company’s mission of bringing good design to as many people as possible. In this case, a few lucky passers-by happened to be in the right place at the right time to receive the gift of high design.

You can watch the Real Good Experiment in real time here.