Schön! alive 3 | still rooms

cubes. Omar al Gurg

There are art and design fairs and then there is NOMAD. A boutique alternative to spawling exhibitions, the travelling showcase stands apart not just for its striking locations and exclusivity, but for the level of curation and the opportunities to make meaningful connections within a global community. It’s the place to be for those that are serious about contemporary art and collectible, cutting edge design.

The ninth Swiss edition took place in St Moritz last week, taking over Villa Beaulieu, a building that was formerly a home and then a clinic and benefits from panoramic views of the snow-covered Engadin Valley. St Moritz has become a flagship destination for NOMAD, and this was the second fair held at the villa, but the property has been completely renovated since the showcase was last there a year ago. While the venue is capacious, the experience feels incredibly intimate and immersive, with each exhibitor creating an enclosed and highly individual space. Forget fairs with endless rows of stands; here, walking into an installation feels like entering a private art gallery, boutique or very chic home.

left. Robilant+Voena, right. Rajan Bijlani

Scale is important to Co-founder and Director Nicolas Bellavance-Lecompte. There is a maximum of three fairs a year, he tells us, and usually no more than 40 or 50 exhibitors at each. The attendees are a community of international collectors, professionals and art and design enthusiasts who make up the the NOMAD Circle. Membership is by application only, although it is also possible to register and attend as a guest. Some visitors had travelled to Switzerland from other continents, and the exhibitors were likewise a global bunch. Leading galleries from across Europe, but also from New York, Cairo, São Paulo and Abu Dhabi, displayed pieces by artists and designers from locations as diverse as Greece, Madagascar and Korea.

Maisonjaune

Some of our favourites included Maisonjaune Studio from Paris, which curates vintage pieces alongside their own creations and works by other contemporary designers. Sorgin Gallery from San Sebastián in Spain showcases Modernist design from Brazil and contemporary pieces from Brazilian designers who are inspired by it. But you won’t just find art, furniture and product design at NOMAD. Jewellery forms another component and we were struck by Nikos Koulis Jewels. The young, Athens-based designer’s haute jewellery collection included highly articulated pieces inspired by the movement of dandelion seed heads when blown. But there wasn’t a single space at the fair that didn’t have something striking or covetable on show.

left. Yuta Segawa at Giorgio Armani/Unveiled, right. Craftica Gallery

As NOMAD’s official partner for the first time, Giorgio Armani joined the exhibitors with its Unveiled project, supporting artisans that perhaps don’t otherwise have access to galleries. Its installation ‘Through the Looking Glass’ was curated by Abby Bangser and incorporated key designs from Armani Casa alongside the work of two UK-based artists, both exploring function, scale and material tradition. Jane Crisp from Cambridge creates sculptural trugs inspired by time she spent living on boats. The London-based Japanese ceramicist Yuta Segawa makes miniature vessels with unique glazes, for which he’s developed around 1,000 recipes.

NOMAD Alpine Bistro by Silo

At NOMAD, even nourishment was curated in the form of a pop-up restaurant by pioneering chef Douglas McMaster. He brought the zero-waste philosophy championed at his Michelin starred London restaurant to the NOMAD Alpine Bistro by Silo but told us that this was Silo’s first venture into more bistro style cuisine. The emphasis was still on responsibly and locally sourced produce though and even the wine pairings were from Swiss vineyards. We sampled dishes such as Venison Terrine with mustard and pickles, Arctic Char Steak with poached glazed celeriac remoulade and fragrant herbs and Rum Baba with rhubarb and clotted cream. Read more about Silo and McMaster here.

The interior of the restaurant, meanwhile, was designed by architect Francesca Neri Antonello of FNA Concept. Taking cues from the menu, she created the alpine environment using natural texture, chromatic contrasts and collectible pieces selected in collaboration with Nilufar, ImperfettoLab and Volumnia.

Yellow Apartment

The fair was not confined to Villa Beaulieu alone, with several off-site activities arranged, such as visits to the Yellow Apartment. The perfectly preserved 1970 interior by Ico and Luisa Parisi, where everything bar the fridge and one light fitting is original, was used as a backdrop to celebrate the works of Rachele Bianchi and Riccardo Schweizer on their centenary and PostForma Ico pieces by Martino Gamper. The apartment itself was featured once in Casa Vogue in the ‘70s, but otherwise has had little public exposure, demonstrating the kind of hidden design and architectural gems that NOMAD has access to. The Circle was also invited to a series of talks at Giorgio Armani’s chalet in Engadin, where guests were free to explore the sleek and moody interiors, and to St Mortiz’s legendary, members only Dracula Club.

As well as the Circle, NOMAD offers a VIP membership, with early access to the showcase, invitations to special events and more.

Giorgio Armani/Unveiled

The next edition of NOMAD will take place in The Hamptons, USA from 25^th-28^th June. Find out more about NOMAD here.

photography. Ivan Erofeev
words. Huma Humayun

Hermès Casaque glasses.
Mouth-blown cased glass
combining transparent and
coloured layers, inspired by jockey
silks and crafted by Italian master
glassmakers to create a refined play
of colour and light
hermes.com

A table is never just about what is placed upon it, but about who gathers around it. Crafted objects set the tone for shared moments, guiding conversation, gesture and rhythm. Glass, porcelain and carefully considered forms create an atmosphere that feels both intentional and effortless. In these settings, craftsmanship becomes a quiet companion, present without performance, elevating the everyday and making space for connection, pause and togetherness.

See the full feature in Schön! alive 3, available in print and in our online shop.

Dior Maison – Dior Cristal collection.
A study in light, colour and craftsmanship,
reimagining the art of the table through
Dior Maison’s iconic Cannage motif
dior.com
From left to right. whiskey glass in blue, cocktail
glass in blue, wine glass in blue, candle holders in
blue, clear wine glass, clear crystal candle holders,
whiskey glass in clear crystal and water glass in red

Dior Maison – Cross Cannage collection.
Small jewellery box in green lacquered wood with
Cannage tartan motif and straw marquetry, velvet lined
for jewellery and precious objects
dior.com

Hermès Hermès en Contrepoint dinner plates n°1 and n°2.
Hand-decorated porcelain using chromolithography, designed by Nigel Peake, featuring colourful geometric friezes
that invite layering and playful table compositions
hermes.com

Ginori 1735 LCDC collection
by Luca Nichetto.
Il Letterato Water and Il Seguace Pure White
porcelain candleholders, sculptural character
pieces that blend poetic storytelling,
refined craftsmanship and contemporary
fragrance design
ginori1735.com

Schön! alive  3, now available in print and in our online shop and at Amazon
Download your eBook.

photography. Léonard Méchineau
set design. Laszlo Badet
location. Studio Marlowe

It is a bit of a cheek to ask who owns a circle, isn’t it? But for Adam Pendleton – the man currently occupying the high altar of American abstraction – it’s the only question worth asking. If you’ve spent any time in the world’s major galleries lately, you’ll know Pendleton as the architect of ‘Black Dada,’ a conceptual whirlwind of monochrome spray paint and layered history. 

Today marks the final curtain call for ‘Who Owns Geometry Anyway?’ at Friedman Benda gallery in New York. Since opening its doors on 7 November, this exhibition has seen Pendleton swap the frantic, spray-painted energy of his canvases for materials with significantly more gravity.

Speaking to the press, Pendleton revealed: “What is exciting and interesting about this exhibition is that the works being shown are ideas I had for a very long time, but had never given myself the agency to execute.”

Ranging from marble and onyx to granite and wood, these materials are transposed into what the gallery politely calls “functional forms,” though they feel more like altars than coffee tables. Take the aptly named ‘Boulder,’ a two-part marble work that doubles as a seat and a permanent tectonic shift.

This is also the artist’s first proper foray into furniture, and frankly, it makes a lot of contemporary design look a bit flimsy. Pendleton has taken the basic building blocks of the avant-garde – the triangle, the square and the circle – and realised them with a couturier’s obsessive eye. 

The ‘Extended Form’ series, rendered in both honey-hued onyx (‘Extended Form One’) and stark marble (‘Extended Form Two’ and ‘Three’), displays this perfectly. The detailing is exquisite: raised rims trace the edges of massive stone slabs, while legs taper into curves so precise they make the heavy black marble seem like it is levitating. 

There is a clever play on displacement too. In pieces like ‘Four Circles’ (crafted from granite) and ‘Split Form’ (marble), the geometry is punctuated by voids, as if he has simply reached into the stone and plucked the mass right out. It is not all cold stone, however; the ‘Two Circles’ (Studio Table) brings stained white oak into the mix, grounding the collection in something warmer, while ‘Drawn’ introduces a shock of modernity – a massive 180-inch loop of aluminium, silicone and LED light that cuts through the space.

Drawing on the philosophy of fellow American artist Isamu Noguchi (who famously said art should be “one with its surroundings”), Pendleton has turned the gallery itself into a ‘social form.’ Massive, hard-edged wall paintings, specifically ‘Black Triangle’ and ‘White Triangle,’ frame the installation creating an architectonic environment for the series of ‘Untitled’ glazed ceramic paintings that embellish the walls.

It has been a massive year for Pendleton. The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) recently acquired his entire 35-work ‘Who Is Queen?’ exhibition in one swoop and he is currently dominating the Hirshhorn in D.C. with a major survey. But this New York show offers something rarer: a chance to see a master of two dimensions figure out how to conquer the third.

Find out more here.

photography. courtesy of William Jess Laird (featured), Izzy Leung, Matthew Septimus (portrait)
words. Gennaro Costanzo