Tom Dixon x Coalesse at Miami Art Week presented a collaborative installation that applied a custom textile pattern designed by British designer Tom Dixon onto Coalesse’s Jean Nouvel Seating Collection. Dixon created the pattern by digitally capturing the sharp linear angles of crumpled metallic foil, and the resulting imagery was developed into fabric by Designtex’s digital studio in Portland, Maine. This foil-inspired upholstery was applied across the rounded, organic forms of the seating pieces, juxtaposing angular graphics with the smooth contours of the chairs and ottomans on display during Miami Art Week at Steelcase’s Wynwood pop-up gallery. The installation explored contrast between surface texture and form, inviting viewers to experience visual depth and pattern interplay across the furniture surfaces.
Designer Tom Dixon explained that the custom fabric’s objective was to camouflage seams on the complex upholstered pieces by using a randomized pattern derived from crumpled aluminum. The Jean Nouvel Seating pieces exhibited in the show were complemented by matching wall and floor treatments echoing the same graphic language.
Artistic Seating Installations
Tom Dixon x Coalesse Unveiled a Custom Upholstered Seating
Trend Themes
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Digital Fabrication in Design — The integration of digital techniques to capture and translate intricate patterns onto upholstery exemplifies the growing trend of digital fabrication in modern furniture design.
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Contrastive Aesthetic Expression — The exploration of contrasting textures and forms in seating installations highlights a trend towards using aesthetic juxtapositions as a means of creating visual intrigue in design.
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Site-specific Art Installations — The presentation of artistic seating within a curated pop-up gallery setting underscores the trend of site-specific installations in enhancing visitor engagement through immersive environments.
Industry Implications
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Furniture Design — Innovative use of digitally printed fabrics on seating collections is driving transformations in the furniture design industry, offering new avenues for aesthetic customization and material exploration.
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Interior Decor — The use of coordinated wall and floor treatments alongside unique seating designs points to evolving opportunities in the interior decor industry for creating cohesive spatial experiences.
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Digital Textile Printing — Advancements in digital textile printing, as seen with the custom foil pattern fabric, are disrupting traditional textile manufacturing in the fashion and interior design industries.