Sometimes, there’s no better escapism than a romantic comedy. In the genre’s idealized version of Manhattan, characters know how to work hard and play hard, moving from a busy 9-to-5 to last call at a stylish cocktail bar. This year’s edition of NYCxDesign captured that cosmopolitan spirit perfectly. For one thing, Afternoon Light, a well-curated fair back for its sophomore edition after a buzzy debut last year, set up shop in the WSA building, a Financial District office tower with rare creative clout (thanks to tenants that include non-alcoholic apéritif brand Ghia and fashion label Bode). Standout introductions balanced playful spirit with corporate power: RAD Furniture debuted Post, a new “it” chair by designer Sam Klemick, while Teknion launched Ikonstudio, its new sub-brand dedicated to historic office furniture reissues. The views were great too — watching the sun set over the Brooklyn Bridge out the skyscraper windows, it was hard not to see New York through rose-coloured glasses. Of course, a moment later, an exhibitor visiting from Canada brought up ongoing tariff uncertainties and the bubble burst.
In reality, keeping pace in a city that’s always on the move requires near-constant hustle. Just ask NYCxDesign’s main event, the International Contemporary Furniture Fair, which held its final spring edition before it makes the move to November in 2027 in a strategic play to boost business. (Acknowledging that America might not be the most welcoming setting for a global trade show right now, this year’s theme was “Common Ground.”) Traditionally, the fair has sat squarely between Milan’s residential-focused festivities and Chicago’s workplace spotlight; starting next fall, it will instead coincide with the hospitality-focused Boutique Design New York (BDNY) exhibition. This May, it was easy to see lighting launches from RBW, Studio Anna Dawson and Hollis+Morris as shoo-ins for hotel cafés and bars, while Warp &Weft and Bernhardt Design courted domestic and commercial designers. As a visitor, it’s fun to pretend that New York is the city where you can have it all: the dream apartment, the dream job and the dream date. Here’s an imagined day (and night) of modern courtship in the city that never sleeps.
1
7:00 a.m.
Wake up to the realization that you watched too many episodes of that new streaming show last night. Thankfully, Dimwit’s Anagrams dimmers (featuring pleasingly tactile acrylic knobs on ceramic-coated brass wall plates) are easy to locate even in an early-morning daze.
2
8:00 a.m.
Get dressed for work. Double-check that your socks match in Willett’s Ora floor-length mirror, bordered by a handsome geometric steel frame.
3
8:30 a.m.
Stop on the way to the subway to pick up coffee. Admire the blown-glass Triple Glazed RBW fixtures hung in the neighbourhood café and decide to add a donut to your order.
5
11:00 a.m.
Arrive at the office and embrace retro corporate style on the steel-framed SOM79 chair, first designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill for fashion designer Halston’s 1970s atelier — and newly reissued by Teknion sub-brand Ikonstudio.
5
11:00 a.m.
Greet new clients in the reception area, where they’re sitting on Crews, the latest sofa design by Terry Crews for Bernhardt Design. Break the ice by asking if they’ve ever seen Brooklyn Nine-Nine and discuss Crews’s evolution from NFL player to sitcom actor to furniture designer.
6
1:00 p.m.
Wrap up meeting and head out in search of a wedge salad. Joke with your favourite lunch place cashier about lettuce being safe to eat again. (“Rejoice, the Cyclospora outbreak is over!”) Flirty cashier tells you that the light fixture above the counter (Beaufort, by Hollis+Morris) just so happens to have been inspired by icebergs as well — oh, and would you be interested in grabbing a drink later?
7
6:00 p.m.
Head home to change but struggle with what to wear. Throw a bunch of shirts on RAD Furniture’s plush Post lounge chair to evaluate the options. Give up and send a photo to a friend for advice. Receive unhelpful text back: “LOVE your chair — where is it from?”
8
9:15 p.m.
Arrive to the bar early and order a glass of orange wine. Note the resemblance to Studio Anna Dawson’s hand-blown glass Dancer sconces on the wall.
9
11:00 p.m.
Return home with the charming bar date. Open the slightly tipsy doors to Mary Ratcliffe Studio’s white ash Corral cabinet and pour two nightcaps.
10
11:30 p.m.
Date admires your hand-knotted wool and silk rug from Warp&Weft. “The design is named Motus, after the Latin word for motion,” you say. Realize that sounded more forward than you meant it to…but maybe that’s not a bad thing.
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