PAD London announces 2018 prize winners

Carpenters Workshop Gallery’s booth that won Best Stand
Carpenters Workshop Gallery’s booth that won Best Stand.
(Image credit: Courtesy Carpenters Workshop Gallery & Pad London 2018)

PAD London returns to its traditional Mayfair spot for the 12th edition of its week-long showcase of design, art and craftsmanship from the best European galleries. The fair’s unique combination of midcentury, antique and contemporary works is on display, with new and established talent offering a broad view of creativity and craftsmanship.

The winners have been announced for this year’s prizes; 18 Davies Street has scooped the award for Best 20th Century Design with Ron Arad’s steel ‘This Mortal Coil' (1993). Best Contemporary Design goes to Galerie Negropontes for Etienne Moyat’s ‘Arabesque' panel, (2017) and Carpenters Workshop Gallery scoops Best Stand. These highlights aside, we select our top picks to look out for…

Amelie Marei Loellmann at Galerie Gosserez

Dis-/_Jointuers, by Amelie Marei Loellman, Galerie Gosserez, PAD 2018

(Image credit: Amelie Marei Loellmann)

With an interest in the intersections between contemporary design, fine art and theatre, Amelie Marei Loellmann has been developing a body of work which blurs the boundaries between product design and experimental material research. Presented by Galerie Gosserez, her Dis-/_Jointuers project features an exploration of hard and soft materials woven into experimental carpets where solid becomes flexible and heavy becomes light.

Sasha Sykes, Peter Petrou Gallery

Gyre room divider, by Sasha Sykes, at Peter Petrou Gallery for PAD London 2018

(Image credit: Sasha Sykes)

Artist and sculptor Sasha Sykes’ work is based on foraged materials, which she incorporates in poetic furniture pieces. An example of her experimental prowess with the natural world is the ‘Gyre' room divider (pictured), featuring different species of seaweed that the Irish artist has gathered over the course of a year and a half, arranged in a sculptural form inspired by the work of Eileen Gray.

Ingrid Donat at Carpenters Workshop Gallery

Piece by Ingrid Donat at Carpenters Workshop Gallery, PAD London 2018

(Image credit: Ingrid Donat)

Carpenters Workshop Gallery gave Ingrid Donat carte blanche to create an immersive installation, featuring a floor-to-ceiling reproduction of her vision of a home. The booth, which has won the prize for Best Stand, features pieces from the past few years as well as new furniture created by Donat for the project, plus a selection of favourites from the gallery picked by the artist. Her distinctive art deco style is reflected in a series of pieces that combine tribal influences with the artist’s signature opulence. ‘My approach is about imbuing bronze with warmth and vitality by borrowing scarification techniques and visual motifs from tribal societies,’ she explains.

Hervé van der Straeten

Borderline console, by Hervé van der Straeten, PAD London 2018

(Image credit: Hervé van der Straeten)

The French designer’s participation to the fair is usually one of the most anticipated, as his angled pieces always manage to surprise and offer a novel point of view on geometric compositions and combinations of shapes and volumes. This year’s talking point will no doubt be his ‘Borderline’ console, whose iridescent shapes feature shades of pink, green and yellow, and seem to melt into the wall behind.

Rowan Mersh at Gallery Fumi

Fluens Aeris wall piece, by Rowan Mersh, at Gallery Fumi, PAD London 2018

The delicately mesmerising works of Rowan Mersh have become a welcome staple at the fair. With his unique approach to the natural world, the artist reimagines complex geometric forms using organic materials. This year, Mersh experimented with brass for his ‘Fluens Aeris’ wall piece (pictured), expanding his creative scope to new material concepts.

(Image credit: Rowan Mersh)

Guglielmo Poletti at Rossana Orlandi

New series by Rossana Orlandi, for Guglielmo Poletti, at PAD London 2018

(Image credit: Guglielmo Poletti)

The balanced shapes of Italian designer Guglielmo Poletti caught our eye back in 2016, when he presented a collection of resin pieces for his Design Academy Eindhoven graduation. Since then, Milan-based gallerist Rossana Orlandi has worked with the designer to take his compositions and ideas further. At PAD, Orlandi presents a new series by Poletti, a set featuring a table, lamp and chair, whose slim forms are based on the balance of elements.

This Mortal Coil by Ron Arad, (1993).

‘This Mortal Coil” by Ron Arad, (1993), winner of Best 20th Century Design.

(Image credit: 18 Davies Street & Pad London 2018)

‘Etienne Moyat, Arabesque’ panel

Gallery Negropontes won Best Contemporary Design with Etienne Moyat’s ‘Arabesque’ panel (2017)

(Image credit: Courtesy Negropontes & Pad London 2018)

INFORMATION
PAD London is open 1-7 October. For more information, visit the website

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Rosa Bertoli was born in Udine, Italy, and now lives in London. Since 2014, she has been the Design Editor of Wallpaper*, where she oversees design content for the print and online editions, as well as special editorial projects. Through her role at Wallpaper*, she has written extensively about all areas of design. Rosa has been speaker and moderator for various design talks and conferences including London Craft Week, Maison & Objet, The Italian Cultural Institute (London), Clippings, Zaha Hadid Design, Kartell and Frieze Art Fair. Rosa has been on judging panels for the Chart Architecture Award, the Dutch Design Awards and the DesignGuild Marks. She has written for numerous English and Italian language publications, and worked as a content and communication consultant for fashion and design brands.