'First Times' at Galerie Philia is a mélange of objects that cross culture and sculpture

Declaring profound love and a penchant for sculptural art and design, Galerie Philia’s latest exhibition in New York, called First Times, is a dazzling exercise in immersive, livable design and art, a step further in cross cultural, creative endeavours. Marking their arrival in the United States, the international design and art space impresses with an elegant plethora of intercultural works by established product designers who have not exhibited with the gallery, and for some of them, never shown in the States, in tandem with introducing for the first time, their new Philia Interiors project.

The gallery was founded in 2005 by two brothers who share a mutual passion for art, literature and philosophy, which led to naming it ‘Philia’, considered the “highest form of love”, “friendship” and “affection” in Greek. The design exhibition is on from October 5 to December 3, 2021, in an apartment in New York, showing various possibilities of Philia Interiors’ unique perspective on staging, for luxury real estate listings in the United States, Latin America, and Europe.

Transcending and integrating geographical and design barriers, the collection of works, encompassing furniture and product designs, as well as functional sculptures, revel in style, strength, and quality. “This exhibition reflects Galerie Philia’s eye for works that emanate from different cultures and transcends formal, stylistic, national, and historical barriers. The collection on show unites a wide range of artistic worlds connected by their interculturalism and sheer artistic quality, regardless of their point of origin. Each work has an intrinsic aesthetic value which together creates a constellation of visible relationships with no centrepiece. Resisting trends and time, this collection offers multiple permutations, adapting to ever-changing interiors, sensibilities, and lifestyles,” shares Galerie Philia.

Some featured designers include Lebanese designer Richard Yasmine, whose After Ago is a hybrid collection of objects that range from vases to seats, finding rooted inspiration in Memphis design, Art Deco and Postmodernism. Precisely modernist but seeped in tradition, DeMuro Das’s Contour coffee table with an ivory carta sculpted top merges right in with the marshmallow pink Medusa pouffe by Pietro Franceschini.

Jason Mizrahi's fluid and unexpected Loop chair in aerospace-grade composite materials set dialogue with Mike Ruiz-Serra’s Pulp tables formed of plaster and recycled paper pulp. Hot Wire Extensions wows with their squiggly, doughy lighting design product, and Mano Bano’s OBJ-01 light made from raw laser-cut stainless steel, steel or brass can be manually assembled using a rubber hammer. Intertwining brass ropes becomes the Tryst chandelier by Paul Matter, each element coiling and balancing each other.

Andres Monnier’s Narciso Mirror seeks direct inspiration from the body of water where Narcissus sees his reflection in Greek myths, its base built with quarry stone from Mexico, handcrafted with eight different techniques. Dubai-based Chapter 101 finds aesthetic inspiration from Golestan Palace for their exhibited furniture pieces. Burnt wood and solid metal forms the Ashes to Ashes handmade candlesticks by William Guillon, in contrast to the straight lined Bunker candleholders made in burned and waxed oak by Belgian designer Arno Declercq.

Along all those artists exhibiting for the first time, Galerie Philia's classics will be present too, including Jérôme Pereira, Frédéric Saulou, Cédric Breisacher, Lucas Morten, Arno Declercq, Paul Matter, and Rick Owens.

To know more about the exhibited works and designers at First Times, visit here.