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As part of the event of Design Miami/Basel fair, the Designers of the Future Award honours young designers working with experimental, limited-edition and non-industrial techniques. Nacho Carbonell is one of the four winners for 2009. 

In Design Miami/Basel tradition, the winning designers are invited to create objects to be shown at the fair under a thematic brief. This year, have been briefed to think beyond the fabrication of individual objects and to focus instead on the articulation of space. Their challenge is to create an intimate, viewer-encompassing environment that stimulates discourse, reflection and community. As an added parameter, each winner must use plaster and mirror as their primary materials. Plaster and mirror were selected because both materials are relatively inexpensive, extremely versatile and commonly available, yet their ancient histories are rooted in extravagance and fanciful expression. Each designer will be allocated 38m2 of space in which to present their commissioned project. “Both plaster and mirror are considered to be essentially surface materials, since neither can be used as load-bearing structural elements,” Design Miami/ Associate Director Wava Carpenter explains. "This ‘superficial’ aspect is the core of this experiment: the designers must use materials associated with ornamentation to execute a meaningful contemporary design idea.”

Commission installation for Design Miami/Basel