For the second edition of Unique Design X Mexico City, Carpenters Workshop Gallery presents a cutting-edge selection of contemporary works exploring the intersection between art, design and craftsmanship. The international artists, designers and architects on display look to push the boundaries of conventional disciplinary genres and extend past the confines of traditional exhibition spaces.
Martin Laforêt combines elements of Arte Povera and Brutalism in his practice, imbuing industrial materials with nobility through handcrafted processes. V1LC19 Yellow is part of the artist’s Variations collection, which takes its cues from artificial landscapes – such as the roads and concrete edifices of sprawling urban jungles – to confer new life onto ubiquitous imagery. The work features a cobblestone effect cast into the concrete frame, creating a rustic sensibility.
Vincenzo De Cotiis works at the cusp between art and architecture, creating a universe fuelled by parallelisms of space and time. DC2211 Side Table features a sculptural blend of fiberglass and malachite, a pairing that sees robust materiality merge with the aesthetics often found in contemporary cities. Seamlessly integrating heritage and modernity, the work’s distinctive form is reminiscent of ancient inspirations, elevated by its lustrous surfaces and its sleek lines.
Through their minimalist Japanese-French aesthetic, Aki+Arnaud Cooren integrate subtle references to nature into everyday objects. Ishigaki Lamp, which won a Créateurs Design Award in 2025, is inspired by freediving on Japan’s south coast. The light is projected upwards, producing a mesmerising shadow on the ceiling, representing sunlight on the ocean’s surface as viewed from underwater. The dappled combination of colour and material creates an abstract intersection of fabric, liquid and light.
The display also includes works by Campana Brothers, Nacho Carbonell, Wendell Castle, DRIFT, Steven Haulenbeek and Kostas Lambridis. Together, the exhibited artists reflect a contemporary design movement that looks to unleash the cultural, historical and emotional narratives that exist within objects. In line with Unique Design X’s manifesto, CECI N’EST PAS DU DESIGN – THIS IS NOT DESIGN, the display reflects Carpenters Workshop Gallery’s aspiration to blur the boundaries between art, design and craftsmanship.