Sofa NY

Last rainy Saturday, my dad and I teamed up after a Cajuny brunch, to attend the SOFA show at the Park Avenue Armory. SOFA is a clever acronym for for Sculptural Objects and Functional Art. My poor dad was expecting some nice upholstery, but wound up staring at some inscrutable objects.

In my old age - and through my work at a craft non-profit - I've developed a strong taste for high-quality, handmade functional objects. For the time being, of course, I'm living in a shetl on the sixth floor of a walk-up tenement, with some top-grade K-mart furniture (and some salvaged from the streets - although repurposed is the new new), but hopefully one day, I'll be able to live through expression. Or express to live. Or whathaveyou.


The concept of "recession" seems not to have hit this sphere, although many small-scale artisans are scaling back their traveling exhibiting. There were many museum- and collector-grade works, there were many works of poo. I myself have a penchant for furniture design, especially beautiful, sinuous woods. I know that inclination could be perceived as old-school, sort of like championing neo-classical architecture to a group of postmodernists. But furniture is as functional as you can get. Vessels of ceramic and glass, sconces, jewelry - all of these items are better enjoyed if you have somewhere to put your butt.


All in all, it was similar to being in a chocolate store while on Weight Watchers, but not really liking the selection anyway (too much marzipan, not enough peanut brittle). It is heartening, though, to find a niche of manumakers in a global economy so fraught with industrial production.